February, 2023

• 22 February

  Teen staple Forever 21 relaunches in Japan as upscale clothier

  

  Bloomberg Forever 21, which came to epitomise the fast-fashion movement by selling trendy, of-the-moment clothing to teens at bottom-barrel prices, is relaunching in Japan by quietly overhauling itself as an upmarket clothier. About 80% of Forever 21’s new collection, which will launch in the fashion-crazy country Tuesday via online sales and a pop-up store in central Tokyo, will be developed …

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• 22 February

  Tesco store workers to get 7% raise to soften inflation sting

    Bloomberg Tesco Plc plans to raise store employees’ base pay by 7% as workers across the UK struggle to keep up with the rising cost of living. Store employees will get £11.02 an hour from early April, the retailer said, hailing the agreement with the USDAW union as the third pay increase in 10 months. Workers in London will …

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• 22 February

  Shareholder urges Airbus to drop Evidian pursuit

    Bloomberg Airbus SE should refrain from buying a stake in a division of French software company Atos SE because the purchase would represent an “extremely inefficient” use of funds and distract management at a time when it needs to focus on meeting delivery targets, activist investor Chris Hohn said. Owning a stake in the Evidian business would expose Airbus …

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• 22 February

  UK’s surprise budget surplus gives Hunt room to maneuver

  

  Bloomberg UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt has as much as £30 billion ($36 billion) for short-term giveaways in next month’s budget after the public finances came in far better than expected in January. Borrowing since the fiscal year that began in April is running £22 billion below the level forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility in November, …

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• 22 February

  Meta shifts UK users to US agreements in post-Brexit move

  Bloomberg Meta Platforms Inc. will begin moving its UK users away from the company’s Irish subsidiary and onto US agreements in a move the social-media giant flagged post-Brexit. The company was expected to update terms of service for UK Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp users on Tuesday and customers will be notified in the coming weeks, Menlo Park, California-based Meta said …

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• 22 February

  Private-sector activity in Germany, France grows

    Bloomberg The euro area’s two largest economies saw private-sector growth return, snapping months of contractions as easing supply shocks and an unusually mild winter provide respite. S&P Global’s flash Purchasing Managers’ Index for Germany rose to 51.1 in February — much better than the 50.3 median estimate in a Bloomberg survey and the first time since June that the …

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• 22 February

  Microsoft ‘willing to address concerns’ to save $69bn deal

  

  Bloomberg Microsoft Corp. headed into a showdown with European Union antitrust watchdogs by insisting its $69 billion takeover of Activision Blizzard Inc. will “bring more competition” for gamers but pledging to show willingness to address antitrust concerns. “I think we’ll make clear that our acquisition of Activision Blizzard will bring more games to more people on more devices and platforms …

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• 22 February

  Europe sees strong rebound in business activity

    Bloomberg Europe’s biggest economies beat expectations as business activity returned to growth, boosting the chances they can stave off recessions. Gauges of private output in Germany and France both signaled expansion in February after pullbacks in January, while the UK’s purchasing managers’ index showed the first positive reading in six months — jumping to 53 from 48.5. In the …

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• 22 February

  Tesla undercuts average US car by $5,000 in EV shakeout

  

  Bloomberg It’s never been this cheap to buy a Tesla. After a hopscotch of price cuts over the past month, Tesla’s Model 3 sedan now sells for $4,930 less than the average new vehicle sold in the US. That’s the cheapest price Tesla has ever had relative to the typical US vehicle, according to a new Bloomberg analysis. It’s a …

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• 22 February

  Putin halts nuke pact with US, vows to push war in Ukraine

  

  Bloomberg President Vladimir Putin said Russia will suspend its observation of the New START treaty with the US, dealing a blow to the last accord limiting their nuclear arsenals, as he vowed to press on with his faltering invasion of Ukraine. Russia is fighting for its “historic lands” in Ukraine and “will fulfill the tasks set step-by-step, carefully and consistently,” …

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