London Knife Attack Overshadows U.K. Election: Weekend Reads

(Bloomberg) --

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn agreed to pause their election activities in the capital after a man killed two people in a knife attack in the London Bridge area yesterday afternoon. Police shot dead the 28-year-old assailant, who'd been released from prison on parole a year ago after a 2012 terrorism conviction. 

The assault came as a hotly anticipated YouGov poll showed Johnson's Conservatives are likely to win a comfortable majority in parliament in the Dec. 12 general election that will allow him to take the U.K. out of the European Union.  

Elsewhere, the leaders of the world's two biggest economies have been sparring again, with China warning it may retaliate against the U.S. after President Donald Trump signed bills backing Hong Kong's protesters just as they're close to reaching agreement on the first stage of a trade deal. 

Dig deeper into these and other topics and take a look at some of Bloomberg's most compelling political photos from the past week. 

Terrorist Kills Two in London, Putting Vote Campaign on Hold
A man previously jailed on terrorism charges killed two people in a knife attack in the heart of London yesterday, disrupting the U.K.'s general election campaign. Jessica Shankleman, Greg Ritchie and Kitty Donaldson report.

The Big Question on Hong Kong: How Will China Hit Back at Trump?
China is threatening to retaliate against the U.S. for supporting pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. But its failure to flesh out the details despite having weeks to prepare shows the difficulties Beijing faces in hitting the U.S. without also hurting its own economy. 

Personal Income Booms in States With Decisive Role in 2020 Race
Personal income growth has been surging in some U.S. political battlegrounds, including a third of the counties in Pennsylvania, which Donald Trump narrowly won in 2016. Alex Tanzi and Wei Lu explain that Trump's re-election campaign will appeal to those who are seeing the benefits of growth. 

Rudy Giuliani Has Curious Links to a Jewish Village in Ukraine
It doesn't look like much: a muddy site roughly four football fields long with a dozen buildings on the grim outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. But as Stephanie Baker and Daryna Krasnolutska report, Anatevka has at least a walk-on role in the Trump impeachment drama. 

Chile's Billionaire President's Legacy Swept Away by Unrest
Chilean President Sebastian Pinera has watched his political agenda go up in smoke during the biggest street protests and riots since the return of democracy in 1990. Philip Sanders writes that his promises to expand the private pension system, cut taxes for the rich and clamp down on crime have been swept away.

Europe's Last Soviet Economy Approaches Its ‘Hour of Reckoning'
Call it the Belarus exception. Almost 28 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union, this deeply cautious nation of 9.5 million has kept alive many of the industrial jobs and social ecosystems that centrally planned factory budgets once supported across the bloc. Marc Champion and Aliaksandr Kudrytski explain.

China Avoids Calls for Bold Action as Climate Warnings Escalate
As the United Nations warns that countries must do more to stave off the worst impacts of climate change, the world's biggest carbon emitter, China, has little to offer in the way of stronger action.

The Man Stoking Nationalism in India Could Succeed Modi One Day
Amit Shah has been a behind-the-scenes soldier for India's Hindu right for more than three decades. Fresh from having helped Narendra Modi secure to a second landslide win in national elections, Bibhudatta Pradhan writes, Shah's increasingly public profile has raised questions about whether he might one day look to succeed the prime minister.

Erdogan Plots an Overhaul of Political Realm as Challenges Mount
With his rivals running Turkey's most important cities and ex-allies who helped build his political empire on the verge of becoming opponents, it's time for a rethink for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. As Firat Kozok and Selcan Hacaoglu report, his party is planning a “grand congress” to rejuvenate decision-making by electing younger officials and women.

And finally … Europe's winemakers are facing major challenges from rising temperatures and extreme weather events associated with climate change, Stefan Nicola, Charles Penty and Megan Durisin report. “You have to reinvent yourself every year,” says Almudena Alberca, technical director at Spain's Grupo Bodegas Palacios 1894. Some 15,000 diplomats and environmentalists are meeting in Madrid next week to discuss the threats posed by climate change at a United Nations conference.  

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Michael Winfrey at mwinfrey@bloomberg.net

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