Business

As thousands of French businesses grapple with the fallout from recent riots, French senators are debating a new bill aimed at making not only the perpetrators but also those belonging to the same group pay for damages. The idea of "collective civil liability" divides lawmakers, with opponents saying it could potentially violate people's democratic rights to protest as some might stay clear of dem...

US artificial intelligence giant Anthropic files public regulatory paperwork as it gets set to launch on the stock market. Also in this edition: France plans a special disaster fund for businesses hit by riots and looting, and Apple's new top-of-the-line folding iPhone screen shows some unwanted lines of its own.

AI giant Anthropic has publicly filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with US market regulators.  The document offered a glimpse into the company's finances but also contained nearly 100 pages related to risks around investing in the company.  The filing revealed that in the first half of 2026, its revenue soared to $16.3 billion while net loss widened to over $80 billion.  Plus, London's ico...

Italy's diesel-price protest halts buffalo mozzarella production, with producers estimating €3 million in losses in just 24 hours as milk fails to reach dairies and finished cheeses cannot reach customers. In banking, Barclays announces it will cut around 5,000 jobs – roughly 5 percent of its workforce – as it uses artificial intelligence to reduce costs. This comes as Nvidia chief executive Jense...

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg touted the company's progress on artificial intelligence during an earnings call on Wednesday and called for more investment. The tech giant's Muse AI agent has garnered 10 million users since its launch six weeks ago, while third-quarter revenue rose to $64.6 billion. Meanwhile, the company is accused of political interference in Brazil's presidential election....

French bond yields have topped 5%, their highest level since 2002, after widespread protests and violence over the weekend. It's a sign that investors are losing confidence in France's finances, as the government grapples with budget and debt problems. Also in the show - chipmaker Nvidia says it's invested $10 billion in European tech firms to boost the 'AI economy,' and the UK approves a controve...

As SpaceX reports blockbuster quarterly earnings, CEO Elon Musk floats the possibility of merging the rocketry and AI firm with his electric car company Tesla. Also in this edition: OpenAI reveals more agent misbehaviour as market turmoil hits data centre companies, and France's political crisis exacerbates its bond market rout.

The US Federal Aviation Administration has given final approval for the 737-10, the largest model in Boeing's best-selling Max family. The certification comes more than five years after the narrowbody jet's maiden flight, and marks an important step for the planemaker that's been trying to regain ground following a safety and management crisis. Plus, the French government has offered all businesse...

Shop owners in France are counting the cost of the weekend's riots as the government works on new measures to help them recover from widespread looting. Also in this edition: Germany welcomes new investments from Nvidia into its tech scene, and energy prices continue to climb after new Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia.

As thousands of shop owners are reeling from the weekend violence and looting, listings of apparently stolen items have been popping up online.  The government asked major second-hand marketplaces such as Vinted, eBay and Amazon to crack down on suspicious adverts. 

Representatives of the French business community gather for a crisis meeting with the government following widespread looting during the weekend's protests. Meanwhile, the country's tourism sector fears a drop in winter holiday bookings, and bond and currency traders sell off French debt and the euro. 

European lawmakers have kicked off what's likely to be a long and fierce negotiation over the bloc's seven-year budget. Member states are divided on spending priorities, and pending elections in countries including France and Italy are adding pressure to the talks in Brussels. Also in the show - AI stocks lose a trillion dollars in this week's tech stock sell-off, and Ledger's CTO Charles Guilleme...

China and North Korea formally opened the Yalu River Bridge on Thursday, connecting Dandong in China with Sinuiju in North Korea. Beijing says the bridge will promote economic and trade cooperation. Meanwhile, AI firm Anthropic told prospective investors that its third-quarter revenue rose 45 percent from the previous quarter to $16.8 billion. The figures were disclosed at an investor briefing in...

The French glassmaker Duralex is known for its practically unbreakable tableware - and business model. It's been pulled back from the brink for the fifth time in 25 years, by an entrepreneur who is vowing a new, environmentally-conscious chapter for the manufacturer. Also in the show - high energy prices fuel inflation in the US just weeks before midterm elections, and Greenland hits back at Donal...

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stops by Paris to tout new stakes in French AI-enabled tech firms like medical booking site Doctolib. Also in this edition: OpenAI says it caught a spy red-handed, and China's trade surplus continues to boom despite soaring energy costs and trade conflicts.

China has moved from exporting cars to bringing entire auto industry ecosystems, building up production capacity in Europe and boosting partnerships with local companies. Arthur D. Little's automotive expert Philipp Seidel tells France 24 that while tariffs and quotas can buy time, EU carmakers must improve their own competitiveness and not become too dependent on Chinese suppliers. But first, we...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts that global economic output will slow to 3.1% this year in spite of geopolitical disruptions, but warns that high inflation and AI share valuations could be risks for financial stability. Also in this edition: Russia says it has exported $320 billion worth of oil and gas to European countries since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2...

The biennial Paris Motor Show kicks off with a record number of Chinese brands descending on the French capital.  European carmakers are fighting back, showcasing their latest models, as the EU announced a deal with China to limit the imports of hybrids.  France 24's Charles Pellegrin has been speaking with CEOs of both Chinese and European carmakers. 

The Paris Motor Show roars into gear this Monday, with over 200 auto sector brands showcasing their latest models and innovations. Chinese brands like BYD, Xpeng and Zeekr are among those present and getting lots of attention as their market share has surged in the past few years. In this edition, we speak to John Bozzella, CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, about the challenge these n...

The Trump administration continues to crack down on immigration, with new restrictions on the H-1B visa programme. US Vice President JD Vance singled out Microsoft as having abused the system to recruit low-cost foreign workers, to the detriment of the American workforce. The tech giant has defended its hiring practices. Also in the show: Germany could join a UK-led fighter jet development program...

The EU's trade commissioner, Maros Sefcovic, arrived in Beijing this Thursday for two days of talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao. Sefcovic stated his goal of "rebalancing" an "unsustainable trade deficit". One particular area of concern is the auto sector, where Chinese hybrid vehicles have increased their European market share to 25 percent. Also in this edition: Microsoft unveils its...

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has tried to calm both student protesters and jittery bond markets. In an address to the nation, Lecornu stressed that the education ministry had not seen any cuts in last week's budget proposal, but insisted the government must cut its public deficit to 5%. There are growing concerns about France's spending and debt, with the IMF urging the country to "get...

After shrinking briefly in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 attacks, Israel's GDP is predicted to grow by 4 percent this year. The country's tech sector – specifically its defence startups – has played a big part in this performance but challenges, notably demographic ones, are on the horizon. Meanwhile, the destruction caused by Israel's war in Gaza has reduced GDP per capita in the Palestini...

Protests have been gripping France with students demanding better learning conditions and more equal opportunities. The education ministry is among the few that have been granted an increase in next year's draft budgets, but critics say it still doesn't catch up with inflation.  We take a closer look.  Plus, OpenAI has apologised to Australia over its handling of government website hacks by a rogu...

In August, US employment in roles most exposed to AI for people aged between 22 and 25 shrank by 4.4 percent year-on-year. This means there's been a contraction every single month since October 2023, about a year after ChatGPT was first released. The high impact of AI on younger workers is one of the key trends emerging from the Canaries Dashboard, a project led by the Stanford Digital Economy Lab...