Think of Germany and it isn’t long before visions of bustling business districts and thriving manufacturing plants spring to mind. It isn’t surprising: it’s these industries that have elevated the country to rank among the world’s leading economies. But increasingly they have also become the subject of political power play with one of Germany’s biggest […]

It will be very difficult to see the U.S. winning in Afghanistan but President Donald Trump had no easy options, Peter Westmacott, former U.K. ambassador to the U.S., told CNBC Tuesday. President Trump changed his mind and announced Monday that the U.S. was stepping up its military intervention in Afghanistan. Though he did not clarify […]

Norway’s rainy day pot of cash has outperformed its own benchmark thanks to the second quarter surge in equity markets. The $975 billion fund is the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world and is bolstered by revenue from sales of oil. Nestle, China’s TENCENT and Swiss firm Novartis made the biggest positive contributions as […]

The U.K. government is preparing 11 trade deals to reduce the economic impact of leaving the European Union. However, all this work might be in vain. The department led by Liam Fox cannot negotiate any trade deal while a member of the European Union – which is the case until 29th March of 2019. It […]

The intense competition being faced by U.K. grocers was laid bare on Tuesday morning with new data showing that discount retailer Lidl has trumped upmarket Waitrose in the battle for market share. The German discount retailer has seen its market share rise to a new record high of 5.2 percent in the twelve weeks to […]

Banks are faced with more competitive disruption from tech behemoths than financial technology (fintech) start-ups, according to a report by the World Economic Forum (WEF). Contrary to concerns surrounding small fintech firms drawing business away from the financial services sector, the report concluded that start-ups had less of an impact than expected. “Fintechs have changed […]

An earthquake hit the tourist-packed Italian holiday island of Ischia on Monday night, collapsing buildings, killing at least two people and injuring dozens, officials said. Residents and tourists on the island off the coast of Naples ran out on to the narrow streets from homes and hotels. Fearing aftershocks, many decided to leave the island […]

Dalian Wanda Group said on Tuesday it had scrapped plans to buy Nine Elms Square in London, the latest setback for the Chinese conglomerate as Beijing tightens controls on overseas investment. St. Modwen Properties, owner of the London building, said on Monday it had completed the 470 million pound ($605.6 million) sale, without naming the […]

Spain’s bomb squad was using a robot to get close to a man shot by police on Monday who public television said was the man wanted for driving a van into crowds on a Barcelona boulevard last week, killing 13 people. Police said the man was wearing what appeared to be an explosive belt, which […]

Whisky might not be the most conventional buying opportunity – but for this investor, it’s a commodity worth investing in. Rupert Patrick, CEO of whisky trading website WhiskyInvestDirect, said that investing in Scotch whisky is a long-term investment comparable to buying gold. Patrick’s business is part of the BullionVault group, which enables investors to trade […]