Business

  Frankfurt am Main, Germany | AFP | German car giant Volkswagen said Wednesday it would slash thousands of posts to cope with its transition to electric and autonomous driving the day after reporting rising profits, saying heavy costs for investments meant savings were needed elsewhere. Chief executive Herbert Diess had …

Stockholm, Sweden | AFP | Swedish music streaming giant Spotify said Wednesday it had filed a formal complaint with the EU Commission against Apple, accusing its US rival of stifling competition in the online music market. Analysts were quick to point out that there is no guarantee that the EU’s executive arm will actually investigate …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Britain’s business community on Wednesday urged politicians to avoid a “no deal” Brexit after another crushing parliamentary defeat for Prime Minister Theresa May over her EU-divorce deal with Brussels. MPs will Wednesday vote on whether the country should leave the European Union without a deal in just over two weeks, …

Lalibela, Ethiopia | AFP | President Emmanuel Macron visited Djibouti and Ethiopia on Tuesday, promising “respectful” partnerships in the face of growing regional indebtedness to China, which is fast expanding its foothold in the continent. Looking to strengthen economic, military and cultural ties in East Africa, Macron announced a new defence …

  Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | President Yoweri Museveni’s meeting with the chief executive officer Total E&P could unlock stalled investments oil and gas sector. President Museveni and Total chairman Patrick Pouyanne met in mid-January to resolve issues that have delayed international oil companies from taking a Final Investment …

Austin, United States | AFP | They may never be able to fill a stadium for a rock concert, but computers are making inroads in the music industry, capable of producing songs — and convincingly so — as illustrated at the South by Southwest festival in Texas. Already, an album …

Sengonzi Godfrey creates niche with egg-spiced concrete floor tiles Kampala, Uganda | PATRICIA AKANKWATSA | With Chinese tiles, Italian tiles, Turkish tile, Egyptian tiles and recently Ugandan tiles flooding the market, what chances would a budding entrepreneur have of finding success with a local tile? For Godfrey Sengonzi, the answer …

  Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Matia Kasaija has said the zero interest system in Islamic Banking should attract a good number of Ugandan entrepreneurs. According to Kasaija, Ugandans have been reluctant to borrow from banks due to the high interest rates …

Transaction makes Vivo Africa’s second largest fuels and lubricants retailer  Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | Following six months of behind-the-scenes negotiations, Vivo Energy finally announced on March 1 the completion of the takeover of the operations of Engen Holdings Ltd across the continent. The transaction comprises Vivo Energy’s issuance …

New York, United States | AFP | Shares of Boeing plummeted by more than 12 percent on Monday in premarket trading, the day after the crash of a Boeing 737 Max 8 in Ethiopia killed 157 people. The crash was the second in less than six months to involve the popular model of airliner, causing …