AP Business Digest

Here are the AP's top business stories that have moved or are planned to move today. All times U.S. Eastern. For up-to-the minute information on AP's coverage, visit AP Newsroom's Coverage Plan.

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UPCOMING

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JAPAN-ECONOMY

DESCRIPTION: Japan's central bank gives its latest read on the economy in a survey.

ON MERITS: By 03/31/2025 11:00 p.m. EDT, Photo, Text

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NEW AND DEVELOPING

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FINANCIAL MARKETS

Stock markets fall worldwide as Trump's 'Liberation Day' approaches

SUMMARY: President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" is fast approaching, and stock markets around the world are falling in advance of it. The S&P 500 sank 0.8% Monday and is on track to finish the first three months of the year with a loss of nearly 6%. That would make this its worst quarter in nearly three years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 111 points, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.7%. The drops follow a sell-off that spanned the world as worries build that tariffs coming Wednesday from Trump will worsen inflation and grind down growth for economies.

WORDS: 1025 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 10:28 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:9bbb04d6b66ccbda4f5856a179df20e3&mediaType=text

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EU--ITALY-TESLA

16 Tesla EVs are destroyed in a fire in Rome as Italian police investigate possible arson

SUMMARY: Italian police are investigating as possible arson a fire that destroyed more than a dozen Tesla electric vehicles at a dealership on the outskirts of Rome. Tesla Italy says it is cooperating with police and that it turned over surveillance video from the vehicles themselves. The cars' internal video operates even when they are off. Tesla has been the target of protests around the world against owner Elon Musk's affiliation with the Trump administration. European sales of Tesla vehicles tumbled 49% in the first two months of the year even as overall sales of EVs grew.

WORDS: 114 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 10:01 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:6bf757c5934977290a25a047a8a6bce5&mediaType=text

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US--YUM BRANDS-CEO

Yum Brands CEO announces plans to retire in 2026

SUMMARY: Yum Brands CEO David Gibbs announced Monday that he plans to retire from the company in the first quarter of 2026. The 62-year-old Gibbs is a 36-year veteran of Louisville, Kentucky-based Yum Brands, which owns KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill. He will continue to lead the company during the search process for the new CEO. Gibbs became Yum Brands' CEO in January 2020, then navigated the company through the pandemic. He focused on new store development and enhancing technology. Yum Brands signed an industry-first deal with Nvidia earlier this month to work on automated ordering at drive-thrus and other projects.

WORDS: 220 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 9:58 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:569a1e61c10114a8fc9ff5938b4ea806&mediaType=text

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US--ROCKET-MR. COOPER

Mortgage company Rocket buying Mr. Cooper in all-stock deal valued at $9.4 billion

SUMMARY: Mortgage company Rocket Cos. is buying competitor Mr. Cooper in an all-stock deal valued at $9.4 billion, just weeks after acquiring real estate listing company Redfin. Rocket said Monday that bringing Mr. Cooper Group Inc. into the fold will create a business representing one in every six mortgages in the United States. The combination will drive higher loan volume and long-term client relationships, while also offering greater recurring revenue and lowering client acquisition costs, it added.

WORDS: 389 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 8:32 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:73a7ad2cf98f21b81cdc1d54bfa4fe8b&mediaType=text

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CHINA-HUAWEI

China's telecoms giant Huawei Technologies says its profit fell 28% while revenue surged in 2024

SUMMARY: Chinese telecoms gear giant Huawei says its net profit fell 28% in 2024 while its revenue surged, as the company invested heavily in advanced technologies. Huawei Technologies reported $8.6 billion in net profit last year, down from $12 billion the year before. Its revenue jumped 22% to $118.2 billion, with strong growth in its consumer goods and automotive-related sales. The company said its spending on research and development amounted to more than a fifth of its revenues, and more than half its workforce is employed in R&D. Constrained by mounting trade tensions, Huawei and other Chinese tech companies are working hard to make up for shrinking access to U.S. and other foreign advanced technology.

WORDS: 345 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 8:07 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:b81b49b60584a8151e79cdbc1f60873c&mediaType=text

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HKO--TARIFFS-HOCKEY EQUIPMENT

Trump tariff tumult has ripples for sporting goods, puts costly hockey gear in price-hike crosshair

SUMMARY: The sports equipment industry is no exception to the headaches being caused throughout the U.S. commercial ecosystem by the promise of 25% tarrifs on Canadian imports by President Donald Trump. Many of the products manufactured for sports-loving Americans are made outside of the U.S. That includes costly hockey gear that finds itself in the price-hike crosshair considering how intertwined Canada and the U.S. are within that sport. Hockey equipment in North America is a $1.3 billion business and growing. Added cost from import tax will almost certainly trickle down to the consumer.

WORDS: 1104 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 7:35 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:161275c8e7bcdb4e3dad5d20b473538c&mediaType=text

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EU--FRANCE-APPLE

France's antitrust watchdog fines Apple for problems with App Tracking Transparency

SUMMARY: France's antitrust watchdog fined Apple 150 million euros ($162 million) on Monday over a privacy feature that protects users from apps snooping on them because its introduction resulted in abuse of competition law. The French Competition Authority said on Monday it found that the objective of Apple's App Tracking Transparency framework requiring users to consent to data collection by third-party applications was not in itself open to criticism. But it ruled that the "way in which it was implemented was neither necessary nor proportionate to Apple's stated objective of protecting personal data."

WORDS: 369 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 6:29 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:d993553dc64b56b69f5266cf1fe79d95&mediaType=text

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EU-FRANCE-US-DIVERSITY PROGRAMS

European countries resist US push to scrap diversity and inclusion initiatives

SUMMARY: U.S. government efforts to eliminate diversity initiatives are not going down well on the European continent. France's minister for foreign trade says the country won't compromise after the U.S. State Department demanded French companies drop diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. In neighboring Belgium, the government lashed out at perceived U.S. pressure after some companies reportedly received similar requests. In Spain, Barcelona's mayor says his municipal government will defy President Trump's attack on DEI initiatives that have included a cultural program hosted by the city.

WORDS: 548 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 6:20 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:de655f8b936d2a53619f8dfef900fa40&mediaType=text

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EU--BRITAIN-PRIMARK

CEO of fast-fashion brand Primark steps down after allegations of bad behavior in social situation

SUMMARY: The chief executive of Primark, one of Europe's biggest fast fashion retailers, has resigned after an investigation into his behavior toward a woman in a social environment. The company says Paul Marchant, Primark's CEO since 2009, has apologized to the individual involved and resigned with immediate effect. Shares in Primark's parent, Associated British Foods, fell 4.9% in early trading, compared with a 0.8% drop in Britain's benchmark stock index.

WORDS: 207 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 4:57 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:d860a2dc20a003334f4047a3bc8b9383&mediaType=text

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AS--THAILAND-SHAKY SKYSCRAPERS

Bangkok to review quake safety after collapse of high-rise leaves dozens missing

SUMMARY: The governor of Bangkok says authorities are investigating why a high-rise under construction collapsed during an earthquake Friday that otherwise caused limited damage in the Thai capital. Chadchart Sittipunt spoke on Monday while visiting the site as heavy equipment pulled away rubble from the 30-story building apart in hopes of finding survivors among the 78 people still missing. Chadchart said it was crucial to figure out what went wrong to improve building safety in the city, which has millions of people living and working in thousands of high-rise buildings. The magnitude 7.7 quake centered more than 800 miles away killed more than 1,700 people in Myanmar and at least 18 in Thailand, most at the Bangkok construction site.

WORDS: 450 - MOVED: 03/31/2025 4:34 a.m. EDT

https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:d0d55dc94a8cdc629c6c02b706296ae2&mediaType=text

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