BUSINESS

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Netflix’s film viewership in the Asia-Pacific region increased by nearly 20% in 2024, reflecting the platform’s growing success in tapping into local stories. In the streamer’s most recent APAC Showcase in Tokyo, APAC VP of Content (outside Korea) Minyoung Kim revealed that over 100 titles from the region made it into Netflix’s worldwide top 10 of non-English titles last year. They comprised high-performing titles like Korea’s Uprising, Indonesia’s The Shadow Strays, and Japan’s City Hunter, which also drove a 900% increase in sales of the original manga.

Photo Credit: Netflix

Netflix reported a quarterly profit of $2.9 billion on Thursday, fueled by a 13 percent revenue increase driven in part by recent subscription price hikes. The streaming television service said it was "off to a good start in 2025" with revenue reaching $10.5 billion in the recently ended quarter, citing growth in subscription and ad earnings, as well as the timing of certain expenses.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Italian fashion house Prada announced Thursday it has reached a deal with US group Capri Holdings to acquire its rival Versace for 1.25 billion euros ($1.38 billion). The acquisition is expected to create a luxury group with revenues exceeding six billion euros, positioning it to better compete with industry giants like LVMH and Kering amid a global slowdown in the sector.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), one of the world’s leading professional services firms, has shut down its nine African operations in Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Republic of Guinea, Senegal, and Equatorial Guinea. This follows after it undertook a strategic review to cut financial and reputational risks in too-risky or unprofitable markets.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Volkswagen, the German auto giant, attributed a decline in its first-quarter operating profit to the impact of tariffs on car imports into the United States implemented by President Donald Trump. The company reported an operating profit of 2.8 billion euros ($3.1 billion) for the first three months of 2025, a decrease from 4.6 billion euros in the same period last year.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

The World Trade Organization (WTO) has forecast a decline in global trade this year, directly attributing the downturn to tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. The WTO warned that "severe downside risks," including retaliatory tariffs and political uncertainty, could lead to an even more significant drop in global goods trade, particularly in North America, where trade is projected to fall by more than a tenth.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Samsung Electronics exceeded market expectations Tuesday, forecasting record first-quarter sales and predicting profits would be better than initially projected. The firm is the flagship subsidiary of South Korean giant Samsung Group, the largest of the family-controlled conglomerates that hold significant influence in South Korea's economy.