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Alibaba has found a new ally against an old foe. The Chinese internet titan is buying part of video-games group NetEase's e-commerce business for $2 billion. Perhaps more significantly, the two are forging closer ties in music-streaming, where rival Tencent's dominance is under antitrust scrutiny.

Corporate excess is a common phenomenon these days. Chief executives whizz around in corporate jets while their giant salaries pile up in offshore bank accounts. Directors breezily approve multi-billion dollar takeovers that throw thousands out of work. Lawyers and lobbyists water down environmental standards and intimidate smaller rivals while making the most of tax loopholes.

The door has cracked open on U.S. housing reform. Treasury Department officials want to get Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two agencies that underpin the country’s home-financing market, out of their post-financial crisis limbo. Their new plan, unveiled on Thursday, has merit in that it doesn’t entirely hinge on a dithering Congress, and gives the two troubled entities a better chance of enduring the next downturn.

Done right, reforestation can capture much of the carbon causing climate change. It would improve crop yields and water quality and lessen the power of floods and storms like Hurricane Dorian. There are good financial returns to reap, too. Plus: the Alibaba competitor to watch.

Hiroto Saikawa has overstayed his welcome at the wheel of Nissan Motor. He and other executives may have padded their pay, Reuters reports. The figures at stake appear small compared to allegations levied against ousted boss Carlos Ghosn, but it hardly matters. Saikawa has neither rebuilt credibility nor fixed performance at the $25 bln carmaker. Investors have no cause to remain patient.

Woke capitalism is a winner so far in the 2020 campaign. Democratic White House hopefuls from self-styled socialist Senator Bernie Sanders to his colleague Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President Joe Biden blame the U.S. economic system for growing inequality. Their plans target private equity firms, banks, corporations and the rich. A wealth tax may not be as effective as it looks. But some ideas could start to cut the gap between the haves an

Hong Kong's leader has finally caved. Chief Executive Carrie Lam has formally withdrawn an extradition bill that triggered months of anti-government protests. Investors cheered, and the territory’s stock market, including battered brands like airline Cathay Pacific, promptly rallied on the news. It will take more to appease protesters.

The shopping spree in China is not all it’s cracked up to be. Sales of athletic gear, appliances and the like have been rising robustly despite fiercer economic headwinds. Tax cuts and healthy property prices are helping. Without such support, however, retailers are apt to feel the pinch.

Boris Johnson’s Brexit strategy is already unravelling. Six weeks after he took office with a promise to leave the European Union by Oct. 31, “do or die”, the British prime minister is running out of escape routes.