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A Swiss court has accepted a legal complaint against cement manufacturer Holcim for alleged insufficient action on carbon emissions. The complaint was filed by four residents of Indonesia's Pulau Pari Island, which has faced severe flooding due to rising sea levels. Supported by Swiss Church Aid, the plaintiffs seek compensation for climate damage and demand a swift reduction in CO2 emissions. Holcim acknowledged the court's decision and plans to appeal, asserting its commitment to achieving net zero by 2050 and having reduced direct CO2 emissions by over 50% since 2015. Cement production accounts for about 7% of global CO2 emissions, the Global Cement and ​Concrete Association says.

 

France 24

U.S. News

Rank Group, the owner of Grosvenor Casinos and Mecca Bingo, says its Spanish operations have been hit by a €7.1m fraud. The firm said it is co-operating with law enforcement and conducting an internal investigation with an external law firm. The financial impact will be recorded as an exceptional item in its 2025/26 results.

 

The Independent

The Daily Telegraph

The Times

Between 2015 and 2022, increased Chinese exports led to the loss of 240,000 industrial jobs in the EU, according to the Chemical Industry Federation of Finland. The federation warns that further job losses are likely, particularly in high-value sectors such as automotive and chemicals. Chief economist Sampo Pehkonen said China's industrial dominance stems from its state-support policies, contrasting with the EU's lower corporate subsidies. The federation is urging the EU to improve industry conditions to protect remaining jobs, emphasising the need to avoid additional regulations and tax increases that could hinder production.

 

YLE Uutiset

UBS Group plans to initiate job cuts globally starting mid-January 2024, with further reductions expected in 2026. The bank is finalising its integration of Credit Suisse, which it acquired in 2023, resulting in a workforce reduction of approximately 15,000 from a peak of 120,000. UBS aims to cut around 3,000 jobs in Switzerland and will also reassign staff from eliminated roles. A spokesperson noted that many reductions will occur over several years, including early retirements and unfilled vacancies.

 

Luxembourg Times

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revised the UK's economic growth for the second quarter down to 0.2% from 0.3%, while GDP growth for Q3 was left unchanged at 0.1%. The report notes that real household disposable income per head fell by 0.8% in the third quarter, with this coming after zero growth in the second quarter and a contraction of 0.9% in the first three months of 2025. Liz McKeown, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said the updated figures "paint the same picture as our initial estimate, with growth continuing to slow in the third quarter."

 

Reuters

City AM

The Standard

The I

A study reveals that German car exports to the United States dropped nearly 14% in the first three quarters of 2025, making it the hardest-hit sector of the German economy amid ongoing trade tensions. The research indicates that "a significant recovery in German exports to the US is unlikely," as current tariffs, which were reduced to 15%, persist. Additionally, exports from other industries, such as engineering and chemicals, also faced declines, with German exports to the US overall down by 7.8% year-on-year.

 

Reuters

Maersk has announced that its vessel, Maersk Sebarok, successfully navigated the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait for the first time in nearly two years. This follows the company's decision to divert vessels away from the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea due to attacks by Yemen's Houthi militants. While Maersk acknowledged the transit as a significant step, the company cautioned: "It does not mean that we are at a point where we are considering a wider East-West network change back to the trans-Suez corridor." Currently, there are no additional planned sailings.

 

U.S. News

Telecom Italia SpA has achieved a significant win in a legal battle against the Italian government, with the Corte di Cassazione ruling in favour of the company to recover approximately €1bn (about $1.2bn). This amount includes €500m for licensing fees paid in 1998, along with revaluation and accrued interest. The court's decision confirms previous judgments mandating the state to refund the company for fees that were determined not to be obligatory.

 

Bloomberg

A Paris court has rejected French government demands for a three-month suspension of Chinese online marketplace Shein in the wake of a scandal around the sale of banned weapons and sex dolls resembling children. The court has ordered the platform to introduce age verification measures for any adult products, with a €10,000 fine for any breach. The French government said it would appeal the ruling, arguing that Shein's model presents a "systemic risk." A lawyer for child protection group L'Enfance au Coeur criticised the ruling, saying it is "well known that age‑verification measures are extremely difficult to implement," and the measures were "clearly insufficient."

 

France 24

Italy's competition authority has imposed a fine of €98.6m (approximately $115m) on Apple for allegedly abusing its dominant position in the mobile app market. The regulator claims Apple enforced a restrictive privacy policy through its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) prompt, which it argues was detrimental to third-party developers and violated European regulations. An investigation revealed that these practices required developers to obtain consent in a manner that was "not proportionate" to achieving privacy objectives, further complicating the app development process.

 

Reuters

Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa says Brussels has not delivered a “clear roadmap for growth” in its revised climate policy that would have allowed the carmaker to boost its investment into Europe.

 

Financial Times

Two European battery plant executives are supporting a Brussels plan to boost local content levels for car products as the continent seeks to weaken China’s grip on critical electric transition technologies.

 

Financial Times

Munich Re and KfW Development Bank are launching a state-backed programme to reduce financial risks associated with geothermal drilling in Germany. The initiative aims to encourage investment in geothermal energy, which is vital for achieving net zero goals. The German government will provide €600m in guarantees and €50m in budget funds. Munich Re will insure 30% to 70% of loans for viable projects, while KfW will offer partial debt waivers for unsuccessful explorations. Matthias Tönnis from Munich Re said: "We want to solve the problem that geothermal projects are not yet bankable."

 

Insurance Journal

Uber Technologies and Lyft are partnering with Baidu to pilot driverless taxi services in the UK, marking a significant advancement in autonomous transportation. The trial program, which will utilise Baidu's Apollo Go RT6 robotaxis, is set to commence in London during the first half of 2026, with plans for commercial operations to follow by the end of the year.

 

Bloomberg