The regulator said the airline allegedly blocked or made it more difficult – economically or technically – for travel agencies to offer Ryanair flights in combination with other airlines or other services

International News via Reuters:

Italy’s competition authority said on Tuesday it had fined Europe’s largest budget airline Ryanair 255 million euros ($300.19 million) for abuse of a dominant position in its dealings with travel agents.

The regulator said the airline allegedly blocked or made it more difficult – economically or technically – for travel agencies to offer Ryanair flights in combination with other airlines or other services.

Ryanair did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

The authority said it took issue with the airline initially introducing facial recognition procedures, then blocking payments from online travel agencies (OTAs) and, finally, imposing partnership agreements with travel agents limiting their ability to offer Ryanair in travel packages.

“Its dominant position stems not only from its significant market share, which is continuing to grow, but also from numerous other indicators… (which) contribute to giving Ryanair (a) significant market power and the ability to act independently of competitors and consumers,” the watchdog said in a statement.

The alleged abuse of a dominant position took place from April 2023 to at least April of this year, the regulator added.

($1 = 0.8495 euros)

Reporting by Giulia Segreti, editing by Alvise Armellini

The STOXX construction sector index is ending the year up 21% at record levels, but there are questions over whether momentum can continue or if price consolidation looms

International News via Reuters:

European construction shares have been among 2025’s standout gainers, lifted by enthusiasm for thematic trades around Germany’s infrastructure stimulus, hopes of Ukraine’s rebuild and the AI-related boom. 

The STOXX construction sector index is ending the year up 21% at record levels, but there are questions over whether momentum can continue or if price consolidation looms.

Building materials firms Holcim and Heidelberg have led the charge, on optimism over cement pricing and infrastructure spending.

Signs of a housing market recovery, lower interest rates and Germany’s 500 billion euro ($580 billion) infrastructure plan gaining traction next year offer reasons for optimism.

The sector could also earn extra income from defence-linked orders as governments boost spending to meet NATO targets, though large-scale projects remain years away.

“We are seeing green lights for a construction restart,” said Damien Mariette, senior fund manager at CPR Asset Management, a subsidiary of Amundi. 

“The German plan is a positive catalyst and defence spending is the cherry on the cake.”

CONSTRUCTION VALUATIONS BUILD ON LEAD

Peace in Ukraine could unlock major reconstruction and cut energy costs. Recovery needs may reach $524 billion over a decade, according to estimates cited by Kepler Cheuvreux.

However, timing remains uncertain and some investors caution that optimism is largely priced in, with questions over whether European firms – rather than U.S. rivals – will secure the biggest deals.

“Much of the good news seems to be priced in. Without a broad-based recovery and real contract wins, further outperformance could be hard to justify,” said Andras Vig, multi-asset strategist at Invesco, adding that the sector looked “quite overvalued”.

“Hope has largely driven the rally, but now we may need contracts to materialise.”

Europe’s construction sector now trades at about 17 times earnings, putting its premium over the STOXX at roughly 15%, up from 6% in January, LSEG Datastream shows.

RESIDENTIAL MARKET RECOVERY IN SIGHT

Morgan Stanley expects big German infrastructure awards only in the second half of next year with volume gains unlikely before 2027, which leaves “heavy-side” structural-material firms like Holcim at risk of pullbacks.

The bank now favours companies that could benefit from a recovery in Europe’s housing market. Saint-Gobain is its top pick, replacing CRH, which it still sees benefiting from themes like cement pricing and Ukraine reconstruction.

Tom O’Hara, European equities director at GAM, said stocks more exposed to residential markets now traded at a discount to “heavy-side” names for the first time in years. “If we get good news on residential recovery, this could be an interesting catch-up opportunity,” he said.

Despite uncertainties, it is hard to be outright bearish.

Kepler upgraded the sector to overweight this month: “A potential end to the conflict in Ukraine could be one of the sector’s next major catalysts on top of falling interest rates.”

($1 = 0.8532 euros)

Reporting by Danilo Masoni; Editing by Amanda Cooper and Kirsten Donovan

Some bank bosses had anticipated European Union governments and companies would sideline American investment banks in favour of their home lenders when Trump on April 2 announced his “liberation day” tariffs

International News via Reuters:

Wall Street banks strengthened their lead in European investment banking in 2025, as clients stayed loyal despite global market turmoil and President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs.

Some bank bosses had anticipated European Union governments and companies would sideline American investment banks in favour of their home lenders when Trump on April 2 announced his “liberation day” tariffs.

JPMorgan’s CEO Jamie Dixon said the lender lost some overseas clients in the immediate aftermath.

But, while European bank share prices have risen in 2025, driven by income from higher interest rates, the region’s investment bankers failed to gain ground from Wall Street rivals, an analysis of fee data from LSEG and interviews with executives showed. In some products, such as equity offerings, they even ceded market share in Europe.

US MARKET SHARE CLIMBS NEAR ALL-TIME HIGH

U.S. banks have claimed a 37% market share in investment banking fees in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region so far this year.

That share was flat on the year before and near the all-time peak of 40%. They held firm in all products and won market share in equity offerings and mergers.

ENCROACHMENT SINCE THE FINANCIAL CRISIS

U.S. banks have steadily stolen market share from European lenders, including Deutsche Bank, Barclays and Societe Generale since the 2008 global financial crisis. European players laboured under years of restructuring and retrenchment while American rivals quickly righted themselves and built further scale. U.S. lenders’ share climbed from 31% in 2008 to the current 37%.

LEVERAGING HOME ADVANTAGE

Goldman Sachs was the leading investment bank in Europe, Middle East and Africa with a 6.8% share of overall available fees, followed by JPMorgan and France’s BNP Paribas. Citi and Morgan Stanley were fourth and fifth respectively. BNP and Deutsche Bank showed gains of 0.1% each on 2024, while Barclays and HSBC lost ground. 

U.S. banks can leverage the scale and profitability of their home market to win globally. They dominated big-ticket deals worth $1 billion or more, especially in the technology, media and telecoms sector, said Amrit Shahani, partner at research firm BCG Expand.

The American banks’ gains in EMEA have been most pronounced in M&A, where they made $2.4 billion in fees to the end of the third quarter, with their market share up 2.3% from the same period in 2024 while European banks’ share slipped 2.3%, according to data from BCG Expand.

The one area where European banks outshone was in share price performance, although that in part reflects how badly European lender stocks have fared since the financial crisis.

Reporting by Lawrence White; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Barbara Lewis

The guarantee, disclosed in a filing on Monday, seeks to allay the Warner Bros board’s doubts about Paramount’s financing and the lack of full Ellison family backing

International News via Reuters:

Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison has stepped in to personally guarantee $40.4 billion in Paramount Skydance’s latest effort to pry Warner Bros Discovery away from selling its prized Hollywood assets to streaming giant Netflix.

The guarantee, disclosed in a filing on Monday, seeks to allay the Warner Bros board’s doubts about Paramount’s financing and the lack of full Ellison family backing, which had pushed it toward the competing cash-and-stock offer from Netflix.

Warner Bros shares rose about 3%, while Paramount added over 7%. Warner Bros and Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Paramount said the amended terms do not change the $30-per-share all-cash offer even as the fight for Hollywood’s sought-after assets heats up, with control of Warner Bros’ vast library offering a decisive edge in the streaming wars.

“I doubt many Warner Bros shareholders that are on the fence or planning to vote no were holding out due to issues the revised bid addresses such as a guarantee from Larry Ellison on the funding front,” said Seth Shafer, principal analyst at S&P Global.

As part of the revised terms, Ellison also agreed not to revoke the family trust or transfer its assets during the pendency of the transaction, the filing showed. 

Paramount said it has raised its regulatory reverse termination fee to $5.8 billion from $5 billion to match the competing transaction and extended the expiration date of its tender offer to January 21, 2026.

The bid follows Warner Bros asking its shareholders to reject the $108.4 billion offer from Paramount for the whole company, including cable TV assets, on doubts over its financing and the lack of a full guarantee from the Ellison family. 

But Warner Bros investors, including the fifth largest shareholder Harris Associates, have said they would be open to revised offers from Paramount if it presents a superior bid and addresses issues with deal terms. 

Under the Netflix agreement, Warner Bros would owe Netflix $2.8 billion as breakup fee if it walks away from that deal. 

REGULATORY SCRUTINY

For either suitor, winning shareholder support is only the first hurdle, as both deals would face intense antitrust scrutiny in the U.S. and Europe.

Lawmakers from both parties have raised concerns about consolidation in the media industry, and U.S. President Donald Trump has said he plans to weigh in on the transactions.

A Paramount-Warner Bros combination would create a studio larger than industry leader Disney and combine two major television operators, a move some Democratic senators say would give one company control over “almost everything Americans watch on TV.”

A Netflix-Warner Bros tie-up would cement Netflix’s dominance in streaming, creating a group with a combined 428 million subscribers. Netflix has said it would honor Warner Bros’ theatrical commitments and argued the deal would benefit consumers by lowering costs through bundled offerings.

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos has said he is confident the deal would win regulatory approval, arguing it would avoid job cuts in an industry already struggling with uneven box-office returns.

Reporting by Akash Sriram, Aditya Soni and Kritika Lamba in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur

Manilow included the new schedule for his concerts in his post, and said he expects to be feeling better by February since his treatment does not require radiation or chemotherapy

International News via Reuters:

U.S singer-songwriter Barry Manilow announced on Monday through Instagram that he has been diagnosed with lung cancer, prompting him to pause his scheduled concerts while he undergoes surgery. 

“As many of you know I recently went through six weeks of bronchitis followed by a relapse of another five weeks,” the 82-year-old Grammy-winner wrote in the Instagram statement.

“Even though I was over the bronchitis and back on stage at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor ordered an MRI just to make sure that everything was OK. The MRI discovered a cancerous spot on my left lung that needs to be removed,” he said.

Manilow included the new schedule for his concerts in his post, and said he expects to be feeling better by February since his treatment does not require radiation or chemotherapy.

“Just chicken soup and ‘I Love Lucy’ reruns,” Manilow wrote, referring to a classic U.S. sitcom.

The singer ended his post by urging people to get tested if they have any health concerns.

Manilow, whose hits include songs “Mandy”, “Copacabana” and “Can’t Smile Without You,” has a career spanning over 60 years.

He attended the New York College of Music and the Juilliard School, where he studied musical theatre. 

Apart from being a songwriter, Manilow has also worked on numerous films, Broadway shows and television productions.

His acting included roles in the film “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” and the television shows “Family Guy” and “Will and Grace.”   

Manilow married his high-school sweetheart, Susan Deixler, in 1964, but the marriage was short-lived. 

In 2017, he spoke for the first time about being gay and his previously secret, almost 40-year romance with husband Garry Kief, saying he feared he would disappoint his mostly female fan base had he come out decades ago. 

Manilow and his manager Kief, whom he met in 1978, had been together for years before marrying quietly in Palm Springs, California, in 2014.

Reporting by Danielle Broadway and Marie-Louise Gumuchian; editing by Barbara Lewis