Microsoft: Tech giant announces mammoth buyback and hikes dividend September 17, 2024 Tech giant Microsoft has announced a new $60bn share buyback programme and hiked its quarterly dividend by 10 per cent. This new shareholder cash return replaces Microsoft’s previous $60bn programme, which was launched in 2021, and has no set expiration date. According to data from Birinyi Associates, the cash return is the third-largest repurchase scheme [...]
Ireland must recover £11bn in taxes from Apple, EU court rules September 10, 2024 Ireland is required to recover more than 13bn euros (£11bn) in back taxes from Apple, following a decision of Europe’s top court. The European Court of Justice (CJEU) decision restores a 2016 European Commission ruling that Ireland gave undue tax benefits to Apple, which would be illegal under EU state aid rules. Ireland and Apple, [...]
Shares in Apple supplier IQE plunge as guidance disappoints and debt pile grows September 10, 2024 Shares in semiconductor supplier IQE plummeted 14 per cent in early trading on Tuesday after it disappointed investors with weak guidance and as it racked up debt. The Cardiff-based manufacturer of compound wafers used to make semiconductors said its full-year guidance lies at the lower end of consensus forecasts of revenue between £130m and 154m. [...]
Apple unveils Iphone 16 and plans AI tool launch in the coming weeks September 9, 2024 Apple has unveiled the Iphone 16 and revealed launch dates and features of its new artificial intelligence tool, Apple Intelligence.
Apple has ‘significant concerns’ over CMA probe into its Safari mobile browser September 4, 2024 Apple said it has “significant concerns” with the UK competition watchdog investigation into the supply of mobile browsers. In 2022, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched a probe into the dominance of Apple’s Safari browser and Google’s Chrome browser, along with the possibility that Apple may be restricting the cloud gaming market through its [...]
Wall Street carnage continues as Nvidia leads US tech selloff September 4, 2024 A wave of panic selling hit Wall Street on Tuesday, with the S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite, and Dow Jones Industrial Average all suffering their steepest daily percentage declines since early August. The carnage was widespread, with nine of the 11 sectors within the S&P 500 sinking into the red, led by sharp declines in technology, [...]
Google facing £1bn competition lawsuit from professor on behalf of SMEs August 23, 2024 A professor has launched a class action lawsuit against Google on behalf of SMEs he said have been negatively hit by excessive commissions on its Play Store. Competition law professor at the University of Strathclyde, Barry Rodger, has alleged that Google has abused its dominant position by excluding competition in app distribution and by charging [...]
Google and Apple probes dropped by CMA amid pivot to new regime August 21, 2024 The UK’s competition watchdog has decided to close two investigations into Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store, citing a shift in priorities. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) was investigating whether Google and Apple have been using their app stores to put British app developers at a disadvantage. It was concerned the tech giants [...]
Is Google a monopoly? Sort of, but that’s the free market August 20, 2024 How about a little trust in the dynamism of the free market? Writes Matthew Feeney
Nvidia and Apple lead losses as trillions wiped from Nasdaq tech stocks August 5, 2024 Trillions of dollars have been wiped from the Nasdaq-listed tech giants taking a nosedive amid a global stock sell off, as fears of a US recession are causing investors to run for the hills. The so-called Magnificent Seven’s combined market capitalisation has lost at least $2.3t (£1.8t), equal to a 15 per cent slide from [...]