The South by Southwest arts and tech festival was just moving into high gear when news spread that Silicon Valley Bank had collapsed -- throwing even the most starry-eyed tech believers into shock.. "But I think once the whole Silicon Valley Bank issue gets sorted out, it will be something that people forget in a few years," the investor said.
Saudi Arabia's new national airline plans more aircraft orders as it prepares to operate its first flights in early 2025, its CEO told AFP on Wednesday.. "These aircraft are being assembled in the United States of America and they'll be delivered to us with the kind of timetable that allows us to prepare to go into service in early 2025," CEO Tony Douglas, the former head of Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways, told AFP. "It will be added to with further orders during the course of this year, and that will give us a sizeable fleet that will allow us to connect to over 100 different destinations," he said.
Zara owner Inditex, the world's biggest fashion retailer, reported record profits for 2022 despite halting operations in Russia and soaring global inflation.. In-store and online sales for the world's biggest fast fashion retailer also hit a record, surging 17 percent to 32.6 billion euros.
A damages claim faced by global mining firm BHP over a deadly 2015 Brazilian dam collapse has risen to an estimated £36 billion ($44 billion), the legal firm leading the UK class action said on Wednesday.. The 2015 tragedy unfolded after the rupture of an iron ore tailings dam in the Minas Gerais region, owned by the Samarco joint venture between BHP and Brazilian iron ore mining company Vale.
US retail sales and wholesale prices slipped in February, according to government data released Wednesday, providing some respite for policymakers as the central bank prepares for a crucial interest rate decision next week.. Retail sales contracted in February by 0.4 percent to $698 billion, down from a revised $701 billion a month earlier, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.
In the wake of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank that has shaken world markets, Nobel economics prize laureate Joseph Stiglitz told AFP that US authorities "did the right thing" to protect deposits but said the financial system needs a rethink.. In this case its not a lending problem, it's a maturity mismatch and that can happen anywhere in our economic system."
Credit Suisse shares plunged more than 20 percent to new record lows after its main shareholder said it would not provide more financial assistance to the embattled Swiss banking giant.. Credit Suisse shares were soon in freefall on the Swiss stock exchange, hitting a low of 1.71 Swiss francs just before 1100 GMT -- down 22.2 percent.
Russia's oil-export revenue sank by almost half in February compared to last year as Western powers tightened sanctions on the country, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday.. Western powers set a price cap in February of $100 per barrel for more expensive fuel like diesel and $45 on lower-quality products such as fuel oil.
South Korea said Wednesday it would build the world's largest chip centre using $230 billion of private investment mostly from Samsung Electronics, as it seeks an edge in the global industry.. South Korea will "build the world's largest scale system semiconductor cluster in the capital areas using massive private investments worth 300 trillion won," President Yoon Suk Yeol said at an economic policy meeting.
Britain on Wednesday unveils a new cost-of-living budget, including more help on soaring energy bills, but the government is set to stand firm on rising public sector pay demands as the country endures a fresh wave of strikes.. "Shamefully, ministers don't seem interested in giving their own employees a fair pay rise to help them through the cost-of-living crisis and beyond," it added as schools shut across the country.
