BUSINESS

In France, the left was set to emerge as the biggest group in a new parliament, beating out a resurgent far right in a vote called by President Emmanuel Macron three years ahead of schedule..

The firm is the flagship subsidiary of South Korean giant Samsung Group, by far the largest of the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate business in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

Brussels launched an investigation last year into Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers to probe whether state subsidies were unfairly undercutting European automakers.

The US central bank has held interest rates at a two-decade high for almost a year as it looks to bring inflation down to its long-term two percent target without doing too much damage to either the labor market or the broader economy.

The plant in Rayong, an industrial area southeast of Bangkok, will be able to build up to 150,000 vehicles a year, according to the company, which dominates its domestic market.

The country, which is the region's largest economy and home to the largest nickel reserve in the world, has been seeking to position itself as a key player in the global electric vehicle supply chain.

The facility will open in the town of Hordain in what is becoming known as France's Battery Valley, as four major battery production facilities are set to open.

Consumer prices have remained stubbornly above the ECB's two-percent target, although the return to easing inflation will no doubt be welcomed by officials.

Keir Starmer, whose Labour party is tipped to win the vote on Thursday, has ruled out returning Britain to the European single market, customs union, or bringing back free movement of EU nationals.

US aircraft manufacturer Boeing said Monday it had reached a "definitive deal" to buy its subcontractor Spirit, which has faced scrutiny over production quality control in recent months.

The sports giant, which has been criticized in recent times over a lack of innovation and strategic stumbles, reported a dip in quarterly revenues as executives cited a number of headwinds.

In a 5-4 ruling, the judges agreed with the Justice Department which argued that the Sacklers, who earned tens of billions of dollars flooding the country with highly addictive opioids, should not gain sweeping legal protection in the controversial deal.

Asian equity markets advanced following a positive lead from Wall Street, though there is speculation of a possible pull-back on profit-taking and concerns the recent tech-fuelled rally may have run too far.

Copping will take over men's and women's collections from September, the fashion house announced on Thursday.

Lagardere, who sold the firm built by his father to media giant Vivendi in November, had been temporarily barred from holding management positions over alleged misuse of corporate funds at some of his companies not belonging to Lagardere group.

It's all part of an effort to strengthen quality control on the 737 MAX, a bestselling airliner that has suffered some high-profile problems.

The Japanese unit's latest retreat came as uncertainty surrounded the Federal Reserve's timetable for cutting interest rates, and the Bank of Japan's caution in tightening monetary policy.

Safety concerns and the cost of developing next-level systems have slowed down progress on autonomous vehicles, but work on regulations is motoring ahead, said the UN.

Asian and European markets mostly rose Wednesday following a tech-led bounce on Wall Street as investors prepared for the release of crucial US inflation data.

The charge sheet comes after the European Commission, the EU's influential antitrust regulator, launched a probe last year triggered by a 2020 complaint from Slack.

Asian equities edged higher Tuesday after recent losses as investors ignored another tough day for tech titans on Wall Street that has raised concerns about a correction in markets following a string of record highs.

President Javier Milei, who took office in December, stopped all new public works projects as part of his drive to slash spending, and the construction sector was down 19 percent, data showed.

Picnic has disrupted the Dutch supermarket landscape with its offer of free delivery in a time window of 20 minutes -- made possible by squeezing efficiency out of huge amounts of data.

The European Commission informed Apple in a "preliminary view" that the "App Store rules... prevent app developers from freely steering consumers to alternative channels for offers and content".

The announcement came after a lengthy investigation which found that Kaspersky's "continued operations in the United States presented a national security risk due to the Russian Government's offensive cyber capabilities and capacity to influence or direct Kaspersky's operations," it added.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) -- which excludes volatile fresh food prices -- rose 2.5 percent year-on-year, compared with the 2.2 percent logged in April by the internal affairs ministry.

If a compromise is not reached between Brussels and Beijing, the European Commission will impose extra tariffs of up to 38 percent on Chinese electric vehicles it says have benefitted from unfair subsidies.

The committee's report also urged the state obtain special rights over French energy giant TotalEnergies' strategic decisions and major changes in shareholders.

Marnie Wilking, Chief Information Security Officer at the Netherlands-based travel giant, said generative AI had sparked an explosion in online phishing scams, and that the hospitality industry, long spared, had also become a target.