"I think we have progress – that's something I'm paid to say, but I believe it." 

Well, that's certainly one way to break the silence after a big round of international talks on a global digital tax. Pascal Saint-Amans, director of tax administration at the OECD, took the unconventional approach today after a deadlock was broken between 137 nations.  

Along with a breakthrough at the OECD's Paris headquarters, today we bring you news on eurozone growth (not great), U.S. consumer spending (good, but with alarm bells), and the latest in the BBVA spying allegations in Spain (potentially very, very bad). 

And finally, the Austrian post office has unveiled a new stamp to commemorate Brexit Day. It features a faded United Kingdom and two dates, one with a line through it. Why? Is it a joke? 

Not according to the post office press office (try saying that after a few Gluweins) who told me it was certainly "not a joke," but was, in fact, a choice to recycle stamps printed before the March deadline that was, and then was not. You can see for yourself at the bottom of today's briefing.

Happy reading,

Patrick Atack
Digital business correspondent 

News In Brief 

Eurozone growth and GDP figures were released by Eurostat today, and send a mixed message. The currency bloc fell to just 0.1 percent growth in Q4, but GDP grew 1.2 percent. 

Elsewhere, 137 nations have agreed to continue OECD-mediated talks on a global 'digital tax.' The big win from today's meetings is the agreement that automobile and luxury multinationals – such as LVMH and Volkswagen – will be included as targets of any proposed tax. 

U.S. consumer spending rose steadily in December, by 0.3 percent. That means 2019 overall consumer spending rose by 4.0 percent. The Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell, said moderate growth was expected to continue – however, spending growth has slowed since 2018, when it rose by 5.2 percent. 

The chairman of Spain's BBVA, Carlos Torres, denied any personal involvement in an alleged spying case linked to the bank. Torres said BBVA had passed all materials to Spain's high court relating to the hiring of a private security firm, which was allegedly employed to spy on a construction firm.  

AnPac Bio-Medical Science, a Chinese biotechnology company, listed its IPO on US stock exchange the Nasdaq. It is offering 1.3 million shares at $16 – with estimated earnings of $16 million. 

Watch: Mike Hawes, CEO of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, talked to CGTN about how the industry will be affected by Brexit and what he hopes a trade deal with the EU will secure for the sector.

The Interview

"The key message is that we need to share information, but also ensure public health measures are taken"

Sian Griffiths, emeritus professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, co-chaired the SARS inquiry for the Hong Kong government in 2003. She spoke to CGTN about the differences in response to the coronavirus outbreak. 

Why has the World Health Organization taken this decision? 

The reason they've declared it a global health emergency is so it can be recognized that the disease has spread to so many countries, even lower-middle-income countries need to take precautions against it. 

And they may well need help strengthening their health systems to prevent the spread within those countries. So that's what it really means. It means very little in countries such as the UK, where the response has already been stepped up.

But does it mean that there will be contingency plans put into place in hospitals all around the world? Does it mean there will be a coordinated quarantine program?

I think it really means that individual states will take the necessary action within that state. It's not that the WHO has any powers as such. What it does is advise and support the membership. So it will depend on the country. 

You were part of the official SARS inquiry. What would you say are often the main challenges for governments and authorities with an outbreak like this?

Well, what we learnt from SARS was how important it is to share information. You need to share information at a scientific level because you need to look at the shape of the virus, the genetic makeup of the virus, to see if the sequence is changing because the virus could become more virulent – so, constant monitoring of the virus.

And then you also need to share information with the health care systems, which will be going on now at a global level. It probably was anyway, informally, but now formally on a global level. 

And then share information with the public, because the key thing in terms of controlling the disease is to get the accurate information shared with the right people at the right levels so that you can get a coordinated response.

You talk about sharing information, the theory of sharing information. How encouraged or dismayed are you at what we've seen from China so far?

Highly encouraged, because last time around, ourselves, we didn't even know that there was a disease in China. At the end of 2002, there were cases of atypical pneumonia in several places and information wasn't being shared and information wasn't shared into Hong Kong. 

And the cases that started to emerge in Hong Kong in February and March 2003 were quite a shock. And then it became apparent that more was known, there were more cases, and then it took a while to sort out what the virus was. 

And then it took a while to get people to coordinate their reaction. And in addition to that, the health care facilities were really not up to scratch in terms of response. I would say this time around, we've seen exemplary action by the Chinese authorities in terms of sharing information about the numbers of cases, the rapid development, the tests, the sequencing of the genome, etc... as well as information to the public. 

So, I think things are much better this time around. And I think you'll find that the head of the WHO has also complimented the Chinese on the actions they've taken.

How worried are you about the spread of the virus to countries and regions that might be less well equipped to step up contingency plans and preparations?

That's always a problem and always an anxiety. But then it's up to the WHO to help coordinate response in those countries. 

The key message here is that we need to share information, but also then ensure that public health measures are taken as well. In addition to the quarantining and the different decisions about quarantine and border regulations... The message to individuals, you need to, for example, wash your hands. Well, you need to if you sneeze [do it] into a tissue and dispose of the tissue. Now, these messages may sound boring, but actually they're really important.