| Big difference | The U.S. called for a global minimum corporate tax rate of at least 15%, less than the 21% it has proposed for the overseas earnings of American businesses (a level some nations had argued was excessive). The contrast between the proposals underscores the difficulty of the international tax talks being led by the OECD. - Ireland's finance minister told Bloomberg TV that global tax reform could be possible this year, even as his country faces criticism for how it taxes some of the world's biggest companies.
Digging in | China is standing firm on retaliatory sanctions that led Europe to freeze a landmark investment deal, the latest sign it is willing to sacrifice economic opportunities to protect "core" interests. After European lawmakers approved a resolution this week to withhold ratification of the pact, Beijing said its actions were "a legitimate response to the EU's unilateral sanctions and confrontation." - Read how a White House executive order aimed at using regulation to limit the threat of climate change to U.S. companies is more about intention than actual rule-making.
Look who's back | Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the former Brazilian president who was jailed for corruption and then cleared by the supreme court, is emerging as the main challenger to President Jair Bolsonaro in next year's election. As Simone Iglesias reports, Lula is rapidly uniting a vast chunk of the political spectrum around his expected candidacy as Brazil reels from the death and upheaval caused by Covid-19.  The controversial Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline linking Russia and Germany under the Baltic Sea edged closer to completion after the Biden administration loosened sanctions, but significant hurdles remain, Vanessa Dezem and Dina Khrennikova report. Crushed hopes | What should have been a promising year for Africa is turning into a terrible one, with the pandemic pushing tens of millions of people into "extreme poverty" — meaning they live on less than $1.90 a day. Prinesha Naidoo reports how a lack of vaccines is leaving the world's poorest continent vulnerable to new waves of infections and extended lockdowns just as a long-envisioned free-trade area comes into effect. Hard choices | For many Hong Kong locals, Beijing's move a year ago to impose a national security law on the Asian financial hub was a catalyst to consider moving, including to the U.K. under a new pathway the British government has opened to citizenship. Even so, some are now wavering on whether to leave. We spoke to eight people eligible to seek British residency about their plans and their worries. Read here what they said. What to Watch - Thailand will extend a nationwide state of emergency for another two months as the deadliest phase of the coronavirus outbreak to hit the nation shows no signs of easing.
- Myanmar's junta-appointed election authorities will dissolve the political party of detained civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a local news outlet reported, all but ensuring the army and its proxies will win an election planned for next year.
- The number of U.K. cases of a coronavirus variant from India more than doubled for a second straight week as authorities monitor a new mutation, fueling doubts about fully unlocking the economy.
- Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen host G-20 leaders via videoconference today to discuss the pandemic at the Global Health Summit.
- U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the Biden administration is exploring how to help semiconductor producers and buyers share supply chain information to alleviate the global chip crisis.
Pop quiz, readers (no cheating!). In what country have two bloggers turned to crowdfunding to pay damages and costs from defamation suits brought by the nation's leader? Send your answers to balancepower@bloomberg.net. And finally ... More than 5,200 would-be astronauts from 136 countries have bid in an auction for a seat on the first crewed space flight by Blue Origin, the venture founded by Amazon's billionaire founder Jeff Bezos. Bidding has hit $2.8 million so far and ends with a live auction on June 12, Sara Clemence reports. The winner gets an 11-minute trip scheduled for July 20 just beyond Earth's atmosphere in a six-passenger capsule and "they might have time for a couple of somersaults before they buckle back in," said Ariane Cornell, director of astronaut and orbital sales.
 Source: Blue Origin | 
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