Germany's coalition government on Wednesday allowed a Chinese firm to take a smaller-than-planned stake in a Hamburg port, after Chancellor Olaf Scholz resisted calls to ban the controversial sale outright.. Scholz, a former Hamburg mayor, had supported the sale and has repeatedly stressed the importance of strong trade ties with China.
German carmaker Mercedes-Benz is expected to sell its Russian assets to a local investor, the Russian ministry of industry and trade said Wednesday, becoming the latest automaker to exit since Moscow sent troops to Ukraine.. "Mercedes-Benz intends to sell its shares in Russian subsidiaries to a local investor," Avtodom, the ministry said in a Telegram statement.
Germany's biggest lender Deutsche Bank on Wednesday said its third-quarter net profit had risen more than five-fold year-on-year, far better than expected, as a restructuring programme bears fruit.. Deutsche Bank launched a restructuring programme in July 2019, which saw the size of the investment banking division reduced, with the loss of thousands of jobs.
Spanish banking giant Banco Santander on Wednesday announced an 11-percent increase in net profits year-on-year in the third quarter.. Ana Botin, the executive chair of Banco Santander, said the group had delivered a "strong quarter with revenues increasing and profitability remaining above target... supported by our rock-solid balance sheet".
Residents of the Athens suburb of Glyfada who are struggling to heat their homes as energy prices soar now have an option -- free firewood from the local council.. So the council has stepped in to help with free firewood.
China's fiscal deficit ballooned to an all-time high of nearly $1 trillion in the first nine months of the year, analysis of government data by Bloomberg showed, as a real estate crisis and tax rebates to boost a cooling economy emptied government coffers.. China's economy grew 3.9 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, data showed this week, beating expectations.
Hong Kong authorities have arrested two men for laundering funds worth HK$3.5 billion ($446 million) by reselling precious metals, one of the city's largest money-laundering cases, officials said Wednesday.. It was a record for money-laundering cases busted by Hong Kong Customs, Li said, although the police have cracked larger cases.
Hackers accessed millions of medical records at one of Australia's largest private health insurers, the company said Wednesday, prompting the government to admit the nation's cyber safeguards were "inadequate".. Medibank on Wednesday also confirmed it was not insured against cyber attacks, estimating the hack could cost the company as much as Au$35 million (US$22 million).
Asian stocks rose Wednesday to build on another strong performance in New York following more healthy earnings from big-name firms while hopes for a slowdown in Federal Reserve rate hikes spread cheer.. The prospect of a slowdown in US rate hikes helped weaken the dollar, which has surged against most currencies this year.
Businesses must be compelled to reveal their impact on nature, more than 300 firms said in an open letter to world leaders published on Wednesday ahead of crunch United Nations negotiations to halt catastrophic biodiversity loss. . While businesses are beginning to report on their carbon emissions and climate impacts -- albeit with some facing accusations of "greenwashing" -- few firms give details on biodiversity.
