Global Trade
Nunes To Convene Trade Policy 'Roundtables' With Stakeholders. Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA), who chairs the House Ways and Means trade subcommittee, is planning to convene a series of trade policy roundtable discussions to solicit input from stakeholders on issues ranging from agriculture to intellectual property. (Inside US Trade)
'Special 301' Report Lists Ukraine As PFC, USTR Hints At GSP Revocation. In its "Special 301" report released today (May 1) covering enforcement of intellectual property rights abroad, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative took the unusual step of listing Ukraine as a priority foreign country (PFC), a rarely used category reserved for the most egregious offenders. USTR has not listed any country in this category since its 2005 report, in which it also listed Ukraine as a PFC. (Inside US Trade)
Full participation in July TPP talks deemed unlikely. Japan is unlikely to be allowed to fully participate in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks in late July due to U.S. congressional procedures, senior vice minister in charge of economic and fiscal policy Yasutoshi Nishimura indicated. (Japan Times)
Brazil WTO hopeful brushes off protectionist complaints. Brazil's candidate to head the World Trade Organization brushed off criticism from rich nations that his country is growing more protectionist, saying he will be a neutral negotiator of global trade frictions if he gets the job this month. (Reuters)
Workforce
Immigration reform: Silicon Valley hiring practices threatened. As Congress tries to tackle the many sides of immigration reform, one of Silicon Valley's most contentious debates is getting renewed focus: Should high-tech companies be required to hire Americans before recruiting temporary workers from abroad? (San Jose Mercury News)
Obama warns liberals not to push too hard on immigration. He tells supporters big changes in Senate bill could jeopardize its chances to win consensus needed for passage. (Washington Post)
Maneuvering The System That Is The H1B Visa Program. Much of the focus on the immigration overhaul bill has been on what to do about the millions of people working illegally in the United States. But things might change for a smaller subset of immigrant workers. The bill proposes doubling the number of skilled worker visas available to companies that want to hire foreign workers. In this "Planet Money" report, NPR's Zoe Chace traveled to the place where the visas are granted. (NPR)
Foxconn relaxes harsh labor rules after suicide specter resurfaces. Chinese iPhone manufacturer has called on factory administrators to abolish its "mute mode" policy and be more polite to workers after two employee suicides occurred at its Zhengzhou factory at the end of April. (ZDNet)
Cybersecurity & Privacy
China Cyberspies Outwit U.S. Stealing Military Secrets. Beginning at least as early as 2007, Chinese computer spies raided the databanks of almost every major U.S. defense contractor and made off with some of the country’s most closely guarded technological secrets, according to two former Pentagon officials who asked not to be named because damage assessments of the incidents remain classified. (Bloomberg)
Apple, Samsung devices said to be near Pentagon security OK. It's looking like the drawn-out vetting process to accept new tech devices for use by Department of Defense employees is soon coming to a close. (CNET)
Tax
Apple avoids potential $9bn tax bill. Apple will avoid a potential tax bill of up to $9bn by using the proceeds from its $17bn blockbuster bond issue to pay shareholders rather than bringing back cash from abroad. The technology group would have paid as much as 35 per cent in tax to bring that amount of cash back into the US, according to lawyers and accountants. (Financial Times)
Fairness on Sales Taxes. The Senate is finally about to pass a bill to let states collect sales taxes on purchases made on the Internet. (NYT editorial)
Paul Ryan says he supports 'concept' of Internet sales tax. But the influential Republican said he does not support the tax bill that's likely to pass the Senate. (The Hill)
Regulation
India's competition watchdog investigating Google. The Competition Commission of India, along with similar regulators in South Korea and Argentina, has opened investigations into the Internet giant's business practices. (ZDNet)
Mobility
Cellphone Thefts Grow, but the Industry Looks the Other Way. Police officials say the cellphone and handset industry has not done enough with technology to solve the theft problem. (NYT)
Innovation
Data is the economy's new oil. Consumer data is becoming a commodity like oil and, like oil, it needs refineries so that companies can profit from it. Meet the data analytics industry. (Marketplace)
Tech Business
Mobile Ads Help Propel Earnings at Facebook. Facebook reported that about 30 percent of its total advertising revenue came from mobile devices, a significant jump from the last quarter. (NYT)
Zuckerberg's Fwd.us in heated controversy over political ads. Mark Zuckerberg is being unfriended by progressives angered by television ads from his political advocacy group Fwd.us that praise lawmakers for supporting the expansion of the Keystone XL oil pipeline and drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Their ire is being directed at the billionaire founder and chief executive of Facebook with a protest planned for noon Wednesday at the company's Menlo Park, Calif., headquarters shortly before the company releases its first-quarter earnings. (LA Times)
Mozilla: UK spyware company hijacking our brand. The maker of one of the Internet's most popular browsers is taking on one of the world's best-known purveyors of surveillance software, accusing a British company of hijacking the Mozilla brand to camouflage its espionage products. (Associated Press)
Ashton Kutcher raising new tech-investment funds -- with a twist. Hollywood heartthrob Ashton Kutcher has done pretty well as a tech investor; his A-Grade Investments, co-founded with billionaire Ron Burkle and Madonna's manager, Guy Oseary, has invested in the pick of the Web 2.0 litter, including Airbnb, Uber, Spotify and Foursquare. (San Jose Mercury News)
Alibaba Secures $8 Billion Loan. Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding has secured an $8 billion loan from nine banks, at a time when bankers are awaiting the company's much-anticipated initial public offering. (WSJ)
HTC Expects Brighter Second Quarter. Taiwan's HTC expects its second-quarter revenue and operating margin to rise from the first quarter, as sales of the new HTC One smartphone pick up. (WSJ)