Month: March 2019

Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman returns home from Pakistan

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US trade chief sees long-term China challenges, continued tariff threat

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The United States will need to maintain the threat of tariffs on Chinese goods for years even if Washington and Beijing strike a deal to end a costly tariff war, President Donald Trump’s chief trade negotiator told lawmakers on Wednesday.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer cautioned that much work was still needed to nail down a US-China trade agreement, including working out how it will be enforced.

“If we can complete this effort – and again I say if … we might be able to have an agreement that helps us turn the corner in our economic relationship with China,” Lighthizer said in testimony to the US House Ways and Means Committee.

The two countries have imposed tit-for-tat tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of each others’ goods, roiling financial markets, disrupting manufacturing supply chains and shrinking US farm exports.

Lighthizer said USTR was taking legal steps to implement Trump’s decision on Sunday to delay a tariff increase on more than $200 billion worth of Chinese goods that had been scheduled for Friday.

But USTR later clarified in a statement that it was not abandoning the threat of increasing the tariffs to 25 percent from 10 percent. It said a Federal Register notice would be published this week that would suspend the increase “until further notice.”

Lighthizer detailed a long road ahead to resolve US China trade issues, and said that tariffs would remain an important tool to push China to make structural policy changes sought by Trump and lawmakers.

“The reality is this is a challenge that will go on for a long, long time,” Lighthizer said. He earlier said he “is not foolish enough” to believe that a single negotiation will change the increasingly sour bilateral trade relationship.

“If there is disagreement at my level, the US would expect to act proportionately but unilaterally,” Lighthizer added.

A perennial threat of tariffs would be disappointing news for the industry, which is hoping to see an end to the trade war uncertainty that has paralysed China investment decisions.

Lighthizer’s cautious comments about a China deal prospect sent US stocks lower in morning trade, but Wall Street steadied somewhat after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told a separate hearing that the Fed would stop shrinking its $4 trillion balance sheet later this year.

‘Most Severe Challenge’

The issues that the United States faces with China are “too serious” to be resolved by promises to purchase more US goods and structural change by China is needed, Lighthizer said.

China has offered to purchase an additional $1.2 trillion of US products over six years, people familiar with the talks have said, which would be a welcome relief to farmers and businesses hit hard by Beijing’s retaliatory tariffs.

But lawmakers have urged the Trump administration not to allow potential big-ticket purchases to distract him from pursuing an end to what the United States alleges are unfair trade practices.

China represents the “most severe challenge” ever faced by US trade policymakers and congressional support has been “critical in persuading China” to take Washington’s concerns more seriously, Lighthizer said on Wednesday.

The United States has accused Beijing of forcing US companies doing business in China to share their technology with local partners and hand over intellectual property secrets. China denies it engages in such practices.

Trump administration officials also object to non-tariff barriers in China, including industrial subsidies, regulations, business licensing procedures, product standards reviews and other practices that they say keep US goods out of China or give an unfair advantage to domestic firms.

Lighthizer on Wednesday said that while some progress has been made in the talks, the United States needs to be able to take unilateral action to enforce any agreement.

“I don’t believe this is going to solve all the problems between the United States and China,” Lighthizer said. “We’re going to be back here and working our way through problems, always with one eye toward the future.”

The United States is seeking monthly meetings for lower-level officials, quarterly meetings for vice ministers and semiannual meetings at the ministerial level for the enforcement process, Lighthizer said.

Reuters first reported in January that the US side was demanding such reviews of China‘s progress on pledged trade reforms.

Lighthizer also said the United States is seeking to prevent China from competitive devaluation of its yuan as part of a currency deal in the talks.

He told lawmakers that the negotiations are to settle China‘s violations of Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and therefore were executive actions that did not require Congress’ approval. The China talks have had more in common with a sanctions-monitoring regime than a traditional trade pact, focused on corrective actions by Beijing.

‘Substantial’ Purchases

While lawmakers from major agricultural states broadly shared their support for a deal that addresses these core issues, they sounded the alarm about the impact of tariffs. US farmers have been among the hardest hit by retaliation from China, the top market for many of their products.

Lighthizer said Trump’s team is pushing China to promise to make “substantial” new purchases of US products, including soybeans, corn, ethanol and cotton.

The purchase plan is designed to secure future demand as well, he said.

“Our hope is if you increase those agriculture sales, you would create new customers and results that go out years and years and years and years,” Lighthizer said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Here are the bulk/block deal details of February 28

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Indian bourses closed slightly lower due to F&O expiry and uncertain developments with respect to India and Pakistan’s geopolitical tensions.

Sensex closed at 35,867.44, down by 37.99 points while Nifty closed at 10,797.80, down by 8.90 points. During the trading session, around 1,463 shares advanced, 1,005 shares declined and 153 shares remain unchanged.

Sectors that witnessed selling pressure were automobile and IT space while metal, pharmaceutical, energy, FMCG, PSU banks and others remained higher.

STCI Finance Ltd sold 18,24,602 shares of Reliance Infrastructure at Rs 123.8 per share aggregating to a total amount of Rs 22,58,85,727.6 crore.

SBI Mutual Fund bought 3731600 shares of Tata Motors DVR at Rs 87.74 per share aggregating to a total amount of Rs 32,74,10,584 crore.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US welcomes Pakistan’s decision to release captured Indian pilot

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The United States on Thursday welcomed Pakistan’s decision to release a captured Indian Air Force pilot, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, in their custody.

In a surprise announcement during a joint session of Parliament, Prime Minister Imran Khan said Thursday that the captured IAF pilot Varthaman will be released on Friday as a gesture of peace.

Pakistan detained Varthaman Wednesday following a fierce engagement between air forces of the two sides along the Line of Control when his MiG 21 fighter jet was downed.

“We welcome Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s commitment that Pakistan will release on Friday the Indian pilot held in its custody,” a State Department spokesperson told PTI responding to a question on the announcement made by Khan in the Pakistani parliament.

Simultaneously, the US has urged both India and Pakistan to take immediate steps to de-escalate tensions.

“The United States continues to urge both sides to take immediate steps to de-escalate the situation, including through direct communication. Further military activity will exacerbate the situation,” the State Department spokesperson said.

The US reiterated its call to Pakistan to abide by its UN Security Council commitments to deny terrorists safe haven and block their access to funds.

“We reiterate our call for Pakistan to abide by its United Nations Security Council commitments to deny terrorists safe haven and block their access to funds,” the spokesperson said.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer on Thursday joined other lawmakers in expressing concern over the escalating tension between India and Pakistan.

“This is a result of a Pakistan-based terrorist group’s brutal attack, he said.

“I urge both countries to de-escalate the mounting tensions,” Hoyer said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Vinod Lobo’s Learning Upgrade ties for $7 million in Barbara Bush Adult Literacy XPrize

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Learning Upgrade, a small business in California headed by Vinod Lobo has hit the big times by being selected as the co-winner for the grand prize in the $7 million Barbara Bush Foundation Adult Literacy XPRIZE.

The late First Lady Barbara Bush had been a great proponent of education and adult literacy and it was on her birthday in 2015 that the $7M Barbara Bush Foundation Adult Literacy XPRIZE was created to challenge teams to develop mobile applications for smartphones that increase literacy skills among participating adult learners. Indeed, research has shown that 77 percent of Americans now own a smartphone so the competition aims to change the way 36 million adults with low literacy skills tackle the obstacles to achieving basic literacy – access, retention and scale.

Xprize was a  study with over 10,000 learners in 3 different cities and half of them were English speakers and half were English language learners but all read at the third-grade level or below.  The Learning Upgrade app and the People ForWords app facilitated the greatest increase in literacy among participating adult learners within the 12-month testing period of the Adult Literacy XPRIZE. “XPRIZE is a powerful platform for impact, and we’re so proud to have been a part of this historic effort to empower adults to take their learning into their own hands,” said Anousheh Ansari, CEO of XPRIZE.

Vinod Lobo, CEO, Learning Upgrade did not expect such a spectacular result for his small family-owned business which had graduated to making apps only three years ago, even though it is a 20-year-old business. Lobo, whose family is originally from Goa, grew up in Bangalore till the age of 7 when the family moved to California. The love of education was sown early in life.

“Our family had a pre-school in Bangalore, so I watched my mother teaching young children as I grew up.  Once in the US, we combined the skills of my mother who is a songwriter and a teacher with my work as a computer engineer, to create programs that combine music, video, and games.” The aim was always to help those struggling with reading and math, including students with special needs/dyslexia, English learners, and low-income children and adults. Lobo also worked as a tutor through high school and that convinced him of the impact of good teaching in changing lives.

Working on interactive computer games, be remembers the primitive times when computers were still in the early stages, CD Roms were just coming out and one could not do all the things that can be done today. “We decided to bring the power of teaching and combine it with music and computers. Our first CD Rom called Sound it out Land was created in 1993 and after that, we produced 1000s of lessons. Finally, in 2000, I realised that everything was moving from the CD Roms to the web – there was going to be this new thing called the Internet and we started creating lessons for the web using Flash.”

It was only 3 years ago that Learning Upgrade joined the Adult Literacy XPrize and worked on its first app.  “Just as we had a big transition from CD Rom to the Web, we were a little bit late to the App world but the XPrize forced us to work with apps and now most of our business is based on Apps. Those same lessons have moved from the web to smartphones, I-pads, tablets and I-phones.”

Learning Upgrade has now thousands of lessons and they keep producing more for varied subjects including Algebra, diploma prep, and advanced comprehension to meet the needs of the American school system, working mainly with elementary, middle and high schools.

“We kept experimenting and no one had combined teaching, phonics, music and games to teach adults to read,” says Lobo. “So it’s still very unique. Many would think that adults wouldn’t go for that but we’ve had over 25,000 adults use our apps in the last 12 months. They like it because it’s fun, they like the music and the format and the fact that it’s private.”

Indeed, adults are kids at heart and engagement is key to learning. Learning Upgrade fits into this new world as it is something different that teaches reading and writing as well as math, from basic to diploma. It is being used for adults in the US as well as India and people from all over the world can download the app from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, including those in India.

Asked about how the prize money will be used, Lobo says, “My family’s goal is to scale up to serve millions of families struggling with literacy and math. This prize gives us an opportunity to partner with organizations, companies, and leaders to make our app available to anyone who needs help around the world.”

The Grand prize winners, Learning Upgrade and People ForWords, will divide a $3 million purse, while each also receives a $1 million achievement prize, for having the best performance in two key demographic groups: native English speakers and English language learners.

The second phase of the initiative is the upcoming $1 million Barbara Bush Foundation Adult Literacy XPRIZE Communities Competition, a 15-month competition for organizations, communities and individuals to recruit adult learners to download and use the apps developed by the two grand-prize-winning teams along with the following two finalist teams AmritaCreate of Amrita University and Cell-Ed from Oakland California.

Along with Learning Upgrade and People ForWords, AmritaCREATE and Cell-Ed will each receive $125,000 for their participation in the Communities Competition. A total of $1 million will be awarded, with $500,000 available for teams who submit the most innovative, feasible and scalable plans, and $500,000 for teams who recruit the most adult learners to download and consistently use the learning apps.

As to the most satisfying part of this big win, Lobo says, “The XPRIZE has challenged us to create an app that can change the lives of an adult who is low-literate. The most rewarding aspect is visiting an adult education site such as the Queens Public Library in NYC or a refugee center which has hundreds of adults enrolled in the program, and meet the adults who have made large breakthroughs.”

He recalls that he was invited to UMI Learning Center, a pilot site for The Learning App, to hand out certificates to women who had completed the courses. “These were North African refugees, mostly Somali, many who could not read or write in any language,” he says. “They had used their own mobile phones to complete 2, 3, or even 4 complete courses in reading and math, some working over 100 hours on our app!”

These women shared stories with Vinod Lobo about how they would put their children to bed and then “binge learn” lesson after lesson into the evening: “ Some even talked about doing all of our courses and then taking the GED test to get a diploma. Since these women often are discouraged from learning within their families and community, the phone and our app gives them a safe way to gain literacy and math as well as the confidence to get a better job, a diploma, or go to college.”

Lavina Melwani is a New York-based journalist who blogs at Lassi with Lavina.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Closing Bell: Sensex ends above 36,000, Nifty above 10,850, midcaps surge sharply, ZEEL up 5%

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Asian shares up as MSCI weighting plan lifts China

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Asian shares edged up on Friday after index publisher MSCI announced it would raise the weight of Chinese mainland shares in its global benchmarks, while strong US economic data lifted the dollar.

China’s blue-chip CSI300 index surged 2.2 percent to finish off its best week since November 2015, after MSCI said it would quadruple the weighting of China’s A-shares in its global benchmarks later this year, potentially drawing more than $80 billion of fresh foreign inflows to the world’s second-biggest economy.

That, along with strength in other markets in the region, helped push MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.3 percent.

Shares in Europe are seen following Asia higher, with financial spread betters expecting London’s FTSE and Frankfurt’s DAX to open 0.5 percent higher. Paris’ CAC is expected to rise 0.3 percent at the open.

Friday’s Chinese stock rally follows a strong run this year, with major indexes posting their best month in nearly four years in February, driven by expectations for government stimulus and policy support, as well as optimism over US-China trade talks.

“Just two months ago China was facing one of the worst years it’s ever had in terms of equity market performance. So I think investors are taking very seriously the fact that the rebalancing of MSCI is happening,” said Jim McCafferty, head of equity research, Asia ex-Japan at Nomura.

“There’s a disconnect between China’s place in the world economy and China’s place in the world’s stock markets. And the two things can’t be diverged for so long,” he said.

Elsewhere in the region, Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended 1 percent higher, helped by a weaker yen, while Australian shares added 0.4 percent.

The gains in Asia contrast with a weaker finish on Wall Street on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.27 percent to 25,916 points, the S&P 500 lost 0.28 percent to 2,784.49 and the Nasdaq dropped 0.29 percent to 7,532.53.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday fuelled concerns over trade talks between the United States and China, warning that he could walk away from a trade deal with China if it were not good enough.

But in subsequent comments Thursday, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow called progress in the negotiations “fantastic” and said the countries were “heading towards a remarkable, historic deal.”

Mixed messages on trade combined with the collapse of the summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on denuclearisation, and data from China showing slowing factory activity to pressure US stocks.

“News that President Trump walked out of the meeting with Supreme Leader Kim, because the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement over North Korea’s nuclear disarmament, dashed hopes for an easing in geopolitical tensions,” analysts at ANZ said in a morning note.

South Korea’s financial markets are closed Friday for a public holiday.

HIGHER YIELDS

Better-than-expected US economic growth in the fourth quarter had little impact on U.S. stocks. Gross domestic product rose 2.9 percent for the year, just shy of the 3 percent goal set by the Trump administration.

The GDP data lifted yields on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes. After rising to a high of 2.7222 percent on Friday, the yield eased to 2.7204 percent, still up from a US close of 2.711 percent on Thursday.

Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan said on Thursday that it will take time to see how much the US economy is slowing, supporting views of the Fed’s rate-hike holiday at least through to June.

The dollar also rose on the U.S. data, adding 0.4 percent against the yen to 111.80, having earlier touched a new high for the year at 111.82.

The dollar index which tracks the greenback against major rivals was up 0.2 percent at 96.302.

In commodity markets, US crude added 0.8 percent to $57.67 a barrel, and Brent crude rose 1 percent to $66.95 per barrel.

Spot gold fell 0.3 percent on the stronger dollar, to $1,309.35 per ounce.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Fed’s Jerome Powell: ‘Muted’ inflation gives room for wages to rise

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A rise in productivity last year gives more room for wages to grow without the risk of higher inflation, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said on Thursday, offering another reason why the US central bank can hold off on further rate increases.

“Signs of upward pressure on inflation appear muted despite the strong labour market,” with unemployment at 4 percent and wage increases picking up of late, Powell said in remarks prepared for delivery at the Citizens Budget Commission in New York.

With sidelined workers moving back into the labour market and an improvement in productivity last year, the economy can continue filling tens of thousands of new jobs each month and support higher wages without sparking an inflation spike that might prompt the Fed to begin raising rates again.

“More plentiful jobs and rising wages are drawing more people into the work force,” Powell said. “Business-sector productivity growth, which had been disappointing during the expansion, moved up. … Rising productivity allows wages to increase without adding to inflation pressures.”

Powell was among three Fed officials on Thursday whose comments expanded on the Fed’s “patient” approach to further rate increases. The policy was announced in January, suspending a three-year cycle of rate hikes amid rising risks to the U.S. and global economies, and concern inflation might be slipping from its current level near the Fed’s 2 percent target.

Vice Chairman Richard Clarida earlier on Thursday said the Fed should discount any models that project a surge of inflation and wait for incoming data to prove it is happening. In Texas, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said the central bank should wait until at least June before any further rate decisions.

Many investors think the Fed will be on hold for the year and that its next move may even be to reduce rates.

Powell’s comments, prepared for delivery at a dinner in his honour, were largely devoted to a call for other leaders to find ways to encourage more working-age adults to look for jobs, and to improve productivity.

Economists regard those two issues as central to improving long-run growth, and Powell recently has put particular emphasis on labour force participation. While the participation rate has improved recently, Fed officials feel there is room to do better, particularly with focused efforts to improve opportunities for the less educated.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Oil prices rise on OPEC supply cuts, but surging US output and economic slowdown weigh

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Oil prices rose on Friday as markets tightened amid output cuts by producer club OPEC, but surging US supply and a global economic slowdown prevented crude from climbing further.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures were at $57.41 per barrel at 0350 GMT, up 19 cents, or 0.3 percent, from their last settlement.

International Brent crude futures were at $66.59 per barrel, up 28 cents, or 0.4 percent.

Traders said oil markets were currently tightening.

In Venezuela, oil exports have plunged by 40 percent to around 920,000 barrels per day (bpd) since the US government slapped sanctions against its petroleum industry on January 28.

This drop comes as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), of which Venezuela is a founding member, has led efforts since the start of the year to withhold around 1.2 million bpd of supply to prop up prices.”Global (oil) markets appear tighter than many anticipated for this time of year, but scores of unsold barrels can pile up quickly and saturate regions,” Canada’s RBC Capital Markets said in a research note on oil markets.

Despite this, there are signs that point to a more amply supplied market heading further into 2019.

The US Energy Department said on Thursday it was offering up to 6 million barrels of crude from national emergency reserves to raise funds to modernize the US strategic oil reserves.

Additionally, US crude output has hit a record of more than 12 million bpd, pushing exports to an unprecedented 3.6 million bpd in February.

Investment bank RBC estimated that oil from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico port of Houston “can economically move anywhere globally when priced at a discount of $1.70 per barrel relative to the waterborne Brent benchmark”.

Crude loading from Houston last traded at $6.60 a barrel over WTI, which still put it at a discount of more than $2.15 per barrel to Brent. On the demand side, a Reuters poll showed analysts expect global fuel demand to slow this year amid a broad economic slowdown.

China’s February factory activity fell for a third month as the world’s second-largest economy continued to struggle with weak export orders, a private survey showed on Friday.

The weakness is being felt across the region. South Korea’s exports contracted at their steepest pace in nearly three years in February as demand from its major market China cooled further in yet another sign of faltering momentum in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.

Despite this, fuel consumption especially in Asia’s developing economies, which are key drivers of global oil demand, is so far holding up.

India’s diesel consumption, for instance, is expected to rise to a record this year amid a strong expansion of its heavy-duty vehicles amid economic growth of around 7 percent.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

HBO chief executive Richard Plepler to resign from company

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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HBO chief executive Richard Plepler will leave the premium television network owned by US wireless carrier AT&T Inc after nearly 28 years at the company, Plepler said in a memo to HBO employees on Thursday.

Turner President David Levy is also expected to resign from the broadcasting company, which is also owned by AT&T, according to a source familiar with the plan.

AT&T unit WarnerMedia, which oversees HBO and Turner, declined to comment.

“Hard as it is to think about leaving the company I love, and the people I love in it, it is the right time for me to do so,” Plepler wrote in the memo seen by Reuters.

Plepler oversaw many successes at HBO such as hit shows like “Game of Thrones” and “Girls.”

The news comes after AT&T won an appeals court decision on Tuesday for its purchase of media company Time Warner, which included HBO and the Turner TV networks.

Many in the industry had expected AT&T would begin to restructure the HBO and Turner properties after its second victory over the US Department of Justice, which had sued to stop the merger.

Former NBC chairman Robert Greenblatt is in talks to take a leadership role at WarnerMedia, the source added.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow