20/02/2026

BIZ & FINANCE 17 Nestle Q4 sales top forecasts, plans ice cream unit sale LONDON: Nestle reported better than expected fourth-quarter sales growth yesterday and said it was sharpening its focus to four businesses led by its strongest brands, a drive that includes plans to sell off its remaining ice cream business. Nestle, the maker of Maggi stock cubes and Nescafe coffee, said it would focus on its Coffee, Petcare, Nutrition and Food & Snacks units and was in advanced negotiations to sell the ice cream business to Haagen-Dazs owner Froneri, which is a joint venture between European buyout firm PAI Partners and Nestle. The biggest infant formula recall in Nestle’s recent history has hampered new CEO Philipp Navratil’s efforts to transform the packaged goods giant into a faster moving firm. Nestle said stock shortages and sales returns would impact on 2026 volumes. “While there is more to be done, we are confident that our faster execution of a more focused strategy will deliver sustained improvement through 2026 and beyond,” Navratil said. Nestle was expecting 2026 full-year organic sales to be in the range of 3-4%, and forecast an improvement in its underlying trading operating profit margin this year, from 16.1% in 2025. Navratil, who announced plans to cut 16,000 jobs soon after taking the helm in September, was already battling the negative impacts from US import tariffs and foreign exchange, as well as consumers with less purchasing power. Nestle said it had concluded the strategic review of its mainstream and value vitamin and supplement brands and was looking to engage with potential buyers. It said it also expects to deconsolidate its waters business from 2027, and began the formal process with potential partners in the first quarter. Organic sales, which exclude the impact of currency movements and acquisitions, rose 4% in the quarter ended December 31, above expectations for 3.4% growth. – Reuters Airbus planning record commercial aircraft deliveries TOULOUSE: Plane maker Airbus aims to deliver a record number of commercial aircraft this year, the company said yesterday, capitalising on “strong demand” and a jump in profit in 2025. In a press release, CEO Guillaume Faury said “2025 was a landmark year, characterised by very strong demand for our products and services across all businesses”. The European manufacturer said it received 1,000 orders for commercial planes in 2025, with net orders of 889 after taking cancellations into account, and 793 delivered. Last year, its overall profit jumped 23% to €5.2 billion (RM24 billion). The company said it is targeting“around 870 commercial aircraft deliveries”this year. “As the basis for its 2026 guidance, the company assumes no additional disruptions to global trade or the world economy, air traffic, the supply chain, its internal operations, and its ability to deliver products and services,” it said in its outlook. Both Airbus and its rival Boeing have struggled to return to pre-pandemic production levels after their entire network of suppliers was disrupted, even as airlines are eager to modernise their fleets with more fuel-efficient aircraft and expand to meet an expected increase in passenger numbers over the coming decades. – AFP FRIDAY | FEB 20, 2026

Modi calls for accessible and inclusive tech at AI summit

NEW DELHI: Artificial intelligence must be accessible and inclusive, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told world leaders and tech CEOs yesterday, at a summit focused on the fast-evolving technology. His call was echoed by UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres, who warned the gathering that AI cannot be left to “the whims of a few billionaires”. “We must democratise AI. It must become a medium for inclusion and empowerment,” Modi said, speaking in Hindi. “We are entering an era where humans and intelligence systems co-create, co-work and co-evolve,” he added. “We must resolve that AI is used for the global common good.” Frenzied demand for generative AI has turbocharged profits for many companies while fuelling anxiety about the risks to society and the planet. The AI Impact Summit is the fourth annual international gathering to discuss how to handle it, following previous meetings in Paris, Seoul and Britain. Sam Altman, head of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, Google’s Sundar Pichai and other tech bosses will speak at the summit, but Microsoft founder Bill Gates cancelled just hours before his speech. Gates, facing questions over his ties to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, withdrew to “ensure the focus remains on the AI Summit’s key priorities”, the Gates Foundation said. Another foundation official will take the place of Gates, who said this month he regrets “every minute” he spent with Epstein. The mere mention of someone’s name in the Epstein files does not in itself imply any wrongdoing by that person. This year’s AI summit – the largest yet – has been attended by tens of thousands of people from across the sector, including dozens of world leaders and ministers. “AI must belong to everyone,” Guterres said yesterday, calling on tech tycoons to support a US$3 billion global fund to ensure open access to the technology. “The future of AI cannot be decided by a handful of countries – or left to the whims of a few billionaires,” he said. Many researchers and AI safety campaigners believe stronger action is needed to combat o Bill Gates cancels speech to ensure focus remains on event’s key priorities

Modi takes a group photo with Altman (third from right), Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei (second from right), Pichai (third from left) and Meta chief AI officer Alexandr Wang at the summit in New Delhi yesterday. – AFPPIC

billion AI infrastructure investment. US chip behemoth Nvidia – the world’s most valuable company – also said it was teaming up with Indian cloud computing providers to provide advanced processors for data centres that can train and run AI systems. AI data centres are under construction worldwide on a massive scale, as companies race to develop super-intelligent systems. The huge amounts of electricity needed to power them and water to cool hot servers have sparked alarm at a time when countries have pledged to decarbonise their grids to try and slow climate change. Last year India leapt to third place in an annual global ranking of AI competitiveness calculated by Stanford researchers, although experts say it has a long way to go before it can rival the United States and China. Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is in town to attend the AI summit and hold talks with Modi, including on rare earths. Leaders are expected to deliver a statement on Friday about how they plan to handle AI technology. One fear is disruption to the job market – especially in India, where millions of people are employed in call centres and tech support services. Some say the broad focus of the event and vague promises made at previous global AI summits mean that concrete commitments are unlikely. – AFP

The trade association UK Finance, which provides administrative support to DeliveryCo, declined to comment to AFP regarding the conference, as did Barclays, the Treasury and the Bank of England. A UK payments system could see British consumers, who purchase goods and services online or in stores, transfer money directly from their account to a seller’s account without having to go via card networks. In the UK, Visa and Mastercard process more than 95% of card payments, according to the Payment Systems Regulator. An account-to-account offering “could provide a degree of extra resilience in the UK payments landscape, as an additional payment issues ranging from sexualised deepfakes to AI-enabled online scams and surveillance. Last year’s host, French President Emmanuel Macron, said he was determined to ensure safe oversight of the fast-evolving technology. “Europe is not blindly focused on regulation – Europe is a space for innovation and investment, but it is a safe space,” he said. Last year in Paris, US Vice-President JD Vance had warned against “excessive regulation” that “could kill a transformative sector”. This year’s US government delegation, led by the under secretary of commerce for international trade, has kept a low profile. As the first global AI meeting held in a developing country, the five-day summit, which wraps up today, has also been a chance for India to boost its position in the booming sector. The nation expects more than US$200 billion in investments over the next two years, and US tech titans have unveiled new deals, investments and infrastructure for the South Asian country this week. ChatGPT maker OpenAI and Indian IT giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced a plan yesterday to build hyperscale AI data centre capacity in the South Asian country. The previous day Google said it planned to lay subsea cables as part of an existing US$15

UK banks to meet over possible Visa and MasterCard rival LONDON: British bank executives were set to hold a first meeting early today over a possible national alternative to dominant US payment systems Mastercard and Visa as President Donald Trump’s policies causes economic sovereignty concerns. Visa and Mastercard are expected to be represented at the meeting, according to a participant. rail on the rare occasion of operational disruption to existing rails”, Bank of England policymaker Sarah Breeden said in a recent speech. She added it could reduce payment costs for businesses, in turn aiding consumers via reduced prices.

The London conference is being held after UK Treasury launched plans to modernise infrastructure used for the country’s payment systems amid global efforts to boost economic security. The initiative is being funded by Britain’s financial sector under the supervision of the Bank of England. This week’s meeting is the first organised under the auspices of “DeliveryCo”, an entity established by industry players to develop the project and which is chaired by Vim Maru, chief executive of Barclays UK.

Against a backdrop of transatlantic tensions since Trump’s return to power – including over his tariffs blitz – calls to reduce dependence on the United States are multiplying. In mainland Europe, the European Central Bank has since 2020 worked on a digital euro project, presented as a way to reduce reliance on international card networks. Aside from a national payments system, the Bank of England is examining the possible launch of a digital pound, otherwise known as “Britcoin”. – AFP