International News

Bloomberg AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. are under investigation by US antitrust officials over whether the companies colluded to make it tougher for consumers to switch wireless carriers, according to three people familiar with the matter. Apple Inc., a pioneer in the eSIM technology that makes switching easier, was joined by other equipment makers in complaining to the government ...

Bloomberg General Electric Co reported solid results, reaffirmed its profit forecast and avoided the kind of nasty surprises that marred earnings in recent quarters. Chief Executive Officer John Flannery expressed optimism that GE would exceed its $2 billion cost-cutting goal and said he’s exploring new ways to run the company. “I’m excited about the path we’re on,” Flannery said on ...

Bloomberg Ericsson AB shares soared the most in more than 9 years after the Swedish maker of wireless networks posted first-quarter earnings that were stronger than analysts had expected, proof that the company is making progress in a protracted effort to reverse its fortunes. Ericsson’s closely watched gross margin — the share of sales remaining after production costs — rose ...

Bloomberg The bidding war for Brazil’s prized Eletropaulo SA utility is heating up with two European power giants looking to best each other’s bids. Italy’s Enel SpA said it would increase a promised capital injection to 1.5 billion Brazilian reais ($443 million) to sweeten its 28 reais-a-share offer for the AES Corp. unit. The move came hours after the Brazilian ...

Bloomberg Salil Parekh didn’t get much time to settle in after taking over the helm of Infosys Ltd. Since becoming chief executive officer in January, the 53-year-old has crisscrossed three continents to meet with customers and employees to get his hands around the challenges facing India’s iconic tech-services giant. He talked with 48 clients in his first three months — ...

Bloomberg IHH Healthcare Bhd. has asked Fortis Healthcare Ltd. for three weeks to complete due diligence ahead of making a potential binding offer, people with knowledge of the matter said, as the takeover battle for India’s second-largest hospital chain escalates. IHH, Asia’s most valuable hospital operator, sent a letter to Fortis’s board on April 16 with the due diligence request ...

Bloomberg China’s decision to stop putting foreign carmakers in bed with local partners is unlikely to prompt a major unwind anytime time soon. But it dangles the lucrative draw of future wholly-owned future factories. Such a move would benefit new competitors like Tesla Inc. and late China-arrivals like Fiat Chrysler Automobiles with no or limited joint-venture production in China. Luxury ...

Bloomberg Runaway jewellers have become somewhat of a staple of news headlines out of India. But reading the small print of trade numbers may tell a new story — flight of capital. A spurt in imports of precious stones and pearls, at a time when gold imports have moderated, has raised the red flag for analysts at Credit Suisse AG, ...

Bloomberg China has extended visa-free access to Hainan for another 33 — mostly European and South American — countries, as President Xi Jinping seeks to boost the tropical province’s popularity among foreign tourists. New regulations expanding the travel privileges to 59 nations come into effect in May, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing the State Immigration Administration. Tourists from ...

Bloomberg IBM’s one-quarter growth streak is already in doubt. Shares of the technology company fell in early trading after it reported narrower profit margins and no revenue growth, excluding help from a weak US dollar. That cast a shadow over an effort to sell more-profitable cloud-based software to revive growth after five years of revenue declines. Though heading in the ...