Bottomline

NEW YORK:

Comcast will likely bid for Fox’s entertainment business as early as Wednesday now that a federal judge has cleared AT&T’s $85 billion takeover of Time Warner.

If Comcast succeeds in outbidding Disney for Fox, a major cable distributor would control even more channels on its lineup and those of its rivals. There are fears that it could lead to higher cable bills or hinder online alternatives.

But US District Judge Richard Leon cleared the AT&T deal Tuesday despite similar fears. The ruling signaled that federal regulators might have a hard time stopping companies from getting bigger by gobbling up rivals and the content they own. (AP)

SEATTLE:

A tax on large companies such as Amazon that was meant to fight a growing homelessness crisis got rolled back during a raucous Seattle City Council meeting that exposed divisions over how much companies that have fueled booming economies should help pay to alleviate the downsides of success.

A divided crowd chanted, jeered and booed at the meeting, drowning out city leaders as they cast a 7-2 vote Tuesday. People shouted, “Stop the repeal,” as others unfurled a large red banner that read, “Tax Amazon.” An opposing group held “No tax on jobs” signs.

The vote showed Amazon’s ability to aggressively push back on government taxes, especially in its affluent hometown where it’s the largest employer with more than 45,000 workers and where it has been criticized for contributing to a widening income gap. (AP)

NEW YORK:

Electric carmaker Tesla Motors announced Tuesday it was cutting nine percent of its workforce to enhance profitability but said the move would not affect an ambitious production ramp-up of its Model 3 sedan.

The job cuts are part of a companywide restructuring to address excess staff in some areas due to the company’s speedy growth, Tesla chief Elon Musk said in an email to employees.

The cuts concern salaried staff but not production workers and will not affect Model 3 output targets, said Musk, who characterized the downsizing as an acknowledgement of the need to focus more on costs. (AFP)

NEW YORK:

The chief executive of Uber said New York City should impose a fee on app-hailed rides and taxis to help taxi medallion owners who are struggling with debt.

CEO Dara Khosrowshahi told the New York Post on Monday that the city should put the surcharge into a fund to help taxi owners who bought their medallions at sky-high prices. He did not say how much the fee should be.

“In circumstances where medallion owner-operators are having a hard time, where technology has changed and demand patterns has changed their environment, we would support some kind of fee or pool to be formed, a hardship fund, call it,” Khosrowshahi said. (AP)

NEW YORK:

Guess Inc said on Tuesday its co-founder, Paul Marciano, had resigned as the company’s executive chairman after a special committee completed an investigation into allegations of improper conduct.

Marciano gave up his day-to-day responsibilities at the company on an unpaid basis in February, days after model and actress Kate Upton tweeted, accusing Marciano of using his power to harass women.

The fashion retailer said on Tuesday that many of the allegations, which included inappropriate comments and texts and unwanted advances, could not be corroborated.

However, Guess said its investigation found that Marciano on certain occasions exercised poor judgment in his communications with models and photographers. (RTRS)

LONDON:

The world’s biggest advertising agency WPP faced a shareholder revolt on Wednesday over its handling of the departure of former CEO Martin Sorrell, who quit under a cloud but is still entitled to share awards worth millions.

The most famous advertising executive in the world, Sorrell left the marketing giant he built from scratch following an allegation of personal misconduct in April.

In a sign of investor concern, nearly 30 percent of WPP shareholders failed to back the group’s executive pay proposal at its annual meeting, while almost 17 percent of shareholder votes declined to support the re-election of Roberto Quarta as chairman. (RTRS)

BERLIN:

German public broadcaster ZDF is reporting that online retailer Amazon destroys a large amount of new and returned goods even though they are in working order.

In a program that aired Tuesday, ZDF quoted current and former Amazon employees saying the products included electronics, appliances and clothing.

ZDF cited one unnamed Amazon worker saying she oversees the destruction of goods worth more than 23,000 euros ($27,000) each day. (AP)

TOKYO:

Toyota said Wednesday it was investing $1 billion in Asia rideshare company Grab, as the Japanese automaker looks to expand beyond its core business into the “mobility” sector.

Grab, which is headquartered in Singapore, is a leading player in the ride-share industry in Asia, and earlier this year agreed to acquire US giant Uber’s regional operations.

In a statement, Toyota said the deal “is aimed at achieving connectivity for Grab’s rental car fleet across Southeast Asia, and at rolling out various connected services throughout the region that utilise vehicle data” stored by Toyota. (AFP)

SYDNEY:

A consortium led by Hong Kong’s CK Infrastructure Holdings made an unsolicited Aus$13 billion ($9.8 billion) bid for gas pipeline company APA Wednesday, with the Australian firm agreeing to open its books.

APA’s assets include gas transmission pipelines and storage, along with wind and solar farms across Australia. The firm’s website said its 15,000 kilometres (9,300 miles) of gas pipelines connect 1.3 million Australian homes and business.

The Aus$11 per share cash offer was a 33 percent premium to the company’s Aus$8.27 closing price on Tuesday, with the stock soaring 20.92 percent to finish at Aus$10.00 on Wednesday. (AFP)