CHECKOUT COUNTER

1. Amazon drops NYC

Amazon has scrapped plans to build a second head office in the New York City borough of Queens. The company cited opposition from local leaders angry at the huge subsidies being offered to Amazon. The online giant was offered nearly $3bn in public subsidies by the state and city in exchange for the company bringing at least 25,000 jobs and other investments.

2. Java fix

Nestlé has launched a new range of 24 coffee products under the Starbucks brand. It includes whole bean and roast and ground coffee, as well as the first Starbucks capsules developed using Nespresso and Nescafé Dolce Gusto proprietary coffee and system technologies. This is the first product launch since the two companies joined forces in August 2018 to create a global coffee alliance.

3. Garmin buys bike group

Garmin has announced that one of its affiliates has signed a deal to acquire Tacx, a privately held Dutch company that designs and manufactures indoor bike trainers, tools and accessories, as well as indoor training software and applications. The acquisition is subject to approval. No financial terms were released.

4. Alibaba, Metro in talks

The Alibaba Group is reportedly in talks with Germany’s Metro about taking a stake in the German wholesaler’s China operations, three sources told Reuters last week. The companies declined to comment. The talks are at an early stage and could still fall apart, the sources said. Alibaba’s interest comes after Chinese rival Tencent last year signed a partnership deal with France’s Carrefour.