Reading Global(2022.01.14)
Google spent $1 billion on a London office building and bet on resuming offline work
Reuters reported that technology giant Google said on the 14th that the company has spent $1 billion to buy a building in central London, which shows that the company is full of confidence in the resumption of work offline.
Google, which employs 6,400 people in the UK, plans to spend millions of pounds to renovate its offices in London's central St Giles development.
Google plans to modify the building to make it suitable for face-to-face team work and provide meeting rooms for hybrid work while creating more space for individuals.
The company said the new renovation will also be equipped with outdoor workspaces to work in the fresh air.
In addition, Google is building a new headquarters near King's Cross Street in London, and if added to offices elsewhere in the UK, the purchase will allow Google to accommodate 10,000 employees in the country.
Google said last month that it was delaying plans to return to the office globally due to growing concerns about the Omicron variant.
The Central St Giles Building was once owned by a joint venture between Legal & General Investment Management, the UK's largest asset manager, and London-based Mitsubishi Properties Limited.
South Korea's LG Energy plans to establish a battery joint venture with Honda in the United States
Reuters reported that according to the South Korean media "Daily Economic News" on the 14th, an industry insider said that South Korean battery manufacturer LG Energy (LG Energy Solution or LGES) plans to establish a battery joint venture with Japan's Honda Motor Co., Ltd. in the United States.
According to the newspaper, the battery joint venture between LGES and Honda could invest as much as 4 trillion won ($3.4 billion) and have an annual production capacity of 40 GWh, enough to power 600,000 electric vehicles (EVs). But the report didn't give more details about when the joint venture was established and when it would begin operations.
LGES is a battery subsidiary of LG Chem G. Ltd. with more than 20% of the global electric vehicle battery market, providing products for Tesla, General Motors and Volkswagen, among others.
Honda and its alliance partner, General Motors, plan to launch two jointly developed large electric vehicle models in North America in 2024 that will use GM's Ultium batteries. The battery will be produced by a joint venture between GM and LG.
LGES has battery production plants in the United States, China, South Korea, Poland and Indonesia, and according to a document from the company, it plans to invest a total of 5.6 trillion won in North America by 2024 to ensure that the region's production capacity exceeds 160 GWh by 2025.
That includes two new U.S. plants jointly built with GM in Ohio and Tennessee, and a battery joint venture with Stellantis NV.
Milan Fashion Week was scaled back by the coronavirus and opened with 16 shows
The Associated Press reported that milan's fall/winter 2022-23 fashion week preview opened on the 14th, and the actual activities were much less than originally planned, and the number of new coronavirus infections in Italy hit a new high almost every day, and the development of these activities was severely limited.
Global big names such as Zegna, Fendi, Dolce & Gabbana and Prada will still host live performances, but Milan's main force Giorgio Armani has cancelled the show altogether, and other brands have also canceled the catwalk. The more than 40 live events planned were reduced by a quarter, and 16 live catwalks will be performed in parallel with physical displays.
Paris has also confirmed that a streamlined catwalk will be held from January 18-23, followed by a haute couture show, while London has cancelled the January schedule, which will be combined with the women's clothing preview in February.
Since Italy discovered its first locally transmitted case of COVID-19 during Fashion Week in February 2020, italy's fashion industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus. Armani was the first brand to close the showroom to a live audience.
Until last September's Spring/Summer 2022 Women's Preview, vaccination rates at the time heralded a return to live performances, albeit in limited numbers and social distancing. But it's enough to make people expect the scene crowded with fashion people.
But the show, because of travel restrictions and concerns about the virus, meant that many editors and buyers who had planned to travel to Milan this month cancelled their trips, especially those from the United States. In addition, travel to Italy has been restricted in Asia and Eastern Europe – an important fashion market – because the vaccines are not approved by European health authorities.
Today's picture
Former Japanese Prime Minister Toshiki Kaibe apologized to the people of Nanjing on his death
On January 14, 2022, local time, Japan's Kyodo News Agency, sources revealed that former Japanese Prime Minister Toshiki Kaibe died on the 9th, at the age of 91. Toshiki Kaibe is a member of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party and served as Prime Minister from 1989 to 1991. According to previous sources, in April 2010, When Toshiki Haibe participated in an event in Nanjing, he said that Japan had made an unforgivable mistake against the people of Nanjing, and "as a politician, I would like to express a deep apology to the people of Nanjing." He also mentioned that there has been an unfortunate history between Japan and China in the past, and "I sincerely wish everyone to look forward, learn from history, and face the future."
(This article is compiled from Reuters and The Associated Press)
Economic Observation Network intern reporter Zhou Yuqing sorted out