BT to appoint Virgin Media O2's Cobian as CFO, Telegraph reports
Cobian held the finance chief position at Telefonica's UK mobile network O2 since 2016, before transitioning to the same role at Virgin Media O2 following the completion of the 50-50 joint venture between Telefonica and Liberty Global in 2021.
BT and Virgin Media O2 declined to comment on the report.
Cobian would join BT at a time when it is looking to cut costs through layoffs and advances in artificial intelligence.
"Depending on what we learn from AI . . . there may be an opportunity for BT to be even smaller by the end of the decade," Chief Executive Allison Kirkby told Financial Times in June.
The company said in 2023 that it planned to cut as many as 55,000 jobs, including contractors, by 2030.
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EU, US strike biggest trade deal
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CNA
11 hours ago
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EU, US strike 'biggest-ever' trade deal
TURNBERRY, United Kingdom: The United States and European Union on Sunday (Jul 27) clinched what President Donald Trump described as the "biggest-ever" deal to resolve a transatlantic tariff stand-off that threatened to explode into a full-blown trade war. Trump emerged from a high-stakes meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at his golf resort in Scotland to announce that a baseline tariff of 15 percent would be levied on EU exports to the US. The deal, which the leaders struck in around an hour, came as the clock ticked down on an Aug 1 deadline to avoid an across-the-board US levy of 30 percent on European goods. "We've reached a deal. It's a good deal for everybody. This is probably the biggest deal ever reached in any capacity," said Trump. Trump said the 15-percent tariff would apply across the board, including for Europe's crucial automobile sector, pharmaceuticals and semiconductors. As part of the deal, Trump said the 27-nation EU bloc had agreed to purchase "US$750 billion worth of energy" from the United States, as well as make US$600 billion in additional investments. Von der Leyen said the "significant" purchases of US liquefied natural gas, oil and nuclear fuels would come over three years, as part of the bloc's bid to diversify away from Russian sources. Negotiating on behalf of the EU's 27 countries, von der Leyen had been pushing hard to salvage a trading relationship worth an annual US$1.9 trillion in goods and services. "It's a good deal," the EU chief told reporters. "It will bring stability. It will bring predictability. That's very important for our businesses on both sides of the Atlantic," she said. She said bilateral tariff exemptions had been agreed on a number of "strategic products," notably aircraft, certain chemicals, some agricultural products and critical raw materials. Von der Leyen said the EU still hoped to secure further so-called "zero-for-zero" agreements, notably for alcohol, which she hoped to be "sorted out" in coming days. Trump also said EU countries, which recently pledged to ramp up their defence spending within NATO, would be purchasing "hundreds of billions of dollars worth of military equipment." 'Best we could get' The EU has been hit by multiple waves of tariffs since Trump reclaimed the White House. It is currently subject to a 25-percent levy on cars, 50 percent on steel and aluminium, and an across-the-board tariff of 10 percent, which Washington threatened to hike to 30 percent in a no-deal scenario. The bloc had been pushing hard for tariff carve-outs for critical industries from aircraft to spirits, and its auto industry, crucial for France and Germany, is already reeling from the levies imposed so far. "Fifteen percent is not to be underestimated, but it is the best we could get," acknowledged von der Leyen. Any deal will need to be approved by EU member states, whose ambassadors, on a visit to Greenland, were updated by the commission Sunday morning. They were set to meet again after the deal struck in Scotland. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz rapidly hailed the deal, saying it avoided "needless escalation in transatlantic trade relations". The EU had pushed for a compromise on steel that could allow a certain quota into the United States before tariffs would apply. Trump appeared to rule that out, saying steel was "staying the way it is", but the EU chief insisted later that "tariffs will be cut and a quota system will be put in place" for steel. 'The big one' While 15 percent is much higher than pre-existing US tariffs on European goods, which average around 4.8 percent, it mirrors the status quo, with companies currently facing an additional flat rate of 10 percent. Had the talks failed, EU states had greenlit counter tariffs on US$109 billion of US goods including aircraft and cars to take effect in stages from Aug 7. Trump has embarked on a campaign to reshape US trade with the world, and has vowed to hit dozens of countries with punitive tariffs if they do not reach a pact with Washington by Aug 1.
CNA
11 hours ago
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Euro gains as investors cautiously welcome US-EU trade deal
NEW YORK: Investors cautiously embraced news of a trade deal on Sunday (Jul 27) between the US and European Union that is expected to bring clarity for companies and some certainty to markets ahead of US President Donald Trump's Friday tariffs deadline. The euro rose against the US dollar, up 0.27 percent at US$1.177. The currency also gained 0.2 percent against both the pound and the Japanese yen. Trump announced the United States has struck a framework trade deal with the EU that includes a 15 percent tariff on EU goods entering the US and significant EU purchases of US energy and military equipment. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the deal includes "cars, semiconductors and pharmas." The deal is similar to parts of the framework agreement the US clinched with Japan last week. "It's really in line with the Japan deal, and I assume investors will view it positively as they viewed the Japan deal," said Rick Meckler, partner at Cherry Lane Investments in New Vernon, New Jersey. Optimism over easing trade tensions broadly helped push US stocks to record highs last week and lifted European shares to their highest since early June. Trump's Apr 2 "Liberation Day" announcement of sweeping global tariffs sent stocks plunging in the immediate aftermath, due to spiking fears about a recession that have since faded. "I don't think equities in particular needed much of an excuse to rally and now they've got one," said Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone in London. Still, investors have been bracing for increased volatility heading into Aug 1, which the US has set as a deadline for raising levies on a broad swath of trading partners. "We will need to see how long the sides stick to the deal. From a market perspective, it is reassuring in the sense that having a deal is better than not having a deal," Eric Winograd, chief economist at investment management firm AllianceBernstein, said about the EU agreement.
