Elon Musk Faces Brazil Supreme Court Inquiry; US Lawmakers Strike Deal on Data Privacy; Retail Sales Soar in Singapore

by Aimee Newell Tarín on 9th Apr 2024 in News

On today’s news digest: Elon Musk Faces Brazil Supreme Court Inquiry; US Lawmakers Strike Deal on Data Privacy; Retail Sales Soar in Singapore

Elon Musk is under scrutiny in Brazil as a Supreme Court judge, Justice Alexandre Moraes, opens an inquiry into the billionaire. This is a result of Musk saying he would reactivate accounts on X which the judge had ordered to be blocked. Musk claimed that the restrictions had been lifted due to the court order being unconstitutional, and has demanded the judge’s impeachment. Justice Moraes asserted that Musk had launched a disinformation campaign against the Supreme Court. If X fails to comply with his order, the platform will be fined 100,000 reais per day, equivalent to £15,670.

Meanwhile, US lawmakers have struck a deal on a draft data privacy legislation. The legislation would restrict tech companies’ consumer data collection, giving Americans the power to prevent the selling of their personal information or force its deletion. It would also require companies to disclose if data has been transferred to foreign adversaries. The bill would not ban targeted advertising, but would give consumers the option to opt out of it. The lawmakers leading the proposed change hope to advance the legislation soon.

In APAC, the Chinese New Year festivities fuelled Singapore’s strong retail growth. With the celebrations having taken place in February this year, the month saw retail sales hit an 8.4% year-on-year increase. This follows January’s growth of 1.6%. February’s total retail sales were valued at approximately SG$3.9bn (£2.3bn). Food and alcohol saw the highest year-on-year growth, at just over 30%.