Business

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media captionStars past and present came out to celebrate the final film in the Skywalker saga The latest Star Wars blockbuster raked in $374m (£288m) in global ticket sales in its opening weekend, falling short of prior films in the trilogy. The Rise of Skywalker’s US sales were […]

Image copyright NASA Image caption The Dragon capsule from SpaceX already carries cargo If your ambition is to fly into space – and you’ve got plenty of spare cash – then 2020 could be an exciting year. If space travel is not really your thing, but you would like a much bigger screen on your

Image caption Betty Knight was left bewildered When Thomas Cook collapsed three months ago, staff like Betty Knight, who had worked as cabin crew for 12 years, thought they’d be able to fall back on the welfare system. But she was left bewildered. When she needed help she struggled to get it. Her application for

A whistleblower who highlighted suspicious activity at a Dubai firm has hit back after the publication of a damaging finding against her. In October Anna Waterhouse said Dubai regulators had failed to investigate “suspicious circumstances” at Kaloti, the emirate’s biggest gold refiner. Subsequently the regulator found she “acted without integrity” in another matter. That finding

Image copyright Reuters Tesco has suspended production at a factory in China following allegations forced prison labour was used to pack charity Christmas cards. It comes after the Sunday Times reported a six-year-old girl from south London found a message from Shanghai prisoners hidden in a box of cards. “Please help us and notify human

Image copyright Whirlpool MPs have called on Whirlpool to offer refunds or “swift compensation” as it recalls 519,000 washing machines. A cross-party group on consumer protection said customers had been “severely let down” owing to the delay until machines are fixed or replaced. The former head of the Commons Business Committee has also demanded the

Image copyright Getty Images Dozens of pesto products from Italian sauce maker Sacla’ are being recalled over fears they may contain peanuts without mentioning them on the label. The Food Standards Agency has issued an allergy alert, warning that 25 pesto products may be affected. The list of products also include own-brand jars of pesto

Image copyright Cobham Boris Johnson has defended the controversial £4bn takeover of UK defence and aerospace company Cobham by a US private equity firm. The government approved the sale of Cobham to Advent International on Friday after the deal was delayed because of national security concerns. Sir Ed Davey, acting leader of the Lib Dems

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption First launched in 1959, Barbie has been getting a makeover When Lisa McKnight was growing up in California in the 1970s, her favourite Barbie toy was Malibu, the 1971 doll that cemented Barbie as a leggy blonde bombshell. Now, as a senior executive at Barbie, Ms McKnight is leading

Image copyright Cobham The government has approved a US private equity firm’s takeover of UK defence and aerospace firm Cobham. Advent International made a £4bn offer to buy Cobham in July and shareholders approved the deal last month. But Cobham’s founding family had raised concerns about the company’s future and its connections with UK defence.