We looked at the news and developments that've been moving global markets. This week, it's been all about corporate earnings. The auto and pharmaceutical sectors that have been making waves.

We spoke to Future Horizons founder, Malcolm Penn on Europe's microchip initiative, aiming to overcome semiconductor shortage which hits auto industry.

#AutoIndustry #PharmaceuticalFirms #EuropeMicrochipInitiative

The global cruise industry was booming before the pandemic, with revenue growth hitting 27 billion dollars in 2019. But the following year, that fell by almost 90%. Two years on and the industry is still feeling the sting. And now a shipbuilding town in Germany has become the latest casualty.

#CruiseShipIndustry #GlobalDreamAbondened #GentingHongKong

They're calling themselves the Freedom Convoy. Thousands of truckers and other workers have been blockading the streets of Canada's capital, demanding that the government lift a vaccine mandate for border crossings. Authorities say those demands can't be met. They've arrested dozens of demonstrators and taken steps to block their funding. Yet the protests continue, and as Daniel Padwick reports, the showdown is already taking a toll on Canada's economy.

Moshe Lander, a senior lecturer on economics at Concordia University, joined us from Montreal in Canada.

#FreedomConvoy #VaccineMandateProtests #CanadianTruckersBlockRoads

The NFL is having its best ratings year since 2015. That means an audience of more than 100 million people for the biggest game of the year. NBC, which has the broadcast rights for the event, is raking in around half a billion dollars in ad revenues.

We spoke to Jessica Walker, a content creator at the cryptocurrency data tracking site CoinMarketCap. She told me why the Super Bowl is such a big opportunity for companies to reach a wider audience.

#SuperBowlLVI #SuperBowlAdRevenues #NFLTradingAds

The Super Bowl is the single biggest game in American professional sports. And companies routinely line up and spend big for every bit of available air time during the almost four-hour-long broadcast. This year's list of first-time advertisers is dominated by cryptocurrency firms. It's part of the industry's push into the mainstream by infiltrating beloved past times.

#SuperBowlLVI #SuperBowlCryptoAds #CryptoTradingPlatforms

Italy's oldest bank is fighting for its survival. Monte dei Paschi di Siena is struggling to stay afloat, despite repeated government bailouts. Now, Rome is under pressure from Brussels to privatise the lender, which is also the world's oldest bank that's in continuous operation. But those plans may put thousands of jobs at risk and leave taxpayers with a hefty bill.

For more on Italy's oldest bank, Giovanni Ferri joined us live from Rome. He's a professor of economics at LUMSA University.

#MonteDeiPaschiDebt #MonteDeiPaschiSale #ItalyOldestBank

Inflation in the US surged more than expected over the past 12 months, signaling a worsening outlook for inflation and cementing the likelihood of more frequent interest rates hike this year. The consumer price index for January, which measures the costs of dozens of everyday consumer goods, rose 7.5% compared with a year ago. It was the highest reading since February 1982. Rate-sensitive tech stocks were hit especially hard. The Nasdaq declined more than 2%. Government bond yields rose sharply, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury note touching 2%, its highest since August 2019.

For more on US inflation, we were joined by David Madden in London. He's market analyst at Equiti Capital.

#USInflation #USPrices #InflationBreaksRecord

Saudi Arabia's economy expanded 6.8% in the fourth quarter of 2021, the fastest pace of annual growth in almost ten years. High oil prices boosted the kingdom's oil income by 10.8% according to preliminary estimates. Non-oil sectors grew 5% in the same period, but have slowed again, in the first month of this year as COVID-19 cases surged.

Independent analyst, Neil Atkinson joined us live from Paris to discuss more on Saudi Arabian economy.

#SaudiArabiaEconomy #SaudiArabiaOilIncome #SaudiArabia2021GDP

It was a fairy tale ending to Disney's fourth quarter. The company reported a steady rise in new subscribers to Disney Plus, dispelling fears that the streaming video boom was running out. The company earned $1.06 a share in the first quarter, far higher than Wall Street's estimates of 63 cents, and up from 32 cents a year ago. The entertainment giant also reported a strong rebound from coronavirus pandemic lows at its theme parks and resorts.

Head of investment at Interactive Investor, Victoria Scholar joined us live from London.

#DisneyEarnings #DisneyPlusSubscription #DisneyThemeParks

Daily top business stories from around the world in 60 seconds:

- US adds 33 Chinese entities to watch list

- Report: Chinese funding of African projects surges

- US household debt increases by $1T in 2021

#ChineseFirmsAddedWatchList #ChinaAfricaInvestments #USHouseholdDebt