Headlines

Estonian cargo bike manufacturer Hagen Bikes has filed for bankruptcy after being unable to fulfill orders, in turn due to a lack of investment, ESS News reported. Hagen Bikes submitted its bankruptcy petition to the first-tier Harju County Court on Friday.

Persistently high interest rates are putting stress on corporate balance sheets and leaving increasing numbers of firms here and across the region at risk of bankruptcy, according to a new report and experts, The Star reported. The report noted that high interest rates have created an unfavorable borrowing environment, operational challenges and dented consumer spending. These have resulted in a broad-based increase in distressed companies, unlike previous cycles in Asia where the pain was concentrated in specific industries such as the shipping and oil sectors.

Lenders to India's Go First are not in favor of releasing additional funding to the grounded airline, given its legal troubles with lessors and complexities related to changes in the bankruptcy law, two banking sources told Reuters on Monday, Reuters reported. Go First's lenders, which include the Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, IDBI Bank and Deutsche Bank, had in principle approved funding of 4.50 billion rupees ($54.09 million) in June to resume operations and restart the airline.

Globally, there are currently more than 35,000 coworking spaces, and this figure is projected to increase to 41,000 by the close of 2024, reflecting a growth rate of approximately 21%. Notably, in South Africa, this growth rate has more than doubled, soaring to an impressive 44%, Biz Community reported. This demonstrates the robust demand for serviced and flexible workspaces that support evolving trends in hybrid and remote work, affirming their enduring presence in our daily lives.

The downturn in euro zone business activity accelerated last month as demand in the dominant services industry weakened further, a survey showed on Monday, suggesting there is a growing chance of a recession in the 20-country currency union, Reuters reported. The economy contracted 0.1% in the third quarter, official data has shown, and Monday's final Composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for October indicated the bloc entered the final quarter of 2023 on the back foot.

Air New Zealand said on Tuesday that a change in the servicing schedule of RTX's Pratt & Whitney engines could significantly impact the airline's services for up to two years, Reuters reported. The carrier in October had flagged a nominal financial impact in the first half of 2024 related to the engine issue. Air New Zealand warned in September that the engine inspections would have a "significant" impact on its flight schedule from next year. The airline said on Tuesday it would pause flights connecting Auckland and Hobart from April 5 next year.

An Italian judge has ordered the seizure of 779.5 million euros ($836.40 million) from short-term rentals platform Airbnb's Ireland unit for alleged tax evasion, Milan prosecutors' office said on Monday, Reuters reported. The probe concerns Airbnb's alleged failure to withold 21% of landlords' rental income and pay it to Italian tax authorities, as required by a 2017 law, prosecutors in the northern Italian city said in a statement.

The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart on Monday, pulling back from an almost-three-week high, as financial markets globally consolidated last week's sharp moves, Reuters reported. The loonie was trading 0.2% lower at 1.3680 to the greenback, or 73.10 U.S. cents, after touching its strongest intraday level since Oct. 18 at 1.3630. Last week, the currency posted its biggest weekly gain since March after data showing a slowdown in U.S. job growth bolstered expectations that the Federal Reserve is finished raising interest rates.

Canadian market participants expect the Bank of Canada (BoC) to start cutting its key policy rate from a 22-year high of 5.00% in April 2024, a month later than the previous forecast, according to a survey released by the central bank on Monday, Reuters reported. The survey showed that a median of 27 financial participants expect interest rates to drop to 4.00% in the fourth quarter of 2024, up from an expectation of 3.50% in the previous survey released in July. The survey was conducted from Sept.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has admitted Siti Broadband Services, a subsidiary of Essel Group-owned cable TV and broadband company Siti Networks, into the corporate insolvency resolution process following a plea by lender Aditya Birla Finance, msn.com reported. The NCLT has appointed Harvinder Singh as an interim resolution professional (IRP) for the company. Aditya Birla Finance moved NCLT following a default in payment of ₹4.38 crore by Siti Broadband.