Business news, technology, media and finance reports – France 24

• Oil prices, gold in focus amid Iran-Israel tensions
  Crude oil prices subside as traders bet that the worst is over in tensions between Iran and Israel, although fears remain. Meanwhile, investors charge into safe-haven assets like gold, and Chinese market regulators roll out new investor protections.
• China-Africa ties: A Chinese 'debt trap'?
  What does 22 years of data tell us about the nature of the economic relationship between Beijing and the African continent? FRANCE 24's Charles Pellegrin talks to Oyintarelado Moses, lead author of a report from Boston University's Global Development Policy Center and the African Economic Research Consortium.
• US inflation comes in hot, casting doubt on June Fed rate cut
  The US consumer price index for March stood 3.5 percent higher than a year earlier, as inflation proved stickier than expected. A rate cut from the Federal Reserve, anticipated for June, is now in doubt. Also in this edition: the UN's climate chief calls for a new finance deal for developing countries, saying nations have […]
• The rise and fall of Atos, the European tech champion now €4.65 billion in debt
  French IT services and consulting firm Atos unveiled a refinancing plan on Tuesday that failed to fully reassure investors. In this edition, we take a look at how the company, which provides cybersecurity services to the Olympic Games and supercomputers for France's nuclear arsenal, accumulated close to €5 billion in debt.
• A look back at the Panama Papers scandal, as first day of trial ends
  The trial of 27 people charged in the "Panama Papers" tax evasion and money laundering scandal opened in Panama on Monday. After the first day of hearings, we take a look back at the bombshell investigation that showed how the world's rich and famous used shell companies to avoid their domestic tax authorities. Also in […]
• China commerce minister hits back at EU electric car subsidy probe
  China's minister of commerce is in Europe for a week-long trip, with a focus on pushing back against accusations of unfair state subsidies in the Chinese electric vehicle sector. Also in this edition: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen calls out overcapacity in Chinese green energy exports as she wraps up a visit there, and Elon […]
• Binance executive appears in Nigerian court on financial crimes charges
  Legal proceedings began in the Nigerian capital Abuja on Thursday, targeting the cryptocurrency exchange Binance and two of its executives on charges of money laundering and tax evasion. Tigran Gambaryan, a US citizen and Binance's head of financial crimes compliance, appeared alone in court after Nadeem Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan and the company’s regional manager for Africa, […]
• The digital euro: An opportunity for financial reform?
  The European Central Bank is making plans for a digital currency, an electronic equivalent to cash. FRANCE 24's Charles Pellegrin speaks to Positive Money Europe's Executive Director Vicky Van Eyck, who says the digital euro could make the financial system fairer, but fears that privately-owned commercial banks are undermining the new currency's potential.
• Economist James K. Boyce on the link between inequality and the environment
  A world-renowned political and social economist, who is in Paris to receive a new international award for his work, has told FRANCE 24 how economists have forgotten a vitally important fact. James K. Boyce says that what matters is "not simply the total size of the economic pie, but also how it's distributed". Boyce is […]