Bloomberg Nissan Motor Co. forecast a surprise drop in annual profit on expectations for higher raw material costs and a stronger yen, and as price competition increases in the US and China. Operating profit will probably fall 7.7 percent to 685 billion yen ($6 billion) in the fiscal year through March, compared with the average analysts’ estimate for a gain ...

Bloomberg Growth in the euro area will be slightly stronger this year than previously forecast, the European Commission said, adding that some risks to the outlook have eased following the defeat of populist parties in France and the Netherlands. The commission sees the 19-nation economy expanding 1.7 percent this year — up from 1.6 percent forecast in February — and ...

Bloomberg While dealing with Volkswagen AG’s legal woes over the last 1 1/2 years, Chief Executive Officer Matthias Mueller was able to claim that he was not personally caught up in investigations. That has now changed, potentially complicating his efforts to turn the page on the biggest scandal in the German automaker’s recent history. Mueller, brought in at the height ...

Bloomberg For a guy who just lost about a quarter of his net worth, Snap Inc. co-founder Evan Spiegel exuded confi- dence on his first earnings conference call, explaining away the company’s shortcomings and even throwing shade at his bigger — and far more successful — social media rival, Facebook Inc. Facebook has been copying some of Snapchat’s most popular ...

Bloomberg Uber Technologies Inc. suffered a legal setback in its fight against being regulated as a traditional taxi service, after an adviser to the European Union’s top court rejected the argument that the car-hailing application is just that, an app. The question has vexed regulators and lawmakers across the region for years and Thursday’s non-binding opinion gives an indication that ...

As they’ve guided China’s remarkable economic ascent over the last four decades, the country’s leaders have largely been content to focus on raising incomes and building factories. They’ve steered clear of messy international entanglements that could undermine economic progress, and with it the public support that keeps them in power. Over the past decade, of course, a richer, more confident ...

Most of us remember the time before smartphones were in the pockets and purses of billions of people. Before those gadgets became the primary computer for millions of people. Before the smartphone boom made fortunes for some companies — Apple and Facebook, for example — and doomed others. That all happened in less than a decade. That is stunningly quick. ...

Per-capita electricity use peaked in the US in 2007. With the exception of a post-recession rebound in 2010, it has declined every year since. I already wrote a column about this epochal shift last month, but the chart that went with it is so remarkable that I’m going to recycle it here. What caused the decline? I offered several possible ...

Bloomberg European airlines are preparing for the anticipated widening of a US ban on bringing laptops and other large electronic devices on board planes bound for American airports. Air France-KLM Group and Deutsche Lufthansa AG are among carriers to say they’re making preparations for the moratorium on devices, including tablets and games consoles, to be expanded to their hubs after ...

Bloomberg Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd plans to sell a minority stake in its Istanbul unit, which operates Turkey’s second-biggest airport, people familiar with the matter said. The Malaysian company is seeking an investor for Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport, also known as ISG, and plans to maintain control of the company, the people said, asking not to be identified because ...