Big Boss Interview

The EU is attempting to agree on a harmonised approach to the continuing issue of oil and gas imports from Russia. Member states' energy ministers have held an emergency meeting. Suzanne Lynch, a reporter for Politico in Brussels, tells us what was on their agenda. The European Commission has accused Apple of abusing it's market position for contactless smartphone payments. Apple denies the charge and has promised to engage with the Commission. We hear more about the the accusations from the BBC's Jonathan Josephs.

When a member of staff leaves your workplace team, or gets married, or has a birthday - who is it that organises the whip round, nips out to buy the gift or plans the office party? Is it in most cases a woman? Yes, according to four American academics who've written a book called the 'No Club' in which they identify what they call non promotion task that do nothing for that woman's career. We hear more from one of the book's authors, Lise Vesterlund, an economics professor at thw University of Pittsburg.

Ed Butler is joing throughout the programme by Peter Morici, Professor Emeritus of International Business at the R.H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland and Sharon Brettkelly from Radio New Zealand in Auckland.

(Picture description: Gas pipes at a new gas pipeline compressor station. Picture credit: Getty Images/John Tlumacki)

Amazon has announced its first loss since 2015 due to slowing sales and rising costs; we hear more from James Clayton, the BBC's North America tech reporter. Economic activity in the US contracted unexpectedly in the first three months of 2022. The Harvard economist Professor Ken Rogoff tells us whether it signals a possible recession. Indonesia is the world's biggest producer of palm oil and it's a staple of cooking there but prices there have soared and that has led to street protests so the government has reacted by banning exports of palm oil so there's plenty for the domestic market. We hear from the BBC's Asia Editor, Rebecca Henscke. Also in the programme, a mass strike in Sri Lanka has forced the closure of many schools, shops and services. The BBC's Archana Shukla reports from Colombo. Millions of people in India are experiencing a brutal heatwave that is throwing lives and livelihoods out of gear; the India Meteorological Department says some states are recording 120 year highs. We hear more from Dr Vidhya Venugopal, Professor of Occupational and Environmental Health at the Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research in Chennai. Plus, the BBC's Vivienne Nunis explores why sales of brooches have been soaring, and why they can be such a powerful accessory. (Picture description: Amazon logo on phone; Picture credit: Getty Images)

With global supply chains still reeling in the wake of Covid-19 and the Ukraine war, recent lockdowns in China have compounded the situation. Backlogs have become common place on the USA’s west coast, but how has trade there recovered? We get the latest from Josh Brazil of supply chain specialists project44. Plus, the BBC’s North America Business Correspondent Samira Hussain reports from Michigan on Ford’s iconic F-150 pickup getting a fully electric makeover. After Chinese company DJI, the world's largest drone manufacturer, said it’s suspending sales to Russia and Ukraine, we discuss the reasons behind the decision with David Hambling, author of Swarm Troopers: How small drones will conquer the world. We speak to Matteo Pietrobelli from Oceanix, a company working on a project to hopefully create what’s been called the world’s first floating city. Busan in South Korea has unveiled plans to extend out to sea, using floating, interconnected platforms, in a move that it’s hoped could help to mitigate both rising sea levels and human population numbers. And the BBC's Elizabeth Hotson asks whether the false banana, or enset, could help tackle the problem of food insecurity in developing countries.

Throughout the programme we’re joined live by Rachel Puppazoni, a journalist covering business and the economy for ABC News in Perth, Australia, and by Alison van Diggelen, the host at freshdialogues.com in Silicon Valley.

(Photo: Yangshan deepwater port In Shanghai; Credit: Getty Images)

Russian company Gazprom says it will halt gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria from Wednesday morning. Poland currently depends on Russian imports for around half of its gas. The country’s deputy foreign minister Marcin Pzydacz tells us his government was already been prepared for this move. Plus, the World Bank’s latest commodities report makes sobering reading, suggesting that high food and fuel prices could blight the global economy for years to come. We hear from its author, World Bank Senior Economist Peter Nagle. With Elon Musk poised to take over at Twitter, the European Union’s Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton tells us that the firm will be welcome to operate in the EU under new management, providing it adheres to the bloc’s rules. As Delta Air Lines reveals that cabin crew will be paid for boarding as well as flight time in a landmark announcement, the president of the Association of Flight Attendant Sara Nelson says unionisation efforts by airline staff forced the company’s hand. And the BBC's Ivana Davidovic investigates urban mining, the process of reclaiming raw materials from spent products, buildings and waste.

Throughout the programme we’re joined live by Zyma Islam, a journalist with The Daily Star newspaper in Bangladesh and by Tony Nash, chief economist at AI firm Complete Intelligence, based in Houston, Texas.

(Photo: Gazprom says it will halt gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria; Credit: Getty Images)

Twitter’s board has accepted Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $44bn offer to buy the social media giant. Dan Primack, Business Editor at Axios, says that those on both the right and the left who have reacted strongly to the prospect of a Musk-led takeover may be getting ahead of themselves. Stock markets around the world have been shaken by fears of further lockdown measures being implemented in China. We hear from residents of Beijing, who tell us they’re not overly concerned by the prospect of a strict lockdown being imposed, and describe the mood in the city. Plus, a joint investigation by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the LA Times has revealed that consultants working for cigarette giant Reynolds American Tobacco bankrolled black activists, in an effort to lobby against the prohibition of menthol cigarettes, which are disproportionately popular among African Americans. In Ukraine, much attention has focused on the city of Mariupol in recent days, where hundreds of people are sheltering from a Russian bombardment in bunkers underneath the Azovstal steelworks. We speak to Yuriy Ryzhenkov, CEO of the company which runs the steelworks, Metinvest. Plus, developing economies which rely heavily on tourism have been particularly affected by the global wave of Covid-19 lockdowns which paralysed foreign travel. With voyagers now venturing out again, our correspondent Peter Morgan was reminded of the economic value of optimism during a journey to Nepal.

Throughout the programme we're joined live by Peter Landers of the Wall Street Journal in Tokyo, and Forbes deputy editor Diane Brady in New York.

(Photo: Elon Musk’s $44bn offer was accepted by Twitter’s board; Credit: Getty Images)

CNN has pulled the plug on its flagship online streaming service CNN+, less than a month after it was launched to much fanfare. CNBC media & technology reporter Alex Sherman has been covering the story and tells us why the fledgling platform failed. Like many economies which reap huge benefits from tourism, Thailand has struggled with a sharp drop in visitor numbers during the Covid-19 pandemic. The government is now trying to woo some of those potential visitors again, but rising coronavirus cases are complicating the issue. Ahead of pivotal midterm elections in November, we survey the political landscape in the United States, as President Biden announces a new package of $800 million in military aid for Ukraine. The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, says Ukraine needs up to $7 billion per month in the near future, in the wake of Russia’s invasion. The BBC’s Economics Editor Faisal Islam has been speaking to her, and joins us from Washington DC to talk through the big news lines emanating from the IMF/World Bank 2022 Spring Meetings. Plus, the BBC’s Victoria Craig has been catching up with some of British food sector businesses to see how they’re coping with the current stage of the pandemic.

Throughout the programme we’re joined live by political reporter Erin Delmore in New York, and Patrick Barta of the Wall Street Journal in Bangkok.

(Photo: A billboard advertising CNN+ in Manhattan; Credit: Getty Images)

Germany says it is working hard to reduce its reliance on Russian energy. The BBC's Faisal Islam speaks to the German finance minister Christian Lindner.

As Tesla releases its Q1 earnings, we get analysis from Dan Ives, senior equity analyst at Wedbush Securities, and ask whether the recent factory shutdowns in Shanghai have had an effect on the company's performance.

Satellite broadband is still in its infancy, but more and more people are using the technology to connect to the internet - not least in war-torn Ukraine, where conventional communication networks are being destroyed by Russian forces. It’s proving extremely useful, but could it also bring the internet to remote corners of the globe in the future? We have a report from Sam Fenwick.

Plus, the BBC's Adrienne Murray reports from Denmark on how labour shortages following the pandemic have opened the door to greater automation of tasks through the use of robots.

Fergus Nicoll is joined throughout the programme by Mehmal Sarfraz, a journalist and co-founder of the Current PK website in Lahore, and Ralph Silva of the Silva Research Network in Toronto.

(Picture: An oil refinery. Picture credit: Getty Images.)

The company lost 200,000 customers in the first three months of the year. We look at the reasons why with entertainment journalist Caroline Frost, and what challenges the company is facing.

The International Monetary Fund expects global economic growth to slow to 3.6% this year. The forecast shaves almost a percentage point of growth from its forecast from before the war in Ukraine, and we get analysis from the BBC's economics editor Faisal Islam.

The BBC's Theo Leggett reports from France on the country's post-pandemic economic recovery, ahead of this weekend's second round of the presidential election.

Also in the programme, we look at why some people decide to anglicise their name in order to “fit in” in the workplace with the BBC's Noor Nanji.

Plus, our regular workplace commentator Stephanie Hare considers how the Ukraine crisis affects the way businesses engage with the political sphere.

Sasha Twining is joined throughout the programme by James Mayger, Bloomberg’s China economics reporter in Beijing, and by Takara Small, CBC's technology reporter in Toronto.

(Picture: The Netflix sign. Credit: Getty Images)

Workers at Apple's Grand Central Station store in New York have announced a plan to start a union. If their bid is successful it would be the first union at one of the tech giant's US stores. Anna Kramer with the news site Protocol explains the process from here. Also in the programme, China has announced its latest economic growth figures. The NBA's Golden State Warriors team is developing its own entertainment division. And the BBC's Elizabeth Hotson looks into how Covid-19 has changed the way we work - and the rise of the virtual interview.

All through the show we'll be joined by Peter Morici in Washington DC and Jessica Khine in Johor, Malaysia.

Tesla boss Elon Musk has offered to buy Twitter, saying he is the right person to "unlock" the social media platform's "extraordinary potential". In a surprise announcement, Mr Musk said he would pay $54.20 a share for Twitter, valuing it at about $40bn. We get analysis from global tech journalist Chris Stokel-Walker.

Nepal says it’s considering declaring a two-day weekend, instead of its Saturday only weekend, as part of measures to reduce the consumption of petroleum products. The BBC’s Anbarasan Ethirajan reports from Kathmandu.

The BBC's Rahul Tandon speaks to Greg Hoffman, former chief marketing officer at Nike, about the company's iconic 2018 advertising campaign featuring American football star Colin Kaepernick.

And following a boom in pet ownership during the pandemic, services for those dogs and cats are springing up. We hear from Donna Connelly, owner of Angel's Pet Care and Barking Mad Dog Training in Newcastle.

Sasha Twining is joined throughout the programme by Alaezi Akpuru, creative director at Virgioli Fashion in Lagos, and by author and economic commentator Paddy Hirsch in LA.

(Picture: Elon Musk. Credit: Getty Images)