Business

Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote launched the biggest-ever share sale on the African continent, listing 4.1 billion shares in his Lagos refinery on the stock exchange.  He framed it as a "people's IPO" to give all Nigerians a chance to share the plant's wealth potentials. Trading is expected to start in November. Meanwhile, global oil prices continued to advance as attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels forced Saudi Arabia to shut down its East-West oil pipeline. 

For the first time, French champagne producers are allowed to sell their bubbly with more than 13% alcohol, as record heatwaves and drought have resulted in grapes containing unusually high levels of sugar. They fear that climate change may eventually force them to permanently rewrite the rules governing winemaking.  Also in the segment, the European Central Bank raised interest rates for the second time this year amid higher energy costs, as a potential new gas crisis looms over Europe. 

John Ternus, Apple's new CEO, unveiled the tech giant's latest smartphone on Wednesday. The foldable iPhone Duo will go on sale on October 23rd starting at $1,999, making it the most expensive iPhone to date. The move is a bid to comfort the US company's position at the top of the global smartphone market. Also in this edition, we head to Argentina where President Javier Milei's free market approach has led to a downturn in manufacturing.

Paris's Grand Palais will host a two-day International Space Summit this Wednesday to promote global cooperation in the sector. A number of deals and investments for European space firms are expected to be announced as part of a wider plan to strengthen Europe's position in a field dominated by the US and China. Also in this edition: the US and Canada are locked in a tit-for-tat battle over tariffs.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said it was a shame that trade talks with the US collapsed but that he would continue to fight to protect Canada's sovereignty. Meanwhile, his government's promised counter-tariffs on $20 billion worth of US exports took effect. Also in the segment: Cuba says economic damage from decades of US trade embargo has risen to a record $8 billion. 

Canada's retaliatory tariffs of up to 50 percent on approximately $19.8 billion worth of US goods came into effect this Tuesday, further escalating the trade war between the two neighbours. At the same time, US President Donald Trump is threatening to ban sales of all Bombardier aircraft in the US, in spite of the Canadian company's deep web of US suppliers. Also in this edition: Iran raises the price of gasoline and French startup Mistral AI is now valued at €21 billion.

Crisis-hit Volkswagen has struck a preliminary deal to sell its Osnabrück plant in Lower Saxony to the state government and Israeli investor Aurelius Capital.  From mid-2027, the iconic factory is expected to start producing equipment for Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, the company behind the Iron Dome missile defence system. But first, we take a look at the state of the German economy following the far-right AfD's historic election win in Saxony-Anhalt. 

German startup Isar Aerospace becomes the first company to achieve a successful private orbital space launch. But first: Germany's far-right AfD party scores a big electoral victory, pushed along in part by the country's structural economic crisis and its fiscal policies.

The UN warns El Niño is a "supersized" phenomenon that will hit the global economy. Meanwhile, UK cider producers are feeling the impact of drought. Plus, Nvidia buys AI developer platform Hugging Face for $12.9 billion. 

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright landed in Venezuela on Tuesday ahead of a signing ceremony for a landmark oil deal between the US government and Venezuela. The deal would see the US create and control a private company that will hold 65 billion barrels in proven oil reserves. This agreement is also meant to encourage other US energy firms to invest in the country, in spite of serious challenges. In this edition, we see what other deals could be announced and what those challenges are.