The economic landscape has presented an array of challenges that have profoundly affected the business community this year.
Category: TRENDS ON THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC FRONT – Nov 11 2025
WHEN THE ECONOMY FALLS, JOBS GO WITH IT
As AI continues to take over human jobs, IBM announced a restructuring to focus on software development, cloud services and AI, which could result in 2,700 to 5,000 layoffs.
SPOTLIGHT: BIGS GETTING BIGGER
Civitas Resources and SM Energy are merging in an all-stock deal worth $13 billion that will create a major natural gas producer in the shale-rich Permian Basin underlying Texas and New Mexico.
SPECIAL REPORT: THE WORLD’S SHRINKING MANUFACTURING SECTOR
Donald Trump’s recent trade negotiations with China and South Korea seemed positive, but they did little to soothe concerns among the region’s exporters about U.S. demand, Reuters reported.
BANKS ATTACK ECB’S PLAN FOR A DIGITAL EURO
A battalion of 14 European banks—including heavyweights BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, and ING—have warned that the European Central Bank’s (ECB’s) plan to issue a digital euro will undermine the private sector’s payment system.
OIL DEMAND WILL KEEP RISING UNTIL 2040, OIL MAJOR SAYS
Concerns over energy security, the U.S.’s slower-than-expected switch to electric cars, and political fragmentation exemplified by the current tariff war are among factors that will drive oil demand steadily higher until about 2040, French oil major TotalEnergies wrote in its annual outlook report.
AI STOCK SURGE SPARKS FEARS OF A BUBBLE IN ASIAN MARKETS
Just six companies deeply involved in the boom in artificial intelligence (AI) technology have driven half the gains in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng stock index this year, according to calculations by the Financial Times.
EUROZONE SPENDING TICKS DOWN AS CONSUMER SENTIMENT RISES
The amount of goods and services consumers bought among the 20 countries sharing the euro currency ticked down by 0.1 percent in October, despite a survey of consumer confidence that found consumers to be more optimistic than at any time since February.







