Toy Strategies Shift as Brands Accelerate the Blind-Box Boom Triggered by Labubu Mania

Toy manufacturers across the United States are moving aggressively into the blind-box segment as the holiday season begins, responding to a surge in consumer appetite for surprise-based collectibles following the extraordinary popularity of the quirky, limited-edition Labubu figurines. What began as a niche designer-toy subculture has expanded into a mass-market retail force, compelling both mainstream…

Novo Nordisk Foundation Tightens Grip on Boardroom Power as Governance Battle Reshapes Corporate Direction

Novo Nordisk’s extraordinary shareholder meeting marked one of the most consequential governance shifts in modern European corporate history, as the Novo Nordisk Foundation consolidated near-total boardroom control of the world’s most valuable pharmaceutical company by market capitalization. The Foundation’s success in restructuring the board and installing its own leadership reflects deep strategic concerns over the…

Cable Decline Weakens Disney’s Revenue Base as Shifting Media Economics Outpace Gains in Parks and Streaming

Walt Disney’s latest quarterly results reveal a widening structural divide inside the company: while its theme parks, cruise ships and streaming platforms continue to deliver measurable growth, the persistent deterioration of the traditional cable business is dampening overall revenue performance. This imbalance has become one of the most significant pressures facing the company as it…

EU Scrutiny Intensifies as Google’s Spam Policy Sparks Competition Concerns Across Digital Publishing

Alphabet’s Google is facing renewed regulatory pressure in Europe as the European Commission opens a formal antitrust investigation into its spam-prevention policy, a move that underscores growing tensions between platform governance, algorithmic integrity and the economic stability of the news-publishing sector. The inquiry marks one of the most consequential tests yet of Europe’s Digital Markets…

Foxconn’s Strategic Pivot into AI Servers Drives 17 % Q3 Profit Rise

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. (commonly known as Foxconn), globally recognised for its role as a major contract electronics manufacturer, delivered a 17 % year-on-year increase in third-quarter net profit, underscoring how its deeper footprint in AI-infrastructure manufacturing is reshaping its business model. The performance reflects not only robust demand for artificial-intelligence servers but…

U.S. Auto Strategy Tightens as GM Drives Suppliers to Exit China in Pursuit of Supply-Chain Resilience

In a bold move signaling how seriously it views geopolitical and supply-chain risks, General Motors (GM) has instructed several thousand of its parts- and materials-suppliers to eliminate sourcing from China, setting a targeted deadline of 2027 for key items. While this directive spans raw-materials, components and basic parts, the bulk of its rationale centres on…

U.S. Trade Priorities Push Vietnam to Hammer Out Tariff Deal as Bilateral Imbalance Widens

Vietnam has entered a critical phase in its trade relationship with the United States, reportedly working to finalise a bilateral agreement that would reshape tariffs and market access. The move comes as Washington seeks to tackle the significant structural deficit it runs with Hanoi. Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son confirmed that talks are underway…

Tokyo Investor Alert: SoftBank Group Faces Share Slump as AI Funding Pressures Mount

Shares of SoftBank Group tumbled by as much as 10 % in Tokyo trading following the disclosure of a $5.8 billion sale of its stake in Nvidia Corporation. While the divestment alone triggered the market movement, the underlying narrative is far broader: SoftBank’s ambitious move into artificial intelligence—most notably through its escalating commitment to OpenAI—is…

Why SoftBank’s Massive Bet on OpenAI Drove Its Profit to $16.6 Billion

SoftBank Group’s second-quarter net profit of 2.5 trillion yen (approximately US$16.6 billion) signals more than just a good quarter—it reflects the culmination of a bold pivot into artificial intelligence (AI) led by its substantial investment in OpenAI. The gain is more than double the 1.18 trillion yen reported during the same period last year, underscoring…