Articles by AFP
Following Prada takeover: 5 things to know about Versace
Italian fashion giant Versace, the long-held family business known for its flashy, sexy designs and Medusa head logo, will now become part of Prada, its larger rival and polar opposite in terms of style. The 1.25 billion euro acquisition, announced Thursday, aims to breathe new life into Versace, whose highs and lows have included the 1997...
Fashion 9 hours ago
Tariffs: US textile buyers in Bangladesh have suspended orders, according to manufacturers
American buyers have begun suspending orders from Bangladesh, the world's second-largest garment manufacturer, following the increase in US tariffs, leading the interim Bangladeshi government to call on Monday for a three-month suspension of these taxes. Textile and garment production accounts for approximately 80 percent of the exports of this...
BusinessMember14 hours ago
EU greenlights first set of tariffs hitting back at US
The EU on Wednesday adopted its first measures hitting back at President Donald Trump's tariff onslaught, targeting more than 20 billion euros of US goods including soybeans, motorcycles and beauty products. The levies of up to 25 percent are retaliation for US duties on steel and aluminium imposed last month -- with Europe's response to Trump's...
BusinessMember16 hours ago
Stocks tank, havens rally as Trump tariffs fan trade war
Equity markets tumbled Thursday after Donald Trump delivered a "haymaker" blow with sweeping tariffs against US partners and rivals, fanning a global trade war that many fear will spark recessions and ramp up inflation. Tokyo's Nikkei led Asia's selloff, briefly collapsing more than four percent, while US futures plunged with oil prices, safe...
BusinessMember3 Apr 2025
Trump orders end to duty-free relief for small parcels from China
US President Donald Trump signed an order Wednesday to close a duty-free exemption for small parcels from China, in a move likely to severely disrupt the import of popular low-cost products. The rule has faced heavy scrutiny as US officials pointed to the growth of Chinese-founded online retailers Shein and Temu as a factor behind a surge of...
BusinessMember3 Apr 2025
Amazon makes last-minute bid for TikTok: report
Amazon has made a last-minute bid to buy TikTok, which faces a US ban if not sold by its Chinese owner, the New York Times reported on Wednesday. The offer arrived in a letter to officials involved in talks regarding the sale of TikTok to appease US national security concerns, according to the New York Times. Amazon declined to comment on the...
BusinessMember3 Apr 2025
C&A continues its restructuring, 300 jobs threatened in France
Paris - Dutch fashion brand C&A, established in France for over 50 years and which has been restructuring its store network for several years, has just announced a new project that puts more than 300 jobs at risk. Announced to its employees on March 14, the new workforce reduction plan has not gone down well with the unions, particularly the CGT...
BusinessMember24 Mar 2025
Snoopy the fashion icon celebrated in Paris exhibition
A new exhibition opened Saturday in Paris charting the emergence of Snoopy as a fashion icon, with the famed black-and-white beagle embraced by designers from streetwear brands to couture houses. The show at the Hotel du Grand Veneur in the Marais neighbourhood is part of the celebrations for the 75th anniversary of Snoopy, Charlie Brown and the...
Culture24 Mar 2025
Temu's Chinese owner sees revenue growth slow
Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings announced Thursday slower revenue growth for the third quarter running, as the Temu owner confronts trade tensions between Beijing and Washington. The Shanghai-based company posted revenues of 110 billion yuan ($15 billion) in the three months to December 31, up 24 percent year-on-year. The figure was down...
BusinessMember20 Mar 2025
New generation of Afghan women shift from burqa
Young, urban women in Afghanistan are increasingly ditching the all-enveloping blue burqa with a face mesh that has become a symbol of the Taliban's oppression of women. Since their return to power in 2021, the Taliban have imposed an ultra-strict vision of Islamic law, modelled on their previous rule from 1996 to 2001. But while women must...
Fashion 19 Mar 2025