BitGou: Wednesday Morning Briefing: Venezuela's Guaido calls for 'largest march' in the country's history

Top News

Venezuela's Juan Guaido calls for 'largest march in history' in uprising effort. Venezuelans were expected to take to the streets for what opposition leader Juan Guaido pledged would be the “largest march” in the country’s history, a day after he called for the military to oust President Nicolas Maduro. Early on Tuesday, several dozen armed troops accompanying Guaido clashed with soldiers supporting Maduro at a rally in Caracas, and large anti-government protests in the streets turned violent. But by Tuesday afternoon an uneasy peace had returned and there was no indication that the opposition planned to take power through military force. Here is a look at who is backing whom in Venezuela.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller complained in a letter to Attorney General William Barr that his four-page summary of Mueller’s Russia report “did not fully capture the context, nature, and substance” of the investigation’s conclusions, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday.

The world’s population is getting older. Japan is at the forefront of this demographic trend that will affect Germany, China and Italy in coming years. In 2000, less than 7 percent of the world’s population was 65 or older. By 2050, that will grow to 15 percent, straining social and medical services, and placing a larger tax burden on the workforce.

The debate behind Trump's move to tighten Iran oil sanctions. President Donald Trump’s unexpected decision to ban all Iranian oil purchases after May 1 - ending exemptions for eight nations - came after hawkish economic and security advisors allayed the president’s fears of an oil price hike, according to three sources familiar with the internal debate.

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange was sentenced by a London court to 50 weeks in jail for skipping bail. Assange broke bail to enter the Ecuadorean embassy almost seven years ago. He was dragged out of the embassy last month and charged by the United States for one of the biggest ever leaks of classified information.

Europe

Poland must stop treating EU as a money-making machine, says European Commission Vice President Katainen. “The EU is not just a money machine, a cow that you can milk,” Katainen told journalists in Warsaw ahead of a summit of countries, mainly from Europe’s formerly Communist east, that have joined the EU since 2004. “We are expecting a more substantial contribution from Poland for the future of Europe.” He also said the EU’s Article 7 procedure, under which the bloc could sanction Poland over changes that Brussels says undermine the rule of law, had not yet had any impact on Warsaw’s behaviour.

Exclusive: The wife of Ukrainian president-elect Volodymyr Zelenskiy bought penthouse at a bargain price from tycoon. Zelenskiy, a comedian and TV star with no political experience, won the April 21 presidential election after campaigning as someone who stands apart from the wealthy elite that dominates Ukrainian business and politics. But the deal over the apartment — in the upmarket “Emperor” complex on the Black Sea coast — indicates that Zelenskiy’s family has benefited from a transaction with a member of that same wealthy elite. Reuters was unable to establish why the apartment was sold at below market prices.

Business

Fed likely to ignore Trump's call to cut interest rates. The U.S. Federal Reserve, leaning back against pressure from Trump to slash interest rates, is expected to leave borrowing costs unchanged as it maintains a ‘patient’ monetary policy stance amid strong economic growth.

A SEC commissioner criticized a settlement between the regulator and Tesla CEO Elon Musk over his use of Twitter. The head of the electric car maker reached a deal with the SEC on Friday, agreeing to submit his public statements about the company’s finances and other topics to vetting by its legal counsel. However, SEC commissioner Robert Jackson registered his dissent after the deal was approved by a federal judge earlier on Tuesday.

China and U.S. hold 'productive' trade talks in Beijing. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, along with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, held a day of discussions, before Chinese Vice Premier Liu He goes to Washington next week for another round of talks in what could be the end game for negotiations. “Ambassador Lighthizer and I just concluded productive meetings with China’s Vice Premier Liu He. We will continue our talks in Washington, D.C. next week,” Mnuchin wrote on his Twitter account. He gave no details.

Apple optimistic as accessories, iPhone price cuts help China sales. Apple said sales in China were stabilizing and touted how increasing demand for services and accessories such as Apple Music and the Apple Watch helped offset a record drop in iPhone revenue. Sales of iPhones, which account for more than half of all revenue, fell 17% in the fiscal second quarter from a year earlier and slightly missed analyst expectations. They gained more than 5% in after-hours trading after Apple announced the results and plans for a new $75 billion share buyback.

Sponsored by IBM: Where do you stack up? Forrester ranked the top 9 providers of enterprise insight platforms - see where your vendor stacks up. Read the Forrester Wave

Environment

U.S. environment agency says glyphosate weed killer is not a carcinogen

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said that glyphosate, a chemical in many popular weed killers, is not a carcinogen, contradicting decisions by U.S. juries that found it caused cancer in people.

3 min read

New French energy law puts off difficult climate decisions

France has set more ambitious targets to cut carbon emissions by 2050 but few measures will take effect on President Emmanuel Macron’s watch as the “yellow vest” protest movement limits his scope for environmental protection.

4 min read

Extinction Rebellion has a message for the world: We've only just begun

After paralyzing parts of London, the co-founder of environmental group Extinction Rebellion has a message for the world: We’ve only just begun. It is a revolt against the extinction of species including, the group says, our own. It made a “declaration of rebellion” against the British government outside parliament in October. “I want the system to change so I think you could call that a revolution,” said co-founder Gail Bradbrook, who graduated top in her year in chemistry at university before doing a molecular biophysics PhD.

4 Min Read