每日新闻播报(September 11)
>'Humane' feature controversial
外卖平台新功能引争议
Online food delivery service platform Eleme announced on Wednesday it will release a new feature that will allow diners to give delivery workers more time to deliver meals.
9月9日,在线外卖平台饿了么宣布将发布新功能,顾客可以延长外卖骑手的送餐时间。
Eleme said in a statement that the new feature will add a button on the consumer's page after payment, saying, "I am willing to wait five or 10 more minutes". If the user is not in a hurry, they can click on the button to give the delivery person a little more time.
饿了么在一份声明中称,在结算付款页面会增加一个"我愿意多等5分钟/10分钟"的按钮,如果你不是很着急,可以点一下,多给骑士一点点时间。
The statement is the company's response to an online article that aroused wide public attention on delivery workers' safety.
饿了么这则声明是对近日网上一篇文章的回应,该文引发了公众对外卖骑手安全的广泛关注。
The article revealed that delivery work has become a highly dangerous career driven by tight delivery times assigned by the algorithms of food delivery platforms.
文章揭露,由于外卖平台算法给送餐员分配的紧张的送单时间,外卖行业已成为高危职业。
Often allocated with a number of orders and pushed by tight deadlines, delivery workers frequently violate traffic rules, potentially endangering themselves and others, the article said.
由于常常被同时分配多个订单,配送时间又很短,外卖骑手常常违反交通规则,给自己和他人的生命安全带来威胁。
Many netizens were unimpressed by Eleme's response, with some seeing the company's new directive as a way to shift the responsibility of delivery workers' safety to customers.
网友对饿了么的回应并不买账,许多人认为这家公司的新规是在将快递骑手的安全责任转嫁给消费者。
Yang Wenzhan, a civil and commercial lawyer at Zhongdun Law Office based in Beijing, said it is the platform that makes the rules and forces delivery workers to take risks.
主要从事民商案件诉讼业务的北京市中盾律师事务所律师杨文战表示,是平台制定的规则导致了骑手冒险。
When the topic became widely discussed, the platform announced the new "humane" feature, but it is suggesting that consumers should be the group with more tolerance, he said.
当话题被广泛议论时,平台推出的这个新功能看似"人性化",实际却在暗示消费者应该是谅解包容的一方。
>Oxford vaccine trial on hold
牛津新冠疫苗试验暂停
Clinical trials for the University of Oxford's COVID-19 vaccine have been put on hold due to a possible adverse reaction in a trial participant, drug maker AstraZeneca said Tuesday.
制药公司阿斯利康9月8日表示,牛津大学新冠疫苗的临床试验已被暂时叫停,原因是一名参加试验的志愿者可能出现了不良反应。
"Our standard review process was triggered, and we voluntarily paused vaccination to allow review of safety data by an independent committee," the company said in a statement. "This is a routine action which has to happen whenever there is a potentially unexplained illness in one of the trials, while it is investigated, ensuring we maintain the integrity of the trials."
该公司在一份声明中称:"我们启动了标准审查程序并自动中止了疫苗接种,让独立委员会可以核查安全数据。只要有一名试验对象出现可能无法解释的疾病,就必须采取这一例行动作,同时展开调查,以确保我们试验的正当性。"
AstraZeneca, which is working with the University of Oxford on a coronavirus vaccine, began its phase 3 clinical trials in the US last week.
阿斯利康正在和牛津大学合作研发新冠疫苗,并于上周在美国开始了三期临床试验。
NBC News has confirmed that the pause has affected trial sites in the US.
美国国家广播公司新闻网已经证实,暂停疫苗试验已经影响到了美国的试验区。
>LVMH scraps deal with Tiffany
奢侈品最大收购案告吹
Louis Vuitton owner LVMH is scrapping its $16.2 billion acquisition of Tiffany, a deal that would have been the biggest ever in the luxury industry.
路易威登品牌母公司、法国奢侈品巨头酩悦·轩尼诗-路易·威登(LVMH)宣布终止以162亿美元的价格收购美国珠宝连锁店蒂凡尼的交易,奢侈品行业历史上最大收购案告吹。
The luxury-goods giant said Wednesday the merger agreement signed last November provides for a closing deadline of no later than Nov 24, 2020.
LVMH集团9月9日发布声明称,按照双方去年11月达成的收购协议,2020年11月24日是交易截止日期。
But Tiffany had requested extending the date to Dec 31, and the French minister of foreign affairs had directed the company to defer the deal until after Jan 6 due to a US threat of taxes on French goods.
但蒂凡尼要求将这一日期延长至12月31日,同时法国外交部长也指示LVMH集团将交易截止日期推迟至明年1月6日,以应对美国政府威胁对法国商品征税的危机。
The company said in a statement that it will not be able to complete the acquisition of Tiffany "as it stands."
鉴于上述原因,LVMH集团称,将无法按现状完成对蒂凡尼的收购。
The coronavirus pandemic has hit the luxury retail sector hard, sending Tiffany's same-store sales down 44% and throwing the LVMH deal into doubt.
新冠疫情给奢侈品零售业带来了沉重打击,蒂凡尼的同店销售额下降了44%,LVMH集团也对此交易产生了犹疑。
Investors worried whether the French company overpaid, and LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault was looking to lower the price of buying the US jewelry chain, according to people familiar with the matter.
据知情人士透露,投资者担心LVMH集团这桩收购"买贵了",LVMH集团首席执行官伯纳德·阿诺特则一直在试图降低交易价格。
>China-EU rail links vital
中欧班列继续强劲增长
China-Europe rail freight services hit a record high last month, helping maintain the global supply chain amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the country's top railway operator said on Wednesday.
中国国家铁路集团有限公司9月9日表示,8月份中欧班列开行列数创历史新高,成为新冠肺炎疫情期间全球供应链的"守护者"。
The number of freight trips between the two destinations hit a record 1,247 last month - up 62% year-on-year - China State Railway Group said. The trains carried 113,000 standard-sized shipping containers, up 66% year-on-year.
8月中欧班列累计开行1247列、发送货物11.3万标箱,同比分别增长62%、66%,再创新高。
Proactive measures have been adopted to ease the mounting pressure on port transportation capacity due to surging demand for China-Europe rail freight services, the company said, adding that online services offered by e-commerce website 95306.cn have enhanced port clearance efficiency.
国铁集团表示,集团针对班列开行需求大幅增长导致口岸运输能力日益紧张的状况,采取了积极主动的疏运措施;运用电子商务平台95306.cn提供线上服务,提高了口岸通关效率;
It said it has stringently implemented regular epidemic prevention and control measures and engaged in regular video consultations with countries along the rail routes to ensure their smooth and safe operation.
严格落实疫情防控常态化措施,与沿线各国铁路定期召开视频协商会议,确保中欧班列安全畅通。
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