Business

General Motors has become the last of America's Big Three car makers to reach a deal with strikers, as the US auto industry bends to labour power after a summer of strikes across a range of sectors. Also, President Joe Biden on Monday signed an executive order on AI requiring developers to share safety test results. Plus, social media platform X – formerly Twitter – is currently valued at less than half of what billionaire tycoon Elon Musk paid for it just a year ago.

The United Auto Workers union has announced a tentative deal with General Motors to end a six-week walkout. It comes after the union clinched deals with Ford and Stellantis, the other two companies disrupted by industrial action at the "Detroit Three". Those agreements outline wage increases of roughly 25% over four-and-a-half years, plus other improvements to working conditions. US President Joe Biden hailed the news as an example of "worker power".

Former Chinese premier Li Keqiang died early this Friday from a heart attack at the age of 68, months after retiring from nearly a decade in office. When he took up his post, reformers had hoped Li would initiate bold economic change. Barclays even coined the term "Likenomics" to describe his broad economic vision. Ultimately, Li failed to implement significant reforms and in recent years was sidelined by President Xi Jinping, who steered the world's second-largest economy in a more statist direction. We take a closer look.

The largest US auto workers union and carmaker Ford have agreed to terms on a new contract that will see a 25 percent wage increase over four years. This means picketers will return to work at Ford's plants, but strikes at General Motors and Stellantis will continue. Also in this edition, we see how ad sales have boosted Meta's revenue and how the "Barbie" movie helped toymaker Mattel get out of a sales slump.

The United Auto Workers union has once again escalated its strike against General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, the three major US carmakers. Some 6,800 workers at a Stellantis assembly plant in Michigan are now joining the ranks of striking auto workers to ask for a pay rise of at least 40 percent over the next four years. Also in the show, a US-China working group on economic issues holds its first meeting. Plus, Saudi Arabia makes its move in the esports world.

Voters in Argentina have picked two candidates for November's presidential run-off, as the country faces economic turmoil. Centre-left economy minister Sergio Massa will be facing libertarian populist Javier Milei, and the pair have very different views on how Argentina's economy should be handled. We take a closer look. Also, Chinese authorities launch an investigation into iPhone maker Foxconn. Plus, the EU Tax Observatory is calling for a 2 percent tax on billionaires.

Nicolas Cruaud, the founder of Néolithe, is the winner of the 2023 Ivy Tech prize for young French entrepreneurs, which is being awarded this week in Paris. The company was created in 2019 in western France and devised a new eco-friendly process that creates a type of building material thanks to accelerated fossilisation. This allows the company to take non-recyclable waste and turn it into small mineral granules than can then be used in the construction sector. He spoke to FRANCE 24's Charles Pellegrin.

China's National Bureau of Statistics has released a new raft of data on the health of the Chinese economy, the world's second largest. Annual GDP growth in the third quarter reached 4.9%, beating analysts' expectations. The authorities' efforts to support growth are bearing fruit, although retail sales remain low and the property sector continues to struggle. Also in this edition, Chinese President Xi Jinping defends his signature Belt and Road Initiative and oil prices surge after a blast kills hundreds at a hospital in Gaza.

Representatives from over 130 countries are gathering in Beijing for the Belt and Road Forum this Tuesday. The Chinese initiative, launched in 2013 to boost infrastructure investments around the world, has attracted a lot of attention over the past decade. We take a look at the project's pros and cons and how it's evolved over the years. Also in this edition, Chinese real estate group Country Garden nears defaulting on its debt. Plus, Goldman Sachs's CEO says he's giving up his DJ side gig.

Following Hamas's attack on Israel, the US and Qatar have agreed to temporarily prevent Iran from tapping the $6 billion fund that was transferred to it as part of last month's prisoner swap deal. We take a closer look. In the EU, member states are to vote on the use of glyphosate, a controversial herbicide that was authorised back in 2017. Plus, UK regulators approve Microsoft's revised offer to buy "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard, meaning the $69 billion deal can now go ahead.