Category Archives: Business

Boeing will plead guilty to criminal fraud over 737 Max crashes, justice department says

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The deal, which still requires the approval of a federal judge, will see the company pay a fine of almost $250m and invest at least $455m in improving safety

Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two deadly crashes of 737 Max jetliners, after the government determined the company violated an agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years, the US the government said in court filing late on Sunday.

Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice this week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence, or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the US.

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Royal Mail goes ahead with cuts to UK flights despite takeover

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Three more freight flights to go this month as parent company’s CEO Martin Seidenberg pursues transformation

The boss of Royal Mail’s parent company has said it will push on with a transformation of the group despite its £3.57bn takeover, as Royal Mail prepares this month to cut more daily freight flights.

Martin Seidenberg, the chief executive of International Distribution Services, plans “the biggest network change in 20 years” to revamp Royal Mail’s deliveries despite uncertainty created by the Czech energy tycoon Daniel Kretinsky’s takeover, which has been backed by the board.

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UK urged to protect Ukraine from legal action over private debt default

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Kyiv shouldn’t have to fight ‘shameless bondholders’ as repayment deadline nears, say campaigners

Campaigners are urging Britain’s new Labour government to prevent Ukraine being sued in the UK courts if the country defaults on its debts to private creditors.

Debt Justice said a two-year suspension of Ukraine’s debt payments was scheduled to expire on 1 August, and that action was needed to protect Kyiv from the possibility of legal action from its creditors.

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China to hold hearing into brandy imports as tension grows with EU over tariffs on EVs

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Ministry will discuss investigation into claims that European producers are selling goods below market rates

China has ramped up its anti-dumping investigation into European brandy imports in what appears to be a retaliatory move as the EU imposed higher tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles from Friday.

The commerce ministry in Beijing said it would hold a hearing on 18 July to discuss an investigation into claims that European brandy producers are selling products in China below market rates.

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Can Murdoch’s Tubi repeat its US success as it launches in the UK?

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Ad-funded streamer wades into market with offering it says will appeal to those underserved by rivals

The Wes Anderson classic Moonrise Kingdom, the Channel 4 sitcom Fresh Meat, a reality TV series about adult content creators, some Bollywood hits and a handful of shark flicks: Tubi’s home screen is not short of viewing options, just like the British video-streaming market it waded into this week.

Tubi is taking on the likes of Netflix, Disney+, ITVX and the BBC’s iPlayer with a free, ad-funded service offering 20,000 films and TV episodes, and an ambition of repeating its success in the US, where it has amassed nearly 80 million monthly users. But will it have a similar impact in the UK, where rival platforms are already well established?

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After pivotal 2020 voter drive, US union braces for another fight against Trump

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Hospitality union Unite Here hopes to do the same again in 2024 election – and this time the stakes may be even higher

America’s hospitality workers had it tough in 2020. Covid triggered mass layoffs and many wondered when – and even if – the industry would recover. But the turmoil didn’t stop the industry’s largest union from pulling off one of the most successful voter drives of the election.

As the 2024 election cycle gets into full swing, Unite Here is hoping to do the same again, and this time the stakes may be even higher.

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Shell to take hit of up to $2bn on Rotterdam and Singapore sites

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Oil firm’s warning comes after it had to halt work on Europe’s largest biofuel project and sell refinery in Asia

Shell has warned investors that it will take an impairment charge of up to $2bn (£1.6bn) in its next set of results after it was forced to halt work on Europe’s largest biofuel project and sell off a Singapore refinery.

The oil company told investors to expect a non-cash writedown of between $600m and $1bn when it publishes its second-quarter results next month because of trouble at a major biofuel project in Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

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Dutton says ‘Australia can learn’ from new British PM’s nuclear stance – as it happened

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‘Pretty clear’ Fatima Payman has been planning to join crossbench for a ‘long period’, minister says

The finance minister and manager of the government in the Senate, Katy Gallagher, is speaking with ABC RN after Fatima Payman’s resignation yesterday.

It’s difficult to go into, you know, when the decision was made – only Senator Payman knows that – but we do know, now that it’s been done, it’s a matter of fact that there had been obviously discussions about her role as an independent senator and for some time.

I think the way these decisions have been made by Senator Payman make it pretty clear that she has been thinking about this for a long period of time, and it was executed this week …

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EU brushes aside risk of China trade war over electric vehicle tariffs

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Higher levies on Chinese EV imports to come into force despite carmakers’ fears of retaliation

The EU’s top trade official, Valdis Dombrovskis, has brushed aside concerns of trade-war retaliation from Beijing against European business, after the European Commission imposed duties on Chinese electric vehicles.

Dombrovskis, a European Commission vice-president, told Bloomberg Television that talks with China were ongoing, adding: “We are not seeing the basis for retaliation as what we are conducting is indeed in line with WTO [World Trade Organization] rules.”

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Senator says PM’s office planted seed about crossing floor – as it happened

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Josh Burns says Labor motion to recognise Palestine as part of the peace process is ‘the bare minimum’

Josh Burns finished with:

This motion before the House is the bare minimum. It says that we support the recognition of a Palestinian state as part of a peace process. That peace process is something that I hold onto and that I have held onto my entire life.

That peace process says that we are all people, above all, and that there has to be a way through this. There has to be a way through this conflict. I wish that we could pull a lever here in Australia and it would all end today, but we have seen time and time again that that is not the case.

There are so many intractable parts of this conflict. I have a degree in this conflict, and I still don’t quite know how to fix it.

I know that there are players who are desperate to end the peace process and to try and disturb any efforts towards peace. I know that trees take years and years and years to grow and can be cut down in a second, and that is what the Middle East has demonstrated over and over again.

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NHS leader calls for partnership with private sector to build new hospitals

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Exclusive: NHS Providers head says joining with private health firms and developers would help care backlog

The NHS must be given the green light to partner with private health firms and property developers to build new hospitals to slash the care backlog, a health service boss has said.

The last Labour government was widely criticised over controversial private finance initiative (PFI) deals to erect scores of new NHS facilities that led to vast profits for major corporations.

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EU plan to impose import duty on cheap goods could dent Shein and Temu

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Brussels move to end tax loophole exploited by China-linked marketplaces could also dent Shein’s planned London listing

The EU is moving forward with plans to impose customs duty on cheap goods in a shift that could hit imports from online retailers and harm a hoped-for London listing by the fast-fashion seller Shein.

The potential change comes amid growing disquiet among retailers based in the UK, elsewhere in Europe, and the US about rising competition from Chinese-linked marketplaces Shein and Temu, which exploit a loophole that excludes low-value items from import duty.

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Asic should be split in two after ‘comprehensively’ failing as regulator, parliamentary inquiry finds

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Scathing report says commission’s investigations and decisions are ‘opaque’ and it responded to criticism by managing its own reputation

Australia’s corporate watchdog should be split into two after “comprehensively” failing its role as a regulator, including focusing more on managing its reputation than enforcement action, a parliamentary committee inquiry has found.

The economics committee’s report, released Wednesday, delivers a scathing overview of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (Asic) role in ensuring allegations of corporate misconduct are investigated and punished.

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Australia’s largest online bookseller Booktopia enters voluntary administration

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Insolvency advisers are assessing the business while options for its sale or recapitalisation are explored

Booktopia has entered into voluntary administration, but will continue filling orders and selling to the public under supervision from an insolvency adviser.

Australia’s largest online bookseller announced the move on Wednesday, two weeks after it went into a voluntary suspension of share trading.

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Hawksmoor for sale in deal that could value restaurant chain at £100m

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Investment bank Stephens hired to find suitors for business, which wants to expand overseas operations

The high-end steakhouse chain Hawksmoor has been put up for sale in a deal that could value it at about £100m.

The restaurant chain has hired the investment bank Stephens to start looking for potential suitors for the business, which is hoping to expand its overseas operation.

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Ford chief says Americans need to fall ‘back in love’ with smaller cars

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Jim Farley says country is ‘in love with these monster vehicles’ but big cars are not sustainable in the age of EV

It is time for the US to “get back in love” with smaller cars, according to the chief executive of Ford.

In an wide-ranging interview at the Aspen ideas festival, Jim Farley said the auto industry needs to focus on smaller EVs and commercial vehicles. He acknowledged that American consumers are in “love with these monster vehicles” but said they need to “get back in love” with small cars.

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Australia politics live: Labor caucus endorses Payman suspension; Watt says no plan to ban live cattle exports

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PM calls for ‘a long-term solution in a peace process’ between Israel and Palestine. Follow today’s news headlines live

Shorten says he thinks Labor party is trying to give Senator Payman ‘space and time’

Bill Shorten continues:

I see why people feel so strongly. They can feel so strongly about the hostage is not being returned, or the deaths in Gaza. People could feel also very strongly about the near million deaths in Sudan.

I can get these very incredibly strong issues. And if you come from particular communities, they’re even more intense, although that doesn’t need to be the prerequisite.

Before I deny something, what’s your source?

No, I don’t believe that.

… Because I wasn’t there and I don’t believe it. I actually think the prime minister, Senator Wong and the leadership are handling a complicated issue pretty well.

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Next UK government poised to benefit from fall in inflation and fuel prices

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Pressure on household finances eases as shop price rises slow to 0.2% and petrol costs drop for second month

Britain’s next government is poised to benefit from easing pressure on household finances after a slowdown in inflation in stores and a fall in fuel prices, but costs remain “too expensive” for many families.

Figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) show that annual UK shop price inflation cooled last month to 0.2%, down from 0.6% in May – the slowest pace since October 2021 – as retailers cut the prices of many of their key products, including butter and coffee.

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Soaring government debt could roil global financial markets, warns BIS head

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Agustín Carstens says world economy on course for ‘smooth landing’ after inflation but political turmoil poses risk

Rising government debt levels could disturb global financial markets, the head of the body that advises central banks said on Sunday before France’s high-stakes parliamentary elections.

Agustín Carstens, the general manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), said the world economy was on course for a “smooth landing” from the inflation crisis, but he warned that policymakers, especially politicians, needed to be careful.

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UK and EU horticulture firms warn of harm caused by post-Brexit border delays

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Nursery and garden centre trade bodies write open letter saying problems at border need to be urgently fixed

Nurseries and garden centres across Britain and Europe have warned that new post-Brexit border posts are not working properly and are leading to delays, damage and significant extra costs for importers bringing plants into Britain.

The Horticultural Trade Association, which represents 1,400 garden retailers and growers in the UK, has joined forces with several European trade bodies to write an open letter to call for urgent solutions, warning the new system was adding more than 25% to import costs.

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