Business

Volkswagen's management went head to head with some 25,000 employees as leaders defended planned cost cuts that include possible plant closures in Germany and the end to a long-running job protection scheme. Unions say the threat is tantamount to a "declaration of bankruptcy". Also in this edition, China rolled out the red carpet to dozens of African leaders as it kicked off the ninth edition of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. 

As the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation kicks off in Beijing, we take a closer look at how Chinese lending to the African continent has evolved over the years. Looking at data since 2000, big ticket infrastructure and energy projects have now given way to loans to smaller renewable energy projects and the financial sector. Also in this edition, AI chipmaker and tech giant Nvidia loses $279 billion in value and is targeted by an antitrust investigation.

Lebanon's former central bank governor, Riad Salameh, has been arrested in Beirut. Once lauded for reviving the country's economy after the civil war, Salameh's later years in office were marred by allegations of financial crimes including embezzlement and money laundering. Plus, the trial against Martin Winterkorn, the former CEO of Volkswagen, has begun nine years after the "Dieselgate" emissions cheating scandal sent shockwaves through the global auto industry. 

US vice president and presidential candidate Kamala Harris used a Labor Day speech to criticise a deal that would see American steelmaker US Steel taken over by Japan's Nippon Steel. The $14.1 billion takeover was agreed to in principle in December of last year but has come under heavy criticism from the United Steelworkers union. Also in this edition, surging demand for Oasis concert tickets has pushed the UK to crack down on "dynamic pricing" on ticketing platforms.

A panel of five Supreme Court justices in Brazil has unanimously upheld the decision of one of its judges to block Elon Musk's social media platform X in the country. The platform has already been suspended since Saturday for violating local rules. According to Brazil's telecoms regulator, only Starlink, the satellite operator controlled by Musk, says it will not comply with the order. Plus, German employers are worried after the anti-immigration AfD made a strong showing in state elections. 

The historic showing for Germany's far-right anti-immigrant AfD party in Sunday's state elections threatens to complicate the country's search for the foreign talent it needs to maintain its labour force. We take a closer look. Also in this edition: Brazil's Supreme Court votes on whether or not to uphold a nationwide ban on social media platform X.

After French President Emmanuel Macron rejected the idea of naming a prime minister from the left-wing New Popular Front coalition, saying a leftist government would immediately be ousted by all other parties, many French business leaders gathering at the employer federation Medef's annual conference voiced optimism that the pro-business environment of the past seven years would be maintained. FRANCE 24's Yuka Royer speaks to Laurent Saint-Martin, President of Business France, about the current business climate. 

As suspense continues over who will become France's next prime minister, the country's largest employer federation, Medef, kicked off its annual "back to school" conference on the theme of ''power''. The US presidential election, regional conflicts and trade tensions are also high on business leaders' minds. FRANCE 24's Yuka Royer speaks to Boris Lombard, president of German manufacturing firm KSB, about the challenges facing the industrial sector. 

Indonesia is gearing up to inaugurate its new capital Nusantara later this week, on the country's Independence Day. 

Amid delays and slow private investment, President Joko Widodo hailed the unfinished city as a "canvas on which to draw the future".  Yuka Royer takes a closer look at the 30 billion euro megaprojects and convroversies surrounding it. 

Global oil benchmarks Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate surged this Wednesday on the news that Hamas's political leader Ismail Haniyeh had been killed by a suspected Israeli strike in Iran. Fears over a regional escalation of the Israel-Hamas war are fuelling concerns over production and distribution of oil in a region that produces about a third of global supply. Also in this edition, we look ahead to the US Federal Reserve's next decision on interest rates.

On a five-day visit to China, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has vowed to "relaunch" economic cooperation with Beijing and "rebalance trade". She has also sought to position herself as a potential mediator between China and the EU as the two blocs butt heads, especially on the issue of Chinese electric vehicle imports. In this edition, we look at what could make Meloni's job harder.

As Venezuela's opposition contests the re-election of President Nicolas Maduro, we take a closer look at the South American country's economic challenges. Hyperinflation, which reached a peak in 2019, may have subsided but it has underlined issues with wealth inequality and dependence on the oil sector. In addition, Caracas is carrying a massive foreign debt load of around $150 billion.

As the US presidential election campaign is roiled by Joe Biden's decision to pull out of the race against Donald Trump, we look at the role Silicon Valley has been playing in the contest so far. Long a bastion of liberal values, the US tech scene is seeing an increase in backers to Trump and the Republican Party. Michael Fertik, founder and managing partner of Heroic Ventures, tells FRANCE 24 how this has happened and why so many venture capitalists are drawn to the MAGA (Make America Great Again) message. 

The world’s first AI beauty pageant has crowned a virtual Moroccan lifestyle influencer. But first, Spaniards are being pushed out of the property market as tourism breaks new records in the country. China is building more wind and solar power projects than the rest of the world combined. Plus, the UK economy grew faster than expected in May.

US energy generation is getting cleaner, with wind power becoming a bigger source of electricity in the US than coal. The Panama Canal’s administrator is building a billion-dollar water reservoir to compensate for drought. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell tells lawmakers that keeping interest rates elevated for too long could jeopardise economic growth. Plus, the "summer camp for billionaires" kicks off this week.

After the New Popular Front left-wing alliance won the largest number of seats in France's National Assembly, investors have been assessing what this might mean for the French economy. In this edition, we look at what the market reaction to the surprise result has been and take a closer look at the New Popular Front's economic programme.

The European Union has sharply raised import duties on Chinese electric vehicles to address what it sees as unfair competition.
Starting Friday, provisional tariffs of up to 37.6% will be imposed on China-made EVs coming into the EU, on top of the standard 10% tariff on imported cars. 

Meanwhile, China's BYD opened a new factory in Thailand, its first in Southeast Asia, as part of a push to expand its global reach. 
 

The energy required to power AI data centres has caused Google's greenhouse gas emissions to increase 48 percent since 2019. Meanwhile, General Motors is faced with a $146 million fine to settle allegations that its vehicles released more pollution than the carmaker reported. But first, Bolivia's president has announced that the country is lifting its ban on cryptocurrencies. 

Japan's first new banknotes in 20 years have entered circulation, featuring three-dimensional portraits of the founders of financial and female education institutions in an attempt to curb counterfeits. While ATMs and ticket machines have been updated to treat the new bills, many of the country's ubiquitous vending machines have not. But first, a new law has gone into effect in Greece allowing employees to work six days a week in order to make up for a shrinking working population. 

Bolivia's president thwarted an attempted coup last week. But as a political feud continues between rivals, the country's deepening economic crisis and President Luis Arce's refusal to admit there is one, are fuelling public distrust in the government. But first, with the Olympics just around the corner, hotels in Paris are facing a decline in occupancy rates as worries over price hikes and restrictions keep many tourists away.