Fearing Republican Win, Biden Secures … TikTok?

The Moroccan government is working on new legislation that will offer increased perks and incentives to investors, an official has revealed. The announcement comes amid the campaign dubbed “Morocco Now,” a drive to bring more investment as part of the government’s “New Development Model” program launched last year.

As part of this initiative, the Moroccan government is selling land to investors "at a low price," said Imad Barrakad, CEO of the Moroccan Agency for Tourism Development, at the Future Hospitality Summit held last month in Dubai.

In a research document seen by OZY, the African Hospitality Investment Forum reported that the Moroccan government was spending over $9 billion in southern Morocco on sectors including education and health infrastructure, energy, and airports, roads and ports. Currently underway is construction of the Tiznit-Dakhla Highway Mega Project, a roadway that will span more than 1,055 kilometers (655 miles) and will link southern and northern Morocco. More than 70% of the project has been completed.

According to a report by the U.S. State Department, Morocco seeks to leverage its political stability and strategic location (between Europe and sub-Saharan Africa) in order to make itself an attractive home for international investment.

South Africa’s continued power outages threaten the region, as the country’s power utility announced plans to further cut electricity for a fifth straight week. On Sunday, Eskom Holdings announced that it would cut 4,000 megawatts from the national grid, as its antiquated coal-powered units continue to struggle due to a lack of necessary maintenance. Blackouts have resulted in several hours of daily power cuts, with effects felt regionally, as South Africa previously exported power in sizable quantities to five neighboring countries. The lack of regular maintenance has been blamed on corruption within Eskom, as well as inadequate support from the government. Power cuts now threaten the country’s healthcare and sanitation sectors, as well as its water supply and telecommunications. (Sources: NewsDay, Zimbabwe Independent, Bloomberg)

U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is rushing to conclude talks with Chinese technology firm, ByteDance Ltd., to prevent it from sharing Americans’ information from its video application, TikTok, with China’s government. The administration has been in negotiations with TikTok for over a year. Now, as the U.S. midterm elections next month could see one or both chambers of Congress flip to Republican control, there is a new sense of urgency. Republicans have been vocal about the need for strict safeguards, with former President Donald Trump proposing a ban on TikTok unless it came under U.S. control. Republican Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington's 5th Congressional District said in a statement that TikTok’s current structure “jeopardizes Americans’ privacy and U.S. national security.” According to German data firm Statista, TikTok has over 1 billion users globally, including about 85 million Americans. TikTok has become a popular income source for some Americans, especially in the Gen Z crowd. (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

Brazil’s runoff presidential election, slated for Oct. 30, has left bankers and investors feeling boisterous in Latin America’s largest economy. On Sunday, Brazil's top two candidates — right-leaning incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro and left-leaning former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva — faced off against one another, ending in a 43.2% and 48.4% result, respectively. With both candidates failing to secure more than 50%, there will be a runoff. The response from markets was positive on the possibility that Bolsonaro might be reelected, as the incumbent has promised reforms, including the privatization of state entities. (Sources: The Washington Post, Bloomberg, Reuters)

Australia’s second-largest telecommunication firm, Optus, announced that the personal information of approximately 2.1 million customers was compromised in a hack last month. This breach was discovered following an analysis of data associated with the company’s 9.8 million customers, or nearly 40% of Australia’s population. “The data contained details such as email address, date of birth or phone numbers. For these customers, it is important to remain vigilant,” said Optus in a statement. The company sought to prevent the possibility of customers joining together in a class-action lawsuit, issuing the following warning: “Any class action will be vigorously defended, if commenced.” (Source: Reuters)

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Greece is expected to submit a proposal to the European Commission this week to cap natural gas prices, which have soared across Europe. “A cap should be an upward limit on how high prices can go, not an artificially low number that will destabilize markets,” wrote Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in an article for Bloomberg. Last week, EU countries' energy ministers agreed on new policies to tame high energy costs, including taxes on energy firms’ outsized profits. Yet there remained disagreement among member nations about whether an EU-wide price cap should be set, with economic heavyweight Germany opposing such a move. (Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters)

Should TikTok users in the U.S. or elsewhere fear that their personal information will be acquired by the Chinese government?