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Airbus confirms November deliveries dip after industrial glitch
Airbus said that it delivered 72 planes to bring the total number of planes this year up to 657. Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury cited the figure as a sign of a poor November following an industrial glitch. The world's biggest planemaker will have to deliver a record-breaking 133 planes to reach a revised 790 goal for 2025. The November tally is down from 78 the month before and 84 last November, according to a report released this week. The company's lower delivery data comes after a difficult week, in which it announced that there was a quality problem with some metal fuselage panels in its most popular A320 family jets. This came just days after an unexpected recall to fix a bug in a computer. The planemaker reduced its commercial deliveries for the full year by 4%, to "around 790", down from 820. However, it maintained its financial targets. Airbus previously stated that it takes "around" as a 20 aircraft margin of error. Airbus said Friday it had also booked 75 new orders for November. This brings the total of this year's orders to 797 or a net 700, after cancellations. Airbus remains ahead of Boeing in deliveries, even after the fuselage issue linked to a Spanish manufacturer, as Boeing recovers from a long-running crisis. However, Airbus is behind on new orders. Boeing reported net orders of 782 for the period January-October, which is the most recent data available. (Reporting and editing by David Goodman.)
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Sources say that Amazon paid 180 million Euros to Italy to end the tax and labour probe
Sources with knowledge of this matter confirmed on Friday that an Italian unit of the e-commerce giant Amazon had paid compensation to delivery staff and removed a monitoring system, ending an investigation into alleged tax fraud. In July 2024, the logistics services unit of the group was accused by the authorities of circumventing tax and labour laws. It relied on limited liability companies or cooperatives to supply it with workers. The group also avoided VAT tax, and reduced social security payments. Milan's prosecutors confiscated 121 million Euros from the unit at the time. Two sources confirmed that the group had paid the Italian tax agency around 180 million euro ($209.83m) as part of an overall settlement worth 1 billion euros involving 33 companies which were targeted by similar investigations conducted in Milan. They added that these include Italian units DHL, FedEx and Ups as well as the Italian supermarket chain Esselunga. Il Sole 24 Ore was the first to report on this settlement. The paper and sources reported that under the agreement, the companies which were being investigated also agreed to hire directly more than 50,000 employees who had previously been hired indirectly via the cooperatives. $1 = 0.8579 Euros (Reporting and writing by Emilio Parodi; editing by Alvise Armilini)
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India's IndiGo cancels 500 flights. New Delhi and Mumbai are hard-hit as the crisis worsens
IndiGo, India's largest carrier, will cancel 500 flights in India on Friday, and all departures out of New Delhi will be grounded. The crisis has deepened at the airline, which admitted that it had not planned for new flight duty times imposed by pilots. In its fourth day of crisis, the airline has lost over 60% of market share, and thousands passengers are stranded in various parts across the country. This is the largest challenge the airline has ever faced. Airport sources informed that IndiGo intends to cancel 104 flights from Mumbai, 102 from Bengaluru and 92 from Hyderabad. Airport sources familiar with the development declined to name them because they weren't authorised to disclose information. Delhi airport has announced that all IndiGo flights have been cancelled for today. A source estimated this number at 235. IndiGo informed the regulator that its operations will be fully restored on February 10th. IndiGo asked for an exemption from certain provisions that limit the number of hours a pilot can work at night. Indigo stated that the disruptions were primarily due to "misjudgments and planning gaps" when implementing new pilot duty regulations which increased the mandatory amount of rest per week by pilots from 12 hours to 48, starting November 1. The old rule allowed six night landings per week. IndiGo shares fell nearly 3% Friday, bringing their weekly decline to 10.3%. IndiGo's performance in terms of on-time delivery dropped further to 8.5% Thursday, from 19.7% Wednesday. The airline cancelled more than 250 flights on Thursday and around 150 on Wednesday. (Editing Aditya Kahra, Kate Mayberry and Michael Perry; Editing Michael Perry).
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FT reports that Visa will be moving its European headquarters from London to Canary Wharf.
The Financial Times reported Friday that Visa's European headquarters will be moving to London Canary Wharf. The report stated that Visa will lease 300,000 square foot at One Canada Square over a period of 15 years. It also added that the company would rent 11 floors in the building it plans to occupy by 2028. Visa and Canary Wharf Group have not responded to our requests for comment. Canary Wharf struggled to keep tenants after the COVID-19 epidemic. Now, the area is enjoying a recovery as more companies encourage their staff to return to work. JPMorgan Chase announced last week a plan to construct a tower at the Canary Wharf Financial District, which will contribute 9.9 billion pounds (13.2 billion dollars) to the local economy over the next six years - this includes the construction costs - as well as create 7,800 new jobs.
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Sources say that India's IOC and BPCL purchases Russian oil in Jan-loads which is compliant with sanctions
Trade sources familiar with the situation said that Indian Oil Corp. and Bharat Petrol Corp. placed orders in January for the loading Russian oil from nonsanctioned providers due to the widening discount. BPCL said it had purchased four cargoes: two of Russian Urals, and one of CPC. Urals were sold at a discounted price of $6 to $7 per barrel compared to Brent. They said that India's largest refiner IOC has also purchased some cargoes from Russia for loading in January. IOC has consistently purchased Russian oil cargoes that comply with sanctions since Washington imposed sanctions against top Russian oil producers Rosneft Lukoil and in October. BPCL, however, skipped the December-loading purchases of Russian oil. Kazakhstan supplies the majority of oil sold through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium system (CPC). Russia also sells oil through CPC. BPCL and IOC didn't immediately respond to a comment request. The other state refiners, including Hindustan Petroleum Corp, Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd and HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd have also stopped purchasing Russian oil. Nayara Energy, a company owned in part by Rosneft and exclusively processing Russian crude oil, has been the sole supplier of Russian oil since other suppliers withdrew following British sanctions and EU sanctions. Reliance Industries Ltd., the operator of the largest refining complex in the world, said that it would process any parcels arriving after November 20, under its agreement with Roneft, at its Indian-focused refinery. (Reporting and editing by Tom Hogue, Michael Perry, and Nidhi verma)
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Noem: US travel ban now includes more than 30 countries
U.S. plan to increase the number of countries that are covered by their travel ban from 30 to more than 30. Homeland Security Secretary Kristie Noem told reporters on Thursday that the U.S. plans to expand its travel ban beyond 30 countries. Noem was asked in an interview with Fox News "The Ingraham Angle" if the Trump administration would increase the number of countries listed on the travel ban to 32. She said, "I will not be specific about the number but it is over 30 and the president continues to evaluate countries." In June, the President signed a proclamation The bans apply to both immigrants and non-immigrants, such as tourists, students and business travelers. Bans are imposed on both immigrants and nonimmigrants such as students, tourists and business travelers. Noem didn't specify which countries will be added to the new list. Why should we let people from this country come to the United States if there is no stable government, if their country cannot sustain itself, and unless they can tell us about these individuals and help us vetting them? Noem said. Previously, it was reported that the Trump Administration is considering Ban on citizens from 36 additional countries According to a cable from the State Department, this is preventing certain peoples from entering the United States. The administration's migration measures have escalated since the introduction of the list. Shooting of two National Guard Members Washington, D.C., was the scene of a protest last week. Investigators have determined that the shooter was an Afghani national who entered the U.S. through a resettlement programme in 2021, under which officials of the Trump administration have claimed there was not enough vetting. Trump promised to " Permanent pause He did not name any or define the term "third world countries" but he said that "migration from all Third World Countries". Before that, officials at the Department of Homeland Security claimed Trump had ordered an Widespread review of asylum claims Green Cards were issued to citizens from 19 countries under the presidency of Democratic President Joe Biden. Since taking office again in January, Trump prioritizes immigration enforcement. He has sent federal agents to the major U.S. Cities and turned away asylum seekers on the U.S. Mexico border. His administration has often highlighted its deportation drive, but has not placed as much emphasis on efforts that would reshape the legal immigration. (Reporting and editing by Jasper Ward in Toronto, Leslie Adler, and Ryan Patrick Jones)
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US FAA selects Peraton as the new head of air traffic control
The Federal Aviation Administration announced on Thursday that it had selected Peraton, owned by Veritas Capital and a national-security company, to be the project manager for a $12.5 billion effort to revamp the U.S. aging air traffic control system. After decades of complaining about airport congestion, technological failures, and flight delays, Congress approved in July a plan worth $12.5 billion to overhaul the system and increase controller hiring. Peraton is the only integrator that will manage this massive project, and it will deliver it on schedule without causing any disruptions to air traffic, according to the FAA. The FAA chose Peraton over IBM and Parsons, a joint bid, as one of two firms it had confirmed in September. In a press release, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford stated that "we are taking bold actions to ensure our system of air traffic is the envy around the globe." This month, he will update the House and Senate Committees on air traffic control reform. The FAA stated that the contract, which is a first of its kind, was structured to reward performance and encourage smart funding. Sean Duffy, Transportation Secretary, has stated that he would like an additional $19 to $20 billion in funding from Congress to reform air traffic control. According to a report from 2023, the FAA's communication system has been out of date for years and it is difficult for the agency to get spare parts for some systems. The report outlined aging FAA facilities that have leaking roofs and heating and air-conditioning systems, as well as outdated surveillance radars. These must be replaced soon at a cost in the billions of dollars. A separate report last year said that 51 of the 138 FAA air traffic control telecommunications systems were not sustainable. The FAA announced that Peraton would begin working on initial priorities, such as setting up of a new digital control center and transitioning from copper to modern fiber infrastructure. Chris Sununu (CEO of Airlines for America) praised this effort in a press release. Sununu stated that it was time to replace antiquated equipment such as floppy discs, copper cables and paper strips with 21st century technology and equipment. The Transportation Department announced that the system upgrade will be completed within three years. Its goal is to "reduce downtime, improve efficiency, strengthen safety, and support the future growth of national airspace", the department said. A report released in October showed that the FAA's 15-billion dollar "Next Gen" overhaul of air traffic control project, which began more than 20 years ago, had been plagued by delays and cost overruns, as well as being less ambitious than originally envisioned. (Reporting and editing by Leslie Adler, Clarence Fernandez, and David Shepardson)
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Saluda Medical shares plummet on Australian market debut
Saluda Medical shares listed on the Australian Securities Exchange fell nearly 45% in their debut at the Australian Securities Exchange on Friday after raising A$231,000,000 ($152.67,000,000) through its initial public offer. Saluda is a U.S. medical device company that develops neuromodulation treatments to treat chronic neurological conditions. The company sold 87.1 new CHESS depositary interests at A$2.65, which valued the company at approximately A$775 millions at listing. In the first few trading minutes, the stock fell almost half its value to A$1.48. Saluda was founded in Sydney, Australia in 2010. The FDA-approved Evoke Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) System is a closed-loop system that uses neural biomarkers to measure and adapt therapy in real-time. Saluda made its debut after GemLife Communities Group IPO of A$750 Million in early July. This was the largest 2025 listing in Australia and surpassed Virgin Australia's A$685 Million offering at the end of June. (1 Australian dollar = 1.5131 dollars) (Reporting and editing by Alan Barona in Bengaluru)
China's C919 rivals Boeing and Airbus makes its debut outside Asia
China made its Middle East debut of its C919 jetliner at the Dubai Airshow, Monday. It was its first time outside East Asia. The display showcased plans to compete against Airbus and Boeing.
The C919 aircraft in white with blue and green detailing took off around 3:30 pm local time (1130 GMT). It made several circle passes in the air before safely landing on the Al-Maktoum International Airport runway tarmac.
COMAC, a Chinese aircraft manufacturer, has ambitious plans to compete with the dominant Western manufacturers Airbus & Boeing and their smaller Brazilian competitor Embraer.
COMAC's C909 and C919 planes lack certification from Western regulators. They are therefore looking to other markets in order to boost their profile.
C919: CHINA’S ANSWER FOR THE BOEING MAX 10, AIRBUS A321NEO
On Monday, at the Airshow in London, hundreds of people waited to see the C919 aircraft parked alongside other aircraft. The pilot was seated in the cockpit of the C919 and talked to visitors about how he operated it.
COMAC has developed plans for an aircraft family.
Visitors took pictures of a C919 stretched variant at COMAC's stand in the main airshow exhibition hall. The aircraft, COMAC stated, would carry 210 passengers, and service the Asia-Pacific region.
The longer version is aimed at the Airbus A321neo, and Boeing's 737 MAX 10 – the top end of single-aisle markets where Airbus and Boeing are battling it out for the most highly contested orders.
COMAC displayed the regional C909 on the tarmac. This plane was China's very first jet-engined aircraft to enter commercial production in 2016 and enter service.
So far, neither model has been a big global success.
CHINA TAKES ON THE LAST BASEMENT OF WESTERN MACHINING
COMAC also showed materials outlining the C929 wide body jet, originally developed with Russia but now solely driven by COMAC. However, there were few technical details.
COMAC officials declined comment on their company's participation at the airshow, and stated that there was no planned media engagement.
COMAC stated in a press release that it is "committed to open collaboration and looks forward building stronger and closer relationships with global partners and customers."
Gulf countries enjoy strong ties with China. It is the largest trading partner of both Saudi Arabian and UAE. They have also welcomed Chinese firms' cooperation in the past few years in areas such as manufacturing, construction, and technology.
Analysts don't expect China to capture a significant share of the global jet industry beyond deals with supporting countries anytime soon, but they say that its presence is a signal of its intention to penetrate one the last bastions for Western manufacturing.
Stephanie Pope, CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, welcomed COMAC to one of the industry's most prestigious events. She pledged that the company would maintain its edge by continuing innovation.
Competition is good for the industry. Boeing benefits from it. "It makes us better as a whole," she said. (Additional reporting and editing by Adam Jourdan, Joe Bavier, and Tim Hepher)
(source: Reuters)