As Australia's ban on social media for children under 16 takes effect, we speak with Jess Butcher, a tech entrepreneur and founder of digital wellbeing foundation ScrollAware. In spite of being opposed to over-regulation, she tells us she supports the Australian ban on account of the scale of the "harms that these platforms are causing" to users and the failure of tech companies to act meaningfully. 

Automotive heavyweights Renault and Ford are to join forces to develop a line of compact, more affordable Ford-branded electric vehicles and commercial vans in a bid to curb a wave of cheaper Chinese electric models gaining ground in Europe. Ford CEO Jim Farley said in a joint statement: “We will combine Renault Group's industrial scale and EV assets with Ford's iconic design and driving dynamics to create vehicles that are fun, capable and distinctly Ford in spirit." Also in this edition: Microsoft announces $23 billion in AI investments in Asia.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he would allow the export of US chipmaker Nvidia's second-most powerful AI chips to China, in spite of criticism saying such a move could end up benefitting Beijing's military. Trump said the US would collect a 25 percent fee on these sales and added that he'd informed Chinese leader Xi Jinping of his decision. Also in this edition, we look at why Chinese cars are increasingly popular among French consumers.      

China exported over $1 trillion worth of goods more than it imported for January through November, a record amount that is increasingly seen as untenable by the country's Western trading partners. We take a closer look. Also in this edition: Netflix's acquisition of Warner Bros. faces regulatory hurdles and pushback from Hollywood unions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has landed in India for talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the first time since the start of the war in Ukraine. The visit aims at strengthening economic ties between Moscow and New Delhi. Also, Italian police visit the headquarters of 13 major fashion brands as part of an investigation into luxury good supply chains. Plus, hundreds queue up in Auckland for Ikea's grand opening. 

French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting China with a delegation of business leaders, seeking more Chinese investment in France and a reduction in the trade deficit. We take a closer look. Also in this edition: the Trump administration plans to loosen US fuel efficiency standards, to the delight of carmakers and the dismay of climate advocates.

The European Commission has unveiled plans to provide €90 billion to support Ukraine over the next two years, by either using frozen Russian assets or borrowing money on international markets. Although the EU has already been using interest earned on Russian central bank assets held up in Europe to help Ukraine, Belgium is firmly against tapping into the actual funds. But first, the EU has presented a new strategy to reduce its dependence on China for rare earths. 

The European Union will release an updated plan this Wednesday to end its dependence on China for rare earths. These critical minerals are considered crucial in a number of high-stakes supply chains, notably in the defence, renewable energy and auto sectors, yet Beijing dominates both their mining and refining globally. Also in this edition, we look at how deforestation may have helped exacerbate recent floods in Indonesia.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has declared a "code red" to improve ChatGPT, planning to put all other projects on the back burner. The urgent call in an internal memo, first reported by The Information, highlights the ever-tightening race for AI supremacy, with Google's recent launch of its new Gemini chatbot threatening ChatGPT's lead in the field. Also in this segment: the OECD says the global economy has held up better than expected this year in the face of US tariffs, but warns that risks remain. 

Airbus says it's inspecting "a limited number" of A320s after it identified a quality issue with metal panels used on the exterior of the planes. The planemaker says it's unlikely to cause any safety issues and that all newly produced panels conform to requirements. The revelation sent Airbus's stock tumbling, coming days after a software recall resulted in the grounding of some 6,000 passenger jets worldwide. Also in the segment: cryptocurrencies continue to slide after a very bad November.