Business
Chinese firms increasingly replaced German imports and expanded exports of higher-value auto and steel parts to Europe, while Beijing introduced an H‑1B-style visa and German officials proposed raw-material measures.
Apollo Sports Capital acquired a majority stake in Atlético de Madrid, buying roughly 57% in a deal valuing the club near $2.5 billion, with current leaders staying.
Pfizer agreed to buy biotech Metsera for about $10 billion after winning an auction prompted by a competing bid from Novo Nordisk, which withdrew its offer.
An Austrian court extended Signa founder René Benko's pretrial detention until mid-January as he faced charges including fraud, embezzlement and breach of trust.
Rumble, the U.S. video platform known for ties to right‑wing influencers and Truth Social, acquired German cloud and data‑center operator Northern Data, with the purchase price unclear.
Diageo named former Tesco chief Sir Dave Lewis as its new chief executive, effective 1 January, aiming to revive the FTSE 100 drinks group's fortunes as shares jumped.
Across Europe, many low-paid workers reported monthly incomes of €305–€556, and Italian vintner Bottega said he would give employees €1,250 as a one-off supplement.
