Bloomberg Vertical Aerospace Ltd.’s prototype electric air taxi lifted off for the first time this weekend and the company reiterated it was confident that the aircraft will be certified by 2025. The VX4 electric vertical take-off and landing, or eVTOL, vehicle rose in a so-called tethered hover test, in which the aircraft was still attached to the ground for …

Bloomberg McDonald’s Holdings Co Japan will raise menu prices for the second time this year, joining a growing number of businesses passing on the impact of the weakening yen and the highest inflation in decades to the consumers. The fast-food chain will raise the price of about 60% of its products by 10 to 30 yen ($0.07-$0.21) from September 30, …

  Bloomberg PT Garuda Indonesia filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in the Southern District of New York court, as the debt-laden carrier tries to secure its future profitability. The document is dated September 23. The submission comes as the airline, having completed a court-supervised debt restructuring in Indonesia to halve cut its debt load, tries to capitalise on the …

  Bloomberg Unilever Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Alan Jope plans to retire at the end of next year following a tumultuous period where the company botched a potential $53 billion deal and irked investors with lackluster growth. Jope, 58, a long-term veteran of the consumer goods company, will leave after only five years in the role, with no named successor …

Bloomberg Apple Inc began making its new iPhone 14 in India sooner than anticipated, after a surprisingly smooth production rollout that slashed the lag between Chinese and Indian output from months to mere weeks. The US tech giant made the announcement on Monday, weeks after the marquee device’s September 7 unveiling. It had worked with Foxconn Technology Group, its most …

  Bloomberg Global financial firms, still smarting from multi-billion dollar losses in Russia, are now reassessing the risks of doing business in Greater China after an escalation of tensions over Taiwan. Lenders including Societe Generale SA, JPMorgan Chase & Co, UBS Group have asked their staff to review contingency plans in the past few months to manage exposures, according to …

Bloomberg Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the government’s intervention in the foreign exchange market last week was appropriate given the recent volatility in the yen. The government’s action didn’t contradict with the BOJ’s ongoing monetary stimulus as the former is aimed at countering rapid, one-sided slide in the yen while the central bank’s monetary easing needs to …

  Bloomberg A wide gap has emerged between Nigeria’s official and parallel market exchange rates of the naira, the widest since 2016, as central bank failure to meet increasing dollar demand puts pressure on the currency. The local currency unit weakened to 715 naira against the dollar in the unauthorised parallel market, according to Umar Salisu, a bureau de change …

  Bloomberg Further Swiss National Bank interest rate hikes can’t be excluded, central bank chief Thomas Jordan said, stressing his determination after his institution’s latest move fell short of market expectations. Although inflation in Switzerland is lower than elsewhere, “in this country, too, it has still increased much more than was generally expected”, Jordan said at the University of Lucerne, …

  Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) will raise borrowing costs next month by at least a half-point as inflation pressures worsen, according to Governing Council member Gediminas Simkus. “Based on data I see now, the inflationary trends are intensifying,” the Lithuanian central bank chief told reporters on Monday in Vilnius. “There are a few options on the table” for …