FT News in Focus

For the world's largest and most influential companies, 2016 brought plenty of megadeals, controversies, crises and some big cross border investments. Matthew Vincent discusses the most notable of these with Brooke Masters, the FT's companies editor.

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A terror attack on a Christmas market in Berlin has shocked Germany and seems likely to add to pressure on Angela Merkel, the chancellor, over her decision to welcome so many refugees from the Middle East. The FT's Guy Chazan reports from Berlin.

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LLoyds Bank has struck a £1.9bn deal to buy credit card company MBNA from a subsidiary of Bank of America, in its first acquisition since a taxpayer-funded rescue more than seven years ago. Patrick Jenkins asks Martin Arnold, FT banking editor, what the deal means for the UK bank. Music by Kevin MacLeod

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Joseph Kabila, president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, was credited with helping broker the end of the country's bloody civil war in 2003. But after two terms in office, his refusal to step down is threatening to tip the country back into violence. David Pilling, the FT's Africa editor, talks to John Aglionby, a regional correspondent just back from Kinshasa, about the crisis. Clip courtesy of Reuters.

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Deloitte’s Brazilian arm was fined a record $8m this month for falsifying reports and providing false testimony during an investigation into the audits of a low-cost airline. This case and others like it reflect growing scrutiny of auditing carried out by the Big Four accounting firms in different regions of the world, Brooke Masters, the FT's companies editor, tells Matthew Vincent.

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Boeing has signed a $16.6bn deal with Iran’s national carrier in the first major deal between a US company and Iran since the 1979 revolution. Matthew Vincent asks Peggy Hollinger, FT industry editor, and Geoff Dyer, US diplomatic correspondent, whether the deal could be scuppered by the incoming administration of Donald Trump.

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The latest stage of Jean-Pierre Mustier’s plan for Italy's largest bank involves slashing jobs and shedding a vast bad-debt portfolio. Patrick Jenkins, the FT's financial editor discusses the plan with Martin Arnold, banking editor. With clips from Unicredit's chief executive Jean-Pierre Mustier. Music by Kevin MacLeod.

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Oliver Bäte, chief executive of the German insurer Allianz, talks to the FT's Patrick Jenkins and Oliver Ralph about the company's digital growth strategy and contingency planning in light of the uncertainty resulting from the US election and the UK vote to leave the European Union

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How should journalists respond to readers who comment on their articles? Should offensive comments be deleted? Sarah Gordon, the FT's business editor, discusses the merits of engaging with readers with Andrew Hill, management editor, Lilah Raptopoulos, from the FT's audience engagement team, and Sarah O’Connor, employment correspondent.

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Park Geun-hye, South Korea's president, embroiled in a corruption scandal, is facing an impeachment vote on Friday, while her so-called "shaman adviser" has been indicted on a host of charges. Meanwhile, the country's top businessmen have been hauled before a parliamentary inquiry. Victor Mallet discusses the crisis and possible outcomes with Bryan Harris, FT correspondent in Seoul.

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