N.Y. Fed carries out $47 billion auction

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York added $47.05 billion to the financial system Monday by using the market for repurchase agreements, or repo, to relieve funding pressure in money markets.

Banks asked for $47.05 billion in overnight reserves, all of which the Fed accepted, offering collateral in the form of U.S. Treasury and mortgage securities.

On Friday, the Fed said it would extend its scheduled repo lending through Nov. 4. It said it would continue to offer overnight repos, which are meant to relieve funding pressure in money markets, for an aggregate amount of at least $75 billion each night through Nov. 4.

The Fed said it would extend its two-week repo loans as well. It plans to offer at least $45 billion between Oct. 8 and Oct. 11. After that, the amount available will drop to $35 billion through Oct. 29.

An extended version of this report appears at WSJ.com

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Amazon announces new devices for children

Amazon.com Inc. AMZN, -0.08% announced a new Kindle Kids Edition and Fire HD 10 Kids Edition on Monday, new devices especially for children. The Kindle Kids Edition is the first reading device for kids. It has access to one free year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited and thousands of e-books. It is priced at about $110. The Fire HD 10 Kids Edition is the company’s largest and fastest tablet, according to the release. It also has access to FreeTime Unlimited along with Audible books, education apps and more. It’s priced at about $200. Both devices begin shipping on October 30. FreeTime, which offers parental controls, is also being made available on FireTV and Echo devices. Amazon stock is up 15.2% for the year to date while the S&P 500 index SPX, -0.22% has gained 17.3% for the period.

Fluidfreeride Recalls Mercane WideWheel Electric Kick Scooters

Fluidfreeride LLC recalled 1,866 units of Mercane WideWheel Electric Kick Scooters over concerns of fall and injury hazards, including 66 sold in Canada. The brake caliper of these recalled scooters can fail, causing the rider to lose control and suffer serious bodily harm, a statement published by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

The recall involves Mercane WideWheel electric kick scooters, which are foldable and come in gray aluminum alloy with four-inch-wide wheels. It runs on a single 500W motor with an 8.8Ah battery or dual 500W motors with a 13.2Ah battery.

The company said it has already received 15 reports of brake failure and four reports of injuries including two bloody knees, lower back bruises and a sprained ankle.

The company advised consumers to immediately stop using the recalled electric kick scooters and contact fluidfreeride for a free repair.

The electric kick scooters subject to recall were made in China and imported by Miami, Florida-based Leitmotif Services, d/b/a fluidfreeride. They were sold online at fluidfreeride.com, Amazon.com and ebay.com from October 2018 through September 2019 for between $1,000 and $1,200.

Swedish police investigating 'suspicious object' at Iraqi embassy

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Swedish police said on Monday it was investigating a “suspicious object” outside Iraq’s embassy in central Stockholm and had taken one person into custody.

The police said the arrested individual is being taken to a local police station near the embassy in central Stockholm.

The police said they are continuing to investigate the “suspicious object” at the cordoned-off site outside the embassy.

Talks between UAW and GM take ‘turn for the worse’: union official

Talks for a new four-year labor contract between General Motors and its striking workers took a “turn for the worse” on Sunday after the United Auto Workers rejected the largest US automaker’s latest offer but the two sides were still talking.

GM made an offer to the union that basically repeated one the UAW had previously rejected, Terry Dittes, the UAW vice president in charge of the GM department, said in a letter to members. The union provided a copy of the letter to Reuters.

“These negotiations have taken a turn for the worse,” he said.

“We, in this union, could not be more disappointed with General Motors,” Dittes said. “The company has shown an unwillingness to fairly compensate … the UAW.”

Tesla reportedly bought a company that specializes in high-speed battery manufacturing

• Tesla has reportedly acquired Hibar Systems, which specializes in high-speed battery manufacturing for electric vehicles.
• The company could help further Tesla's efforts to develop battery cells in house.

Tesla has quietly acquired Hibar Systems, a company that specializes in high-speed battery manufacturing systems for electric vehicles, according to Canadian news site Electric Autonomy. 

It's unclear when the deal took place, but Tesla lists Hibar as a subsidiary in an Oct. 2 filing with the Canadian government, Electric Autonomy reported. Additionally, Hibar's website has been updated to a single page in recent months. 

Representatives from Tesla weren't immediately available for comment. 

According to Hibar's LinkedIn page, the Ontario-based company was founded in 1974 and has at least 50 employees. In April, Hibar was awarded a $2 million grant from the National Research Council of Canada to support its efforts to develop Lithium-ion battery manufacturing systems. 

It comes as Tesla has been working to develop its own battery cells in-house, as part of a move to offer cheaper, higher-performance electric vehicles and limit its dependence on Panasonic, which jointly owns and operates a battery factory in Sparks, Nevada. The company has gradually strengthened its portfolio of energy tech companies, acquiring Maxwell Technologies for $218 million in February.