February 5, 2021 - Biz in 60

Business in 60 Seconds

US economy adds 49,000 jobs in January US jobs growth rebounded in the first month of 2021 as authorities began easing coronavirus restrictions on businesses. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 49-thousand in January, following a decline of 140-thousand in December. The unemployment rate also fell to 6-point-3 percent, but it's still well above the 3-and- a-half percent rate from a year ago. Nigeria's Okonjo-Iweala close to leading WTO Nigeria's former finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is set to to become the first African and the first woman to lead the World Trade Organization. That's after South Korea's candidate dropped-out of the race following mounting diplomatic pressure. The global trade watchdog has been without a leader since August 2020 when Brazil's Roberto Azevedo stepped down. Shares in Kuaishou nearly triple in Hong Kong debut Shares in TokTok rival, Kuaishou, nearly tripled on their first day of trading in Hong Kong, giving it a valuation of 180-billion dollars. The Chinese online video operator raised 5-point-7 billion dollars after pricing its shares at the top of its expected range. It's the largest tech IPO since the ride-hailing company, Uber, raised 8-billion dollars in 2019.