Business

Business news from Australia and around the world: companies, deals, earnings, regulation and the people running them.

1819 articles · page 11 of 38

Business

Anthropic faces cloud capacity crunch ahead of November IPO

Anthropic is racing to secure cloud computing capacity for its AI models but finding major cloud providers increasingly see it as a rival, according to a leaked regulatory filing reported by The Wall Street Journal. The company, targeting a November initial public offering, reported $80.7 billion in net losses on $16.3 billion in revenue in the first half of the year, and warned it could spend over $750 billion on cloud contracts, some still being negotiated.

· 2 sources
Business

Netflix shares drop on weak outlook despite Q3 earnings beat

Netflix shares fell up to 6 per cent in after-hours trading on Tuesday after the company reported third-quarter earnings that narrowly beat analyst expectations but provided weak guidance for the final months of the year. The sell-off came amid slowing revenue growth, a reduced advertising forecast, and a major content leadership shake-up that saw top executives depart and the company's largest round of layoffs since 2022.

· 3 sources
Business

SpaceX AI revenue surpasses Starlink as earnings beat estimates, capex set to double

SpaceX released its third-quarter earnings report on Tuesday, revealing $14.58 billion in revenue, a 161% year-over-year surge that beat Wall Street projections. For the first time, the company's AI division, rebranded as 'Super Intelligence,' outstripped its Starlink satellite-internet business, generating $7.6 billion in revenue. Starlink added 1.6 million consumer subscribers, missing analyst forecasts, but enterprise and government revenue climbed 91% to $2.1 billion. SpaceX sees capital expenditures potentially doubling this quarter as it accelerates AI infrastructure spending.

· 8 sources
Business

FRC launches preliminary enquiries into Manchester City accounting, chair calls for stronger regulatory powers

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has confirmed it is conducting preliminary enquiries into Manchester City’s accounts and the work of its auditor, BDO, in a move that could lead to a formal investigation. The regulator’s newly appointed chair, Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia, has used the case to urge the government for statutory reforms, warning that the FRC currently lacks the power to compel information from non-listed entities such as the Premier League club.

· 5 sources
Business

UnitedHealthcare and Humana to end Medicare Advantage plans for nearly one million seniors

The two largest Medicare Advantage (MA) insurers, UnitedHealthcare (UHC) and Humana, are terminating plans covering nearly one million seniors in 2027, according to a Healthcare Brew report. The moves reflect a broader industry retrenchment as payers respond to rising utilisation and medical costs by reducing benefits, shifting enrollees into narrower networks and canceling low-return plans, even as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services describes the market as stable.

Business

Pending home sales hit all-time low, housing starts miss estimates as Fed weighs rate hikes

The US housing market showed renewed signs of strain in September, with pending home sales plunging to a record low and housing starts falling well short of expectations, data released Tuesday revealed. The worsening conditions come as the Federal Reserve considers further interest rate increases in its ongoing battle against inflation, threatening to push already-high mortgage rates even higher and further squeeze affordability.

· 2 sources
Business

ASIC investigates MGF Capital's oversight of authorised representatives

Australia's corporate regulator is investigating whether there were oversight, due diligence and compliance failures involving MGF Capital's authorised representatives, including Main Group FX. The ABC reported that Australians may have lost as much as $138 million through financial products they believed were offered by multiple authorised representatives under the Sydney firm's umbrella. More than a dozen Main Group FX investors told the ABC they were duped after believing the scheme was licensed and regulated. MGF Capital denies due diligence failures.

· 2 sources
Business

Secret culture review reveals 'diabolical' workplace at Seven West Media

A confidential 2024 culture review of Seven West Media, commissioned after allegations that the network reimbursed a former Liberal staffer for drugs and sex workers, has revealed widespread claims of sexism, bullying and harassment, with staff describing a 'diabolical' corporate culture in which 'sacred cow' executives were protected by then-chairman Kerry Stokes. The 65-page report, by independent consultancy Interchange and obtained by the ABC, is based on 127 interviews and more than 800 survey responses.

· 2 sources
Business

Homebuilder sentiment hits 14-year low as high rates and capital demand squeeze housing

Homebuilder sentiment has fallen to its lowest level since 2012, while housing starts dropped 5.2% in September and pending home sales hit their lowest mark since records began in 2001, according to fresh data from the Census Bureau and the National Association of Realtors. The deepening slump reflects a squeeze on both sides of the market: high mortgage rates near 7.4% are locking out buyers, while builders face soaring capital costs and competition for labour and materials from AI data centre construction and government borrowing.

· 2 sources
Business

Scottish government vows to fight 'wholly unacceptable' BBC Scotland channel closure

The Scottish government has condemned as "wholly unacceptable" the BBC's decision to close its dedicated Scottish linear TV channel, with Culture Secretary Màiri McAllan saying she will raise her concerns with media regulator Ofcom. The BBC confirmed the channel will move to BBC iPlayer in spring next year as part of a wider cost-cutting drive, with its nightly News at Seven programme closing and around 10 further posts lost in Scotland.

· 7 sources
Business

TikTok employees warned executives about child safety risks, court records show

Court records obtained by NPR reveal that TikTok employees repeatedly warned the company about child safety risks on its platform, including minors bypassing age-restricted content and appearing in what is described as “transactional sexual content,” but executives allegedly failed to act on those concerns. The depositions, filed in federal court in March, are part of a multi-district litigation launched in 2022 that consolidates hundreds of lawsuits against TikTok, Meta, Snap and other social media companies over youth safety.

· 2 sources
Business

UK watchdog proposes forcing Apple to open iPhone contactless payments to rivals

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has proposed requiring Apple to open its iPhone near-field communication (NFC) technology to rival payment providers on fairer commercial terms, potentially allowing users to make contactless payments through apps other than Apple Pay. The watchdog said Apple's current high fees and restrictive terms were preventing businesses from developing alternatives, and it expects access charges to fall substantially.

· 2 sources
Startups

Reliable Robotics lands $115M, tops $1B valuation as autonomous flight certification advances

Reliable Robotics, a Mountain View-based startup developing autonomous flight technology for existing aircraft, has raised $115 million in an extension of its Series D round, pushing its valuation past $1 billion. The company, founded by former SpaceX and Tesla engineers, said it is making steady progress toward Federal Aviation Administration certification for a suite of systems that could eventually enable cargo planes to fly without pilots on board.

Business

Chinese tech giants place $35bn in orders for Nvidia RTX Pro 5500 GPUs, far exceeding supply

Chinese technology giants ByteDance, Alibaba and Tencent have reportedly placed orders worth over $35 billion for more than 3 million Nvidia RTX Pro 5500 workstation GPUs, a chip compliant with U.S. export restrictions on AI-capable hardware. However, sources indicate Nvidia has told customers it can only meet 5% to 10% of that demand, as the order far exceeds planned production for this card.

Business

Oil hits $111, France curfews spread, Saudi cancels summit as global sell-off deepens

Global stock markets tumbled on Monday, with S&P 500 futures flat after a brutal session in Asia and Europe, as oil surged to $111 per barrel, France imposed curfews in major cities following nights of rioting, and Saudi Arabia cancelled its flagship Future Investment Initiative meeting after Houthi attacks on Riyadh airport. An AI cloud provider's IPO in South Korea lost 30% of its value on debut, while early Q3 earnings reports show one of the weakest starts to earnings season in history, according to analysts at Wells Fargo. The French 10-year bond yield hit 4.94%, a level not seen since 2002, and unrest spread to Milan.

Business

Flutter cuts 1,400 jobs, blames tax rises as gambling sector awaits new budget

Paddy Power owner Flutter Entertainment has announced plans to cut up to 1,400 jobs in the UK and Ireland, directly blaming the layoffs on tax rises imposed on the gambling industry. The announcement comes a week before Chancellor John Healey's first budget, reigniting debate over whether the job losses are a direct consequence of government policy or a strategic cost-cutting exercise by a company also integrating recent acquisitions.

· 11 sources
Business

Elice rebounds 30% after 32% debut plunge as investors scrutinize AI data center debt

Shares of South Korean AI data center provider Elice rebounded about 30% on Wednesday, a day after plunging 32% in a bruising stock market debut, the latest sign that investors are questioning whether the debt-fueled AI buildout will ever turn a profit. The wild swings come as global technology stocks wobble and this week's earnings from Netflix, SpaceX, Meta and Tesla are awaited for clarity on AI spending plans.

· 8 sources
Business

Bitcoin slips as equity weakness threatens demand despite record ETF inflows

Bitcoin fell about 1.1 per cent over the past 24 hours to around $81,400, even as spot US bitcoin exchange-traded funds posted their largest net inflows in a month. The $527 million in net inflows was driven almost entirely by BlackRock’s IBIT, which recorded $665 million, its best day in over a year. However, analysts at QCP Capital cautioned that broader weakness in equities, with Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 futures lower and AI stocks under pressure, could spill over into cryptocurrency markets and threaten the $80,000 support level if sustained.

Business

JPMorgan projects Bitcoin returns will beat stocks and gold over the next decade

JPMorgan Asset Management has issued its first-ever long-term Bitcoin forecast, projecting annual returns of 10% over the next 10 to 15 years, outperforming its predictions for U.S. stocks, bonds, and gold. The forecast, part of the bank's 2027 Long-Term Capital Market Assumptions report, comes with a major caveat: Bitcoin's extreme volatility and unstable correlations keep it out of the firm's main investment portfolio models for now.

· 3 sources
Business

Thames Water creditor group picks former Labour minister John Hutton as chair designate

A consortium of Thames Water creditors has appointed former Labour cabinet minister Lord John Hutton as independent chair designate of the utility, as part of a £10bn rescue bid that requires government approval. The group, known as London & Valley Water, announced the move on Tuesday as the debt-laden company serving 16 million customers in southern England continues to run out of cash.

· 4 sources
Business

Bitcoin ETFs pull in $526M as BlackRock IBIT accounts for entire net inflow

U.S. spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded their strongest daily net inflow in nearly a month on Monday, attracting $526.6 million according to SoSoValue data, driven entirely by a $665.2 million injection into BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). The figures reversed the prior week's $228.5 million in withdrawals, though net flows for October remain slightly negative at an estimated $90.5 million.

· 2 sources