COURTNEY BONNELL

EMEA business editor

Bonnell is the AP’s Europe, Middle East, Africa business editor. She is based in London.

Unilever to cut 7,500 jobs and spin off its ice cream business, which includes Ben & Jerry’s

Unilever, the company that makes Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, Dove soaps and Vaseline, says it’s cutting 7,500 jobs and spinning off its ice cream business to reduce costs and boost profits.

McDonald’s apologizes for global system outage that shut down some stores for hours

McDonald’s has apologized for a global technology outage that shuttered some restaurants for hours. The Chicago-based company said the outage was caused by a third-party technology provider.

BP earns $3 billion at the end of last year but saw its annual profit fall by half from 2022

Oil and natural gas giant BP has beat expectations with earnings of $3 billion in the last three months of 2023.

More CEOs fear their companies won’t survive 10 years as AI and climate challenges grow, survey says

More executives are feeling better about the global economy. But a growing number don’t think their companies will survive the coming decade without a major overhaul because of pressure from climate change and technology like artificial intelligence.

Olympics brings on its first beer brand as a global sponsor — Budweiser’s AB InBev

The International Olympic Committee has signed the first beer brand in the 40-year history of a sponsorship program that earns billions of dollars for the organization and international sports.

Houthi attacks on commercial ships have upended global trade in vital Red Sea corridor

The attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels have scared off some of the world’s top shipping companies and oil giants.

How attacks on ships in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels are crimping global trade

The attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have rerouted trade away from a crucial corridor for consumer goods and energy supplies.

Inflation in Europe falls to 2.4% as interest rates pack a punch. But the economy has stalled

Europeans are again seeing some relief as inflation dropped to 2.4% in November, the lowest in more than two years.

Some OPEC+ members will cut the oil that they send to the world to try to boost prices

The OPEC oil cartel and allied producers have made another big swipe at propping up lagging crude prices.

Ukraine has a new way to get its grain to the world despite Russia’s threat in the Black Sea

Increasing numbers of ships are streaming toward Ukraine’s Black Sea ports and heading out loaded with grain, metals and other cargo despite the threat of attack and explosive mines.

Company that created ChatGPT is thrown into turmoil after Microsoft hires its ousted CEO

The company that created ChatGPT is in turmoil after Microsoft hired its ousted CEO and many more employees threatened to follow him in a conflict that centered in part oin part on how to build artificial intelligence that’s smarter than humans.

Ukraine wants ships to keep exporting its grain despite Russian attacks. Some are interested

A major shipping group says there is still interest from ship owners in carrying Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea if they can mitigate the risk.

Russia halts landmark deal that allowed Ukraine to export grain at time of growing hunger

Russia has halted a breakthrough wartime deal that allows grain to flow from Ukraine to countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia where hunger is a growing threat and high food prices have pushed people into poverty.

Why allowing Ukraine to ship grain during Russia’s war matters to the world

The Black Sea Grain Initiative has allowed 32.8 million metric tons (36.2 million tons) of food to be exported from Ukraine since last August, more than half to developing countries, including those getting relief from the World Food Program.

Russia’s threat to pull out of Ukraine grain deal raises fears about global food security

Concerns are growing that Russia won’t extend a United Nations-brokered deal that allows grain to flow from Ukraine to parts of the world struggling with hunger.

Company executives urge Europe to rethink its world-leading AI rules

More than 150 executives are urging the European Union to rethink the world’s most comprehensive rules for artificial intelligence.

Amazon, Marriott and other companies vow to hire thousands of refugees in Europe

Multinational companies including Amazon, Marriott, Hilton are pledging to hire more than 13,000 Ukrainian women and other refugees in Europe over the next three years.

UBS completes takeover of Credit Suisse in deal meant to stem global financial turmoil

UBS says it has completed its takeover of embattled rival Credit Suisse. The announcement comes nearly three months after the Swiss government hastily arranged a rescue deal to combine the country’s two largest banks in a bid to safeguard Switzerland’s reputation as a global financial center and cho

Europe’s economy shrank. For households that are hurting, it’s just numbers

The European economy has contracted slightly at the end of last year and beginning of 2023. The revised figures released Thursday by the European Union’s statistics agency underline the impact of the loss of Russian natural gas and high inflation on consumer spending.

Wheat prices jump following collapse of major dam in southern Ukraine

The collapse of a major dam in southern Ukraine sent global prices of wheat and corn higher. The destruction has renewed market fears about the fragility of the country’s ability to ship food to Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia as it fights a war with Russia.

Credit Suisse owes millions to Georgia’s billionaire ex-prime minister, court says

A Singapore court says Credit Suisse owes former Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili hundreds of millions of dollars for failing to protect the billionaire’s money in a trust pilfered by a manager.

Deutsche Bank to pay $75 million to settle lawsuit from Epstein victims, lawyers say

Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a lawsuit claiming the German lender should have seen evidence of sex trafficking by Jeffrey Epstein when he was a client.

Russia agrees to extend Ukraine grain deal in a boost for global food security

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Russia has agreed to extend a deal that has allowed Ukraine to ship grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger.

Credit Suisse investors sue after facing billions in losses

A group of Credit Suisse investors have sued Swiss financial regulators after a government-engineered takeover of the struggling bank by rival UBS left them with billions in losses.

US: Credit Suisse violates deal on rich clients’ tax evasion

U.S. lawmakers say Credit Suisse violated a plea agreement by failing to report secret offshore accounts that wealthy Americans used to avoid paying taxes.

Credit Suisse customers feel mix of anger, relief after sale

Credit Suisse’s customers are feeling a range of emotions after the government orchestrated a takeover of the country’s second-largest bank by rival UBS.

4-day workweek trial: Shorter hours, happier employees

A trial of a four-day workweek in Britain, billed as the world’s largest, has found that most employees are less stressed, burned out and have better work-life balance.

Ukrainian grain shipments drop as ship backups grow

The amount of grain leaving Ukraine has dropped even as a U.N.-brokered deal works to keep food flowing to developing nations nearly a year into Russia’s invasion.

Ukraine, climate, economy: Takeaways from glitzy Davos event

Power brokers have wrapped up the World Economic Forum’s annual conclave in the Swiss town of Davos as worries about the war in Ukraine, a warming planet and a cooling global economy dominated discussions about the world’s ills.

Business trusted most in a more polarized world, report says

People worldwide are more gloomy about their economic prospects than ever before and trust business far more than governments, nonprofits and the media in an increasingly divided world.

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