News Headlines - 18 August 2020

▽S&P 500 Sets First Record Since February, Erasing Its Coronavirus Plunge - WSJ

The S&P 500 closed at its highest level ever Tuesday, capping a remarkable rebound fueled by unprecedented government stimulus and optimism among investors about the world’s ability to manage the coronavirus pandemic.
The benchmark U.S. stock index rose 0.2% to close at 3389.78, surpassing its prior record of 3386.15 from Feb. 19 and erasing a historic plunge during February and March that ended the longest-running bull market in history. The S&P 500 is now up 4.9% this year.

▽German watchdog launches Amazon investigation: report | DW

Germany's antitrust authority, the Federal Cartel Office (BKA), is examining whether Amazon is abusing its dominant market position, the agency's head Andreas Mundt told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper.
"We are currently investigating whether and how Amazon influences the price-setting of third-party traders on the marketplace," Mundt said.
After the coronavirus pandemic began, there were complaints that Amazon had blocked some traders because of allegedly excessive prices, he noted. "Amazon must not be a price controller. This applies even now," Mundt said.

▽Microplastic in Atlantic Ocean 'could weigh 21 million tonnes' - BBC News

A study, led by the UK's National Oceanography Centre, scooped through layers of the upper 200m (650ft) of the ocean during a research expedition through the middle of the Atlantic.
Such an amount of plastic - 21 million tonnes - would be enough to fully load almost 1,000 container ships.
The findings are published in the journal Nature Communications.

▽Britney Spears opposed to dad returning as her caretaker - New York Daily News

Britney Spears is dead-set against her dad returning as her personal caretaker after he took a leave of absence from the court-approved role last year.
In a new conservatorship filing this week, the pop star makes clear she wants dad Jamie Spears permanently replaced by the woman who stepped in to handle her day-to-day affairs on a temporary basis... The conservator in charge of Spears’ person has the right to restrict and limit her visitors, hire and manage her security guards and access all records for the Grammy winner’s medical and psychiatric treatment.
Spears’ lawyer Samuel Ingham filed the new paperwork Monday, saying his client also wants a change when it comes to her dad’s tight control over her business affairs.

▽Rio Ferdinand gets six-month driving ban after being caught speeding | Sky News

Former England footballer Rio Ferdinand has been banned from driving for six months after he was caught speeding in his Mercedes.
The ex-Manchester United star, 41, was clocked doing 85mph on the A27 at Hangleton in Hove, East Sussex, on 22 July last year, Crawley Magistrates Court heard.