Business

Italy's diesel-price protest halts buffalo mozzarella production, with producers estimating €3 million in losses in just 24 hours as milk fails to reach dairies and finished cheeses cannot reach customers. In banking, Barclays announces it will cut around 5,000 jobs – roughly 5 percent of its workforce – as it uses artificial intelligence to reduce costs. This comes as Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang urges "responsible optimism" on AI in Berlin, even as AI-exposed stocks slide.

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg touted the company's progress on artificial intelligence during an earnings call on Wednesday and called for more investment. The tech giant's Muse AI agent has garnered 10 million users since its launch six weeks ago, while third-quarter revenue rose to $64.6 billion. Meanwhile, the company is accused of political interference in Brazil's presidential election. Also in this edition, we check in on France's rising borrowing costs.

French bond yields have topped 5 percent, their highest level since 2002, after widespread protests and violence over the weekend. It's a sign that investors are losing confidence in France's finances, as the government grapples with budget and debt problems. Also in the show: chipmaker Nvidia says it's invested $10 billion in European tech firms to boost the "AI economy", and the UK approves a controversial natural gas field as PM Andy Burnham faces pressure over energy costs. 

As SpaceX reports blockbuster quarterly earnings, CEO Elon Musk floats the possibility of merging the rocketry and AI firm with his electric car company Tesla. Also in this edition: OpenAI reveals more agent misbehaviour as market turmoil hits data centre companies, and France's political crisis exacerbates its bond market rout.

The US Federal Aviation Administration has given final approval for the 737-10, the largest model in Boeing's best-selling MAX family. The certification comes more than five years after the narrowbody jet's maiden flight, and marks an important step for the planemaker that's been trying to regain ground following a safety and management crisis. Plus, the French government has offered all businesses affected by the recent riots an interest-free loan of up to €50,000. 

Shop owners in France are counting the cost of the weekend's riots as the government works on new measures to help them recover from widespread looting. Also in this edition: Germany welcomes new investments from Nvidia into its tech scene, and energy prices continue to climb after new Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia.

As thousands of French shop owners are reeling from the weekend's violence and looting, listings of apparently stolen items have been popping up online. The government has asked major second-hand marketplaces such as Vinted, eBay and Amazon to crack down on suspicious adverts. 

Representatives of the French business community gather for a crisis meeting with the government following widespread looting during the weekend's protests. Meanwhile, the country's tourism sector fears a drop in winter holiday bookings, and bond and currency traders sell off French debt and the euro. 

European lawmakers have kicked off what's likely to be a long and fierce negotiation over the bloc's seven-year budget. Member states are divided on spending priorities, and pending elections in countries including France and Italy are adding pressure to the talks in Brussels. Also in the show: AI stocks lose a trillion dollars in this week's tech stock sell-off, and Ledger's CTO Charles Guillemet explains why AI is changing the security landscape. 

China and North Korea formally opened the Yalu River Bridge on Thursday, connecting Dandong in China with Sinuiju in North Korea. Beijing says the bridge will promote economic and trade cooperation.

Meanwhile, AI firm Anthropic told prospective investors that its third-quarter revenue rose 45 percent from the previous quarter to $16.8 billion. The figures were disclosed at an investor briefing in San Francisco as the company prepares for a potential stock market listing. The update comes as markets scrutinise the enormous spending behind AI infrastructure. Anthropic has not yet publicly commented on the reported figures.

Also in this business roundup, Uganda's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate to 12 percent as higher global oil prices and a weaker shilling stoke inflation. The landlocked country imports all of its oil, making transport and energy costs especially sensitive to global crude prices.