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☆ Paramount Global lays off about 800 employees, a day after announcing record Super Bowl ratings
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Alex Sherman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Paramount Global is laying off hundreds of employees, just one day after the company announced CBS had record Super Bowl viewership, Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish said Tuesday in an internal memo to employees. Paramount Global ended 2022 with about 24,500 full-time and part-time employees. Paramount Global owns a variety of assets including CBS, Paramount Pictures, Pluto TV, Paramount+ and cable networks including Nickelodeon, BET and Comedy Central. The media company had warned employees of impending cuts in an internal memo last month. Bakish said at the time that Paramount Global needed to "operate as a leaner company and spend less."

Persons: Bob Bakish, Bakish, – Organizations: Paramount, MTV, PSD Bank, Paramount Global, CBS, Paramount Pictures, Pluto TV, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central, Skydance Media, Warner Bros, Discovery, CNBC Locations: Duesseldorf, Germany

☆ Lufthansa Strike Hits Air Travel as German Disruption Mounts
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - Ground staff at German airline Lufthansa walked out at major airports on Wednesday, raising the pressure in wage talks and piling misery on travellers in Europe's biggest economy already hit by strikes on railways and public transport. The Verdi union has targeted the Frankfurt and Munich airports, where Lufthansa says only 10%-20% of flights will operate, as well as Berlin, Hamburg and Duesseldorf. Verdi wants a wage rise of 12.5% for some 25,000 workers, or at least 500 euros ($537.00) more per month over a 12-month-period, plus a one-time payment of 3,000 euros to offset inflation. A wave of nationwide industrial action in the last few weeks has hit air travel, railways and public transport, inflicting pain on the economy and fuelling discontent with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's awkward three-way coalition. ($1 = 0.9311 euros)(Writing by Madeline Chambers; Editing by Miranda Murray)

Persons: Verdi, Duesseldorf, Olaf Scholz's, Madeline Chambers, Miranda Murray Organizations: BERLIN, Lufthansa, Frankfurt Locations: Europe's, Munich, Berlin, Hamburg

BERLIN (AP) — Ground staff for Lufthansa walked off the job at five major German airports on Wednesday, causing the airline to cancel hundreds of flights. Lufthansa said ahead of the strike that it expected to be able to operate around 10-20% of all planned flights. It said tickets could be rebooked free of charge, and tickets for German domestic flights could be converted to rail vouchers. In Frankfurt, the company canceled 80-90% of the planned 600 departures and arrivals by Lufthansa itself and subsidiary Air Dolomiti ahead of the strike, German news agency dpa reported. All Lufthansa departures from Berlin and Hamburg were canceled, as were most domestic flights from Duesseldorf.

Persons: Eurowings Organizations: BERLIN, —, Lufthansa, Frankfurt, Wednesday, Air, Munich Locations: Munich, Berlin, Duesseldorf, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Germany

GENEVA (AP) — Despite the disqualification of Kamila Valieva in a doping case, the Russian figure skating team still stands to finish on the podium and get bronze medals from the 2022 Beijing Olympics behind the United States and Japan. The Americans moved into the gold medal position in the team event and Japan has been upgraded to silver from bronze. The demoted Russians drop into third place, one point ahead of Canada even after being stripped of the points the then-15-year-old Valieva earned on the ice. “Skate Canada strongly disagrees with the ISU’s position on this matter and will consider all options to appeal this decision,” the country’s figure skating body said in a statement Tuesday. The Olympic leadership is currently in South Korea for the Youth Winter Games and could address the skating medal issue there.

Persons: Kamila, Valieva, “, Madeline Schizas, Kaori Sakamoto, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Anna Shcherbakova, James Ellingworth, ___ Organizations: GENEVA, Skating Union, ISU, Sport, Russian Olympic, “ Skate, International Olympic Committee, Skate Canada, Russian, Doping Agency, “, Olympic, IOC, Winter, AP Locations: Russian, United States, Japan, Canada, Beijing, Sochi, Lausanne, Switzerland, Stockholm, Sweden, Russia, China, Montreal, South Korea, Duesseldorf, Germany

GENEVA (AP) — Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was disqualified from the 2022 Olympics on Monday, almost two years after the teenager's doping case caused turmoil at the Beijing Games. The reaction of her coach, Eteri Tutberidze, was fiercely criticized by skating experts and International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach. The case came to CAS to challenge a Russian anti-doping tribunal verdict in late 2022 that Valieva was not at fault. Since the Olympics, Valieva has skated on an expanded Russian national competition circuit and in various TV events and ice shows. “I say, you know, we’re the only two athletes from the Beijing team that are still competing — every single one of the rest of us has moved on,” Bates said.

Persons: Kamila Valieva, Valieva, —, Valieva’s, Andrea Pinna, Pinna, ”, Eteri Tutberidze, Thomas Bach, Bach, disqualifying, WADA, Evan Bates, Madison Chock, “, ” Bates, Dave Skretta, James Ellingworth, ___ Organizations: GENEVA, Beijing Games, United States, Olympic, Doping Agency, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Canada, IOC, Russian, International Olympic, Olympics, Skating Union, Beijing Olympics, International Skating Union, Russia, —, Beijing, AP Sports Locations: Beijing, Milan, Italy, Japan, Swiss, Paris, Russian, Sweden, Russia, Ukraine, Kansas City, Duesseldorf, Germany

BERLIN (AP) — Heavy snowfalls and freezing rain across Germany Wednesday led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights and trains, crashes on icy roads, and school closures. At Frankfurt airport, Germany's biggest, more than 500 flights were canceled, while in Munich over 250 arrivals and departures were canceled. In western Germany, Saarbruecken airport closed for the day, as Duesseldorf and Cologne/Bonn airports were also affected by delays and cancelations. The freezing rain across western and southern Germany also led to countless crashes on icy roads in the early morning hours of Wednesday. As a precaution, many schools and kindergartens in the country closed for the day, and some companies offered their employees the option of working from home.

Organizations: BERLIN, Deutsche Bahn, ICE, Associated Press Locations: Germany, Frankfurt, Munich, Saarbruecken, Duesseldorf, Cologne, Bonn

☆ Benko's complex web at Signa - from Chrysler building to Berlin landmark
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

SIGNA PRIME/PROPERTY PORTFOLIOAccording to Signa, Prime is the group's largest company in its real estate division, valued at around 20.4 billion euros ($22.23 billion). Since 2019 Signa Holding has also been a co-owner of New York's iconic Chrysler Building. TRADING/RETAIL COMPANIESBenko has bundled his trading interests under the divisions Signa Retail and Signa Premium. In Switzerland, Benko's trading investments are bundled into Signa Retail Selection AG, which filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday. In 2018, Signa Holding bought around 24% stake in Austrian daily newspapers "Krone" and "Kurier" from Funke media group.

Persons: Lisi Niesner, Rene Benko, Ernst Tanner, Hans Peter Haselsteiner, Torsten Toeller, Arthur Eugster, SIGNA, Signa, Otto Wagner, Benko's, Klaus, Michael Kuehne, Kuehne, Hamburg's, Chirathivat, Benko, Frasers, Kaufhof, Karstadt, Galeria, Alexandra Schwarz, Goerlich, Mattias Inverardi, Victoria Farr, Emma, Rachel More, Elisa Martinuzzi, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: Signa, REUTERS, Chrysler, Bank Austria, Femina, Chrysler Building, . Central Group, Globus, Selfridges, Central Group, Funke, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, New, Britain's Selfridges, Innsbruck, Swiss, Vienna, Hamburg, KaDeWe, Oberpollinger, Munich, Vienna's, Tyrol, Essen, Duesseldorf, London, Switzerland

A constitutional court ruling on Nov. 15 against a budget manoeuvre to get around Germany's "debt brake" threw the financial plans of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition into disarray. "As I have long been saying, we must fear that the debt brake becomes ever more a brake on the future," said Berlin mayor Kai Wegner on social media platform X. "The debt brake was implemented when Europe had a debt sustainability issue and Germany wanted to lead by example," he said. "With the debt brake as it is, we have voluntarily tied our hands behind our backs and are going into a boxing match," he said. The Greens' campaign programme ahead of the last election included debt brake reform to allow for greater investments.

Persons: Olaf Scholz, Robert Habeck, Christian Lindner, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Reiner Haseloff, Haseloff, Kai Wegner, Friedrich Merz, Carsten Brzeski, Roderich Kiesewetter, Stefan Marschall, Andreas Rinke, Sarah Marsh, Matthias Williams, Holger Hansen, Nick Macfie Organizations: Climate, Finance, BERLIN, U.S, Intel, Reuters, AAA, Christian Democratic Union, CDU, Christian Social Union, CSU, Berlin, Free Democrats, Social Democrats, Greens, ING, SPD, University of Duesseldorf, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Europe's, Ukraine, Saxony, Anhalt, United States, Bavarian, Federal, Germany, Europe, France, Italy, Spain, China

These include plans by ArcelorMittal , the world's second-largest steelmaker, to spend 2.5 billion euros to decarbonise its German steel mills, efforts that depend on now-uncertain government support. "What we're seeing here is devastating for Germany as a business location globally. Besides the 6 billion euros of steel investments, other sectors potentially affected by the court ruling include 4 billion euros in the area of microelectronics and 20 billion euros for battery cell production, according to an economy ministry paper seen by Reuters. Those have previously been estimated at 68 billion euros. "Important industries in Germany, such as chemicals or steel production, need economical energy prices," Oliver Blume, CEO of Europe's top carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE), told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

Persons: Olaf Scholz, Robert Habeck, Christian Lindner, Reiner Blaschek, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Stefan Rauber, Intel INTC.O, Taiwan's, Bernhard Osburg, Oliver Blume, Christoph Steitz, Tom Kaeckenhoff, Andreas Rinke, Catherine Evans Organizations: Climate, Finance, ArcelorMittal, SHS Stahl, Reuters, IMF, Intel, TW, Infineon, Steel, BASF, Wacker Chemie, Volkswagen, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, DUESSELDORF, Berlin, Germany, Asia, United States, U.S, USA, Steel Europe

Steel coils are waiting for delivery at the storage and distribution facility of German steel maker ThyssenKrupp in Duisburg, Germany, November 16, 2023. As a result of the impairment, Thyssenkrupp, which has been trying to divest its steel division for several years, posted a 2-billion-euro net loss for the fourth quarter. Shares of the company, which proposed a stable dividend of 0.15 euros apiece, were indicated to open 1.8% lower in pre-market trade. Thyssenkrupp - which apart from steel builds submarines, car parts and operates a large materials trading business - said it was in constructive and open-ended talks with EPH about a potential steel joint venture. EPH, controlled by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, would support Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe with its energy expertise in any joint venture, the company said.

Persons: Wolfgang Rattay, Miguel Lopez, Daniel Kretinsky, Thyssenkrupp, Christoph Steitz, Tom Kaeckenhoff, Sandra Maler, Miranda Murray, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: REUTERS, Wednesday, EPH, Thyssenkrupp Steel, Thomson Locations: Duisburg, Germany, FRANKFURT, DUESSELDORF, Czech, Europe

Miniatures of windmill and electric pole are seen in front of Siemens Gamesa logo in this illustration taken January 17, 2023. One Frankfurt-based trader said the investor event, where Siemens Gamesa disclosed around 400 million euros in cost cuts by 2026, was bringing "no new insights". At 1610 GMT, shares in Siemens Energy, in which Siemens AG (SIEGn.DE) owns a direct 25.1% stake, were still down 6.3%. Siemens Gamesa will likely cut onshore turbine capacity outside Europe and outsource the production of some components, the division's Chief Executive Jochen Eickholt said, outlining the group's restructuring roadmap. Reuters last month reported that Siemens Gamesa was considering shutting plants and sales offices as well as outsourcing some production.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Siemens Gamesa, Christian Bruch, Jochen Eickholt, Eickholt, Christoph Steitz, Tom Kaeckenhoff, Danilo Masoni, Madeline Chambers, Miranda Murray, David Evans Organizations: Siemens, REUTERS, Siemens Energy, Siemens Gamesa, Siemens AG, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Europe, FRANKFURT, DUESSELDORF, Frankfurt

☆ Analysis-Scholz's Coalition Buckles but Unlikely to Break - for Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +6 min

The decision has increased tensions within Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition, in particular between junior partners the Greens and the Free Democrats (FDP). But Scholz is unlikely to call for new elections as they would not benefit any of the coalition partners. "Scholz definitely wants to keep the government together and believes this will work as none of the three coalition partners stand to benefit from a break," a source close to the chancellor said. "In reality, the chancellor should dismiss his coalition partners now." "And the strength of the AfD is also the reason why no actors - not even the conservatives - currently have any interest in new elections."

Persons: Sarah Marsh, Holger Hansen, Andreas Rinke BERLIN, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Philipp Tuermer, Scholz, Stefan Marschall, Ursula Muench, Frank Decker, Friedrich Merz, Markus Soeder, Decker, Andreas Rinke, Alexander Ratz, Catherine Evans Organizations: Greens, Free Democrats, Scholz's Social Democrats, Tagesspiegel, Bertelsmann Foundation, SPD, University of Duesseldorf, University of Tutzing, Bonn University, Eurasia Group Locations: Ukraine, Germany, Bavarian

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — When New England takes on Indianapolis in Germany on Sunday, it may feel like a home game for the Patriots. The Patriots are competing with the Kansas City Chiefs to be the most popular team in Germany, thanks in part to Vollmer's legacy. The offensive tackle from Duesseldorf, became a figurehead in the 2010s for a growing German audience keen to see a German player succeed in the NFL. Vollmer spent all of his eight-year NFL career with the Patriots, winning the Super Bowl after the 2014 season. Seabass we drafted, he had a great career with us, and Jakob came as an international player and developed into a solid NFL player.

Persons: Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, Sebastian Vollmer, Vollmer, “, ”, “ I’m, — Belichick, Jakob Johnson, Markus Kuhn, Belichick, It’s, Markus, Seabass, Jakob, He’s, ” Vollmer, Kuhn, Björn Werner, Werner, Ezekiel Elliott, Leon Huff, Bernhard Raimann, Adrian Peterson Organizations: Patriots, NFL, Kansas City Chiefs, The Patriots, Super Bowl, Associated Press, “, Las Vegas Raiders, Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Finnish national team, Vikings, Steelers Locations: FRANKFURT, Germany, England, Indianapolis, Duesseldorf, Europe, Finland, Austria, London

PARIS (AP) — Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators demanding a halt to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza marched in Paris, Berlin and other European cities on Saturday. The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 9,448, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. In Israel, more than 1,400 people have been killed, most of them in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the war. Several thousand protesters also marched through the west German city of Duesseldorf. In its Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel, Hamas employed paragliders to get some fighters across the border between Gaza and southern Israel.

Persons: “ Israel, “, Emmanuel Macron, “ Macron, ”, Stéphane Drai, paragliders, Matteo Salvini, Yara, John Leicester, Stephen McGrath, Brian Melley, Frances D’Emilio, Silvia Stellacci, Kirsten Grieshaber Organizations: PARIS, Ministry, ”, BFM, Police, London, Metropolitan Police, Prosecutors, Hamas, Palestinian, Gaza University, Associated Press Locations: Gaza, Paris, Berlin, Europe, Israel, France, London, Palestine, ” Paris, République, French, Lyon, German, Duesseldorf, Bucharest, ”, Milan, Rome, Italy, Le Pecq, Romania

☆ Uniper swings to $10 billion net profit as gas prices fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Christoph Steitz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A person stands at escalators near the Uniper logo at the utility's firm headquarters in Duesseldorf, Germany, July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Uniper SE FollowGazprom PAO FollowFRANKFURT, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Germany's Uniper (UN01.DE), which was bailed out during Europe's energy crisis, swung to a nine-month net profit of 9.77 billion euros ($10.35 billion), boosted by falling gas prices that positively impacted future provisions. The result compares with a net loss of 40.3 billion euros in the same period last year, when ballooning costs to replace Russian gas threw the company into its biggest crisis ever, triggering a government rescue. The results come a week after Uniper detailed its outlook for 2023, expecting adjusted operating profit (EBIT) of 6 billion to 7 billion euros and full-year adjusted net profit of 4 billion to 5 billion euros. At the end of September, liabilities tied to derivatives, which grow or shrink in line with gas price developments, stood at 26 billion euros, down from 216 billion a year earlier.

Persons: Wolfgang Rattay, Jutta Doenges, Christoph Steitz, Rachel More, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, Gazprom PAO, Gazprom, Thomson Locations: Duesseldorf, Germany, FRANKFURT, Frankfurt, Ukraine

☆ Explainer: Why is Siemens Energy seeking $16 billion state guarantees?
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The logo of energy technology company Siemens Energy is displayed during the LNG 2023 energy trade show in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, July 12, 2023. To make sure it can get the guarantees to fulfil its order backlog, Siemens Energy has turned to the government. Siemens owns a 25.1% stake in Siemens Energy and has not ruled out helping. Siemens still provides around 7 billion euros of performance guarantees to projects Siemens Energy is working on, significantly down from the 40 billion euros at the time of the spin-off around three years ago. Apart from seeking guarantees from the government, banks and Siemens, Siemens Energy said it is "evaluating various measures to strengthen the balance sheet", without elaborating further.

Persons: Chris Helgren, Banks, Roland Busch, hade, Andreas Rinke, Christoph Steitz, Victoria Farr, Andres Gonzalez, Pablo Mayo, Alexander Huebner, Tom Kaeckenhoff, Josephine Mason, Susan Fenton Organizations: Siemens Energy, REUTERS, Siemens, International Chamber of Commerce, German Economy Ministry, SIEMENS, Triton, Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, Thomson Locations: Vancouver , British Columbia, Canada, downpayments, Berlin, Frankfurt, London, Munich

REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsFRANKFURT/MUNICH, Oct 26 (Reuters) - German technology groups have warned they are being hit by delays in getting China-bound exports through customs, following the introduction of a German government strategy to reduce economic dependence on demand from China. German chip-making kit supplier Suess MicroTec (SMHNn.DE) late on Wednesday cut its sales forecasts for the second time in three months, blaming tightened controls for exports to China. German customs and the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA) did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lobby group Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business (APA) told Reuters the BAFA office was appearing to scrutinise export requests more closely or escalate requests to the economy ministry more often. Still, the German chamber of commerce said the political environment was hobbling exports to China.

Persons: Phil Noble, Suess, Friedolin Strack, Burkhardt Frick, Martin Wansleben, Alexander Huebner, Rene Wagner, Christian Kraemer, Thomas Escritt, Anneli, Ludwig Burger, David Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Federal Office, Economic Affairs, Export Control, Pacific Committee, German Business, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, FRANKFURT, MUNICH, China, Asia, Munich, Berlin, Duesseldorf, Frankfurt

☆ MTV Europe Music Awards cancelled amid Israel-Gaza crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Taylor Swift receives the award for the Best Video during the 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards (EMAs) at the PSD Bank Dome in Duesseldorf, Germany, November 13, 2022. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Next month's MTV Europe Music Awards in Paris have been cancelled, organisers said on Thursday, citing "the volatility of world events" amid the ongoing conflict in Israel and Gaza. "The MTV EMAs are an annual celebration of global music. We look forward to hosting the MTV EMAs again in November of 2024." The annual MTV Europe Music Awards are held in a different city each year.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Wolfgang Rattay, Olivia Rodrigo, Bad Bunny, Swift, Jung Kook, Marie, Louise Gumuchian, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: MTV, PSD Bank, REUTERS, Foo Fighters, Paris Nord Villepinte, MTV Europe, Thomson Locations: Duesseldorf, Germany, Paris, Israel, Gaza, France, Versailles

☆ Voters in Hesse, Bavaria Seen Dealing Mid-Term Blow to Scholz's Coalition
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Sarah MarshBERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's opposition conservatives are expected to win another term in the Hesse and Bavaria state elections on Sunday, seen dealing a blow to Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left coalition and attesting to the rise of the far-right. So too has frustration with infighting in Scholz's heterogeneous three-way coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) mid-way through its term. "The coalition is suffering the mid-term blues and must reckon with losses," said Stefan Marschall, political scientist at the University of Duesseldorf. "The FDP in particular must reckon with falling out of both state parliaments which could bring greater tensions into the coalition. More striking is the fact the populist Free Voters (FW) party, which governs Bavaria in coalition with the CSU, has seen a bump in poll support of several percentage points to 15% since being swept up in an anti-semitic scandal.

Persons: Sarah Marsh BERLIN, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Stefan Marschall, Nancy Faeser, Sarah Marsh, Nick Macfie Organizations: Social Democrats, Greens, Free Democrats, University of Duesseldorf, Christian Social Union, CSU, Christian Democrats, CDU, Free Voters, FW, SPD, ARD Locations: Hesse, Bavaria, Germany, Bavarian

BERLIN, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Germany's opposition conservatives are expected to win another term in the Hesse and Bavaria state elections on Sunday, seen dealing a blow to Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left coalition and attesting to the rise of the far-right. So too has frustration with infighting in Scholz's heterogeneous three-way coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) mid-way through its term. "The coalition is suffering the mid-term blues and must reckon with losses," said Stefan Marschall, political scientist at the University of Duesseldorf. "The FDP in particular must reckon with falling out of both state parliaments which could bring greater tensions into the coalition. More striking is the fact the populist Free Voters (FW) party, which governs Bavaria in coalition with the CSU, has seen a bump in poll support of several percentage points to 15% since being swept up in an anti-semitic scandal.

Persons: Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Stefan Marschall, Nancy Faeser, Sarah Marsh, Nick Macfie 私 Organizations: Social Democrats, Greens, Free Democrats, University of Duesseldorf, Christian Social Union, CSU, Christian Democrats, CDU, Free Voters, FW, SPD, ARD Locations: Hesse, Bavaria, Germany, Bavarian

☆ Douglas chooses banks as global coordinators for planned IPO
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

DUESSELDORF, Sept 13 (Reuters) - German perfume and cosmetics retailer Douglas, majority owned by CVC Capital Partners, has chosen Goldman Sachs (GS.N), Citi (C.N), Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), UniCredit (CRDI.MI) and UBS (UBSG.S) as global coordinators for a planned IPO, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. Reuters reported in August that the private equity house was working with advisers at Rothschild & Co to prepare the initial public offering (IPO), which could happen as early as next year. The IPO could value Douglas at up to 7 billion euros ($7.68 billion), people close to the matter said at the time. Douglas declined to comment. Reporting by Matthias Inverardi, Writing by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Douglas, Goldman Sachs, Matthias Inverardi, Victoria Waldersee, Chris Reese Organizations: CVC Capital Partners, Citi, Deutsche Bank, UBS, Reuters, Rothschild & Co, Thomson

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — Germany removed Hansi Flick as coach of the men's national soccer team on Sunday, one day after a 4-1 loss to Japan deepened the gloom around the squad ahead of hosting next year's European Championship. Political Cartoons View All 1148 ImagesFlick won the Champions League with Bayern Munich in 2020 and swapped the club for the German national team the following year. Germany captain Ilkay Gündogan backed Flick to remain after the Japan game but said the team sorely lacked cohesion and self-belief. The men's national team, four times a World Cup winner, has not made it to the quarterfinals in any of its last three major tournaments. The women's national team, a two-time World Cup winner, was eliminated in the World Cup group stage last month in one of the tournament's biggest-ever shocks.

Persons: Hansi Flick, Rudi Völler —, Germany hasn't, Bernd Neuendorf, Flick, Ilkay Gündogan, ” Gündogan, beIN, ”, Sandro Wagner, Hannes Wolf, Julian Nagelsmann, Thomas Tuchel Organizations: —, team, DFB, France, “, European, Champions League, Bayern Munich, German national, Bayern Locations: DUESSELDORF, Germany, — Germany, Japan, German, Dortmund, Wolfsburg, Qatar, Argentina, France, United States, Mexico

For years, low interest rates fuelled a global boom, igniting interest in German property, seen as safe and stable as the country. The health of Germany's property sector - Europe's biggest property investment market outside of Britain - is critical, making up roughly a fifth of output and providing one in 10 jobs. Late last year, Hoeglmaier put his penthouse on the market, and Euroboden closed its Frankfurt office. In 2020, as the property market heated up, the Bundesbank warned the country's banks, for whom property accounted for about 70% of all domestic loans, of the risks. The 380-square meter (4,090 square foot) penthouse, which occupies the fifth through seventh floors and includes a rooftop terrace, originally listed for just under 13 million euros.

Persons: Leonhard Simon, Stefan Hoeglmaier, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Tillmann Peeters, Hoeglmaier, Oscar Loya –, –, Euroboden, Daniel Bauer ,, Oliver Schartl, Loya, Christoph Niering, Matthias Inverardi, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, FalkenSteg, European Central Bank, Reuters, Facebook, Garden, Graphics, Thomson Locations: Munich, Germany, Europe's, Britain, Berlin, Frankfurt, Ukraine, Sweden, Europe, homebuilders, China, Evergrande

☆ German court throws out lower grid operator returns set by regulator
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Electrical power pylons with high-voltage power lines are seen next to wind turbines near Weselitz, Germany November 18, 2022. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsFRANKFURT, Aug 30 (Reuters) - A German court on Wednesday threw out the rates of return for power and gas network infrastructure operators set in 2021 by the grid regulator, saying companies were right to complain they were too low. The federal regulator, called the Bundesnetzagentur, had set permitted future returns for new power and gas infrastructure at 5.07%, versus 6.91% previously, leading 900 operators of local distribution networks to launch an appeal. The court in June heard test cases from 14 selected companies and upheld their arguments, it said in a statement. Leading power grid companies including E.ON (EONGn.DE) and EnBW (EBKG.DE) have said they need more money to remain competitive when billions of euros must be spent to accommodate more wind and solar power production plants on the grids.

Persons: Lisi Niesner, Kerstin Andreae, Vera Eckert, Tom Kaeckenhoff, Mark Potter, Mark Porter Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Wednesday, E.ON, Thomson Locations: Weselitz, Germany, Ukraine

☆ German property developer Gerch restructuring as crisis deepens
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dark clouds are seen over the construction site of "4 Frankfurt" skyscraper next to the statue of German inventor Johannes Gutenberg and Commerzbank tower in Frankfurt, Germany, July 19, 2023. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsFRANKFURT, Aug 24 (Reuters) - German property developer Gerch said on Thursday it had filed an application for restructuring proceedings with a local court, the latest real estate firm to run into financial trouble as the sector suffers its biggest crisis in decades. Gerch said the move affected four of the firm's units and that the Duesseldorf court had ordered provisional self-administration. Mathias Duesterdick, CEO of Gerch, last month told Reuters the turn of events in the sector was worrying and predicted difficulties for developers. ($1 = 0.9211 euros)Reporting by Tom Sims, Editing by Rachel More and Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Johannes Gutenberg, Kai Pfaffenbach, Gerch, Mathias Duesterdick, Tom Sims, Rachel More, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Ukraine

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