Headlines

Bankruptcies in France's tech start-up sector are increasing, according to a survey published on Tuesday whose findings could undermine President Emmanuel Macron's image of Paris as a leading European tech hub and key driver of the French economy, Reuters reported. During his first term in office, Macron touted Station F in Paris as an example of France's burgeoning tech start-up industry, and France's global AI summit in February attracted 110 billion euros of investment pledges.

Telecommunications company Mitel Networks Corp filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Texas late Sunday, seeking to complete a restructuring that will eliminate $1.15 billion in debt, Reuters reported. Mitel entered bankruptcy with $1.3 billion in debt. The company's debt has hampered its ability to quickly adjust to changing demands as businesses shifted to remote and hybrid work in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to court documents filed on Monday.

Northvolt, the Swedish maker of battery cells for electric vehicles, may be close to filing for bankruptcy in Sweden, Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter (DN) reported on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Northvolt sought U.S. chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November last year as its cash pile dwindled, trying to secure funds that would allow it to fix persistent problems in scaling up output at its flagship plant in northern Sweden.

Zhengzhou Exchange on Tuesday raised the trading margin requirements for some rapeseed meal futures contracts to 9% from 7% after Beijing's 100% tariff on Canadian imports triggered a two-day rally that pushed prices to a five-month high, Reuters reported. The most active rapeseed meal futures contract surged 7.23% to close at 2,684 yuan per metric ton, building on a 6% gain in the previous session, to its highest since September 2024. The new trading margin requirements will be effective from settlement on March 12.

Japan’s trade minister has failed to win an immediate exemption from U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff campaign even as he doubled down on the request in his first in-person discussions with U.S. counterparts, Bloomberg News reported. "We have requested that Japan should not be subject to the tariff measures that the U.S. government has announced so far,” trade minister Yoji Muto said.

The Japanese economy grew at a slower pace than initially estimated in the October-December period, sending an unwelcome sign of fragility as the trade outlook darkens, the Wall Street Journal reported. Japan’s real gross domestic product expanded 2.2% on an annualized basis in the final quarter of 2024, compared with the 2.8% growth seen in preliminary estimates released in February, government data showed Tuesday. The economy grew 0.6% from the previous quarter.

Investors in Japanese corporate bonds are increasingly seeking protection against possible credit deterioration when an issuer becomes a takeover target, Bloomberg News reported. Change of Control covenants — which give bondholders certain rights to redeem the debt before maturity if the borrower has a significant change in ownership structure — have until now been very rarely seen in the ¥100 trillion ($680 billion) Japanese credit market.

The UK financial watchdog has said it is gearing up to launch an industry-wide redress scheme for customers who were mis-sold car finance as it prepares for next month’s landmark Supreme Court case on the sector, the Irish Times reported. The Financial Conduct Authority said on Tuesday that any redress scheme would require banks to contact customers who have lost out due to “widespread failings” and offer them appropriate compensation, under rules overseen by the watchdog.

Sales in U.K. stores grew modestly in February despite the Valentine’s day sales boost as budget-squeezed consumers stay away from big-ticket expenses, the latest report from the British Retail Consortium and KPMG showed, the Wall Street Journal reported. U.K. total retail sales for the four weeks to March 1 rose 1.1% on year. This was below the three-month average growth of 2.4% and 12-month average growth of 0.8%, the BRC said on Tuesday. The increase was driven by the food segment, with sales up by 2.3%, while nonfood sales were flat on year.

Industrial production in Germany showed tentative signs of improvement at the start of the year, though that could be threatened by potential U.S. trade tariffs, the Wall Street Journal reported. Output increased 2.0% on month in January, German statistics agency Destatis said Monday, compared with a 1.5% decline in the final month of 2024. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal expected a 1.5% increase in January. There are signs the industrial recession of recent years is fading.