Good morning! Here's what you need to know.
ADVERTISEMENT
10 things you need to know before European markets open
Here's what you need to know.
Ashley arrived at court with his PR man Keith Bishop.
ADVERTISEMENT
1. British Prime Minister Theresa May will hold a bilateral meeting with US President Donald Trump at the G20 summit in Hamburg on Friday, a government official said. The official declined to comment on what issues May planned to raise with Trump.
2. Deutsche Bank Chief Executive John Cryan said he has no plans to step down from the helm of Germany's biggest lender, he told German weekly Die Zeit in an interview. "You can be sure: I have no plans to go elsewhere, not for a long time," he told the paper when asked whether the appointment of Christian Sewing and Markus Schenck as co-deputy CEOs earlier this year was meant to lay the groundwork for succession plans.
3. Demand for global air freight jumped 12.7% in May as new export orders hover close to six-year highs, a sign that economic and trade conditions remain robust, the International Air Transport Association. All regions except for Latin America reported double-digit growth.
ADVERTISEMENT
4. The billionaire founder of Sports Direct rejected claims that he often conducts business while drinking heavily and accused his former business partner, who made the claim, of trying to "damage" his reputation. Mike Ashley said in a witness statement presented at court in London on Wednesday that former advisor Jeff Blue "has made certain allegations in his statement which are intended to damage my and/or Sports Direct's reputation."
5. Germany's Daimler and its Chinese joint venture partner BAIC Motor Corporation have agreed to jointly invest 5 billion yuan ($735 million) in battery electric vehicle production in China by 2020 and to provide the infrastructure needed. "By 2025, the Chinese market will have a substantial share in global sales of Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles," management board member Hubertus Troska said.
6. Chinese conglomerate Fosun saw shares in its listed units fall on Thursday, prompting it to refute online rumors that it had lost contact with its billionaire chairman, Guo Guangchang.The firm said in a statement Guo was in Shaanxi province giving a speech in the city of Xi'an and that online reports he had gone missing were "sheer rumor and malicious slander".
7. Airbus has signed an agreement to sell 140 aircraft to China, it said on Wednesday, in a deal worth around $23 billion at list prices. The agreement, signed during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Germany, is for 100 A320 family aircraft and 40 A350 planes, Airbus said.
8. Japan's population, excluding resident foreigners, fell at the beginning of this year at its fastest pace since comparable figures were kept in 1968, highlighting the demographic challenge to economic growth. As of Jan. 1, the number of Japanese people fell by a record 308,084 from a year earlier to 125,583,658, marking the eighth consecutive year of declines.
ADVERTISEMENT
9. A European Union law that forces passenger airline pilots to retire at 65 is valid, the EU's top court said. German flight instructor Werner Fries took his case to a German labour court in 2013 after his employer, Lufthansa, ended his contract when he turned 65, in line with EU law.
10. Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called for calm in the face of "authoritarian delusions" in Catalonia, as tensions between Madrid and separatists surged over an independence drive. "To all Catalans, to all Spaniards, I want to tell you to maintain confidence in the future as authoritarian delusions... will never defeat the serenity and harmony of our democratic state," Rajoy said at a gathering in Madrid.
FOLLOW BUSINESS INSIDER AFRICA
ADVERTISEMENT
Recommended articles
African countries are asserting their sovereignty amidst a global race for resource acquisition: The elite in the diaspora should be ready to facilitate.
Top 10 African countries that have the most smokers
Top 5 cheapest countries to buy beer in Africa
Africa’s path to transforming its finances - IMF
Demand for used and refurbished phones in Africa rose in 2023 — Report
Coca-Cola to IPO $8 billion African bottling arm on Johannesburg Stock Exchange
Glovo pulls out of Ghana market citing profitability challenges
10 African countries with the most intelligent people - report