Company News in Brief

Tesla to enter Saudi Arabian car market Tesla will start sales in Saudi Arabia next month, the electric carmaker said on its website, signalling CEO Elon Musk and the kingdom have healed a rift that dates back to the billionaire’s short-lived bid in 2018 to take the company private. Tesla trades in other Middle Eastern countries, but not in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf region’s largest market. The dispute started when Musk tweeted in 2018 that he had “funding secured” to take Tesla private after meeting Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund. That tweet eventually led to a lawsuit from investors when a bid failed to materialise, during which tense text messages between Musk and PIF head Yasir al-Rumayyan were made public. Tensions have eased since the autumn when Musk took a high-profile role in US President Donald Trump’s election campaign and then new administration. Trump said this month he would likely make his first trip to Saudi Arabia, after asking the kingdom in January to spend upwards of $U1 trillion in the US economy, over four years, including military purchases.– Reuters



Apple prepares for iPhone 16 launch in Indonesia



Tech giant Apple announced on Wednesday the iPhone 16 will be available in Indonesia from next month, indicating the sales ban in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy had been lifted. The government in October prohibited the marketing and sale of the model over the US tech titan’s failure to meet regulation requiring 40% of phones be made from local parts. However, Apple struck a deal with the Indonesian government last month to invest in the country of 280 million after months of deadlock. “Today, Apple announces that all iPhone 16 series... will be available starting from Friday, April 11,” the company said in a statement. The industry ministry did not respond to AFP’s request for comment. The ministry said this month it had approved local certificates for more than a dozen Apple products.– AFP



X takes Turkey to court over account blockages



Social media platform X said Wednesday it has challenged in Turkey’s top court a government order to block over 100 user accounts, as the nation is roiled by mass protests. “We filed an individual application before the Turkish Constitutional Court challenging an order from the Turkish Information and Communication Technologies Authority to block 126 accounts,” the social network’s communications team wrote on X, citing among the targeted accounts a media outlet critical of the government.– AFP