McDonalds Corporation is going to face serious troubles in Europe, since three consumer groups in Italy have filed an antitrust lawsuit in the EU, claiming that the fast-food chain uses illegal franchise conditions. The complaint, which is supported by the American and European trade unions, alleged that McDonalds is abusing its dominant position in the market, harming consumers and taking...

Yesterday, the US subsidiary of the Qatari TV channel Al Jazeera - Al Jazeera America - announced its intention to stop broadcasting because of difficult business conditions in the US media sphere. The channel will stop operating in April this year. The company plans to focus on digital services. On Wednesday, the television channel Al Jazeera America announced its closure: it will stop...

The Chinese company Dalian Wanda Group has acquired the Hollywood film studio Legendary Entertainment for $ 3.5 billion, reports AP. It is noted that the chairman of the conglomerate Wang Jianlin is the richest man in China. His fortune is estimated at more than $ 24 billion. The company will own both Legendary’s intellectual property rights, and its movies. At a press conference in Beijing, Wang...

The first trial in the case of fraudulent interbank rate started in the UK. Eleven former employees of Deutsche Bank, Barclays and Societe Generale are brought before the court in London. They will be the first accused of the fraud with the interbank rate Euribor, for which interest rates are set on a large number of financial products, including mortgages. International investigations of frauds...

Saudi Arabia is considering possibility of an initial public offering of the state oil company Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Aramco). The decision may be taken in the coming months. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman aired the possible sale of a stake in Aramco in an interview with Britain's The Economist. Currently, Aramco controls more than 10% of the world oil market’s production. It is not known...

Apple is going to curtail output of new iPhone models at 30% in the first quarter of this year due to the downturn in sales, reported Nikkei newspaper. This announcement caused a drop in shares of Apple and its partners - manufacturers of components. In the first quarter of 2016, Apple will reduce production of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s models by 30%. This is was announced by the Japanese...

The Japanese brewer Asahi plans to buy Talking Rain Beverage, the American carbonated beverage manufacturer, the newspaper Nikkei reports, citing informed sources. According to the newspaper, the deal on purchase of all shares of the American company could reach 50 billion yen ($ 400 million). It will be Asahi’s first deal with a company from the United States. A representative of Asahi said...

Chinese antitrust regulators fined eight companies engaged in maritime transport, totaling 407 million yuan ($ 63 million), accusing them of conspiring to cartel overcharges for transportation of vehicles and heavy equipment. Basing on the finding of National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the main function of which is to control prices in the PRC, a number of companies was recognized...

The outgoing year was not fruitful in regard to high-tech companies’ IPOs. However, some players have managed to attract Wall Street’s attention and held initial publics very well. Observing lack of high-profile IPOs, financial analysts concluded that the "Unicorn" era is coming to the end (“Unicorns” are technology companies that have achieved valuation of more than $ 1 billion without going...