Business Daily

As talks between the EU and the UK enter their final stretch, what sort of Brexit are businesses preparing for? Manuela Saragosa speaks to Chayenne Wiskerke of the Dutch onion growing company Wiskerke Onions which exports to the UK. She also speaks to Martin Bysh the founder of Huboo, a UK fulfilment company which works mostly with the e-commerce industry and exports all over the world. They tell...

It’s been a tough year for much of the entertainment industry, with the pandemic causing production to be halted on all but a few projects. Filming bubbles and closed sets have been costly and time consuming. But one sector is booming – animation – especially in Africa. We hear from animators and producers across the continent about why demand for their work has never been higher. Vivienne Nunis s...

What's it like for older people losing their job during the Covid pandemic? Tamasin Ford speaks to 59 year old lighting crew chief Michael Heggett. He's worked on events like Princess Diana’s funeral, the London’s Olympic games and Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday concert. He had a fantastic career until Covid hit and he lost all his work. He fears he might never be employed again. Patrick Button, a...

Why do female entrepreneurs in Africa not get the investment capital they need? When women are navigating the male dominated finance and start-up scene in Africa, sexism can be a daily occurence. Efe Ukala is the founder of Impact Her - an organisation to help female entrepreneurs in Africa get access to finance. She says at one meeting she went to she was the only woman in the room and when one m...

Can Hong Kong retain its position as Asia's financial capital? The National Security Law passed in Hong Kong saw violent protests in the middle of 2020. The BBC’s Karishma Vaswani takes us through how businesses have changed the way they work to avoid getting in to trouble with Beijing. Edward Yau, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Commerce says the new law won’t change the basic pillars of Hong Kong’s so...

Are big technology companies the modern versions of monopolistic oil barons or simply innovative companies that provide a service to enthusiastic consumers? That's the question we'll be looking at on this edition of Business Weekly as Democratic lawmakers in the US release a report detailing uncompetitive behaviour. We also look at the allegations made by a former Facebook employee who says she fe...

How will the energy transition transform geopolitics? Which countries will be the winners and losers? The answers may not be as obvious as you might think - not at least according to Jason Bordoff, a former energy advisor to President Obama, and director of Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy. In a long interview with Manuela Saragosa, he explains why the future may not be so blea...

Can the cruise ship industry survive? Once a lucrative market, with giant vessels boasting 100% occupancy, cruises have been all but wiped out since the coronavirus. Manuela Saragosa hears from reporter Vivienne Nunis in Venice. Pre-covid, Venice was the poster city for over-tourism. Cruise ships towered over the city’s fragile, historic buildings, filling the air with their exhaust fumes. Many ca...

A leading Silicon Valley boss says big tech companies need more empathy and diversity. Maelle Gavet, is a French-born tech entrepreneur with experience in building firms in her native France, India, Russia, South Africa, and now as chief operating officer of online real-estate broker, Compass. Inc. She's been listed as one of the most influential women in US tech. In her new book 'Trampled by Unic...

How the social media platform is poisoning politics around the world. A former Facebook employee says she has "blood on my hands" after struggling to contain the misinformation and manipulation conducted through the platform. Azerbaijani journalist Arzu Geybulla describes the coordinated Facebook campaigns against activists and politicians in her country. Berhan Taye, Africa policy manager at digi...

Are our century-old grids fit for the era of solar and wind power, or is a completely new kind of electricity transmission needed? Justin Rowlatt looks at the mess in California, where President Trump has blamed rolling blackouts on the state's rush to embrace renewable energy. But former regulator Cheryl LaFleur says one big reason is California's poor integration with neighbouring electricity gr...

This week saw the rather unedifying spectacle of the first 2020 US presidential debate. Did either of the candidates offer solid policies on the economy or the environment? As further investigations shed more light on Donald Trump’s financial affairs we’ll ask why he has been so reluctant to make them public. We’ll also find out why Facebook is threatening to ban all news on its Australian sites a...

Why state aid may be the sticking point for a Brexit trade deal (Image: Two boxing gloves punching each other, one with the UK flag, one with the EU flag. Credit: Getty Images Stock)

What can the New York Times' revelations can tell us about the President's financial affairs? President Trump paid only $750 in tax federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017, and paid none in 10 of the past 15 years. That's according to an investigation by The New York Times earlier this week. The President says its all fake news. He's for years refused to publish his income tax returns. David Cay Joh...

Should Facebook and Google pay for news that appears on their platforms? The Australian government thinks so. It’s drafted a law that would force them to pay - and Facebook is now threatening to ban all news from its Australian site. It’s a high stakes stand-off with potential global repercussions. Veteran local newspaper publisher Bruce Ellen tells Manuela Saragosa how his business has suffered t...

President Xi Jinping made a big surprise announcement on Tuesday - that China is committing to cut its net carbon emissions to zero by 2060. But why has President Xi decided to take such a bold unilateral step? Will China's actions match his words? And how will other countries respond, not least the US? To answer these questions, Justin Rowlatt speaks to two people who have been at the top table o...

What will get the swing states swinging? That’s the question we ask on this edition of Business Weekly as we take an in-depth look at Pennsylvania, Florida, Texas and Ohio. We find out what business leaders, activists and environmentalists in these places want from their new leader and ask whether Donald Trump or Joe Biden can deliver. We hear from Puerto Ricans and Cubans in Florida, young people...

How some of the world's biggest banks are helping criminals launder money through the UK capital. The BBC's Andy Verity describes what a major new leak of documents tells us about the flows of dirty money through financial centres. Dr Susan Hawley from the charity Spotlight on Corruption tells us why banks and regulators aren't doing enough to stop it, and Tom Burgis, author of a new book Kleptopi...

Funding for African tech start-ups is booming. But only if you’re not African. Odunayo Eweniyi, is the co-founder of the first online savings and investment app in West Africa, Piggyvest. She tells Tamasin Ford about how hard it was to convince Western based Venture Capitalists to invest in them. Jesse Ghansah, the Ghanaian Founder of the Fintech company, Swipe says as an African founder he’s stil...

Making designer fashion more sustainable has been a cause célèbre for decades, so why hasn’t it happened yet? At the close of London Fashion Week, and just before the beginning of Paris, Tamasin Ford has been looking into why the industry hasn’t made the changes it needs. Kevin Bailey of the VF Corporation, one of the largest apparel and footwear retailers, says the industry has made great strides...

Brewing, like many industries, has had to adapt during the coronavirus pandemic. And whilst this can be a logistical nightmare, the current crisis might also present some new opportunities. Elizabeth Hotson talks to beer writer, Pete Brown about the impact so far of coronavirus on craft beer. We take a socially distanced trip to East London to hear from Jon Swain, co-founder of Hackney Brewery and...

Nightclubs around the world are struggling to survive with social distancing guidelines. The social effect is palpable, especially for the younger generation who have grown up with club culture. BBC Radio 1Xtra DJ Jamz Supernova tells Ed Butler about everything she's missing from the club scene. Meanwhile, the Night-time Industries Association's Michael Kill says they and club owners are working t...

There are less than two months to go until the presidential election in the United States. Both candidates and parties have framed it as something of an existential fight. So, on Business Weekly we look at the big issues framing the debate. We examine the economy, immigration and healthcare and find out what a Biden Presidency or a second-term of office for President Trump could mean for these key...

The West Coast wildfires have lifted climate change to the top of the campaign agenda, but will it actually shift any votes? It highlights one of sharpest policy contrasts between the two presidential candidates - with Donald Trump questioning whether global warming is even a threat, while Joe Biden has a detailed $2.5 trillion plan to decarbonise the economy. Justin Rowlatt speaks to David Banks,...

Will the elections usher in a sea-change in economic thinking, after 40 years dominated by small government conservatism? Manuela Saragosa speaks to one small government conservative - Ramesh Ponnuru of the American Enterprise Institute - who says people like him no longer have a home in either of the main political parties. Economist James Galbraith says the scale of the economic challenge posed...