Company news in brief

Ford invests in Thai auto plantsFord Motor Co is investing US$900 million to upgrade factories in Thailand that build its Ranger pickup truck and Everest SUV, its largest-ever investment in the country.The plan includes a near doubling of the number of robots at its Thai manufacturing plant and at AutoAlliance Thailand, a venture with Mazda Motor Corp, while US$400 million of the investment will go towards its supply chain network.It will also add a second shift to the Ford plant which will result in as many as 1 250 new jobs, bringing its workforce in Thailand to more than 9 000.The move contrasts with the closures of three of its plants in Brazil this year, part of a US$11 billion global restructuring and its strategy to achieve 8% global operating margins. It is also pulling out of production in India where it has long struggled to make profit.Thailand is Asia's fourth-largest auto assembly and export hub, accounting for about 10% of the country's GDP and manufacturing jobs. - ReutersRussia fines Google over contentRussia fined Alphabet's Google 9 million roubles (US$121 000), a Moscow court said on Tuesday, in the latest in a string of penalties against the technology giant for failing to delete content the government deems illegal.Moscow has increased pressure on foreign tech companies this year in a campaign that critics characterise as an attempt by the authorities to exert tighter control over the Internet, something they say threatens to stifle individual and corporate freedom.Google and Meta Platforms both face court cases this month for repeated violations of Russian legislation on content and could be fined a percentage of their annual revenue in Russia.Moscow's Tagansky District Court on Tuesday said Google had been fined, citing legislation which said this may include posts containing extremist activities, child pornography or the promotion of drug use.Google has paid more than 32 million roubles in fines this year and has significantly reduced the number of posts prohibited by Moscow, the company and Russia have said. - ReutersNestle trims L'Oreal stakeNestle SA will cut its stake in L'Oreal to about 20% by selling shares worth 8.9 billion euro (US$10 billion) back to the French cosmetics brand, moving to reduce the weight of the beauty giant on its books for the first time in 7 years.The Nescafe maker's holding in the beauty giant has been subject of intense scrutiny over the years, and the Swiss company has maintained its interest was both financial and strategic, even when activist investor Third Point urged disposal in mid 2017. Since then, L'Oreal shares have more than doubled.Following the deal, Nestle said it would own 20.1% of L'Oreal, down from 23.3% previously. L'Oreal, meanwhile, would buy back shares representing 4% of its capital and cancel them at the latest on Aug. 29.L'Oreal, which is paying 400 euro per share, said the deal will have an accretive effect on the company's earnings per share of more than 4% in a full year. The beauty company is paying with cash and debt.As a result of the transaction, which is expected to close in the coming days, the Bettencourt Meyers family, will see their stake rise to 34.7% from 33.3%, but will not be required to launch a takeover offer, as normally required for passing ownership thresholds above one-third of the capital. - REutersAirbus gets order boost Airbus delivered 58 airplanes in November, leaving itself the task of speeding up monthly deliveries to 82 in December to reach an end-year target of 600, company data showed.The European planemaker booked 318 new orders after a busy Dubai Airshow, but removed or took cancelations for 75 jets including 28 A320neos for Mexico's Interjet, which halted operations last December and has been in debt talks.Between January and November, Airbus delivered 518 jets and sold 610, or a net total of 368 after adjusting for cancellations, the company said in a monthly bulletin.Airbus deliveries frequently surge in the final month of the year but supply chain problems have dampened the pace of deliveries from Hamburg in Germany, industry sources say.Airline executives say a handful of deliveries have been pushed back into next year. - ReutersKellogg to permanently replace striking employeesKellogg Co said a majority of its US cereal plant workers have voted against a new five-year contract, forcing it to hire permanent replacements as employees extend a strike that started more than two months ago.Temporary replacements have already been working at the company's cereal plants in Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Tennessee where 1 400 union members went on strike on Oct. 5 as their contracts expired and talks over payment and benefits stalled.Kellogg also said there was no further bargaining scheduled and it had no plans to meet with the union.The company said "unrealistic expectations" created by the union meant none of its six offers, including the latest one that was put to vote, which proposed wage increases and allowed all transitional employees with four or more years of service to move to legacy positions, came to fruition.Kellogg is among several US firms, including Deere & Co, that has faced worker strikes in recent months as the labour market tightens. -Reuters

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