Some European companies are rethinking their strategies to cushion the impact of trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies, the United States and China. The focus will switch back to China after a truce on tariffs emerged from U.S. President Donald Trump’s meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker …

Starbucks and other employers in California must pay workers for minutes they routinely spend off the clock on tasks such as locking up or setting the store alarm, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday. The unanimous ruling was a big victory for hourly workers in California and could prompt additional …

Mattel, home of Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels, is cutting 2,200 jobs in order to save money after the closing of U.S. toy retail giant Toys R Us. The toymaker said the cuts amount to 22 percent of its nonmanufacturing employees worldwide. Mattel has about 28,000 employees. It also plans …

Mexican and Canadian officials are stressing that talks on the North American Free Trade Agreement will remain a three-way negotiation, despite suggestions by U.S. President Donald Trump that he might pursue separate trade deals with both countries. Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray says “Canada and Mexico not only share geography, …

Leaders from the five BRICS nations sounded the alarm over what South Africa’s president described as recent threats to multilateralism and sustainable global growth — a not-so-coded reference to a brewing trade war between the U.S. and BRICS’ wealthiest member, China. Chinese President Xi Jinping raised his concerns as the …

This year’s summit of the BRICS nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — began Wednesday with an expression of concern about the trade war brewing between the United States and BRICS’ wealthiest member, China. BRICS admitted South Africa in 2010 as part of the bloc’s aim of …

U.S. President Donald Trump attacked China on Wednesday for targeting American farm products with new tariffs in what he said would be a failed effort to gain a trade advantage over the United States. “China is targeting our farmers, who they know I love & respect, as a way of …

Sergio Marchionne, a charismatic and demanding CEO who engineered two long-shot corporate turnarounds to save carmakers Fiat and Chrysler from near-certain failure, died Wednesday. He was 66. The holding company of Fiat’s founders, the Agnelli family, announced Marchionne had died after unexpected complications from surgery in Zurich. That came days …

Tariffs are set to top the agenda in a meeting Wednesday between U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. Juncker is coming to Washington with the hopes the European Union can avoid an all-out trade war by convincing Trump to hold off punitive tariffs on European cars. …

Qian Zhiya may be Starbucks’ worst nightmare. The 42-year-old Chinese entrepreneur says she is betting that her fledgling Luckin Coffee brand will eventually have more cafes in China than Starbucks, and she has Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund and other investors bankrolling her plan. Luckin, which only officially launched in January, …

El Salvador on Tuesday began taking emergency measures in a drought that has plagued the country for a month and cost tens of thousands of farmers their corn crops, the civil protection agency said. The east of the Central American country has gone 33 days without rain and temperatures have …

Argentina’s economy contracted 5.8 percent in May compared to the same period a year ago, the official INDEC statistics agency said Tuesday, raising concerns the country could fall into recession in 2018. Argentina has been hit by a recent currency crisis. That led the government to seek a $50 billion …

At Luxury Time, a restaurant in the Kurdish city of Irbil, there are no man-size portions. The women-only restaurant, with its all-female staff, was opened this month by 23-year-old business graduate Tara Mohammed Ihssan who was fed up of unwanted attention on nights out with friends in northern Iraq. “If …

Tunisian Prime Minister Youssef Chahed, rejecting the president’s call for him to stand down amid an economic crisis, said Tuesday that a change of government would put the economy at risk and shake the confidence of international lenders. President Beji Caid Essebsi this month urged Chahed to step down if …

President Donald Trump hosts European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker Wednesday after Trump threatened more tariffs on U.S trading partners. “Tariffs are the greatest!” Trump tweeted Tuesday. “Either a country which has treated the United States unfairly on trade negotiates a fair deal, or it gets hit with tariffs. It’s as …

Led by Mexico, major Latin American nations pledged to deepen commercial and economic ties on Tuesday as they sought to counter the risk of a deepening trade war sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy. Leaders of the Pacific Alliance and Mercosur trading blocs met in the Mexican …

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Tuesday ruled out his country’s compliance with U.S. sanctions on Iran, a move that threatens to exacerbate tensions between the NATO allies. “We have told them we will not join these sanctions,” said Cavusoglu, referring to a meeting last Friday with senior U.S. officials …

U.S. President Donald Trump’s oldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, is closing her fashion line to focus her energies on advising her father’s White House, she said through a representative on Tuesday. Trump, whose fortune comes from real estate development, came into office carrying a broad family business portfolio that trades heavily …

Britain and the European Union formally filed for divorce at the World Trade Organization on Tuesday, following many months of diplomatic preparations to smooth the way for the historic move. The WTO circulated two confidential draft membership agreements among the Geneva trade club’s 164 members, separating Britain’s rights and obligations …

Bulgaria’s president on Tuesday vetoed controversial amendments to a privatization law that critics say could cost the country lost revenues. The changes — approved by parliament, dominated by center-right GERB party, last Wednesday — would cut in half, to five years, the time that buyers would have to fulfill specific …

American farmers will receive up to $12 billion in emergency relief as compensation for expected financial losses caused by the trade policies of President Donald Trump. The direct assistance, announced Tuesday by the Department of Agriculture, comes amid tariffs imposed by the Trump administration and retaliatory measures of other countries …

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced a $205 million loan to Uganda during a visit to the country, the second stop in his tour of Africa ahead of this week’s summit of the BRICS emerging economies. The money will be used to expand Uganda’s electricity grid and to …

Harley-Davidson executives said Tuesday they had seen no U.S. sales hit so far over its decision to relocate some American manufacturing overseas as it navigates amid trade conflicts. “We’ve actually done quite a lot of consumer research… and we see no discernible shift in the sales patterns” or to brand …

The International Monetary Fund warned Tuesday there are few indications international trade imbalances are narrowing, a trend that could raise trade tensions and lower economic growth. In its annual External Sector Report, the IMF also said almost half of the world’s current-account balances are excessive and that current-account surpluses and …

U.S. President Donald Trump’s family business has outlined its 150-million-pound ($196 million) investment plan for the second phase of development of its golf course north of Aberdeen in Scotland.   The Trump Organization’s proposals submitted to Aberdeenshire Council include 50 cottages, a sports center and equestrian facilities at the Menie …