MORNING NEWS

Primark said its chief executive officer, Paul Marchant, resigned after an investigation into alleged inappropriate behavior, ending his 16-year tenure at the helm of the clothing retailer. The business, part of conglomerate Associated British Foods, said Monday that Marchant’s departure followed a probe into an allegation made by a woman about his behavior toward her in a social environment. He admitted an error of judgment and accepted that his actions fell below the standards expected, the company said.

Elon Musk’s artificial-intelligence startup xAI has acquired X, the social-media platform he also owns, in an all-stock transaction that fuses two of the billionaire’s biggest technology bets and assigns the new enterprise a lofty value. The combination values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, Musk said in a social-media post announcing the acquisition. The new valuations were determined during negotiations between the two Musk arms, which both had the same advisers, people familiar with the matter said.

Holcim is holding a capital market day to provide information about its future after the planned spin-off of its US business, known as ‘Amrize’. Holcim wants to create added value for its shareholders with its ‘NextGen Growth 2030’ strategy. For example, targeted investments in the most attractive markets are planned, Holcim announced on Friday in the run-up to the event. And the share of sales in the high value-added ‘Building Solutions’ segment, i.e. with building systems, concrete and flooring, is to be increased to half of Group turnover by 2030.

President Trump said he would impose 25% tariffs on global automotive imports to the U.S., making good on pledges to penalize foreign makers of cars and trucks. "What we're going to be doing is a 25% tariff on all cars not made in the U.S.," Trump said Wednesday in the Oval Office, appearing to dispel any chance of an exemption for countries such as Canada and Mexico, which have a free-trade agreement with the U.S. The U.S. will start collecting the auto tariffs on April 3, Trump said, the day after he is set to announce a broader slate of trade actions.

Shell (+1.5%) said it is targeting hydrocarbon production growth and plans to further increase shareholder returns as the energy giant outlined its strategy for the next five years at its capital markets day. The London-listed company said Tuesday that its new strategy will deliver more value with less emissions and includes increased cost-reduction target and lower capital expenditure. Its update comes weeks after British peer BP jettisoned its low-carbon strategy and cut spending on energy-transition assets in favour of core oil-and-gas production. Shell said it would grow top-line production across its upstream and integrated gas business by 1% a year through 2030. This will sustain its 1.4 million barrels a day of liquids production through 2030, it said.

Eye care company Alcon (+2.3%), Inc. (ALC) and medical technology company LENSAR, Inc. (LNSR) announced Monday the companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement through which Alcon intends to acquire LENSAR. The acquisition includes ALLY Robotic Cataract Laser Treatment System, LENSAR's proprietary Streamline software technology and LENSAR legacy laser system, building Alcon's femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS) offering. Under the terms of the agreement, Alcon will purchase all outstanding shares of LENSAR for $14.00 per share in cash or an aggregate implied value of approximately $356 million, with an additional non-tradeable contingent value right offering up to $2.75 per share in cash, conditioned on achievement of 614,000 cumulative procedures with LENSAR's products between January 1, 2026, and December 31, 2027.

NIO’s fourth-quarter net loss unexpectedly widened as higher costs outpaced sales growth after the carmaker launched two subbrands last year amid intensifying competition in China’s electric-vehicle market. The Shanghai-based automaker said Friday that its net loss widened to 7.13 billion yuan, equivalent to $983.7 million, from 5.59 billion yuan a year earlier. Revenue rose 15% to 19.70 billion yuan. The results missed consensus estimates of a 4.63 billion yuan loss on revenue of 22.22 billion yuan, according to a Visible Alpha poll. The weaker-than-expected figures suggest that NIO is facing cost-control challenges and raises the question whether it can boost sales amid a saturated Chinese EV industry. For the full year, NIO’s net loss widened to 22.66 billion yuan, while its revenue rose 18% to 65.73 billion yuan.

Tesla is recalling more than 46,000 Cybertrucks over the potential for an exterior panel to fall off. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said a cosmetic appliqué along the exterior of the vehicles, known as the cant rail, can delaminate and detach from the vehicle, which the agency said could create a road hazard for motorists. The cant rail is a long piece of metal trim over the left and right side windows.

A consortium which includes BlackRock and German insurer Allianz agreed to buy Viridium Group from European buyout firm Cinven for around 3.5 billion euros ($3.83 billion). The deal allows Cinven to exit its majority stake in the European consolidator of closed books of insurance policies after more than a decade of ownership. In 2013, Cinven bought Viridium from U.K. lender Lloyds Banking Group for around 300 million euros with a view of using the group as a base from which to consolidate Germany’s fragmented life-insurance market.

Google parent Alphabet agreed to acquire cybersecurity startup Wiz for $32 billion, in a massive bid to bolster its cloud business that has struggled to keep up with rivals. The all-cash deal would be Google’s largest ever and also the biggest deal struck so far in 2025. The Wall Street Journal reported Monday evening that the talks between the two companies were advanced and an agreement could be reached soon.