Business in 60 Seconds

Samsung's Jay Y Lee gets 30 months in prison for bribery

A South Korean court has sentenced Samsung vice chairman Jay Y Lee to two-and- a-half years in jail. The 52-year-old Lee was convicted of bribing an associate of former president Park Geun-hye and jailed in 2017. But the sentence was reduced and suspended on appeal. Shares of firms linked to the electronics giant plunged after the verdict.

Malaysia to introduce additional $3.7B stimulus package

Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin says the government will inject 3-point-7 billion dollars in additional stimulus to support the pandemic-hit economy. The move comes a week after the Southeast Asian country declared a state of emergency to stem a new surge in coronavirus cases. The newly announced economic measures will include cash support to the poor, tax breaks and wage subsidies.

Carmakers Fiat Chrysler, PSA Group complete $48B merger

Fiat Chrysler and PSA Group have completed their 48-billion- dollar merger to create the world's fourth-largest carmaker. The automakers said the newly formed company, called Stellantis, is expected to cut annual costs by more than 6-billion- dollars. Shares in Stellantis jumped as much as 7-and- a-half percent on their first trading day in Milan and Paris.

US weekly jobless claims hit highest level since August

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits last week surged by the most since March, as coronavirus infections continued to soar. Another 965-thousand people lodged jobless claims last week, compared to 784-thousand in the week prior. It's the highest reading since August and could put more pressure on lawmakers to introduce more pandemic relief measures.

China's trade surplus hits record $78B as exports surge

China's trade surplus climbed to 78-billion- dollars in December, the highest monthly figure on record. That's as coronavirus disruptions around the world continued to boost demand for Chinese goods. Exports rose 18-percent from a year ago, while imports were up 6-and- a-half percent. But its trade surplus with the US narrowed to 30-billion- dollars.

South Korea court upholds sentence for ex-leader Park Geun-hye

South Korea's highest court has upheld a 20-year prison sentence for former President Park Geun-hye. The country's first female leader was impeached in 2017 for bribery, extortion, abuse of power and other criminal charges. The court has also upheld fines and forfeits totaling 19-and- a-half million dollars. She has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

Turkey's industrial production, retail sales up in November

Turkey's industrial production jumped 11-percent from a year ago in November, marking the sixth consecutive month of growth. That's as the economic recovery picked-up pace after the initial loosening of coronavirus restrictions. Meanwhile, retail sales also surged 12-percent in the same month driven by a jump in online purchases, as people continued to stay at home during the pandemic.

Just Eat Takeaway reports 57% jump in fourth quarter orders

European food delivery app, Just Eat Takeaway, has reported a 57-percent jump in fourth-quarter orders from the same period in 2019. That's as restaurants were forced to go online after countries across Europe reimposed lockdowns. In June, the company agreed to buy US rival Grubhub for 7-point-3 billion dollars to create the biggest food-ordering service outside China.

Telefonica sells tower unit to American Towers for $9.4B

Telefonica has agreed to sell its mobile phone masts to US telecom infrastructure operator, American Towers, for 9-point-4 billion dollars. The deal comes as part of the Spanish telecom company's efforts to cut its debt pile of 45-billion- dollars, which is one of the biggest in the industry. Shares in Telefonica jumped around 10-percent on the news.

WeChat users sue Tencent for alleged chat surveillance

A group of WeChat users in California has sued the messaging app's Chinese owner, Tencent, for allegedly surveilling their communications. The users said comments made using WeChat that can be perceived as critical of the Chinese government have led to their accounts being frozen. WeChat is the most used social media app in China with more than one billion monthly active users.

Renault says global sales fell 21.3% in 2020

Renault says its global sales fell by 21-point-3 percent in 2020 to 2-point-9 million vehicles, as it struggled with a coronavirus-related market downturn. The drop outstripped the 14-percent fall in sales for all producers globally last year. Meanwhile, US rival Ford says it will shut down its last three factories in Brazil, which would lead to around 5-thousand job cuts.

Cruise operator Carnival posts $2.2B net loss in Q4

Carnival has reported a bigger-than- expected quarterly loss as the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic hit travel industry. The world's largest cruise operator lost 2-point-2 billion dollars in the fourth quarter, compared with a net profit of 427-million- dollars in the same period in 2019. But the company says it has enough liquidity to get through 2021.

China issues new rules to shield firms from US sanctions

China has implemented new rules to protect its companies from quote 'unjustified' laws imposed by foreign countries. The new regulations will allow Chinese courts to punish global companies that enforce such restrictions. The move is aimed at countering a series of punitive measures issued by US President Donald Trump in recent years.

Turkey launches investigation into WhatsApp, Facebook

The Turkish Competition Authority has launched an investigation into popular messaging app, WhatsApp, and its owner Facebook. The move comes after WhatsApp imposed new privacy rules on its users that will see personal data shared with Facebook companies. The regulator has suspended the data-sharing until the conclusion of its probe. Facebook acquired WhatsApp for 19-billion- dollars in 2014.

Turkey's unemployment rate falls to 12.7% in October

Turkey's unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level since 2018, as the economy gained steam between the first and second waves of the pandemic. The jobless rate fell to 12-point-7 percent last October, compared to 13-point-4 percent in the same month in 2019. Meanwhile, Turkey's current account deficit widened to 4-billion- dollars in November.

US economy loses 140,000 jobs in December

The recovery in the US jobs market collapsed in December as businesses struggled under renewed curbs amid a coronavirus resurgence. Nonfarm payrolls decreased by 140-thousand last month, down from a gain of 245-thousands in November. The unemployment rate remained steady at 6-point-7 percent, nearly double the 3-point-5 percent rate a year ago.

Boeing to pay $2.5B to settle charges over 737 Max

Boeing has agreed to pay 2-and-a-half billion dollars to settle a criminal probe with the US Justice Department. The plane-maker was accused of hiding information from safety officials about the design of its troubled 737 MAX aircraft that was involved in two deadly crashes. The settlement includes a 500-million- dollar payment to the families of the victims

Hyundai in talks with Apple to develop electric cars

Shares in Hyundai Motors surged as much as 25-percent on reports the South Korean car-maker was in talks with Apple about developing self-driving electric cars.

But the stock pared some of those gains after Hyundai clarified it was talking with a number of potential partners without naming the US tech giant.

US weekly unemployment claims fall slightly to 787,000

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell for a third straight week but still remained historically high. Another 787-thousand people lodged jobless claims last week as businesses struggle under renewed curbs following a resurgence of coronavirus. Meanwhile, the US' trade deficit has widened 8 percent to a 14-year high of 63 billion dollars in November.

Elon Musk passes Jeff Bezos to become world's richest person

The founder and CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, has became the richest person in the world, with a net worth of more than 185-billion- dollars. A near 5-percent rally in the electric carmaker's share price has boosted Musk's fortune to overtake Amazon founder Jeff Bezos on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Tesla stock has has increased more than nine-fold over the past year.

Crypto market tops $1T as Bitcoin soars past $37,000

The total value of the entire cryptocurrency market has topped 1-trillion dollars for the first time, following a recent rally in Bitcoin prices and other tokens. Bitcoin has surged nearly 400-percent in the past 12 months, surpassing 37-thousand dollars. The world's most popular cryptocurrency represents more than two-thirds of the market's total value.

NYSE reverses its reversal, to delist Chinese telecom stocks

The New York Stock Exchange has once again decided to delist China's three state-run telecom companies to comply with a Trump administration order. The move comes a day after the exchange announced it was scrapping its plans after further consultation with US regulators. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has signed a new executive order banning transactions with eight Chinese apps.

EU gives approval for Moderna COVID-19 vaccine

The European Commission has given the greenlight for the use of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by US company, Moderna. It's the second injection that's been approved by the EU after it authorised the Pfizer- BioNTech vaccine last month. Brussels has already ordered 80-million doses of the Moderna inoculation, with an option to double the amount.

Japan, Mexico agree to expand Trans-Pacific Partnership

Japan and Mexico have agreed to expand the 11-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership. Japan succeeds Mexico this year as chair of the trade pact, which also includes countries such as Australia, Canada, Chile, Singapore and Vietnam. US President-elect Joe Biden is expected to revisit the deal, after Donald Trump withdrew the US from the agreement in 2017

NYSE reverses plan to delist Chinese telecom stocks

The New York Stock Exchange has scrapped its plan to de-list China's three state-owned telecommunication companies after further consultation with US regulators. The exchange had begun proceedings to drop the listings to comply with a Trump administration executive order that bans investments in firms with ties to the Chinese military. Shares in China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom surged on the news.

German unemployment falls unexpectedly in December

Unemployment in Germany unexpectedly dipped in December despite a new round of lockdown measures that were introduced last month. The number of people out of work in Europe's largest economy fell to 2-point-78 million.. down 37-thousand from November. The jobless rate has remained unchanged at 6-point-1 percent

China sentences ex-finance chief to death for corruption

The former chairman of one of China's biggest asset management companies has been sentenced to death in a high-profile corruption case. Lai Xiaomin was found guilty of receiving bribes totaling 280-million- dollars between 2008 and 2018. Lai, who served as the chairman of Huarong Asset Management, was also convicted on a charge of bigamy.

US jobless claims hit highest level in three months

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits has hit its highest level since early September. That's as states re-introduce lockdown measures to deal with a surge in coronavirus cases. Another 885-thousand people lodged jobless claims last week, compared with 862-thousand in the prior week. Economists had expected claims to fall to around 800-thousand.

Saudi Arabia's economy shrinks for fifth straight quarter

Saudi Arabia's economy has contracted for the fifth consecutive quarter as oil prices hit historic lows during the pandemic. Gross domestic product shrunk 4-point-6 percent in the third quarter, rebounding slightly from the 7-percent contraction in the previous period. The kingdom's economy is expected to shrink by 3-point-7 percent this year.

Tyson Foods fires seven managers over COVID-19 betting

Tyson Foods has fired seven management employees at its biggest pork processing plant in the United States. That's after an independent investigation into allegations they took bets on how many workers would get infected with COVID-19. More than 1-thousand employees have been infected and at least six have died due to an outbreak at the Waterloo plant.