DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Microsoft’s Next Act: Bending the Videogame Business Without Breaking It
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Dan Gallagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Activision Blizzard’s ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III’ went on sale Friday. Photo: bertrand guay/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesMicrosoft now owns some of the biggest videogames in the world. The biggest of those games is in the spotlight this week, as Activision Blizzard’s latest “Call of Duty” sequel went on sale Friday. Called “Modern Warfare III,” the new game is notable for a couple reasons. The first is that much of its development took place during a period in which Activision’s future structure was uncertain, as the $75 billion acquisition by Microsoft took nearly two years to close.

Persons: III ’, bertrand guay Organizations: Activision, Agence France, Getty, Microsoft, Warfare

☆ Iran’s President Joins Saudi Summit to Push for Gaza Cease-Fire
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Stephen Kalin | Summer Said | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi, in black robes, prepares to depart from Tehran to attend a summit in Saudi Arabia. Photo: handout/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesDUBAI—Iran’s president joined dozens of Arab and Muslim leaders at a summit in Saudi Arabia on Saturday—the first such visit to the kingdom in more than 15 years—as the Islamic world sought to project unified opposition to Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The meeting in Riyadh of the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation came amid intensifying fighting between Iran-backed Hamas militants and Israeli forces around Gaza’s largest hospital.

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi Organizations: Agence France, Getty, DUBAI —, League of, Organization of Islamic Cooperation Locations: Tehran, Saudi Arabia, Gaza, Riyadh, Iran, Gaza’s

☆ UBS Remains Under Swiss Regulator’s Magnifying Glass
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The risks of cyberattacks, information-technology disruptions and fraud have significantly increased during the integration of UBS and Credit Suisse, Finma, Switzerland’s financial regulator said. Photo: fabrice coffrini/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesUBS is facing scrutiny from Finma, Switzerland’s chief financial regulator, as it integrates with Credit Suisse following the merger of the two global banks this year, the regulator said, adding that it will appoint outside monitors to oversee the process. The risks of cyberattacks, information-technology disruptions and fraud have significantly increased during the integration of UBS and Credit Suisse, Finma said Thursday in an annual risk outlook report. The regulator also noted an overarching concern that a lack of a “holistic overall risk view” could mean that controls are inadequate.

Persons: fabrice coffrini, Finma Organizations: UBS, Credit Suisse, Agence France, Getty Locations: Finma

☆ Fighting in Gaza City Raises Fears for Hospitals
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Julian E. Barnes | Edward Wong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

That’s why we’re slowly closing in on them,” the Israeli military spokesman, Richard Hecht, told reporters on Friday night. The situation could not be immediately confirmed, though the Israeli military has made clear that its troops are fighting in the heart of Gaza City. “If conditions were better than this, we could have saved their lives,” Dr. Abu Salmiya said. “At this point, there’s just so little we can do for the wounded we receive, only the bare minimum,” said Dr. Abu Salmiya. Dr. Abu Salmiya said international organizations were welcome to investigate the site and see if they could find any evidence of Hamas’s presence there.

Persons: “, we’re, Richard Hecht, Ashraf al, Mohammed Abu Salmiya, Israel, Abu Salmiya, ” Dr, Bashar Taleb, Al Shifa, there’s, ”, Daniel Hagari, Shifa, Mohammed Al, Masri, Al Organizations: The Times, Shifa, Hamas, Palestinian, The New York Times, Al, ., Agence France, Getty, Reuters Locations: Al, Gaza City, ”, Gaza, Israel, Palestinian

A Palestinian mourned the death of family members in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Thursday. Photo: mahmud hams/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesIsraeli troops were advancing toward the heart of Gaza City, engaging in heavy gunbattles and ratcheting up pressure on neighborhoods that have become a refuge for tens of thousands of Palestinians. The Israeli military said Thursday it captured an area on the western side of the Jabalia refugee camp, north of Gaza City, after a 10-hour gunbattle with Hamas that unfolded in tunnels and on city streets that have become a wasteland. Israel troops fought amid destroyed buildings, backed up by tanks, and with armored bulldozers clearing a path through the rubble, pictures released by Israel Defense Forces showed. Weapons were captured and tunnel shafts uncovered, the Israeli military said

Persons: Khan Younis, mahmud Organizations: Agence France, Getty, Hamas, Israel Defense Forces Locations: Gaza, Gaza City, Israel

☆ China Shaken by String of Cancer Cases Tied to Top Oncology Lab
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Selina Cheng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The level of risk faced by medical researchers has been a charged topic in China since the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: str/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesHONG KONG—An unusual cluster of cancer cases among Chinese researchers affiliated with one of the country’s top oncology laboratories has attracted a wave of public attention, leading to new questions around lab safety. Two surgeons at Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital in the southern city of Guangzhou were diagnosed with cancer in June and October this year, the hospital said Wednesday. Both had previously worked in the hospital’s highly regarded breast-cancer research laboratory.

Organizations: Agence France, Getty, HONG, Sen Memorial Hospital Locations: China, HONG KONG, Guangzhou

☆ IRS Warns Employers About This One Tactic to Claim Pandemic Tax Credit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Richard Rubin | Ruth Simon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

An IRS memo is the latest sign of the agency’s tough line in audits of the employee retention credit, or ERC. Photo: stefani reynolds/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesA lot of federal money is riding on what counts as a government order, and the Internal Revenue Service and tax firms are preparing for legal fights about that crucial definition. Employers can claim a pandemic-era tax credit worth up to $26,000 per worker if a government order fully or partially suspended their operations. Some employers and tax advisers say they can rely on Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidelines encouraging ventilation, physical distancing and other measures.

Persons: stefani reynolds Organizations: ERC, Agence France, Internal Revenue Service, Safety, Health

☆ Right Now Is a Bad Time to Spend Money
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Oyin Adedoyin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The National Retail Federation forecasts holiday spending will grow to as much as $966.6 billion this year. Photo: frederic j. brown/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesPrices remain high for much of what we buy, even as inflation has slowed. Stingily saving money, meanwhile, is a more profitable activity than it has been in recent memory. Since the Federal Reserve raised interest rates to a two-decade high, any dollar spent today is a lost opportunity to earn as much as 5% or more in savings accounts, certificates of deposit and bonds. High rates also make it significantly more expensive for people to spend money they don’t have, with the annual interest rate on some credit cards pushing 30%.

Persons: frederic Organizations: National Retail Federation, France, Federal Reserve

☆ A ‘Zelda’ Movie Could Mint Money for Nintendo
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Jacky Wong | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Nintendo sold nearly 20 million copies of ‘The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’ after its May launch through September. Photo: ed jones/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesNintendo ’s Super Mario brothers smashed, jumped and climbed their way into box office fame. Now the Italian-American plumbers’ colleague Link is looking to make his mark too. For investors, that is great news: It shows Nintendo is taking its cue from the likes of Sony , which has managed a string of successful game-screen crossovers like “The Last of Us.”

Persons: Zelda, Mario, Link, ” Organizations: Nintendo, Agence France, Getty, Sony

☆ Right Now Is a Terrible Time to Spend Money
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Oyin Adedoyin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Persons: frederic Organizations: National Retail Federation, France, Federal Reserve

☆ Netanyahu: Israel Plans to Take Responsibility for Gaza’s Security
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Netanyahu: Israel Plans to Take Responsibility for Gaza’s SecurityPrime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel planned to assume "overall security responsibility" in Gaza after the war. His comments came as Israeli forces pushed further into Gaza City. Photo: Aris Messinis/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Persons: Netanyahu, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Aris Organizations: Gaza’s Security, Aris Messinis, Agence France Locations: Gaza, Gaza City

☆ TikTok Is Bringing Logistics to the E-Commerce Dance
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Liz Young | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Influencers and content creators on TikTok recommend products to their followers with direct links to purchase the items online. Photo: bay ismoyo/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesTikTok, the viral video-sharing platform, is betting heavily on logistics as it tries to turn its outsize streaming audience into a big share of the U.S. e-commerce market. The social-media app is setting up a network of warehouses and fulfillment operations, taking on nuts-and-bolts tasks such as managing inventory and delivery from the array of independent merchants that are selling goods to TikTok’s legions of followers.

Organizations: Agence France Locations: U.S

☆ Congress Must Aid Fight Against Illicit Use of Crypto, Treasury Official Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. Photo: daniel leal/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesA senior Treasury Department official said the Biden administration wants new powers from Congress to aid in a crackdown on the illicit use of cryptocurrencies, citing digital asset flows allegedly connected to Palestinian militant group Hamas. Treasury has been in communication with Democrats and Republicans about actions that they could take, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said Tuesday in Washington at the annual meeting of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, a trade group.

Persons: Wally Adeyemo, daniel leal, Biden Organizations: Agence France, Treasury Department, Hamas, Treasury, Securities Industry, Financial Markets Association Locations: Washington

Hamas derided the Palestinian Authority for its cooperation with Israel, including the use of Palestinian police to prevent attacks on Israel. Instead of firing rockets over issues in Gaza, Hamas was fighting for concerns central to all Palestinians, including those outside the enclave. “The Israelis were only concerned with one thing: How do I get rid of the Palestinian cause?” Mr. Hamdan said. But inside Gaza, Hamas’s capabilities grew. That restoration deepened the relationship between Hamas’s military wing in Gaza and the so-called axis of resistance, Iran’s network of regional militias, according to regional diplomats and security officials.

Persons: Sinwar, Deif, Mohammed Deif, ”, “, Osama Hamdan, Israel, Mr, Hamdan Organizations: Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Israel, Hamas, Qassam, Agence France, National Security Council, Palestinian Locations: Israel, Gaza, Egypt, Italian, “, Qatar, East Jerusalem, Aqsa, Jerusalem’s Old City, Beirut, Lebanon, Jihad, Iran, Syria

☆ U.S., NATO to Suspend Participation in Landmark Cold War Arms Treaty
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Michael R. Gordon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Bulgarian troops during a NATO exercise. Suspending participation will give the U.S. more flexibility to deploy forces in Romania and Bulgaria, near Ukraine. Photo: nikolay doychinov/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesWASHINGTON—The U.S. and its NATO allies served notice Tuesday that they will formally suspend their participation in a 1990 treaty limiting conventional forces in Europe, marking the demise of another landmark arms control agreement. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s move follows Russia’s formal withdrawal from the accord on Tuesday and longstanding Western complaints that Moscow wasn’t honoring the terms of the treaty.

Persons: nikolay doychinov Organizations: Agence France, Getty, WASHINGTON, NATO, Atlantic Treaty Locations: NATO, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, The U.S, Europe, Atlantic, Moscow

☆ Dating Apps Need to Rekindle Romance With Wall Street
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Dan Gallagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Lidiane Jones will take over as CEO of Bumble. Photo: josh edelson/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesInvestors are swiping left on Bumble ’s new chief. The owner of the female-driven online dating app of the same name saw its share price slide about 5% on Monday morning after the company said that founder Whitney Wolfe Herd is stepping down from the chief-executive officer role. She will remain as executive chair, while Lidiane Jones will take over as CEO on Jan 2. She currently heads up Slack Technologies, where she became CEO almost a year ago under the ownership of Salesforce.

Persons: Lidiane Jones, Bumble, josh edelson, Whitney Wolfe Organizations: Agence France, Getty, Slack Technologies

☆ EY Lays Out U.S. Governance Overhauls After Failed Split
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Mark Maurer | Alexander Saeedy | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Ernst & Young’s global executive board is preparing to vote on a successor to Carmine Di Sibio, the global chairman and chief executive, in coming weeks. Photo: tolga akmen/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesErnst & Young is stepping up its U.S. governance overhaul efforts, a bid to give partners there a greater voice in firm strategy, following the failed separation of its audit and advisory businesses earlier this year. The proposal comes as the Big Four accounting firm continues to work to untangle the mess left by its decision in April to scrap plans to split auditing and consulting into two different firms. EY spent $600 million and more than a year working on the split.

Persons: Ernst, Carmine Di Sibio, tolga, Young, EY Organizations: Agence France, Getty, Ernst, Big

☆ Foreign Firms Pull Billions in Earnings Out of China
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Jason Douglas | Weilun Soon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Beijing’s chilly relations with the West have pushed global companies to rethink their exposure to China. Photo: wang zhao/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesSINGAPORE—For years, foreign companies plowed the profits they made in China back into China, using the cash to finance new hiring and investment as its giant economy expanded rapidly. Now, as growth slows and tensions between Beijing and Washington rise, they are pulling those profits out.

Persons: wang zhao Organizations: Agence France, Getty Locations: China, SINGAPORE, Beijing, Washington

☆ LVMH to Buy Eyewear Brand Favored by the Stars
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-05 | by ( Nick Kostov | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Bernard Arnault, head of LVMH, has a net worth larger than those of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. WSJ’s Nick Kostov explains how the French business magnate amassed his fortune and how he plans to keep that wealth under family control. Photo: Nicholas Kamm/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesPARIS— LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton has agreed to buy Los Angeles-based eyewear maker Barton Perreira , part of the luxury conglomerate’s push to extend its reach to goods with mass-market appeal. Eyewear has emerged in recent years as one of the first purchases that aspiring luxury consumers make before moving on to more expensive items such as handbags. That is prompting LVMH and other luxury-goods companies to wean themselves off licensing agreements with third-party manufacturers and develop in-house eyewear operations.

Persons: Bernard Arnault, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Nick Kostov, Nicholas Kamm, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Barton Perreira, LVMH Organizations: Agence France, PARIS Locations: Los Angeles

☆ Storm Ciaran Rips Through Western Europe, Killing at Least 11
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Gareth Vipers | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Montemurlo, Italy, suffered damage as it was hit by Storm Ciaran. Photo: federico scoppa/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesViolent winds battered much of Western Europe, leaving at least 11 people dead, dozens injured and millions without power. The storm, named Storm Ciaran by the U.K.’s Met Office, brought high winds and torrential rain to large parts of France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, the U.K., Italy and Spain, forcing school closures and disruption to rail and air travel.

Persons: Storm Ciaran ., federico scoppa, Storm Ciaran Organizations: Agence France, U.K Locations: Montemurlo, Italy, Western Europe, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain

☆ U.S. Targets Russian Businesswoman, Saying She Helped Oligarchs Evade Sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Angus Berwick | Andrew Duehren | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Moscow’s international business center, where Garantex is based. Photo: Agence France-Presse/Getty ImageThe U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned a Russian businesswoman Friday who it said helped Russian oligarchs and cybercriminals use cryptocurrencies to evade U.S. sanctions. Ekaterina Zhdanova, 37, used digital currencies to facilitate large cross-border transactions, taking advantage of platforms with weak compliance controls such as a Russian crypto exchange called Garantex that the U.S. sanctioned last year, Treasury said in a statement.

Persons: Ekaterina Zhdanova Organizations: Agence France, . Treasury Department, Treasury Locations: Russian

☆ Rebels Kidnapped Father of Liverpool Soccer Star Luis Díaz, Colombian Government Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Juan Forero | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Cilenis Marulanda, left, was also abducted but was rescued soon after. Photo: lismari machado/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesBOGOTA, Colombia—A leftist guerrilla group that embarked on peace talks with President Gustavo Petro ’s administration has been deemed responsible for kidnapping the father of European soccer star Luis Díaz , the government said Thursday. The National Liberation Army, which has operated since the 1960s and entered into a cease-fire agreement with the government in August, kidnapped Diaz’s parents, Luis Manuel Díaz and Cilenis Marulanda , on Saturday in the town of Barrancas in northeast Colombia near the Venezuelan border, said Otty Patiño , the government’s lead negotiator in talks with the group.

Persons: Cilenis Marulanda, lismari machado, Gustavo Petro ’, Luis Díaz, Diaz’s, Luis Manuel Díaz, Cilenis, Otty Patiño Organizations: Agence France, Getty Images, National Liberation Army Locations: Getty Images BOGOTA, Colombia, Barrancas, Venezuelan

☆ Wind Power Write-Downs Cast Shadow Over Industry Outlook
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Giulia Petroni | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Wind-power developer Orsted scrapped projects in New Jersey citing supply-chain problems and high interest rates. Orsted , BP and Equinor have collectively written off $4.8 billion against U.S. offshore wind projects in recent days. Equinor, BP’s partner on the Empire Wind and Beacon Wind projects, booked an impairment of around $300 million on its U.S. portfolio. Utility Dominion Energy on Tuesday received a key federal approval for its 2.6-gigawatt offshore wind project in Virginia. And Orsted confirmed its final investment decision into Revolution Wind, an offshore 704-megawatt project in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Persons: Wayne Parry, Orsted, Mads Nipper, henning bagger, ”, Phil Murphy ’, Martin Tessier, Stifel ’, —, Engie, Vattenfall, Russ Mould, AJ Bell, Dominic, Giulia Petroni Organizations: Associated, U.S, Agence France, Republicans, Democratic Gov, ”, BP, Iberdrola, Shell, Business, Siemens Energy, Dominion Energy, giulia.petroni@wsj.com Locations: New Jersey, U.S, Danish, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Swedish, Norfolk, Virginia, Rhode Island, Asia Pacific, Europe

☆ Americans Can Stick More Cash in Their 401(k)s Next Year, Thanks to Inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Richard Rubin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The IRS also raised the limit on contributions to an individual retirement account by $500 to $7,000. Photo: STEFANI REYNOLDS/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesWASHINGTON—Most workers will be able to put up to $23,000 into their 401(k)s and similar workplace retirement plans in 2024, up $500 from this year, the IRS said Wednesday. The tax agency announced the inflation-adjusted limits for retirement plans, following formulas set out in the law.

Persons: STEFANI REYNOLDS Organizations: IRS, Agence France, Getty, WASHINGTON

☆ The Economy Is Great. Why Are Americans in Such a Rotten Mood?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Greg Ip | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The unemployment rate is at 3.8%, marginally above where it stood in January 2020. Photo: stefani reynolds/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesLast week we learned that the economy, far from sliding toward recession as economists had predicted over the past year, has actually picked up steam thanks to indefatigable consumers. Not only has economic output made up all the ground lost during the pandemic, but it is also above where it would have been had the pandemic never happened, judging by what the Congressional Budget Office projected in early 2020.

Persons: stefani reynolds Organizations: Agence France, Congressional

Search resuls for: "AGENCE FRANCE"

25 mentions found