Business

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is to take a 40% share in the iconic London department store in what will be Selfridges’ second change of ownership in two years. ADVERTISEMENT Embattled Austrian property and retail giant Signa Holdings has sold its shares in the Selfridges Group to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). The multi-billion-euro deal is the latest in a …

BP has been facing increasing pressure from investors and stakeholders to cut down its green ambitions and to stay within the more profitable fossil fuels sector. Environmental groups are angry. ADVERTISEMENT Oil giant BP is reportedly giving up its target to reduce its oil production in the next five years as part of a change of strategy, more of which …

The heavy fine for the UK’s biggest water supplier comes shortly after the troubled utility company announced it was in talks with creditors to seek new equity, to prevent it running out of cash by May next year. ADVERTISEMENT UK water regulator Ofwat has fined Thames Water £104m (€124m) for its part in illegal sewage discharges into rivers and sea. …

Despite a steep drop in fuel prices, annual inflation in the Netherlands was still 3.5% in September, one of the highest in the eurozone. ADVERTISEMENT Prices in the Netherlands were 3.5% higher in September than a year earlier, according to the final figures published by the Netherlands Statistics Office (CBS).  The pace of the price increase was, however, slightly slower …

eBay UK has scrapped the fees private sellers have to pay to access the online marketplace, in a move designed to see off competition for the rapidly growing and hugely profitable pre-loved sector. ADVERTISEMENT eBay is second only to Amazon as the biggest online marketplace in the world. Earlier this year, eBay UK abolished fees for private users selling pre-loved clothing, which, the …

Israel says it aims to drive Hezbollah away from the border so the thousands of Israelis displaced by months of almost daily cross-border fire can return to their homes. ADVERTISEMENT Powerful new explosions have rocked Beirut’s southern suburbs overnight into Sunday as Israel expanded its bombardment in Lebanon, also striking a Palestinian refugee camp in the north as it targeted …

Climate activist Greta Thunberg was among scores detained on Saturday after staging a sit-in protest demanding an end to EU subsidies for fossil fuels. ADVERTISEMENT Climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested by Belgian police on Saturday as she demonstrated against fossil fuel subsidies by the European Union. The Swedish activist was joined by dozens of demonstrators from ‘United for Climate …

Here’s why under-the-radar Brno should be on your 2025 travel list. ADVERTISEMENT Midday is 11am in Brno, marked by the chiming astronomical clock which remains an enigma even to the locals. On the hour, this large, erect black granite structure releases a marble to one of three catch points – usually guarded by the hands of children. Every wonky piece …

Francis Bacon’s perturbing portraiture, contemporary art at Frieze London, ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ sends in the clowns, and a new album from Public Service Broadcasting – here’s what to do in Europe this week. ADVERTISEMENT Ah, October. It’s mostly rainy, cold and dark – a weird crinkle in the year that makes you just want to daydream under a blanket …

Sweden is among the best countries for a new AI company. It’s most successful tech start-ups have seen an impressive revenue growth of 1,127%. ADVERTISEMENT The global market of generative AI is predicted to grow by 30-40% each year. There is intense competition to attract new business. Although the United States is undoubtedly winning this battle currently, some European countries …