Business

The European Commission has given the green light for France's request for €40 billion from the bloc's coronavirus recovery fund. More than half the money will be used for green transition and digital investments. Also in the show: on the five-year anniversary of the Brexit referendum vote, British businesses reflect on what's worked and what hasn't.

Gotta catch 'em all! In a bid to attract customers, a Japanese airliner is inviting travellers to find hidden Pikachu monsters on board a newly decorated, Pokemon-themed Boeing 737-800. But first, ahead of a much-awaited congressional hearing, US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell says the US economy is continuing to show "sustained improvement" from the pandemic but that the recovery remains uneven, with unemployment still hitting low-paid workers.

China's Sichuan province announced over the weekend that it would shut down major Bitcoin mines. It's the latest local crackdown on cryptocurrency mining, which stands to have a significant impact on the world's crypto processing power. China is wary of the potential for money laundering with bitcoin transactions and also says that mining the cryptocurrency is too damaging to the environment. The increased restrictions on the industry are driving out Chinese bitcoin miners, who are looking to other countries as a new location.

With Iranian voters heading to the polls for a presidential election, we take a closer look at the economic situation in the country. As Iran grapples with tough US sanctions, the economy suffers from hefty inflation and double-digit unemployment. Also, HSBC is finally set to announce a deal to sell its French retail operations to American private equity firm Cerberus. And more and more businesses in the US are offering Juneteenth as a paid holiday to commemorate the end of slavery.

Disneyland Paris has reopened after nearly eight months of Covid-19 restrictions. Masks are still required, but it could mark a symbolic turning point for France's tourism industry. Also in the show: the EU gives Greece the green light for €30 billion in recovery funds and the World Bank issues a blow to El Salvador's efforts to use Bitcoin as legal currency.

Australia's major banks, as well as the airline Virgin Australia, saw their online services disrupted for around an hour on Thursday, due to a problem which has been traced to the US technology provider Akamai. Earlier, several airlines in the United States also suffered a short outage on their websites. Also today, we look at how Egypt's tourism industry has been preparing for the return of visitors.

The EU has approved spending plans by the Spanish and Portuguese governments, clearing the way for them to receive money from the bloc's €750 billion recovery fund. But how will the emergency funding work – and how will it be paid back? We take a closer look. Also in the show, the Federal Reserve brings forward its timetable for interest rate hikes, as US inflation continues to rise.

Legal academic Lina Khan has been appointed to lead the US Federal Trade Commission, America's consumer and competition watchdog. Khan previously worked on Congressional inquiries into big technology companies and came to prominence after a 2017 legal article which was highly critical of Amazon's power. Her appointment has been welcomed by consumer groups. Also today, we report on the challenges facing workers in Ethiopia's tourism industry ahead of elections next week.

The United States and the European Union held intensive talks aimed at resolving a trade dispute over subsidies to aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing, which dates back to 2004. The top trade representatives from both sides met on Monday, ahead of US President Joe Biden's summit with the leaders of EU institutions on Tuesday. Also today, the UK and Australia reached agreement on a new trade deal, a milestone for post-Brexit Britain.

A live auction Sunday brought the price of a seat alongside Amazon founder Jeff Bezos on the maiden crewed voyage of Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket from $4.8 million up to $28 million. Toshiba executives are ousted following a bombshell shareholder investigation, and UK flight bookings lag behind the EU as British travel restrictions linger.