BRUSSELS, May 17, 2023 (AFP) – The EU said on Wednesday it feared the takeover by South Korean flag-carrier Korean Air of smaller troubled rival airline Asiana could restrict competition on routes between Europe and South Korea. Korean Air in late 2020 said it would buy out Asiana for $1.6 billion at the time as the coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc on the worldwide aviation industry, grounding planes. The European Commission, the bloc’s powerful anti-trust authority, […]
Business
Theranos founder Holmes ordered to prison, pay victims
SAN FRANCISCO, May 17, 2023 (AFP) – Fallen US biotech star Elizabeth Holmes must begin serving prison time after a judge denied her latest request to remain free while appealing her fraud conviction. Holmes was sentenced to just over 11 years in prison for defrauding investors with her Silicon Valley start-up Theranos. She was scheduled to begin serving prison time on April 27, but her lawyers lodged a last-minute appeal on procedural issues after an […]
G7 finance chiefs move to diversify supply chains
NIIGATA, Japan, May 13, 2023 (AFP) – The G7 plans to launch a partnership scheme to diversify supply chains this year, the group’s finance ministers said Saturday following talks in Japan ahead of a major summit next week. The ministers did not directly cite a desire to reduce reliance on trade with China or Russia as motivation for the initiative, which focuses on clean energy technology. But the United States has led a push for […]
Audio book narrators say AI is already taking away business
NEW YORK, May 14, 2023 (AFP) – As people brace for the disruptive impact of artificial intelligence on jobs and everyday living, those in the world of audio books say their field is already being transformed. AI has the ability to create human-sounding recordings — at assembly-line speed — while bypassing at least part of the services of the human professionals who for years have made a living with their voices. Many of them are […]
Linda Yaccarino to bring vaunted ad skills to Twitter
NEW YORK, May 12, 2023 (AFP) – Named Friday as Elon Musk’s successor as Twitter CEO, Linda Yaccarino is a respected media and advertising executive considered a visionary by some. Yaccarino left her job as head of advertising at NBCUniversal, where she worked for 12 years. Born into a family with Italian roots, Yaccarino has spent her career in television, 20 years of it with the Time Warner group that has since become known as […]
Argentina annual inflation exceeds 108 percent in April
BUENOS AIRES, May 12, 2023 (AFP) – Inflation in Argentina reached 108.8 percent in the 12 months to April, a more than three decade high, the Indec national statistics institute said Friday. Month-on-month, inflation in April was 8.4 percent in Latin America’s third largest economy. Argentina has one of the highest inflation rates in the world. In 2022, it reached 94.8 percent, the country’s highest annual figure since 1991, when it exceeded 171 percent. The […]
Debt ceiling talks postponed until next week: W.House
WASHINGTON, May 11, 2023 (AFP) – Crunch talks between US President Joe Biden and senior Republicans have been postponed until early next week to allow staff to continue working, the White House said in a statement Thursday. A source familiar with the meetings between Democratic and Republican leaders said this was a positive development and that talks between the two sides were progressing, making Friday not the right moment for the leaders to meet. But […]
Chinese fast fashion giant Shein denies low prices due to forced labour
PARIS, May 5, 2023 (AFP) – Chinese cut-price fast-fashion giant Shein defended its business model in an interview with AFP, saying demand-based production accounted for its low prices and not forced or cheap labour. Founded in China in 2008, Shein has swiftly claimed a top place in the global fast-fashion marketplace, offering young social-media-savvy customers low-priced collections that turn over at a steady clip. The Singapore-based firm’s strategy chief Peter Pernot-Day told AFP that Shein […]
Singapore ‘should avoid economic contraction’: PM
Singapore is expected to post slower economic growth this year but it “should avoid an outright contraction”, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Sunday. The Southeast Asian city-state’s economic performance is often seen as a barometer of the global environment because of its reliance on trade with the rest of the world. The financial centre also has one of the busiest ports in the world which serves as a key link between Asia and the […]
Jack Ma takes up visiting professor post in Japan
TOKYO, May 1, 2023 (AFP) – Chinese billionaire Jack Ma on Monday took up a visiting professor position at a Japanese university, another new academic role for the founder of tech giant Alibaba. Tokyo College, part of the prestigious University of Tokyo, said Ma would “share his rich experience and pioneering knowledge on entrepreneurship, corporate management and innovation” in seminars for students and staff. The 58-year-old has kept a low profile since his fall from […]
French mass in May 1 show of anger against Macron pension reform
PARIS, May 1, 2023 (AFP) Hundreds of thousands of people on Monday massed in France on labour day to vent their anger against President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reform, with unions vowing not to stop fighting even after the changes were signed into law. Unions had been hoping for a vast turnout across France for the May 1 protests to further rattle Macron, who has been greeted by pot-bashing and jeers as he toured the country […]
JPMorgan buys First Republic after regulators seize control
New York, United States | AFP | Monday 5/1/2023 US financial authorities seized California’s troubled First Republic Bank on Monday and sold it to JPMorgan Chase, hoping to bring to a close a two-month banking crisis that has spooked the financial system. First Republic became the second-largest bank by assets to collapse in US history after it disclosed last week a loss of more than $100 billion in deposits in the first quarter. After the […]
