Juul Labs will cease US online sales of its fruity-flavoured e-cigarette pods as it battles a “lack of trust” and pressure from regulators over the health effects of vaping.

Renault has cut its sales and profit guidance for 2019 as the French carmaker grapples with tough market conditions and struggles to reboot its alliance with Japan’s Nissan.

United Group, a private equity-owned cable company, is in exclusive talks to buy Vivacom, Bulgaria’s largest telecoms group, according to people familiar with the situation.

BHP touted its green credentials on Thursday, even as nearly a quarter of its UK shareholders supported an investor resolution calling on the world’s largest miner to end its membership of lobbying groups for the industry.

Industrial production in the US declined sharply in September, driven by weakness in mining, as lower global oil prices hit America’s oil patch, and automobile production, after a strike at General Motors.

Dubai’s biggest lender is to launch a rights issue planning to raise 6.45bn UAE dirhams ($1.76bn) as it seeks capital to fund its expansion.

The German government has revised down its forecast for economic growth next year from 1.5 per cent to 1 per cent, in a further sign of the slowdown that is clouding the prospects for the eurozone’s largest economy.

Investment in European food and agritech start-ups is expected to more than double this year as corporate and generalist venture capital groups increased funding in what has been regarded as a niche market.

Russia has said that a solution to the crisis in Syria must involve the transfer of control over the Turkish-Syrian border to Damascus.

UK retail sales stagnated in September after falling the previous month, adding to concerns about the resilience of consumer spending.

Domino’s Pizza Group is pulling out of four European markets as it continues its search for a new chief executive and chairman.

Unilever delivered weaker-than-expected third-quarter sales as slowdowns hit in India and China and a hoped-for recovery in Latin America failed to materialise.

UK retailer WH Smith plans to double its international travel business and strengthen its presence in the $3bn US airport market with a deal to buy Marshall Retail Group.

Nestlé, the world’s biggest food and drinks maker, pledged to return SFr20bn ($20.2bn) to shareholders over the next three years after completing the sale of its skin health business. 

Mining company BHP will decide whether to go ahead with a giant Canadian potash project in 2021 after it has spent a further $345m on final preparation work.

IBM came up short of Wall Street’s revenue expectations in the latest quarter, as the acquisition of open source company Red Hat failed to stem a 3.9 per cent decline that partly reflected signs of growing business uncertainty in Europe.

Global stocks were mostly weaker on Wednesday as geopolitical tension stemming from Brexit and Hong Kong were weighed up alongside US earnings and disappointing retail sales figures.

Many businesses have lowered their outlooks for the next year, with companies in the Midwest and Great Plains particularly downbeat, according to the Fed Beige Book’s report of conversations with local business leaders around the US.

General Motors and the United Auto Workers union reached a tentative agreement on a new labour deal, paving the way for an end to the month-long strike that has rippled across the car maker’s North American operations and cost it around $2bn.

Sterling rose in choppy trading on Wednesday as expectations for tumult in the currency markets swelled with talks between UK and EU negotiators set to resume in a final push for a Brexit deal.

American shoppers curbed their spending last month, raising new questions about how much longer they can continue to support the economy as global growth falters.

Bank of America reported industry-leading growth in investment banking fees, driving better than expected quarterly results despite headwinds from a slower US economy, lower interest rates, and choppy markets.

The London Metal Exchange will raise its fees for the first time in five years next year, as its owner Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing looks to recoup its investment in the 142-year-old exchange.

Eurozone inflation slowed to its lowest level in nearly three years and further diverged from the central bank’s target as exports contracted, raising fears of a sharp economic slowdown.