Hello! The Nobel Peace Prize for 2023 has been awarded to Narges Mohammadi, an Iranian activist currently serving a 12-year prison term — the latest sentence in a line of 13 arrests from campaigning for women’s rights. Today we're exploring:
The silent accelerator
Just like the cars it makes, Chinese manufacturer BYD has quietly accelerated in the last 6 months, coming just 3,000 deliveries short of becoming the world’s leading seller of all-electric vehicles.
In it most recent quarter, BYD delivered 432k all-electric vehicles, putting the company within 1% of Tesla’s 435k, after the American manufacturer’s planned factory downtime contributed to a 7% decline in deliveries.
In the first 3 months of 2021, BYD sold less than 39,000 all-electric cars. One year later, BYD shipped 143,000 — more than the entire VW Group, despite the automotive giant owning 10 major brands and committing to spend a hard-to-get-your-head-around $193 billion over the next 5 years in its push for electrification.
Throughout the rest of the year, BYD charged ahead, leaving just one brand left in the company’s sights. And, with a push into international exports, BYD looks very likely to leave Tesla in the rear view mirror soon.
However, even if Tesla’s reign at the top of the delivery charts ends, the company doesn’t look likely to relinquish its title of “most valuable auto manufacturer” any time soon: Tesla's $825bn market cap is still 9x that of BYD, equivalent to the next 10 largest automakers combined.
Permian pioneer
ExxonMobil is eyeing up a major deal, with America’s largest oil company on the brink of buying Pioneer Natural Resources, Texas' biggest crude producer, in a deal worth approximately $60 billion. If completed, this would mark Exxon's largest deal since it acquired the second half of its name for $81 billion back in 1999.
Pioneer wields a strong presence in the Permian Basin — a sprawling patch of shale in Texas and New Mexico that's become the backbone of America’s oil industry. In the last quarter alone, Pioneer extracted a staggering 711,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from the basin, trailing only behind Chevron and ConocoPhillips in the region.
Buying Pioneer makes a lot of sense for Exxon: the company has been investing heavily into its own operations in the booming Permian Basin and, like its rivals, is flushed with cash after last year’s record-breaking profits.
The deal also comes just two years after Exxon’s public showdown with hedge fund Engine No. 1, which pushed for the company to adopt a more environmentally friendly strategy — the behemoth clearly isn’t ready to let go of the oil and gas that's fueled its profits for decades.
Bugging out
Anyone who’s seen itch-inducing videos of creepy-crawly-infested metro seats on social media will know that Paris is starting to earn an unwanted reputation.
Indeed, the growing numbers of bed bugs — or "punaises de lit" — has become a major issue in the French capital: the Parisian deputy mayor announced that “no-one was safe”, impacting everything from cinemas to hospitals. And, with preparations well underway in the host city for the 2024 Olympics, the pressure is on to quell the bugs quickly, with concerned tourists jumping to Wikipedia to read up on the pests in English and French.
Put to bed
So, how concerned should we be about the Parisian problème? Even though the London-Paris Eurostar is taking preventative measures, no major outbreaks stemming from France have been reported in the UK — let alone the US, despite TikTok searches for #bedbugs booming.
Nevertheless, the outbreak is unusual in its timing, as bed bug activity tends to peak at the end of summer as the insects thrive in warm temperatures — a pattern reflected in Google searches. Even so, as highlighted by the French Health Minister, the rise in bed bug sightings may not be a matter of Paris being “invaded” as much as an indication of bed bugs proliferating everywhere due to increased travel and the bug's growing resistance towards insecticides.
• A beaver was born in London for the first time in 400 years, following efforts to reintroduce the species in England.
• Logan Royale: Actor Brian Cox will host a new reality show for Prime Video, where wannabe James Bonds will compete in spy-inspired challenges for a chance to win ~$1.2 million.
• TV show Suits now officially has the most No.1 appearances on Nielsen's Streaming Top 10 chart after 12 consecutive weeks at the top.
• Mapping out Ukraine’s counteroffensive against Russia.
• What is, statistically, the greatest year in film history?
Off the charts: Which of the fastest-growing fast-food companies has just become the #2 US chicken chain, overtaking KFC? [Answer below].
