Latest Developments

Europe
The Guardian

US trade regulator and 22 states accuse Amazon of taking $20bn with secret surcharges

‘Amazon has millions of advertising customers who were misled into paying significantly higher prices,’ the FTC chair says. Photograph: Charles-McClintock Wilson/NurPhoto/ShutterstockView image in fullscreen‘Amazon has millions of advertising customers who were misled into paying significantly higher prices,’ the FTC chair says. Photograph: Charles-McClintock Wilson/NurPhoto/ShutterstockAmazonUS trade regulator and 22 states accuse Amazon of taking $20bn with secret surcharges FTC alleges in lawsuit that online retailer ‘secretly and systematically overcharged’ advertisers for years The US’s main trade regulator and 22 states sued Amazon on Monday, alleging the online retailer “secretly and systematically overcharged” advertisers on Amazon.com. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said these practices led to higher costs for customers on items like groceries and other essential goods that are sold on Amazon. “Amazon has millions of advertising customers who were misled into paying significantly higher prices. These higher costs were largely passed on to American consumers,” said Andrew Ferguson, the FTC chair. The agency accused the company of taking in more than $20bn from “hidden surcharges”, in what it deems an “ad-rigging scheme”. Amazon’s advertising business has grown significantly in recent years, becoming the third-largest online advertising marketplace after Google and Meta. The FTC says Amazon generates more than $68bn in ad revenue on its website. The lawsuit alleges that 1.2 million advertising customers were overcharged since 2019, including more than 500,000 small- and medium-sized businesses. An Amazon spokesperson pointed the Guardian to a blog post the company published in response to the legal action, which calls the legal action a “misguided lawsuit”. The government’s case hinges on Amazon’s advertising auction system, called “second-price auctions”, that lets the winning bidder pay only slightly more than the second-highest bid. Regulators allege that with this system, Amazon could secretly raise the second-highest bids with a higher “shill” bid of its own. “We believe Amazon manipulated its ad auctions to inflate what sellers had to pay, adding billions of dollars in costs that ultimately get passed on to customers with higher prices,” said Jeff Jackson, the attorney general for North Carolina, one of the states involved in the suit. The suit alleges Amazon tested how much it could increase the amount it charges without advertisers flinching. Internal documents show one manager allegedly describing the company’s pricing strategy as “hoping that advertisers don’t notice and decrease bids or ad spend”. Amazon denied these allegations and said the company gives “customers the lowest prices every day across the widest selection of products”. “After reviewing approximately 1.5 million pages spanning six years, the FTC leans on a handful of simplified communications to allege a companywide effort to deceive,” Amazon wrote in its blog post. “That is patently false.”

US trade regulator and 22 states accuse Amazon of taking $20bn with secret surcharges
Europe
BBC Business

Kushner states regret over World Cup sell-off plan

Venture capitalist Joshua Kushner, who was set to be the lead investor in Fifa president Gianni Infantino's scrapped plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup, says he now regrets joining the proposal. In his first public comments since the now-shelved Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) scheme sparked a major crisis for the governing body, Kushner said: "Had we known what this would devolve into, we would not have gotten involved". The brother of US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Kushner added he had "failed to appreciate the political dynamics of global football". However, he also defended the proposal, saying, "we stand behind the motivations of FFE", and that its intention "was to direct more capital and equity equally" among Fifa's 211 member associations. Thrive Eternal, a firm founded by Kushner, had held talks with Infantino about heading up a $4.2bn (£3.1bn) investment in 20% of a new Fifa commercial subsidiary, before the idea was abandoned days after it was revealed in July amid a huge backlash. Kushner's comments come just days after Uefa asked a court in New York to approve subpoenas for testimony and documents from both the American billionaire and Thrive as it considers lodging a criminal complaint against Infantino in Switzerland. European football's governing body Uefa has led the rebellion against the Fifa president, who is facing calls to stand down. In a statement, Kushner said: "Money in football has historically been concentrated amongst a small group of countries. "The idea behind FFE was to direct more capital and equity equally amongst all 211 member countries, providing significantly more investment to underdeveloped nations to nurture local talent, support grassroots football, enhance the fan experience, and ultimately grow the global game everywhere. "It was an idea that every member association would vote on, not an obligation or determination. "While we stand behind the motivations of FFE, we failed to appreciate the political dynamics of global football, and the lengths some would go to. Thrive has a long track record of being a partner to all constituents. Had we known what this would devolve into, we would not have gotten involved." In late July, shortly before scrapping the plan, Fifa said, "Thrive Eternal...is expected to lead the proposed investor group for FFE", claiming it would have seen the funding distributed to each national association for the 2027-2030 cycle increase from £5.9m to £14.7m.

Kushner states regret over World Cup sell-off plan
Europe
BBC Business

AI could cause global economic downturn, Andrew Bailey warns G20

Image source, ReutersByRuth ComerfordPublished31 August 2026The governor of the Bank of England has warned G20 finance ministers that artificial intelligence could cause a global economic downturn and pose a significant cyber security risk to financial systems. Andrew Bailey said any collapse of growth in the AI sector could lead to a "future market correction" that spreads worldwide. In an open letter to finance ministers in the US on Monday, he said companies around the world should prepare for security breaches "involving simultaneous disruption across multiple firms". Earlier this month, a group of 100 firms, including Google, Microsoft, Anthropic and OpenAI, urged countries and groups to beef up their cyber defences before AI grows powerful enough to override them. Bailey told the G20 finance ministers that a combination of highly priced stock markets, increased borrowing by investors, and the growing concentration of money into a small number of major technology companies could amplify any future market correction. "The issue is not simply that investors are borrowing more, but that leverage is interacting with high valuations and market concentration, in particular the increasing cross-investment between artificial intelligence (AI) companies and hyper scalers, in a way that could amplify a future market correction," he said. Bailey has called on those in charge of financial security to develop "appropriate steps to support safe and responsible model release and deployment on a global basis". Bailey, who was writing in his capacity as chairman of the Financial Stability Board international watchdog (FSB), expressed concern about the "volatility" prompted by the effect of energy supply shocks caused by the US-Iran war. His warning comes several months after UK Chancellor John Healey announced a £100m fund aimed at backing British AI start-ups. That is part of the government's efforts to grow the country's "sovereign AI" capacity, developing homegrown AI technology to ensure the UK is not dependent on services from abroad. Ministers want to see companies compete for the funding to help tackle challenges like cutting waiting lists in the NHS and bolstering cybersecurity and defence. A UK government spokesperson said its new AI economics institute was working with international partners to build "a stronger shared understanding of how AI is transforming economies around the world."

AI could cause global economic downturn, Andrew Bailey warns G20
Europe
BBC Business

I climbed the career ladder and got my dream job at 30 - then I hit burnout

Jo Hooper spent her 20s trying to climb the career ladder, quickly rising through the ranks with promotions and pay rises. But just after she landed her dream role at 30, Jo struggled with burnout and had to take time off work. Burnout, external is recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a state of physical and emotional exhaustion. Recent statistics show 22 million working days, external were lost in Britain because of work-related stress in 2024-25. Jo, now 39 and based in Penarth in the Vale of Glamorgan, said: "I wanted to be a head of communications by the time I was 30, which I did by doing all things you'd expect, working long hours, saying yes to everything including mad things like taking my boss's kids to school." "I genuinely thought these were all good opportunities, and I was going to grab them with both hands," said Jo. "I remember being in the bathroom crying, hyperventilating, but I never thought 'this isn't sustainable', never thought 'I can't do this any more'. "I just thought I needed to change job and I'd be fine. I thought the fix was being in a different organisation but the way I behaved, what I thought was expected of me, was the same everywhere." Jo hit burnout a year into her management role, and it led to two breakdowns within a year. "I definitely think it was a case of being forced to stop by my body and mind," she said. "I found it really difficult to make decisions, like my brain was working slower. I remember feeling like someone had flipped a switch and my brain had just broken." The charity Mental Health UK reports that two in five, external young workers aged 18 to 24 took time off due to poor mental health caused by stress in 2025.

I climbed the career ladder and got my dream job at 30 - then I hit burnout
Asia
The Economic Times

16 IPOs on investors' radar next week. GMPs signal up to 38% returns

India's IPO market is set for another crowded week, with 16 issues opening for subscription across the mainboard and SME segments. The lineup is led by Rentomojo, Kanohar Electricals, Karamtara Engineering, Manipal Payment and Identity Solutions among others. GMP trends suggest selective but healthy appetite. Pranav Constructions opens on 7 September with a Rs 351 crore issue. Its GMP of 35% signals strong early interest in the Mumbai redevelopment-focused real estate company. Apana Logistics opens on 7 September with a Rs 34 crore SME issue. The GMP is around 5%, suggesting muted but positive listing expectations. Glass Wall Systems opens on 8 September with a Rs 428 crore issue. Its GMP of 23% points to healthy demand for the facade and fenestration solutions company. Prasol Chemicals opens on 8 September with a Rs 500 crore issue. The stock is commanding a GMP of about 18%, showing moderate grey market interest. Kanohar Electricals opens on 8 September with a Rs 1,056 crore issue. Its GMP of 32% makes it one of the stronger names on next week's IPO radar. Karamtara Engineering opens on 9 September with a Rs 875 crore issue. The renewable energy and transmission products maker is seeing a GMP of around 22%. Rentomojo opens on 9 September with a Rs 1,256 crore issue. Its GMP of 38% is the highest among next week's IPOs, signalling strong listing expectations. Manipal Payment opens on 9 September with a Rs 805 crore issue. Its GMP of about 7% suggests modest listing expectations. Asset Reconstruction Company opens on 9 September with a Rs 733 crore issue. The IPO has no meaningful GMP yet, keeping investor focus on subscription demand. LCC Projects opens on 9 September with a Rs 427 crore issue. Its GMP of 17% indicates decent early demand. Steamhouse India opens on 9 September with a Rs 414 crore issue. The IPO has no active GMP yet, making subscription numbers important.

16 IPOs on investors' radar next week. GMPs signal up to 38% returns
Europe
The Guardian

Fed chair says delivering ‘stable prices’ is central bank’s job as inflation persists

Kevin Warsh at the Jackson Hole economic symposium on Thursday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Photograph: Natalie Behring/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenKevin Warsh at the Jackson Hole economic symposium on Thursday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Photograph: Natalie Behring/Getty ImagesFederal ReserveFed chair says delivering ‘stable prices’ is central bank’s job as inflation persistsHowever, Kevin Warsh didn’t say if interest rates would change in coming months, as inflation remains stubborn The US Federal Reserve is not done fighting high inflation, its chair, Kevin Warsh, said in his first major speech in the role on Friday, emphasizing that it was “the Fed’s job to deliver stable prices”. Warsh did not indicate where the Fed will take interest rates in the coming months, despite US inflation remaining stubbornly above the central bank’s 2% target amid the war in Iran. But his speech was taken by markets as a signal that rates may rise in the coming months, a move that may put him at odds with Donald Trump, who has aggressively called for rates to be cut. The Fed chair painted a rosy view of the economy that contrasts with recent data. He said the economy “appears to have strengthened” given how it has held up to shocks. “On that score, both Main Street and Wall Street have been resilient,” Warsh said at the Fed’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday. The Jackson Hole symposium has typically served as a platform for Fed chairs to offer clarity on the central bank’s general direction. For example, former Fed chair Jerome Powell foreshadowed rate cuts at his keynote address last year. But Warsh on Friday insisted the days of such “forward guidance” were over, saying that the practice was adopted by the Fed during the 2008 financial crisis. “As with other legacies of crises past, I believe that the practice has overstayed its welcome,” he said. Markets are still expected to carefully gauge Warsh’s speech for signs of the Fed’s next move. At the central bank’s last board meeting in July, three out of 12 voting members wanted to raise rates by a quarter percentage point – the first time in a decade so many board members shared dissent over a policy position. But a majority of the members voted to hold rates, which currently sit at a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, steady. Since he was appointed in May, Warsh has had to strike a delicate balance between managing an economy that has been shaken by higher oil prices brought on by the war in Iran without provoking the ire of the White House. Trump has continued to insist the Fed should lower interest rates, despite economists who warn that that would further exacerbate inflation. After hitting a three-year high of 4.2% in May, US inflation cooled to 3.4% in July – still 1% higher than figures seen last year. Warsh said progress on inflation over the past several years has been “modest”, and though price readings from over the summer came in better than expected, they did not indicate that “underlying trends have meaningfully improved”. The US bond market has been particularly sensitive to higher inflation, with the yield on 10-year notes hitting its highest level since 2007 in recent weeks. Yields briefly went down after the US treasury announced a big debt buy-back scheme, though the relief proved to be temporary. Rising rates in the US have driven yields higher abroad – bond rates in the UK, Germany, France and Japan have all hit their highest levels in decades. Meanwhile, the US gross national debt topped $40tn for the first time in history last week. In reaction to Warsh’s opening remarks, the two-year and 10-year US treasury yields increased slightly, while the 30-year treasury remained largely the same. The S&P 500 remained leveled while the Dow Jones ticked down slightly.

Fed chair says delivering ‘stable prices’ is central bank’s job as inflation persists
Europe
The Guardian

Anthropic sued over alleged theft of ‘tens of thousands’ of songs

All AI wants for Christmas is a vast back catalogue of songs without paying for it, according to a multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the startup behind the Claude chatbot. The compositions include Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas is You, Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, originally performed by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, and Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger. The plaintiffs claim they are victims of “one of the largest and most blatant ongoing thefts of intellectual property in history”. It claims that Mann and Anthropic downloaded at least 7m copies of books from pirate websites, including the lyrics and sheet music to songs such as Bon Jovi’s Livin’ on a Prayer and Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. “Defendants specifically elected to harvest unauthorized copies of Music Publishers’ works so that they would not have to pay Music Publishers a licensing fee to use their works in AI training and development,” said the plaintiffs. The music publishers are seeking damages that could run into billions of dollars, based on a claim of up to $150,000 per infringed piece of work and $25,000 for each removal or alteration of identifying data. Alongside the authors’ lawsuit, Anthropic has also faced claims from Universal Music Group and Concord Music Group. A spokesperson for Anthropic, which is preparing for a stockmarket listing that could value the company at $2tn, said: “We disagree with the publishers’ claims and we intend to defend ourselves robustly in court.”

Anthropic sued over alleged theft of ‘tens of thousands’ of songs
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Indian defence panel clears purchase proposals worth $11.6 billion

India's ‌defence acquisition council ​approved ⁠proposals worth about ₹1.10 ‌lakh crore ($11.64 billion) on ‌Monday, ‌the ⁠Defence ⁠Ministry said in a statement. The approval ​was ‌granted for acquisition of items ‌including chemical, biological, ​radiological and nuclear ⁠reconnaissance vehicles, high mobility ‌vehicles, advanced light helicopters, and trawl tanks, ‌the Ministry ​said. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Indian defence panel clears purchase proposals worth $11.6 billion
Europe
BBC Business

Feeling nostalgic for summer? How to beat the back-to-work blues

Image source, Getty ImagesByKate Whannel, Business reporter and Nick Triggle, Health correspondentPublished1 September 2026, 00:37 BSTThe alarm wakes you with a shock, the summer holiday is over and it's time to face that inbox full of unread emails. This time last week, life was very different. You enjoyed late nights, lazy mornings balancing family fun and you time. Even if you enjoy your job, the transition from holiday to work can be hard, particularly in September as the days begin to shorten. But careers coach Sarah Robinson says it's better to "ease back in" by starting with small, manageable tasks and "quick wins". "It's about trying to build momentum, because I think sometimes it can just feel overwhelming when you've got a massive inbox," she says. Counsellor Susan Carr agrees. She says it isn't possible in every industry but where viable "be a bit kinder with your expectations of what you need to do on that first day back in the office." That could mean spending the day going through emails rather than a full day of back-to-back meetings. Tara Humphrey, a primary care leadership consultant, advocates keeping her out-of-office on for her first day back. She also says re-entry into work life can be made easier by a clearly-written out-of-office message, encouraging people to follow up when she is back in the office - that eases the stress of whether you have missed something important while on holiday. There is an alternative. She recalls a colleague who would simply delete all the emails he had been sent during his holiday. Carr says it is also worth remembering what was enjoyable on holiday and "whether there's a way of integrating that more into your everyday life". While it may not be realistic to have a siesta every day, you could try cooking some Spanish food, she suggested.

Feeling nostalgic for summer? How to beat the back-to-work blues