KLM accused of misleading consumers about sustainability

FINANCE

Fidelity cuts staff

For the first time since 2017, financial services giant Fidelity Investments is thinning its ranks. The Boston-based firm, among the city’s largest employers, cut approximately 700 jobs earlier this month, representing less than 1 percent of its worldwide workforce of 74,000-plus employees, a spokesperson confirmed to the Globe. “While difficult, this decision better positions us for the evolving needs of our customers, even during times of growth, and ensuring we remain competitive for years to come,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Our goal is to ensure we always have the right number of employees in the right roles to meet clients’ needs.” The spokesperson declined to specify the number of Massachusetts employees who were affected, but said that the “impact to different states/sites was generally proportional to the total number of employees based at that regional site.” By that math, roughly 55 of Fidelity’s 5,860 employees in Massachusetts would have been impacted. The layoffs follow several years of turbocharged hiring for the money management titan, which has grown its workforce by upward of 50 percent since 2020, when it initiated a hiring spree in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic — and the widespread financial anxieties that came with it. The cuts also come on the heels of a strong financial year for Fidelity, which reported $28.2 billion in revenue for 2023, up 12 percent from 2022, the firm disclosed in its annual report. Operating income grew 6 percent to $8.5 billion. The spokesperson noted that economic headwinds, including “strong markets and higher interest rates,” have boded well for Fidelity, which is still actively hiring for nearly 2,000 open roles in “critical business areas.” Last month, the company, which is headquartered downtown at 245 Summer St., announced it would be tightening its return-to-office requirements come September, requiring most employees in the United States to work on-site two full weeks out of every four, up from the current cadence of one week out of every four. — DANA GERBER

LUXURY

Kering stock drops along with Gucci sales

Kering shares plunged after the French luxury group warned that sales at Gucci, its biggest brand, have fallen about 20 percent in the first quarter. The stock dropped as much as 15 percent in Paris trading, its steepest intraday decline since 1992, wiping more than $7.6 billion from Kering’s market value. The sales slump at Gucci — more dependent on China than some luxury peers — was owing to a steeper-than-expected drop in the Asia-Pacific region. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

DIVERSITY

Starbucks shareholders drop bonus tied to DEI

Starbucks shareholders approved a plan to drop a bonus tied to DEI goals for its executives and replace it with a more general workforce target while also shifting more compensation to financial performance. The new structure, approved at an annual meeting on March 13, nixes a specific goal from the 2023 compensation package that tied 7.5 percent of executives’ bonuses to an undisclosed goal related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Microsoft hires new head of consumer AI

Microsoft has hired Mustafa Suleyman to head up its consumer artificial intelligence business, adding to its ranks an influential figure in the artificial intelligence world to cement its position at the forefront of the booming AI industry. Suleyman said in a post on LinkedIn on Monday that he’ll become CEO of Microsoft AI, leading all of the company’s consumer AI products and research, including its generative AI service Copilot as well as its Bing search engine and Edge browser. The hiring is likely to bolster Microsoft’s lead position in the booming AI industry, as big tech companies battle for position to capitalize on demand for AI services. — ASSOCIATED PRESS

INTERNATIONAL

Google hit with large fine in France in dispute with news publishers

France’s competition watchdog hit Google on Wednesday with another big fine tied to a long-running dispute over payments to French publishers for their news. The French Competition Authority said it issued the $272 million penalty because of Google’s failure to comply with some commitments it made in a negotiating framework. The dispute is part of a larger effort by authorities in the European Union and around the world to force Google and other tech companies to compensate news publishers for content. The US tech giant was forced to negotiate with French publishers after a court in 2020 upheld an order saying payments were required by a 2019 European Union copyright directive. — ASSOCIATED PRESS

EDUCATION

Plans for private school in Miami shelved

Avenues, a private school operator, has abandoned plans to build a sprawling campus in the heart of Miami aimed at wealthy transplants willing to pay at least $48,500 a year. The owners of the for-profit institution have “indefinitely suspended” development of the $180 million campus due to financing challenges and there’s no plan to revive the project, according to spokeswoman Tara Powers. The site in Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood, which was on track to open next fall, would have been one of Miami’s largest private schools, serving about 2,500 students. The decision is a major blow for a city where there aren’t enough prestigious schools to absorb demand from wealthy families moving south. Enrollment at top private schools in South Florida, including Miami, has jumped by more than 7 percent since 2019, almost triple the national increase, according to an analysis by the National Association of Independent Schools. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

PHARMACEUTICALS

One of largest biologics manufacturing plants sold

Lonza Group agreed to buy a manufacturing facility in the United States from Roche for $1.2 billion, adding production capacity in the rapidly growing field of biologic medicines. The facility in Vacaville, Calif., is one of the largest biologics manufacturing sites in the world by volume and will complement Lonza’s own site on the East Coast, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. Approximately 750 employees at the facility will be offered employment by Lonza and the products currently produced there by Roche will continue to be supplied by Lonza for a transition period. Lonza’s biologics division, which supplies bespoke antibodies and proteins to major drug makers, is its fastest-growing business. Roche, which acquired the site as part of its 2009 buyout of Genentech, said last year it was looking to sell or vacate it by 2029. Monoclonal antibodies, including Roche’s cancer drugs Herceptin and Avastin, have been produced there. — BLOOMBERG NEWS