Latest News on private equity markets

French media conglomerate Vivendi has increased its stake in Lagardere to 13.36% from 10.6%, an AMF regulatory filing published on Thursday showed.

Norwegian Air has secured vital funding from shareholders as it battles to survive the novel coronavirus pandemic that drove down April passenger volumes by 98.7%, the budget carrier said on Thursday.

Japan's Nintendo Co Ltd said on Thursday its fourth-quarter profit soared 200% due to surging demand for its Switch games console, and that title Animal Crossing: New Horizons shifted a record 13.4 million units in its first six weeks.

Climate activists from the Extinction Rebellion group sprayed "fake oil" onto the Barclays headquarters in London's Canary Wharf on Thursday, calling on the bank to divest from fossil fuels.

The owner of British Airways, Iberia, Vueling and Aer Lingus must cut costs across the board to weather the coronavirus crisis as air travel won't return to normal until at least 2023, its chief executive Willie Walsh said on Thursday.

Qatar Airways is in talks with banks for loans worth billions of dollars, three sources familiar with the matter said, as the state-owned airline readies to begin rebuilding its network that has been crushed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Italy's government will inject fresh capital worth at least 3 billion euros ($3.24 billion) in the ailing carrier Alitalia, which is being nationalised following financial problems, Industry Minister Stefano Patuanelli said on Thursday.

World shares climbed on Thursday after Chinese exports proved far stronger than even bulls had imagined, while bond investors were still daunted by the staggering amount of U.S. debt set to be sold and a tussle over ECB bond buying.

Swedish fashion retailer H&M said on Thursday its sales tumbled 57% from a year ago in local currencies during the March 1 to May 6 period as the novel coronavirus pandemic and restrictions to curb it kept most of its stores closed.

The last few weeks have seen many unusual flows into exchange-traded funds that offer an insight into the market recovery.

PayPal Holdings Inc said it expects a strong recovery in payments volumes in the second quarter as social distancing drives more people to shop online, even as lockdowns start to ease, sending its shares up 8% in extended trading.

H&M , the world's second-biggest fashion retailer, said local currency sales had tumbled 57% since the start of March compared with a year ago as the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns kept most of its stores closed.

British clothing retailer Next said on Thursday it plans to open its first standalone beauty shops by taking space in five former Debenhams stores, seeking to diversify its offer into faster growing markets.

Global sales of luxury goods are expected to slump by 50% to 60% in the second quarter even as some countries begin to ease coronavirus lockdowns and despite signs of recovery in the Chinese market, consultancy Bain said on Thursday.

The chief executive of British Airways-owner IAG Willie Walsh said on Thursday that his personal was that the airline group should continue to have a presence at London's Gatwick Airport.