Category: Business
Brussels threatens to block US from bidding for public contracts
Brussels has threatened to bar American companies from bidding for taxpayer-funded contracts as Europe seeks to retaliate against Donald Trump’s tariffs. Stéphane Séjourné, executive vice president of the European Commission, said the EU has “the cards” to hit back at Mr Trump’s new levies of 20pc on goods and 25pc on cars. “We could decide to withdraw all American companies from European public procurement,” Mr Séjourné, who is also commissioner for industrial strategy, told Radio France. It represents a fresh…
China hits back at Trump with 34% tariff on U.S. imports
China announced a 34% tariff on all products imported from the U.S. on Friday, escalating the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. The move came two days after President Donald Trump imposed the same tariff on all Chinese imports as part of what he called reciprocal tariffs on a long list of U.S. trade partners. Combined with 20% in other levies that Trump has imposed on Chinese goods since returning to office in January, the total U.S. tariff…
Jeep & Chrysler parent Stellantis lays off 900 US workers as tariffs bite
In sum:
Stellantis pauses production in Mexico and Canada due to tariffs
Automakers face 25% import tax on imported autos
UAW criticizes Stellantis for unnecessary layoffs
US automaker shares fall sharply
23andMe files for bankruptcy, putting customers’ genetic data at risk
Genetic testing company 23andMe has begun Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, alarming regulators and privacy advocates who are warning customers to delete genetic information retained by the company. 23andMe said on Sunday it intends to put itself up for sale following the proceedings. In October 2023 it suffered a massive data breach causing major reputational damage and exposing the genetic information of more than six million people.
Russia Sues Shell for $1.6B Over Unpaid 2022 Gazprom Supplies
Russia is suing Shell for 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) over allegedly unpaid gas supplies to the state energy giant Gazprom in 2022, the British-Dutch company said in its annual report published Tuesday. Shell announced in early 2022 that it would sever ties with Gazprom, halt Russian crude oil purchases and withdraw from Russian energy markets in response to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. According to the company’s annual report, Russian prosecutors filed a claim in a Moscow court on…
US and Germany are torching Tesla cars, US also burning Tesla charging stations and shooting up Tesla dealerships
1. Germany Several Tesla vehicles were set on fire in Germany on Friday, as protests against Elon Musk’s car company continue across the world. German police said that four vehicles were set ablaze in the Plänterwald and Steglitz neighborhoods of Berlin, and that political motives could not be ruled out. Newsweek reports: Tesla sites have been targeted by protesters around the world following Musk’s appointment as head of the Department of Government Efficiency in President Donald Trump’s administration. The electric…
French nuclear attack submarine “Barracuda” surfaces in Canada
A curious discovery in Canadian waters. A French attack submarine , the FS Tourville, appeared Monday in the port of Halifax in Nova Scotia, a Canadian province. Photos of the vessel were posted on social media, fueling speculation amid geopolitical turmoil . Some see it as evidence of a show of force by the European Union in the face of Donald Trump’s multiple provocations. The submarine is owned by French Naval Group, the European leader in the sector. It made its first Atlantic crossing on Monday as a test, as Canada prepares to renew its submarine fleet. Last February, the French naval group responded to a request for information from Ottawa, which aims to put 6 to 12 new submarines into service from 2035.
Will Musk avoid all repercussions of bribery in taking Verizon’s FAA contract?
Elon Musk’s satellite company, Starlink, is in talks to potentially take over a $2.4 billion contract from Verizon with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to upgrade airspace management systems. While the contract hasn’t been officially transferred, FAA officials have begun seeking funds for a possible Starlink deal, according to sources familiar with the situation. These instructions were reportedly given verbally, which is unusual and suggests an effort to avoid creating a paper trail. Obtaining a federal contract through ties to…
US manufacturers report fall in orders as growth expectations tumble
US manufacturers reported steep declines in new orders and employment in February, fuelling fears that the economy is losing momentum as growth expectations also fell sharply. The ISM Manufacturing purchasing managers’ index on Monday dropped to 50.3 in February from 50.9 the previous month, leaving it just above contraction territory, while secondary indices pointed to a sharp fall in new orders from 55.1 to 48.6. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s running estimate of US GDP growth, also published on…
Gucci registers brand in Russia
The following article is from a Russian news source, Tass, which is controlled by the Russian Government. MOSCOW, February 19. /TASS/. Guccio Gucci, an Italian company, filed the Gucci trademark with the Russian Federal Intellectual Property Service, according to the authority’s data. The application was submitted on June 2, 2023, and the state registration was completed on February 18, 2025. The trademark holder is Guccio Gucci, based in Florence. The trademark was approved under the International Classification of Goods and…
YAPP USA Automotive Systems to Pay $14.2M to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Relating to Paycheck Protection Program Loan
YAPP USA Automotive Systems Inc., a corporation with its principal place of business in Michigan, has agreed to pay $14,208,496 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to obtain a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan for which it was not eligible. Congress created the PPP in March 2020 to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the PPP, eligible businesses could receive forgivable loans…
New India Cooperative Bank former GM in police custody for fraud allegations
On Sunday, Mumbai Police arrested Dharmesh Paun, private developer from Kandivali, in connection with the New India Cooperative Bank scam (NICB). According to the police, Paun allegedly received illicit funds from the bank’s General Manager and Account Head, Hitesh Mehta, who was also arrested Saturday. The scam was uncovered during an audit at the bank’s headquarters in Prabhadevi last Wednesday, when RBI officials discovered funds missing from the vault. Mehta, who has been with the bank since 1988, reportedly confessed…
Trade tariff turmoil pushes Canada to rethink US ties | DW News
Video: Trump’s tariff policies are straining US-Canada relations. After imposing and then suspending tariffs, Canadian leaders are reassessing their ties with the US. Some are now looking to the European Union as a potential alternative. Major publications, including The Toronto Star and The Economist, are openly questioning whether Canada could align more closely with Europe. European politicians are also weighing in. Could this mark a significant shift in global alliances?
Lawsuit accuses Amazon of secretly tracking consumers through cellphones
Amazon.com was sued on Wednesday by consumers who accused the retailing giant of secretly tracking their movements through their cellphones, and selling data it collects. According to a proposed class action in San Francisco federal court, Amazon obtained “backdoor access” to consumers’ phones by providing tens of thousands of app developers with code known as Amazon Ads SDK to be embedded in their apps. This allegedly enabled Amazon to collect an enormous amount of timestamped geolocation data about where consumers…
Is DeepSeek a DeekFake and does it matter?
The Chinese AI startup, DeepSeek, is in the news today due to its rapid rise and the impact that had on NVIDIA stock. Apparently, DeepSeek developed an AI model that has caused a stir. For one thing, it just became the top-downloaded free app in the Apple Store, surpassing ChatGPT. This led to a sharp decline in NVIDIA’s stock, as investors are supposedly concerned that DeepSeek’s AI model is more cost-efficient. More more cost-efficient means that it threatens NVIDIA’s dominance…
Denmark, US and Greenland to discuss Arctic security
OSLO – Denmark agreed on Jan 24 to discuss the Arctic region with Washington, Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said, after his first phone call with the secretary of state from the administration of President Donald Trump, who wants control of Greenland. Mr Rasmussen and Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a 20-minute conversation in a “good and constructive tone”, discussing Ukraine, European security and the situation in the Middle East, the Danish Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Mr…