英语咖啡馆：2023年2月22日英语时讯

Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, gave a defiant and rambling state-of-the-nation address to the country’s parliament. Mr Putin blamed the West entirely for starting the “special operation” in Ukraine, as the Kremlin calls its invasion, and accused America of escalating the conflict. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden arrived in Poland, where he will also give a speech. The visit follows a surprise trip to Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, on Monday to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

At least six people were killed and 213 injured after tremors of 6.4 and 5.8 magnitudes struck Hatay province in southern Turkey, just two weeks after the region was devastated by larger earthquakes that killed tens of thousands. Rescuers are searching for people trapped in the rubble of newly collapsed buildings. Most residents were staying in temporary tents.

Business activity in the euro zone grew unexpectedly quickly in February, according to estimates released on Tuesday, bolstering hopes that the bloc’s economy will avoid a recession. S&P Global’s flash composite purchasing managers’ index rose to 52.3 this month, compared with January’s reading of 50.3; a score above 50 represents growth. Activity in the service sector increased at its fastest rate since June. 

Israel’s parliament voted to advance a legal-reform bill that will curb the power of the judiciary. Tens of thousands of Israelis protested in cities across the country against the government’s formal introduction of the bill. Inside parliament, opposition lawmakers raised Israeli flags and shouted over the bill’s debate. 

The world’s largest-ever trial of a four-day work week was a success, with most companies involved deciding not to return to the five-day practice. Around 2,900 workers and 61 companies in Britain, ranging from banks to fast-food restaurants, said employee turnover and stress mostly fell while output remained flat or rose. Many bosses made workdays more efficient by cutting back on meetings.

HSBC reported a quarterly pre-tax profit of £4.3bn ($5.2bn) for the final three months of 2022, almost double the amount from a year earlier and higher than analysts’ estimates. The bank’s results were boosted by rising interest rates. HSBC also announced plans to pay shareholders a special dividend from the proceeds of the sale of its Canadian business to the Royal Bank of Canada.

Cambodia said it had recovered a trove of stolen jewellery that includes crowns worn by Angkor royalty as far back as the ninth century. The hoard of 77 gold pieces—believed to have been looted by tomb raiders during a civil war in the 1970s—was handed over to Cambodian officials by the family of Douglas Latchford, a late British antiquities dealer accused of art trafficking.

Fact of the day: 42%, the share of adults in America who are obese.

TODAY’S AGENDA

Putin’s state-of-the-nation speech

President Vladimir Putin gave his annual state-of-the-nation address to Russia’s parliament on Tuesday. Much of the speech focused on the “special military operation” in Ukraine, as he calls his invasion of Russia’s neighbour. But those hoping for a dramatic announcement about the invasion were left largely disappointed. In a rambling tirade replete with bizarre references to Nazis, paedophilia and even the devil himself, Mr Putin repeated his favourite refrain—that the West is entirely to blame for his decision to wage war. 

Doubtless, Russia’s president will have been studying this week’s diplomatic events in eastern Europe closely. On Monday his American counterpart, Joe Biden, made a surprise trip to Ukraine, his first visit since Russia’s invasion nearly a year ago. On Tuesday Mr Biden will give a speech in Warsaw, Poland’s capital, in which the White House says he will send a clear message to the Kremlin. He has already pledged more military equipment for Ukraine, including anti-tank missiles and radars.

Microsoft’s Activision bid goes to Brussels

Microsoft’s lawyers will meet EU antitrust officials at a closed hearing on Tuesday to defend the company’s plan to buy Activision Blizzard, a video-game maker. The proposed acquisition, for $69bn, is by far the biggest deal the gaming industry has ever seen, but it’s struggling to gain momentum. Like authorities in America and Britain, the European Commission worries that the deal could reduce competition, especially if Microsoft makes Activision’s games available only on its own cloud.

Yet European authorities may be more flexible than their American and British counterparts. America’s Federal Trade Commission has already filed a lawsuit to block the merger; Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority came squarely down against it in a provisional statement earlier this month. The commission, however, might accept a deal in which parts of Activision are spun off into separate companies, as Microsoft is likely to offer at the hearing. If the American tech giant can negotiate a deal with the EU, it could serve as a template for other regulators to follow. 

The Walmart barometer

Walmart, an American supermarket giant, will report its fourth-quarter results on Tuesday. Analysts are expecting healthy year-on-year sales growth of around 4.4%. Walmart’s low prices have helped it perform better than its competitors at a time when consumers are being hurt by inflation. All the same, its results will be viewed as a barometer for the retail sector. Many other retailers have yet to report their results from last quarter, which includes the all-important Christmas shopping frenzy.

It has been a bumpy few years. A splurge on goods during lockdown began to diminish last year because of rising prices and a shift back towards spending on services, especially on hospitality and entertainment. That has forced many retailers to clear inventories at a discount, crimping margins. Investors worried about the uncertain outlook for America’s economy will be eager to hear Walmart’s guidance on growth for the year ahead.

Internet algorithms reach the Supreme Court

On Tuesday America’s Supreme Court considers a law governing internet communications that galls Republicans and Democrats alike. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act gives web platforms largely free rein to host or remove users’ content without worrying about lawsuits brought in response to damaging words or images. Critics on the left say that the law allows platforms to spread hate speech; those on the right contend that it permits suppression of conservative voices. Despite many attempts, Congress hasn’t found a fix. 

Now, the justices get a turn. Gonzalez v Google was brought by relatives of a woman killed by Islamic State in a terrorist attack in Paris in 2015. They say that YouTube, Google’s video platform, shares blame for her death as its algorithm fed radicalising clips to potential IS recruits. Google contends that without the protection of Section 230 sites will lose the capacity to help users find “needles in humanity’s largest haystack”. The outcome is hard to predict: only one justice has spoken about the issue, warning of the “enormous control” that digital platforms wield over speech.

Shakespeare’s “First Folio” at 400

This year marks the 400th anniversary of the first collected edition of William Shakespeare’s plays, known as the “First Folio”. Half of the works in it had never been published before. In London the Globe Theatre is celebrating by staging a season of plays that would have been lost without the First Folio, starting this week with “The Winter’s Tale”. But this Shakespearean staple will be performed with a twist. The Globe boasts not one but two theatres inspired by historical venues. “The Winter’s Tale” will play across both.

Shakespeare’s tale of two kingdoms switches back and forth between a domestic tragedy set in Sicilia and a pastoral comedy set in Bohemia. To reflect those changes in setting and mood, the Globe’s production traverses between the theatre’s small, candlelit indoor space (the show’s team features a ‘candle consultant’) and the lively expanse of its famous outdoor venue. The concept is clever—enhanced by an entertaining execution of perhaps the playwright’s most famous stage direction: Exit, pursued by a bear.

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