"I can't rule it out but I think we are rapidly approaching the point now where we need some finality." 

Even the UK's foreign minister, Dominic Raab, believes the Brexit endgame is finally drawing to a close, telling the BBC he didn't expect there to be an extension to Sunday's EU trade deal deadline. 

After years of negotiation – both on the withdrawal procedures and a trade deal – that followed the UK's 2016 referendum on membership of the bloc, the two sides believe there only remains a slim chance of an agreement. 

In preparation for a no-deal exit on January 1, which could be tumultuous for many European businesses, the EU proposed four contingency measures to make sure air and road traffic can continue as smoothly as possible for the next six months.

It also proposes that fishermen will still have access to each other's waters for up to a year, to limit the commercial damage of a no-deal split. But the plans depend on the UK offering similar initiatives.

A no-deal exit would initiate tariffs and other barriers to trade that would damage both sides, which are split on three main issues – fishing rights, competition rules and the governance of future disputes. 

Beyond Brexit wrangling, we have an interview with a Swiss inventor, who is giving away his potentially life saving practical hospital device for free. Also in the newsletter we breakdown just how important the financial services sector - threatened by Brexit - is to the UK. 

Happy reading, 

Daniel Harries 

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France's data privacy watchdog has handed out its biggest ever fine of $121 million to Alphabet's Google for breaching the country's rules on online advertising trackers, otherwise known as cookies.

Oil rose to nearly $50 a barrel on hopes of a faster recovery in demand following the release of COVID-19 vaccines.

Germany's antitrust regulator has started abuse proceedings against Facebook to examine the linking of Oculus virtual reality products with the social network and its platform.

Telecom Italia has signed a preliminary agreement with BT to buy two of the British telecoms group's business units in Italy.

A German court has rejected a bid by environmentalists to halt tree cutting at Tesla's proposed manufacturing site near Berlin, paving the way for the electric car maker to proceed with plans to finalize construction of its "Gigafactory."

British online supermarket Ocado Group raised its annual earnings forecast for the second time in two months, though sales growth at its retail joint venture with Marks & Spencer has slowed due to capacity constraints.

DoorDash shares soared in the company's initial public offering, capping a year of explosive growth for the food delivery company. The San Francisco-based company raised $3.4 billion, making it the second largest IPO so far this year.

China issued more taxes on wine from Australia, stepping up pressure in a diplomatic conflict over the coronavirus and territorial disputes.

The number of Americans filing first-time claims for jobless benefits jumped to a near three-month high last week as mounting new COVID-19 infections caused more business restrictions.

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WATCH: Opting for a low-carbon emissions ship, France has announced its latest navy aircraft carrier will be nuclear powered. The country will invest $1.2 billion in the aircraft-carrier's first development stage, expected to end in 2025.

Alongside a team of designers, Julian Ferchow, 31, has created a method for turning patients suffering from COVID-​19 in intensive care – a vital and simple procedure that takes a lot of strength. 

Within four weeks, they came up with the "Proning Taco," which allows healthcare staff to simply wrap two padded mattresses around the patient – like a sandwich or a taco – and then use straps to turn them over. The team has also decided not to file for a patent on the design – instead making it available to everyone free of charge. 

Ferchow spoke to CGTN Europe about how he created the life-saving product. 

What was the problem that ICU staff were having with patients? 

The nurses and the doctors said they have not enough capacity to care for the patients in the intensive care unit because they have to rotate them two times per day. And they need up to five or six people to do it. The goal of the "Proning Taco" is to reduce the number of nurses and doctors needed to rotate the patient.

Why did you decide to make the product free? 

We, as a university, I think we have a responsibility to society, because we have knowledge, we have contacts in industry, we have students, we have capacity. That was clear for us to really make it as an open source product and to publish this white paper, so everybody worldwide can use this concept, this simple idea, take it and use it with patients. 

Brexit has led to 4,735 financial sector jobs shifting to France from the UK, French lobby group Paris Europlace estimates. European capitals have been jostling to attract business from London in the wake of the Brexit referendum, especially among banks, asset managers and other financial services firms. How important is the financial services industry to the UK?