The United Nations' top court will issue an advisory opinion on the right to strike

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The United Nations’ top court is set to issue a landmark advisory opinion on the right to strike clarifying whether employees are lawfully allowed to walk off the job. The 15 judges at the International Court of Justice were asked in 2023 by the U.N.’s International Labor Organization to settle an internal dispute over whether one of the agency’s conventions gives workers the right to strike. The convention has been ratified by 158 countries and is incorporated into U.N. labor standards and international trade agreements. The United States is a member of the ILO, but hasn’t ratified the convention. Advisory opinions aren’t legally binding but carry significant weight and could have a worldwide impact on labor regulations.

Trump’s push for deep-sea mining spawns new companies and fast-tracked rules

WASHINGTON (AP) — Since President Donald Trump signed an executive order to create a deep-sea mining industry, businesses have raised millions from investors, and stock prices have soared. At least nine companies are in talks with the government for access to seabed minerals. Sections of the seafloor from American Samoa to Alaska could be auctioned for offshore mining this summer and through the fall. But a close look at some of the companies involved reveals uncertain track records and histories spattered with legal disputes, while major questions about how the minerals would be processed and refined remain unanswered.

Nvidia Q1 results surpass Wall Street expectations thanks to massive AI chip demand

Artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia’s quarterly results blew past Wall Street’s expectations once again, fueled by massive demand for its high-end AI chips. The company said Wednesday it earned $58.32 billion, or $2.39 per share, in the February-April period. That is up from $18.78 billion, or 76 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, Nvidia earned $1.76 per share. Revenue jumped 85% to $81.62 billion from $44.01 billion. Analysts, on average, were expecting earnings of $1.75 per share and revenue of $78.91 billion, according to a poll by FactSet.

World shares are mixed, Kospi gains 8.4%, as tech-led rally fades

Shares have opened lower in Europe after a mixed session in Asia, where a rebound in oil prices undermined optimism from another broad rally on Wall Street. South Korea's Kospi soared 8.4%, helped by strong buying of technology shares. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 climbed 1.1% Wednesday for its first advance in four days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.3%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1.5%. Stocks got a lift from easing yields in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell below 4.60% as the price of Brent crude oil dropped more than 5%. Oil prices were slightly higher early Thursday.

Walmart delivers another strong quarter but also a cautious outlook due to economic uncertainty

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart delivered another strong quarter of sales as the discounter’s speedy deliveries and low prices served as a magnet for shoppers across the income spectrum. But the Bentonville, Arkansas-based discounter offered outlook amid so much economic uncertainty.  Walmart has resonated with many Americans who are carefully considering where they spend money because of inflation and how the company performs is considered a barometer of consumer spending given its vast customer base. More than 150 million customers are on its website or in its stores every week, according to Walmart.

SpaceX reveals plans for what could be the biggest-ever initial public offering

NEW YORK (AP) — Elon Musk announced plans Wednesday for one of the biggest sales of stock to the public ever for his space company that is currently losing billions of dollars year. A filing Wednesday shows his SpaceX lost $2.6 billion from operations last year on $18.7 billion in revenue, and the losses kept piling up at the start of this year, too. Still, the initial public offering is expected to rank among the largest ever, possibly surpassing the current title holder, Saudi Aramco, the oil giant that went public seven years ago. The stock sale could also make Musk, a major owner who founded SpaceX in 2002, the world’s first trillionaire. Forbes currently puts his net worth at $839 billion.

James Murdoch, media scion, strikes deal for New York Magazine and Vox

NEW YORK (AP) — Media scion James Murdoch has struck a deal with the Vox Media digital company to acquire New York magazine, the Vox Media Podcast Network and the Vox editorial brand. The deal with liberal-leaning Vox represents a major move toward his own media empire for the 53-year-old younger son of Rupert Murdoch, who himself owned New York Magazine from 1976 until 1991. It comes less than a year after the Murdoch family reached a deal on control of the 95-year-old mogul’s media empire after his death. Financial terms of the deal, expected to close within weeks, have not been disclosed.

Energy shock from Iran war to weigh on Europe's growth, boost inflation

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Union’s executive commission has cut its growth outlook and predicted higher inflation due to sharply higher energy prices from the war in Iran. The commission said that Europe is vulnerable to higher oil and gas prices because it has to import much of its energy. On top of that consumer confidence is the lowest in months due to fears of inflation and job losses. The growth figure for this year was cut to 0.9% and inflation is now expected to hit 3.0%. That's a full percentage point higher than an earlier forecast.

Sherritt agrees to sell stake in Cuba mining business to company linked to former Trump adviser

TORONTO (AP) — Canadian miner Sherritt International Corp. has signed a non-binding agreement with Gillon Capital LLC. Gillon is a family office linked to a former adviser of U.S. President Donald Trump. The deal would allow Gillon to buy a majority stake in Sherritt as it navigates sanctions on its operations in Cuba. The announcement comes a day after Sherritt said is no longer pursuing a plan to dissolve its Cuban joint venture, reversing a decision it announced last week amid expanded U.S. sanctions on the country. Gillon is the family office for the Washburne family. Ray Washburne was appointed by Trump as head of the U.S. development bank from 2017 to 2019. He later served as a member of the president’s intelligence advisory board.

Australian judge fines X $465,000 for online safety breach after 3-year court battle

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An Australian judge has fined X Corp. $465,000 for failing to provide information to an online safety watchdog about how it tackled child sexual exploitation content. The judge also ordered the Texas-based social media giant to pay eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant’s court costs. Thursday's ruling ends a three-year court legal battle in which X had argued it was not obliged to answer eSafety’s questions. X admitted it contravened Australia’s Online Safety Act by failing to fully answer questions posed by eSafety in a transparency notice in 2023.