13 www.ceotodaymagazine.com MONTHLY ROUND-UP US Delays Huawei Trade Ban Wilbur Ross, the US Commerce Secretary, confirmed that the trade ban on Huawei would not take effect for another 90 days. The ban was originally conceived due to concerns of national security. “As we continue to urge consumers to transition away from Huawei’s products, we recognize that more time is necessary to prevent any disruption,” Ross said. He explained that the extension would help US customers, adding, “We’re giving them a little more time to wean themselves off.” In response, Huawei said in a statement: “Today’s decision won’t have a substantial impact on Huawei’s business either way.” Earlier this year, Huawei had predicted sales of around $125 billion for 2019, however sales dropped in light of the US ban and it was expected to remain at $100 billion in 2019 and 2020. Optimistic, Ren Zhengfei, Huawei Founder, said the company would “regain [its] vitality” in 2021. When the ban was first announced, Song Liuping, Huawei’s Chief Legal Officer, said: “This decision threatens to harm our customers in over 170 countries, including more than three billion consumers who use Huawei products and services around the world. By preventing American companies from doing business with Huawei, the government will directly harm more than 1,200 US companies. This will affect tens of thousands of American jobs.” Johnson & Johnson Fined Amid Opioid Crisis Drugmaker Johnson & Johnson has been fined $572 million (£468 million) for its part in the opioid addiction crisis in Oklahoma. Between 1999 to 2017, it is reported from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that 400,000 overdose deaths took place as the result of opioid addiction, 6,000 of which in Oklahoma alone since 2000. Purdue Pharma was similarly pressed for legal charges and settled for $270 million, and Teva Pharmaceutical for $85 million. It has been argued that Johnson & Johnson minimised the risks and emphasised the benefits of the addictive drug in a yearlong marketing campaign that led to the drug being misused. “Those actions compromised the health and safety of thousands of Oklahomans. The opioid crisis is an imminent danger and menace to Oklahomans,” Judge Thad Balkman, of Cleveland County District Court in Norman, Oklahoma, said in his ruling. In its defence, Johnson & Johnson said that its painkillers had accounted for less than 1% of the US market. “The decision in this case is flawed. The State failed to present evidence that the company’s products or actions caused a public nuisance in Oklahoma,” it said. Sabrina Strong, the lawyer representing Johnson & Johnson, added: “We have sympathy for all who suffer from substance abuse, but Johnson & Johnson did not cause the opioid abuse crisis here in Oklahoma, or anywhere in this country. “We do not believe that the facts or the law supports the decision today. We have many strong grounds for appeal, and we intend to pursue those vigorously.”
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