Toyota to Establish Assembly Plant in Ghana, Germany to Haul Facebook Before High Court, and Tesla to Raise Prices in China

Africa

Toyota to establish assembly plant in Ghana

Japanese automobile manufacturer, Toyota Motor Corporation, has announced to build a Toyota and Suzuki assembly plants in Ghana. According to reports, the first Toyota vehicle should be ready by August 2020. “We are planning to kick-off the project immediately, and, hopefully, we will have first car made in Ghana this time (August) next year,” President and Chief Executive Officer of Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Ichiro Kashitani, said in a statement. The company intends to start assembling Toyota Hilux pickup trucks before adding two smaller Suzuki brands in the future. Toyota became principal shareholder in Suzuki after Toyota Tsusho, a member of the Toyota group, acquired a 4.9% stake in Suzuki.

Vodafone Ghana CEO joins West Africa STEM Hub

CEO of Vodafone Ghana, Patricia Obo-Nai, has been appointed to the International Advisory Council of the West Africa STEM Hub, it has been reported. The STEM Hub was established to empower students to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics courses. Patricia Obo-Nai became CEO after the departure of Yolanda Cuba, and was Technology Director as well as Acting Director for Consumer Business at different times in the past. West Africa STEM Hub is closely associated with Western New York’s STEM Hub. Dr Michael Kavanaugh, President Emeritus and Acting Executive Director of the Western New York STEM Hub, said of Patricia that “Western New York STEM Hub applauds the commitment to STEM from an impressive business and education leader like Patricia who is joining forces on the International Advisory Council of the West Africa STEM Hub.” The Advisory Council is constituted of STEM leaders and researchers across the sub-region. “The future is digital and it is our responsibility to empower the young ones to take up critical positions in this area in order to secure a better future for Africa,” Mrs Obo-Nai said in a statement.

Europe

German regulators to take Facebook case to High Court

Germany’s cartel office has announced its decision to haul Facebook before the country’s High Court, Reuters has announced. This comes after a regional court in Dusseldorf suspended restrictions the office had placed on Facebook’s data collection efforts. The case brought to Dusseldorf by Facebook after the cartel had placed injunctions on its abuse of dominant market position. The court’s decision, however, means Facebook would not have to abide by the restrictions placed on its activities, something the Federal Cartel Office is key to undo. “We are convinced that with the available antitrust laws we can take regulatory action. To clarify these questions we will file an appeal to the Federal Court of Justice” Andreas Mundt, head of the cartel office, said in a statement.

Only half of Swiss use online banking

A survey by Swiss National Bank (SNB) has revealed that only half of Switzerland’s population use internet banking. The bank relied on data about demand for mobile and electronic banking services to make payments among 34 banks in the country, the Reuters report said. Even in wealth management, only 1% of assets were managed digitally. The report pointed to big technology firms and online banks as stiff competition to the banks. “Overall, the banks have not yet reached their digitalization targets,” the SNB said.

Asia

Tesla to increase prices in China

Tesla has decided to increase prices on its electric vehicles in China on 30th August, according to stories picked up by Reuters. The price hike is believed to be a response to the US-Sino hostilities as China has raised tariffs on US imports to the mainland. Tesla currently imports all its vehicles into China, meaning it faces the full brunt of the hikes. According to reports, the company is mulling another price hike in December as China announced it would reintroduce a 5% tariff on auto parts and a 25% tariff on vehicles. To forestall the heavy impact, reports indicate Tesla might try to import more vehicles into China before the next round of tariffs come into effect.

Google to move Pixel production to Vietnam

Google is shifting production of its Pixel smartphone to Vietnam in a bid to build a cheap supply chain within the sub-region, Reuters has reported. The move is reported to be due to increasing labour cost as well as tariffs ensuing from the US-China hostilities. By moving the production of all products bound for the USA, Google could avoid tariffs and sanctions on products originating from China. Google will start moving production by close of year, it is believed, starting with the Pixel 3A phone.

The Americas

Facebook tightens rules on political adverts ahead of 2020 US elections

Facebook has announced a tightening of its rules on political ads on both Facebook and Instagram ahead of the 2020 US elections, its has been reported. As part of its terms of use, Facebook will show “confirmed organisation” alongside ads to confirm their legitimacy. In addition, accounts posting such ads would have to post a contact address before they would be allowed to boost their posts. Account holders would thus be required to produce a phone number, business email, and website, in addition to a US mailing address and identity document. Previous Facebook ad restrictions had been circumvented by people posing as fictitious organisations. “In 2018 we did see evidence of misuse in these disclaimers and so this is our effort to strengthen the process,” said Sarah Schiff of Facebook’s product management team.

Ex-Google self-driving vehicle expert indicted for stealing trade secrets

A former Google pioneer of self-driving car technology has been charged with stealing trade secrets prior to joining Uber. Anthony Levandowski, who used to work at Google-owned Waymo, has been charged with 33 counts according to a report by Reuters. He is being accused of stealing secrets in 2015 and 2016 just as he was leaving Waymo to form his own self-driving car company, Ottomotto. Uber later acquired Ottomotto. In 2017, Waymo filed a similar suit against Uber which the two companies settled. The accused person pleaded not guilty during an arraignment in San Jose, California. Having met a $300,000 bail condition, Levandoski would has surrendered his passports and would have to wear an ankle bracelet tracking device so officers can monitor his movements.