International News

Bloomberg A $45,000 electric SUV using facial recognition to unlock doors, Amazon’s Alexa to entertain and a 49-inch screen across the dashboard may be a harbinger of driving’s future. It also shows what China’s doing to grab that business now as the government pushes gas guzzlers off its roads. Byton, a Nanjing-based company started by former BMW AG executives, became ...

Bloomberg Insurance may lack the buzz and cachet enjoyed by tech companies, yet the stock of one Chinese company in the industry has kept pace handsomely with some of the highest-flying champions of the digital revolution. Ping An Insurance (Group) Co.’s success shows how the lines between “new” and “old” economy businesses are breaking down, forcing investors and strategists to ...

Bloomberg Life Healthcare Group Holdings Ltd., the second-largest private hospital owner in South Africa, is considering a sale of its stake in India’s Max Healthcare Ltd., people with knowledge of the matter said. The Johannesburg-based company is working with Barclays Plc to explore potential interest in its holding in Max Healthcare, which is one of India’s largest private hospital chains, ...

Bloomberg Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk A/S made its largest takeover offer ever, an unsolicited 2.6 billion-euro ($3.1 billion) bid for Belgium’s Ablynx NV, to beef up its lesser known blood-disorder unit and rekindle growth. The offer for Ablynx signals a higher appetite for deals at the world’s biggest maker of diabetes medicines. After taking the reins, CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen ...

Bloomberg The latest signs are in that British households are coming under increasing pressure from surging inflation. Consumers curbed their spending for the first time in five years in 2017, according to a survey from Visa, while a squeeze on incomes was flagged by Halifax as a contributing factor to a decline in house prices in December 2017. The reports ...

Bloomberg German factory orders fell in November 2017 as demand for investment goods dropped, though the Economy Ministry said the trend remains upward. Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, slid 0.4 percent after a revised 0.7 percent gain in October, the ministry said on Monday. While the decrease snapped three month of gains, the number is typically volatile and ...

Bloomberg Uber Technologies Inc.’s rivals are stepping up the battle for ride-sharing dominance in Europe, with local startups raising funds and global adversaries increasing contact with local regulators as they seek to gain a toehold in the region. Taxify OU is looking to raise $50 million in the first quarter to fund expansion plans, according to a person familiar with ...

Bloomberg Fortis Healthcare Ltd. is seeking a cash injection of as much as 50 billion rupees ($790 million) as part of its billionaire founders’ talks to sell their stake in India’s second-largest private hospital chain, according to President Daljit Singh. Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh have been in talks with private equity firms for the past year to sell their ...

Bloomberg Hindalco Industries Ltd. is among potential buyers that submitted bids for US aluminum producer Aleris Corp., people with knowledge of the matter said, as Indian billionaire owner Kumar Mangalam Birla moves ahead with plans to expand his overseas operations. Mumbai-listed Hindalco made a non-binding offer through its US unit, Novelis Inc., and will now conduct due diligence, according to ...

Bloomberg Thousands of tourists have floated in a hot-air balloon over Myanmar’s historic Bagan plains dotted with more than 2,200 ancient Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries. Chances are they rode one of Memories Group Ltd.’s inflatables. The company, the largest operator of balloons in the area, rose 48 percent above its placement price in its debut session on the Singapore ...