COMMODITIES: Gold reaches all-time high as dollar slips
The price of gold hit an all-time high of close to 1,040 dollars an ounce on Tuesday as the dollar fell on rumours that Gulf states were considering ditching the greenback in favour of a basket of other currencies for oil trading.
AVIATION: British Airways announces more job cuts to stem losses
Embattled airline British Airways says it will cut the equivalent of 1,700 jobs through voluntary departures and switches to part-time work. The British carrier is also planning a two-year pay freeze as part of aggressive action to stem losses.
PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY: EU regulators raid drugmakers' offices
The European Commission says it has begun "surprise inspections" at the premises of European pharmaceutical giants over suspected violations of competition rules. Drugmakers are suspected of seeking to delay the launch of cheaper generic products.
KAZAKHSTAN: Total and GDF Suez to invest 1 billion dollars in Kazakh gas field
French energy companies Total and GDF Suez will respectively take 17 percent and 8 percent of the Kazakh gas field project Khvalynskoye. The deal is supposed to be signed during an official visit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to Kazakhstan.
BANKING: Societe Generale to raise capital to pay back French government
Societe Generale has announced it will raise 4.8 billion euros to repay aid money lent by the French government. The government provided 3.4 billion euros to help Societe Generale during last year's financial crisis.
FRANCE: Continental and Dubai-based MAG drop talks on tyre plant
German auto parts maker Continental and Dubai-based MAG group have failed to reach an agreement on a possible takeover by MAG of a tyre-making plant in northern France, where distraught workers staged sit-ins in the spring.
FARMING: Milk protests 'blew up' Europe's reputation abroad
The European Union's agriculture commissioner has warned that pictures of price protests in which farmers could be seen dumping huge amounts of milk into fields have had a hugely damaging effect on the EU's reputation in the developing world.
FRANCE TELECOM: Deputy CEO replaced over wave of suicides
France Telecom, a telecommunications firm grappling with a wave of staff suicides, has appointed Stephane Richard (pictured) to replace deputy chief executive Louis-Pierre Wenes, whom unions had accused of instigating a climate of fear.
AVIATION: Pilots, crew protest Europe-wide over working hours
On Monday, pilots and cabin crew demonstrated in Brussels and in 22 European airports to call for a cut in their working hours, which were deemed dangerous for passenger safety in a scientific report published over a year ago.
GLOBAL FINANCE: IMF expansion talks in deadlock after dispute over voting powers
The expansion of the International Monetary Fund's role was left unclear this Sunday after finance chiefs failed to come to an agreement over how much power developing nations should have in the Washington-based financial institution.
G7: Finance chiefs meet in Istanbul; currency issues on the agenda
Top finance representatives from the Group of Seven rich nations meeting in Istanbul on Saturday are expected to address the weak dollar. Speaking on Friday, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde (photo) stressed the need for a strong dollar.
FRANCE 24 DEBATE: Business, political leaders debate post-crisis world economy
This exclusive debate takes place in Istanbul, where the World Bank is holding its annual set of meetings. A panel of business and political leaders join FRANCE 24's Raphael Kahane to discuss how the economic crisis will change the world.
ENERGY: EDF's UK supply unit for sale
EDF, the world’s largest nuclear power producer, is planning to sell EDF Energy, the biggest power distribution business in Britain, for more than four billion euros (5.8 billion dollars) to help cut debt, the French group announced on Friday.
HAITI: Government woos foreign investors
Potential foreign investors are taking part in a two-day meeting in Haiti, organised at the suggestion of the UN's special envoy to Haiti, former US president Bill Clinton, to explore business opportunities in the poorest country in the Americas.
GLOBAL ECONOMY: IMF heralds return to growth
The International Monetary Fund has upgraded its outlook for the global economy as growth turns positive again. The Washington-based institution said government efforts to boost demand had helped reverse the downturn.
BANKING: Beleaguered Bank of America CEO to retire
Kenneth Lewis, the man at the helm of the largest US bank, who saw his establishment hobble to the brink of collapse, has said he will retire by Dec. 31, 2009, according to a statement by the bank.
AUTOMOBILE: GM announces end of road for Saturn after Penske drops bid
Auto giant General Motors is set to close its Saturn brand after the car dealership owner, the Penske Automotive Group, announced Wednesday that it was abandoning plans to acquire the Saturn unit.
GERMANY: Analysts cautious amid surprise dip in jobless rate
Germany's unemployment rate has dipped from 8.3% to 8.0% in September as the German economy emerges from its worst recession since World War II, but analysts warn of new increases in coming months.
CHINA: Chinalco says Rio Tinto arrests not linked to failed deal
China's state-owned Chinalco, Rio Tinto's single largest shareholder, said on Friday that the arrest of four Rio Tinto staff on spying charges was not related to commercial dealings between the two companies after a huge deal collapsed last month.