Volkswagen announces up to 7,000 job cuts

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Germany since the Russian invasion in March. They were promised access to housing, financial support and the job market. But things have not been that easy.

Porsche CEO Oliver Blume has begun his dual role as the head of Volkswagen. Blume is taking over at a sensitive time for the German carmaker, as it tries to pull off a shift to electric vehicles.

As households and businesses face rising energy bills, the EU's Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights is stressing the importance of supporting small and medium-sized businesses all over Europe. "A lot of households and household incomes depend on the survival of SMEs. That's why it's important to support businesses and particularly SMEs," Nicolas Schmit told FRANCE 24's Armen Georgian. Schmit also discussed the latest developments on minimum wages and the regulation of platforms such as Uber Eats and Deliveroo.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says he won't cause a deep recession but that "pain" is necessary to fight inflation. To curb the largest price increases in four decades, the US Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates this year.

The former British finance minister is seen as favorite to win the Conservative Party leadership race after former Prime Minister Boris Johnson pulled out.

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has shut down rumors linking him with the vacant Belgium manager job. It had been reported that Henry had contacted the Belgian FA to succeed Roberto Martinez as first-team manager. However, Henry claims he never contacted the Belgian FA over the possibility of taking over from Martinez.

The newly passed equality act aims to tackle the massive imbalance between men and women in positions of power. It also guarantees at least 14 weeks of maternity leave.

US President Joe Biden pledged to continue rebuilding the economy and uniting the nation during a speech before a divided Congress. Republicans heckled the president, booing his remarks at points during the address.

VW's chief of China operations says he "verified the facts" about accusations that one of the company's car plants in Xinjiang relied on the forced labor of Muslim Uyghur workers.

German car giant Volkswagen has chosen Canada to build its first battery plant outside Europe to localize its electric vehicle production chain in the region.

Volkswagen plans to invest 180 billion euros ($192.76 billion) over the next five years in areas including battery production and its North American operations, it said on Tuesday (March 14), with spending on combustion engines to fall from 2025.

British media reported on Wednesday that Mauricio Pochettio is set to be named as manager of Chelsea.