New Delhi — Apple is seeking to block antitrust proceedings in India by challenging a law that allows penalties to be calculated on global turnover, the country’s competition regulator said, escalating tensions between New Delhi and the US tech giant.
The iPhone maker last month challenged India’s antitrust penalty law, which allows the regulator to use global turnover when calculating the penalties, calling the legislation one that could lead to disproportionate fines for cases where the breach occurred only in India.
On Monday, a lawyer for the Competition Commission of India (CCI) accused Apple of trying to “stall the proceedings” dating back to 2021. Apple’s counsel urged the court to prevent the regulator from taking coercive steps.
Judges at the Delhi high court asked the CCI to file a detailed response to Apple’s arguments. Reuters
Bitcoin extends losses as gold edges higher
London — Bitcoin fell back below $90,000 on Monday, extending losses after its steepest monthly decline since the 2021 crypto crash, as renewed risk aversion drove investors out of stocks and digital assets.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency dropped 5% to $86,627, heading for its biggest one-day fall since early November and hovering near last month’s eight-month low of $80,553.
Bitcoin shed more than $18,000 in November, its largest dollar loss since May 2021, when a number of cryptocurrencies collapsed.
Stocks in Europe fell in early trading, while US futures pointed to a drop of 0.6%-0.7% for the major indices later on, and safe havens such as gold and the Swiss franc edged up. Reuters
India urges cyber security app on new smartphones
Bengaluru — India’s telecom ministry has privately asked smartphone makers to preload all new devices with a state-owned cybersecurity app that cannot be deleted, a government order showed, a move likely to antagonise Apple and privacy advocates.
India is one of the world’s largest telephone markets, with more than 1.2-billion subscribers, and government figures show the app, launched in January, has helped recover more than 700,000 lost phones, including 50,000 in October alone.
Apple, which has previously locked horns with the telecoms regulator over the development of a government anti-spam mobile app, is among the companies, such as Samsung, Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi, bound by the new order. Reuters
Britain and the US to cut tariffs on pharmaceutical products
London — Britain and the US are poised to agree to zero tariffs on pharmaceutical products, with an announcement due at the White House on Monday, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Reuters
Airbus wrapping up global aircraft modifications
Gdansk — Airbus said on Monday that the vast majority of the about 6,000 A320-family aircraft affected by a safety alert have now been modified, with fewer than 100 jets still requiring work.
The European planemaker on Friday ordered immediate repairs to its widely used family of jets due to a flight-control software issue.
Airbus said it was working with airline customers to support modifications on the remaining aircraft to return them to service.
Airbus has discovered an industrial quality issue affecting the fuselage panels of several dozen A320-family aircraft, industry sources said on Monday.
The flaw is delaying some deliveries, but there are no immediate indications that it has reached aircraft in service, the sources said, asking not to be named.
Airbus had no immediate comment. Reuters
British mortgage approvals beat estimates
London — British mortgage approvals rose by more than expected in October, and consumer credit grew at a slower pace than in September, Bank of England (BoE) data showed on Monday.
The BoE said 65,018 mortgages were approved in October, down from 65,647 in September. Economists polled by Reuters had pointed to 64,200 approvals during the month.
The BoE’s data also showed consumers borrowed at a slower rate ahead of finance minister Rachel Reeves’ budget this month.
Net consumer borrowing rose by £1.1bn in October, less than the £1.35bn forecast in the Reuters poll of economists.
The increase was below September’s £1.39bn rise, leaving the annual rate of consumer credit growth unchanged at 7.2%. Reuters
Cameroonian opposition figure dies in detention
Yaounde — Cameroonian opposition leader Anicet Ekane, who supported a bid for president by a rival to the country’s long-serving leader in October, died in detention on Monday, his lawyer and family said. Ekane, 74, was leader of the African Movement for New Independence and Democracyparty.
He was arrested on October 24 after post-election demonstrations, in what his party described as a “kidnapping” by Cameroonian soldiers. Police had charged hime with hostility against the state, incitement to revolt, and calls for insurrection, which he denied.
His death in detention could heighten tensions in the central African nation where security forces killed 48 civilians during protests against the re-election of President Paul Biya, the world’s oldest ruler at 92.
Ekane was barely able to speak during a visit just days before his death, his lawyer Ngouana Ulrich Juvenal said. Reuters
Cameroon’s defence ministry said an investigation is under way, adding Ekane died in a military hospital while receiving treatment.
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