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• Big multinational companies are hoping for matching tax cuts around the world. Chinese officials are concerned American businesses will try to take their money out of the country. European officials are worried about an uneven playing field.
The sweeping tax overhaul awaiting President Trump’s signature is fueling trade tensions abroad, even as, domestically, it defies the economic odds on creating jobs and raising wages.
If you pay U.S. taxes, our calculator can help you see if your bill will go up or down.
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• Could a metropolis of 30 million people end up underwater?
Experts say it’s only a matter of time for Jakarta, Indonesia’s fast-sinking capital, which must contend with man-made troubles and mounting threats from climate change.
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• In this year’s final Australia letter, our bureau chief looked back on the readers who helped inform his article on the country’s growing tensions with China.
“I honestly marvel each week at all the comments that come in from readers,” he wrote, adding: “I learn from all of you, and I hope you all learn a bit from one another other as well.”
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• Hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to Finland each year to see Santa Claus Village, near the Arctic Circle, especially those from countries with few of their own Christmas traditions.
The town of Rovaniemi is home to a self-anointed “official Santa,” his “evil” counterpart and a convincing recreation of the North Pole.
The largest single group of visitors are Chinese adults — their children have no school break at this time of year.
Business
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• Didi Chuxing, Uber’s rival in China, raised $4 billion from SoftBank of Japan and the Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala, pushing its total valuation to $56 billion.
• Japan Airlines, the country’s flag carrier, was cheated out of 380 million yen ($3.36 million) in a bank transfer scam.
• Stiff narrative competition from prestige television and high-quality streaming services has led some video game creators to turn to Hollywood to seek out story lines.
• Dozens of major U.S. employers — including Amazon and Goldman Sachs — placed recruitment ads on Facebook that were limited to particular age groups, an investigation by ProPublica and The Times found. The practice raises concerns about discrimination against older workers.
• Starwars, whatever, letmein: This year’s list of worst passwords (drawn mainly from North America and Western Europe) says a lot — including how bad we are at online security.
• U.S. stocks were up. Here’s a snapshot of global markets.
In the News
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• Australian officials are trying to determine a motive in the case of the man who drove an S.U.V. into a large crowd in Melbourne on Thursday afternoon, injuring 19. [The New York Times]
• Results of Catalan elections for a new regional parliament are expected within hours. The outcome could determine whether Catalonia persists in its push for independence from Spain. [The New York Times]
• A North Korean soldier defected to the South through the heavily guarded demilitarized zone, leading to gunfire on both sides and likely dashing any hopes for a thaw in relations. [The New York Times]
• The U.S. imposed sanctions on 52 people and entities for human rights violations and corruption. Maung Maung Soe was the first high-level Burmese general to be cited for an ongoing deadly crackdown on the Rohingya. [The New York Times]
• The wreckage of Australia’s first-ever submarine has been found, more than 103 years after it disappeared during World War I. [The New York Times]
• The former treasurer of Mexico’s governing party was arrested as part of a corruption inquiry threatening the government’s highest ranks. [The New York Times]
• A Philippine ferry capsized, but the majority of the 251 people aboard were rescued. [The New York Times]
• The police in Delhi made a startling discovery when they raided a so-called “spiritual university”: at least 200 dazed and drugged women and girls behind a series of locked doors. [The Guardian]
• The host of “India’s Most Wanted” was convicted of murdering his wife and trying to frame it as a suicide. [Hindustan Times]
• A Chinese man was sentenced to five and a half years in prison for selling a VPN as Beijing pressed a crackdown on tools that circumvent internet censorship. [South China Morning Post]
Smarter Living
Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life.
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• Loneliness can affect your health.
• You actually do want to know how the sausage (salami) gets made.
• Recipe of the day: Samin Nosrat’s recipe for Russian honey cake is worth the time investment.
Noteworthy
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• Rome’s official Christmas tree — drooping, wilting and dying — is being lamented as a symbol of the city’s decline.
• We remember Yu Guangzhong, the exiled poet who died in Taiwan last week at 89. His work expressed the displacement and longing for cultural unity of the Chinese diaspora.
• To counter the seemingly constant barrage of heavy news, here are seven great things we wrote about this week.
Back Story
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President Trump’s controversial recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel brought to mind a similarly momentous announcement more than a century ago.
In December of 1911, King George V of Britain, left, announced that India’s capital would be moved from the city then known as Calcutta to Delhi.
For 24 hours, The Times reported, the British news media “was so astonished as to be unable to comment.” The British officials then ruling in India had proposed the move partly because Delhi was more centrally located, and partly because of growing opposition in Calcutta to the Crown’s rule, or Raj.
Countries change their capitals to signal a fresh start or to move government away from economic hubs — with varying success.
Myanmar, for example, built a new capital that replaced Yangon in 2005. But the city, Naypyidaw, is eerily quiet, and most embassies have stayed put.
Similarly, Dodoma has been Tanzania’s seat of Parliament since 1996, but the rest of the government has been slow to move there from Dar es Salaam.
Other countries whose capital relocations can trip up even the biggest geography buffs include Brazil (Brasília, not Rio de Janeiro, since 1960), Kazakhstan (Astana, not Almaty, since 1997), Nigeria (Abuja, not Lagos, since 1991) and Turkey (Ankara, not Istanbul, since 1923).
Jennifer Jett contributed reporting.
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