Zara Billionaire Ortega Buys Hotel in Paris for $113 Million
Ortega's family office Pontegadea acquired the building from Derby Hotels, a spokesman for the Spanish firm said, confirming a report in newspaper Expansion. The five-star hotel is located in central Paris, near the Palais Garnier opera theater.
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TotalEnergies' quarterly earnings drop amid market challenges
French oil giant TotalEnergies' adjusted net income fell to $3.6bn (€3.07bn) for the second quarter of 2025 (Q2 2025), down from $4.7bn in the same period last year. The decline was attributed to lower oil and gas prices, which overshadowed gains from increased production and power sales. The company's first-half adjusted net income stood at $7.8bn. Net debt surged by 89% compared to the previous year, reaching $25.9bn. This increase in debt pushed the gearing ratio, including leases, to 22.6%. Despite this, TotalEnergies continued its share buyback programme, extending a $2bn buyback into Q3. CEO Patrick Pouyanne clarified that the company's normalised gearing ratio, which measures debt to equity, stood at 15%, reported Reuters. He assured that this figure would remain stable throughout the year, bolstered by the anticipated $3.5bn in proceeds from the sale of renewable asset stakes and the disposal of mature oil and gas assets in Nigeria, Brazil and other regions. Despite a 14% rise in quarterly profit to $574m in TotalEnergies' integrated power business, this was not enough to counteract weaker performances in other divisions. The refining and chemicals segment saw earnings plummet by 39% from the previous year. The refining margin for converting crude into fuels also dropped by 21% year-on-year (YoY) to $35.3 per tonne (t), although there is an expectation that margins will improve to above $50/t in Q3 due to heightened fuel demand during Europe's summer driving season. The integrated liquefied natural gas (LNG) unit reported a 9.6% decrease in profit YoY and a 20% fall from Q1 2025. The subdued prices and lack of volatility restricted traders' ability to capitalise on price fluctuations. Looking ahead, TotalEnergies forecasts a 3% rise in hydrocarbon production in Q3 compared with the same period last year. Earlier this month, the Government of Mozambique established essential conditions for the revival of TotalEnergies' $20bn LNG project. The project, which was suspended in 2021 because of an insurgency linked to the Islamic State, is now set to resume. "TotalEnergies' quarterly earnings drop amid market challenges" was originally created and published by Offshore Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
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Alexander Isak eyes Newcastle exit with Liverpool monitoring situation
Alexander Isak wants to explore options at other clubs and a transfer away from Newcastle United, potentially throwing Eddie Howe's summer plans into chaos. The 25-year-old was not included in last week's friendly defeat to Celtic due to "speculation" around his future, and has now not travelled to Singapore for pre-season due to a thigh injury. Newcastle have been made aware that Isak is keen to consider his future elsewhere. The Independent understands that Howe had already privately told prominent figures at the club this summer that he was concerned about the player's situation. That view also precedes reports of Liverpool's public interest last week. Newcastle's position remains the same, however, which is that Isak is not for sale. Their stance has also been bolstered by the fact that he still has three years left on his current contract. There are also no ongoing talks over a new deal. An offer in the region of £150m may test that, though, especially with the knowledge that the player wants to consider his options. The big question, however, is where such an offer comes from. There are only about eight clubs that could afford such a deal, but almost none of them have the PSR headroom or squad need to make it happen. Liverpool have just spent £79m on Hugo Ekitike, a deal that had been linked to Isak's future given Newcastle's own interest in the French forward. That feasibly rules them out of a future move, although there is the potential twist should Darwin Nunez or Luis Diaz leave. Liverpool do have PSR headroom but want to ensure they have a sustainable squad with a manageable wage bill. Bayern Munich have spoken to Liverpool about Diaz, but it has not yet reached the point of an offer. Liverpool's current stance is that they are comfortable with their options at centre-forward and feel they have their number-nine in Ekitike, but a move for Isak this window has not been ruled out. Mikel Arteta has long been an admirer of the Swede, and would have love to do a deal, but it is seen as virtually impossible that Arsenal's Kroenke ownership will extend the budget. The club are also on the brink of signing Sporting CP's Viktor Gyokeres for less than half of Isak's anticipated price. Chelsea have now ruled out a move, despite previous interest in Isak, and representing one of the few clubs with the available budget. Any move for Isak would have also required a deviation from recent targets, as they continue to pursue moves for Xavi Simons and Jarrel Hato. While virtually every club sees Isak as an outstanding talent, there is some doubt about whether £150m is worth it for a player who has recently struggled to consistently play in full European schedules without injury.
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Inditex Has a Flights and Rights Problem, Activists Say
When a slew of labor and environmental campaigners converged outside Inditex's annual meeting in the Spanish port city of A Coruña last week, it wasn't to wish the Zara owner a happy 50th anniversary. Representatives from Campagna Abiti Puliti, the Clean Clothes Campaign, Fair, Fondazione Finanza Etica, Public Eye and Sete—to name a few—were there, instead, to take the fast fashion OG to task for what they said are its 'severe' environmental and human rights failures, including a reliance on air freight transportation and its alleged failure to get its suppliers to drop outstanding criminal charges against workers in who protested the insufficiency of Bangladesh's minimum wage in 2023. More from Sourcing Journal US DOT Slams Mexico Over Relocation of Air Cargo Flights As US Tariff Pressure Grows, Can Bangladesh Still Manifest a Just Transition? Trump's Trade War Could Kill Lesotho's Garment Industry It's the least that the Spanish conglomerate, which gleaned a record profit of 4.5 billion euros ($5.3 billion) in 2024, can do, they said. And though Inditex has since posted weaker-than-expected earnings in the first fiscal quarter of 2025—the result, it said, of a slower start to its summer sales because of cooler weather, along with overall economic uncertainty—it still managed to eke by with 8.3 billion euros ($9.7 billion), just a a hair short of the 8.4 billion euros ($9.8 billion) forecast by LSEG analysts. Net income also came in at 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) for the quarter, a rounding error less than what was expected. A spokesperson said that Inditex, which also operates Bershka, Massimo Dutti and Pull&Bear, declined to comment. David Hachfeld, textiles expert at Public Eye, was among those calling Inditex to pull back on its 'airborne fashion.' A report from the Swiss watchdog group said that the retail giant's transport emissions jumped by 37 percent in the 2023 fiscal year. In 2024, Inditex's greenhouse gas emissions from transport and distribution rose by another 10 percent, surpassing 2.6 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and making up 20 percent of the group's total footprint. In contrast, H&M Group keeps air freight under 1 percent of its transport emissions. 'Inditex should publish transparent data on its cargo flights and set clear targets for a logistics model that functions without these climate-damaging practices,' said Hachfeld, urging the company to begin a phase-out that starts with 'being honest' and extends into redesigning a logistics system that's less reliant on flights. Zipping clothing in the skies also has implications beyond fossil fuel pollution that leads to greater climate precarity, Public Eye said. It indicates that larger orders are being split into multiple smaller ones with truncated delivery times that can increase deadline pressures on workers, increasing the risk of forced overtime or subcontracting to shadier outfits. The practice is a hallmark of the 'test and repeat' model that gauges how the first couple of deliveries perform before putting rush orders on popular styles. Unfair contractual conditions that leave no wiggle room for unscheduled delays, say because of last-minute change requests or other hiccups, can also lead to unplanned air transportation, Hachfeld said. 'Above all, Inditex is still uttering the refrain about its well-known climate target of net zero by 2040,' he added. 'If the fashion giant does not change its course and start taking measures to protect the climate, air freight volumes at the airport are likely to increase.' Likewise, Inditex could be doing more to address a pre-Sheikh Hasina crackdown on labor rights that hasn't completely lifted, said Bogu Gojdź, public outreach coordinator at the Clean Clothes Campaign, the garment industry's largest consortium of trade unions and labor rights groups. Nearly 3,000 workers in Inditex's supply chain are still facing prison 'simply for demanding livable wages,' she said, calling the threat of arrest on blanket charges a 'brutal intimidation' tactic that the company has the leverage to stop. 'Its failure to do so makes it complicit in the repression of workers who make their profits,' Gojdź said. More protestors took to the streets outside Inditex stores in cities such as Barcelona and Milan to wave picket signs. Social and climate justice are interconnected, said Deborah Lucchetti, president of Fair and spokesperson for Campagna Abiti Puliti. 'Activists and consumers are demanding clarity from the Spanish giant on its risk mitigation policies for truly responsible business conduct,' she said. 'The demand for a living wage from the workers who make its clothes and the demand to abandon the reckless use of fossil fuels to transport them are two sides of the same struggle.' But despite a request by Fondazione Finanza Etica, the Italian member of Shareholders for Change, a group of institutional investors engaged in progressive causes, to read a statement explaining why it voted against the 2024-2025 Consolidated Sustainability Report, this did not happen, the organization said. In addition, none of the questions sent in writing before the meeting regarding an air-freight phase-out, protection of workers' rights in Bangladesh and an independent review of Inditex's business model received any response, said FFE analyst Mauro Meggiolaro. 'This is not how an AGM should function,' Meggiolaro said, using an acronym for annual general meeting. 'It shows a lack of respect for concerned shareholders.' Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Melden Sie sich an, um Ihr Portfolio aufzurufen. Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten Fehler beim Abrufen der Daten
