Headlines

Manroland Sheetfed has entered into a “protective shield” form of insolvency proceedings, with the support of parent Langley Holdings, PrintWeek.com reported. Last month Langley Holdings said that mounting losses at the “beleaguered” press manufacturing subsidiary had become unsustainable – the business lost €43.2m (£37.64m) last year – and the board was considering its options for the business. Today (3 March), Langley announced that Manroland Sheetfed had entered ‘Schutzschirmverfahren’ insolvency proceedings, similar to chapter 11 in the US, with Langley providing financial support.

With few captains willing to brave the Strait of Hormuz as war rages around the Gulf, companies will have to do business without one of the world's most vital shipping lanes, especially for oil and gas, AFP reported. The strait is especially key to the world energy markets, with around 20% of global seaborne oil passing through. That said, analysts believe that cutting off access, as Iran has threatened to do, will not affect the major Asia-Europe shipping route, with the Gulf ending in a cul-de-sac by the shores of Kuwait, Iraq and Iran.

Eurozone inflation rose unexpectedly in February, fresh data showed on Tuesday, complicating the European Central Bank’s (ECB) disinflation narrative just as a fast-moving war in Middle East threatens to reignite a new energy shock for Europe, EuroNews.com reported. Euro area annual inflation came in at 1.9% in February 2026, up from 1.7% in January, according to Eurostat’s flash estimate. Economists had expected the rate to hold steady. On a monthly basis, consumer prices increased by 0.7% — the strongest monthly rise since March 2024.

Attacks by the U.S. and Israel on Iran, and that country’s response, make the outlook for the global economy more uncertain, but it is too early to judge the impact, the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. In a statement, the Fund said it is closely monitoring developments in the Middle East, where the situation is “highly fluid.” “It is too early to assess the economic impact on the region and the global economy,” the IMF said.

The U.K. government is on track to cut borrowing and reduce its debts, although the attacks on Iran by the U.S. and Israel have made the outlook more uncertain, Treasury Chief Rachel Reeves said Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. In the first of two annual presentations to lawmakers, Reeves cited new forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility that estimate the budget deficit for the fiscal year ending early next month will be 4.3% of annual economic output, the smallest gap between expenditures and revenues since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Clothing company Roots Corp. has launched a review of strategic alternatives to maximize value for shareholders, the Canadian Press reported. The company says its board will analyze and evaluate a range of alternatives, including the possible sale of the retailer. Roots was established in 1973 and has grown to over 100 corporate retail stores in Canada and two stores in the United States.

British dealmaking reached a 26-year high in the first two months of the year as foreign buyers raced to snap up UK companies, The Telegraph reported. Almost $90bn (£68bn) worth of deals were agreed in January and February this year, including a number of major foreign takeovers such as a multi-billion-dollar deal for insurer Beazley. The $89.9bn of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity marks the highest total for the two months since the same period in 2000, when the value of deals reached $131bn.

China’s progress in building a modern economy is hitting limits as a downturn in its housing industry drags on, small businesses suffer and young people struggle to find jobs, the Associated Press reported. The gap between Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s high-tech, artificial intelligence-driven ambitions and the hard realities of slowing growth is the backdrop for the annual meeting of the country’s largely ceremonial national legislature, the National People’s Congress, which begins Thursday.

The spread of stablecoins in the euro zone could weaken the effectiveness of monetary policy, siphon deposits away from ‌banks and reduce lending to the real economy, a study published by ‌the European Central Bank showed on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Stablecoins, crypto assets designed to maintain a stable value, remain ​niche but their rapid growth has raised concerns that regulation is not keeping pace with a product that could reshape commercial and central banking.

Japanese spending on factories and equipment rose 6.5% on-year in the fourth quarter, Ministry of Finance data showed on Tuesday, indicating resilient investment ‌demand continued to support a barely growing economy, Reuters reported. The encouraging data, which will be used ‌in calculating revised gross domestic product figures scheduled for March 10, comes as the government seeks to bolster investment through targeted ​public outlay in sectors it deems vital for economic security.