Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Thyssenkrupp steel workers protest against job cuts

THOUSANDS of Thyssenkrupp steelworkers in Germany on Tuesday (3) protested against planned job cuts, accusing bosses at the struggling conglomerate of mismanagement after a failed merger bid with India’s Tata steel.

Germany's powerful IG Metall union said 6,000 workers gathered at Thyssenkrupp's Steel Europe headquarters in Duisburg to vent their anger.


The group, which makes products from raw steel to submarines and car parts, has said it intends to axe at least 6,000 jobs globally, including 2,000 in the troubled steel division.

Armed with flares, flags and whistles in IG Metall's red-and-white colours, employees urged Thyssenkrupp to preserve jobs and invest more to give the steel unit a better chance in a challenging environment.

"We need fresh money. All we've had these past few years is cost-cutting programmes," steelworker Joerg Jakob told DPA news agency at the demo.

In a statement, Thyssenkrupp said it would flesh out its plan for the steel unit in coming weeks and has already committed to ploughing €570 million a year into the division.

But labour representatives are demanding nearly three times as much.

"Incompetent managers have run this company into the ground," Tekin Nasikkol, head of Thyssenkrupp's Steel Europe works council, told DPA.

Thyssenkrupp hit back, saying it believed "in the future of steel" and wanted to make its steel business competitive in the long run.

The European Commission's decision last June to block the merger with the Indian steel business, however, meant that "far-reaching measures" were necessary to turn around the division.

"But the financial resources we make available must be commensurate with the expected returns," it stressed, adding that the company's room to manoeuvre was "limited".

Hit with the Tata setback, a damaging internal power struggle and a slowing global economy, Thyssenkrupp booked a net loss of €304m in the year to September.

To help fund a painful restructuring, Thyssenkrupp is planning a sale or a stock market flotation of its highly profitable elevators arm.

And it has not ruled out further job losses among the group's 160,000 employees.

(AFP)

More For You

FCA warns against regulatory 'race to bottom' in growth push
Nikhil Rathi
TOLGA AKMEN

FCA warns against regulatory 'race to bottom' in growth push

FINANCIAL REGULATOR has cautioned against compromising regulatory standards while attempting to boost economic growth, revealing the delicate balancing act facing Britain's financial oversight.

In a frank discussion with MPs, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) leadership highlighted the challenges of their expanded mandate to promote business competitiveness alongside consumer protection, reported the Times.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sanjay Bhandari's extradition appeal opens in London
Sanjay Bhandari

Sanjay Bhandari's extradition appeal opens in London

SANJAY BHANDARI, a consultant in the defence sector wanted in India on alleged tax evasion and money-laundering charges, began an appeal in the High Court in London against his extradition order.

The 62-year-old businessman had won permission to appeal against a November 2022 Westminster Magistrates’ Court ruling clearing his extradition earlier this year.

Keep ReadingShow less
Rupert Murdoch looks on as he walks on the day of the hearing on the contentious matter of succession of Rupert Murdoch's global television and publishing empire, in Reno, Nevada, US, September 23, 2024. (Photo: Reuters)
Rupert Murdoch looks on as he walks on the day of the hearing on the contentious matter of succession of Rupert Murdoch's global television and publishing empire, in Reno, Nevada, US, September 23, 2024. (Photo: Reuters)

Murdoch's bid to secure eldest son's control of media empire fails

RUPERT MURDOCH’s attempt to secure control of his media empire for his eldest son, Lachlan, has reportedly failed, according to a US news report on Monday.

The Murdoch family, which oversees influential outlets like Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and various British and Australian media organisations, has often been compared to the fictional dynasty in the TV series Succession. Like the show, real-life disputes within the Murdoch family have centred on control of the business after Rupert Murdoch’s death.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kamlesh Pattni faces UK sanctions for illicit gold trade
Pattni stands accused of central involvement in the infamous Goldenberg scandal. (Representational image: iStock)

Kamlesh Pattni faces UK sanctions for illicit gold trade

THE UK and US have imposed financial sanctions on Kamlesh Pattni, a British-Kenyan businessman with a controversial financial history. The punitive measures target Pattni and four of his close family members, including his wife and brother-in-law, reported the BBC.

The sanctions, announced by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, will result in the immediate freezing of assets, representing a significant intervention in what officials describe as a complex network of illicit gold trading spanning multiple African nations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sanjay Malhotra speaks during the 67th Foundation Day of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in New Delhi on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)
Sanjay Malhotra speaks during the 67th Foundation Day of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in New Delhi on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

India appoints Sanjay Malhotra as new central bank governor

INDIA has appointed Sanjay Malhotra, a senior finance ministry bureaucrat, as the new governor of its central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The announcement was made on Monday, a day before the term of outgoing governor Shaktikanta Das was set to expire.

Keep ReadingShow less