Russia detains 11 suspects after Moscow terror attack

Good morning. Here's what happened overnight and what you need to know today.

1.

Moscow attack: Russia’s Federal Security Bureau has detained 11 suspects after a terrorist attack at a concert just outside of Moscow killed at least 133 people on Friday, in the deadliest assault in the country in over 10 years. By Sunday night, the number of injured had risen to 154 people as the country declared a day of national mourning. Videos of the four gunmen who shot into crowds at the concert being interrogated have been circulated on social media, and despite Islamic State (IS) group claiming responsibility for the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin implied possible Ukrainian involvement. Putin condemned the “barbaric terrorist attack” and claimed the attackers were trying to escape to Ukraine. (BBC)

2.

Government submissions: The federal government will recommend a pay increase for low-paid workers in its submission to the Fair Work Commission’s annual wage review. In its draft submission to the Commission, the government recommends that real wages for Australia’s low-paid workers do not go backwards and emphasises that a pay increase should come in addition to cost of living tax cuts rather than as a substitute. The submission adds that while inflation has moderated it is still above the RBA’s 2%-3% target, meaning the current environment remains challenging, with many households experiencing cost of living pressures. “The Government’s cost-of-living tax cuts will allow workers to keep more of what they earn. These tax cuts will provide meaningful cost-of-living relief in a way that does not add to inflationary pressures and are designed to be in addition to any increase in award and minimum wages granted by the Fair Work Commission in this review,” the draft submission states. (Capital Brief)

3.

Chip wars: China has introduced new guidelines blocking the use of Intel and AMD microprocessors in its government computers, as it increases efforts to replace its use of foreign technology with locally made solutions. According to a report by the Financial Times, Beijing’s strict new procurement guidance also aims to block the use of Microsoft’s Windows and internationally made database software. The rules were unveiled in December last year, with officials now putting them into practice. The guidelines order government agencies above the township level to include criteria that require “safe and reliable” processors and operating systems when making purchases, according to the newspaper. Beijing has also published a list of processors which it deems “safe and reliable,” that includes only Chinese companies such as Huawei and Phytium. Both companies are already included on Washington’s export ‘blacklist,’ and just last week reports emerged that the Biden administration is considering extending US sanctions to firms associated with Huawei. (Financial Times)(Capital Brief)

4.

Legal deadline: Trump is facing a ‘moment of truth’ on Monday for a hearing tied to his civil fraud suit in New York, as he reaches the deadline to either post a bond to cover the USD454 million ($695 million) verdict, or risk the state seizing his assets. Last week the presidential candidate’s lawyers told the court he does not have the cash to cover the bond, nor has he been able to secure the funds from insurance providers. Trump has asked the appeals court to waive the requirement or he will be forced to hold a fire sale of his assets to put forward the necessary cash. New York Attorney General Letitia James has threatened to seize assets if he doesn’t pay up, a process which could commence as early as today. (Bloomberg)

5.

Strong advice: The International Monetary Fund told China that it must “reinvent itself” through economic policies to resolve its property market crisis and boost domestic consumption and productivity. Speaking at the opening of the China Development Forum in Beijing on Sunday, managing director of the IMF Kristalina Georgieva said: “China faces a fork in the road — rely on the policies that have worked in the past, or reinvent itself for a new era of high-quality growth.” The IMF urged sweeping changes to improve the country’s economy, and presented analysis showing that a more consumer-centric policy mix could boost China’s economy by USD3.5 trillion over the next 15 years. Beijing is pushing the message that China is open for business, despite foreign investment flows contracting almost 20% in the first two months of 2024. (Reuters)

6.

Anti-green red states: US investing funds have pulled around USD13.3 billion from BlackRock over the past two years as a Republican campaign to punish the asset manager for its stance on ESG continues to bite. The figure includes the Texas Permanent School Fund’s decision last week to pull USD8.5 billion from BlackRock at the end of April, making it the largest removal by Republican-run pension funds to date. The investment outflows from asset managers began in 2022 when West Virginia state treasurer Riley Moore included BlackRock on a list of financial firms deemed to boycott fossil fuel companies. Texas, Florida, Missouri and other red states followed suit with anti-ESG initiatives and divestments. (Financial Times)

7.

Appropriate supervision: Amazon will appeal a decision from the French data protection regulator, CNIL, which fined the company €32 million in January for monitoring employee activity via a system that it called “excessively intrusive.” The tech giant said in an e-mailed statement on Friday that it “strongly disagrees with the CNIL’s conclusions, which are factually incorrect, and have appealed this decision to the Conseil d’Etat.” Amazon reiterated that its warehouse management systems are the industry standard, and are necessary for maintaining safety, quality and efficiency of operations as well as for package tracking. (Bloomberg)

8.

AI funding: Artificial intelligence startup HeyGen is raising USD60 million at a pre-investment valuation of USD440 million in a round led by VC firm Benchmark. The raise would value HeyGen at a figure six times higher than the valuation it received just four months ago, according to sources cited by The Information. The company uses AI to generate avatars and voices for videos, but its ties to China could be putting it at odds with US officials who are increasingly trying to stem Chinese investment in US tech. HeyGen is now headquartered in Los Angeles, but was founded in China just three years ago and received early funding from Chinese investors including HongShan, previously known as Sequoia Capital China, and ZhenFund. (The Information)