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Quest Means Business
France's Economic Woes Spark Unprecedented Student Uprising; Former German Spy Chief Arrested On Suspicion Of Treason; Paramount Closes Merger With WBD To Form Skydance; France Rocked By Its Biggest Student Protests In Decades; Japanese Watchmaker Seiko Eyes U.S. Growth Despite Tariffs. Aired 4-4:45p ET
Aired October 06, 2026 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:08]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Closing bell is ringing on Wall Street. It has been a bullish session over the course of
the session overall. We've seen good gains and bad. If you take a look at the Dow, up at the beginning and never really looked back. Up half a
percentage point, and of course all the other indices, a good strong session.
Bring trading to a close, if you would be kind enough, we finish with our, one and a two and a one, two, three, four.
The day is over. Those are the markets and these are the main events that we are talking about.
A protest in support of striking teachers. Now, a crisis for France. We will look at what led to today's large demonstrations.
The former head of Germany's spy agency is arrested for suspected treason.
And Disney has its day in court. It is hoping to block the Trump administration's review of its broadcast licenses.
Tonight, we are live in Paris on Tuesday, October the 6th. I am Richard Quest and in the City of Lights, you better believe it, I mean, business.
Good evening. If we've timed it right, you should still see the Eiffel Tower and it should still be in all its glory at the top of the hour. The
Eiffel Tower, of course, sparkles at the top of the hour. And there we are, yes, absolutely.
So we are in Paris tonight. Where -- I mean, we will be talking, obviously, about what is happening in the French economy, the crisis facing the French
government and we will be getting to grips with all of that that is coming up throughout the course of the program, but you really can't beat the
Eiffel Tower as it sparkles at the top of the hour.
Tonight, anger over France's finances has reached a boiling point on the streets of Paris. What started as a demonstration at a high school just
north of here has snowballed into a full national crisis. They are student protesters fed up with cuts to the education system, and they ve taken to
the streets on a scale not seen in decades.
The police have clashed with protesters in cities and towns across the country. Hundreds of schools have been forced to close. The French
authorities say more than 5,000 people have now been taken into custody over the past few days.
Our correspondent, Melissa Bell is in Paris.
Melissa, forgive me. I am in your seat here and you are out on the streets there. This has really taken everybody by somewhat surprise. Should they
have been surprised?
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think that's right.
I think the scale of it, the intensity, the violence that we saw really grow over the course of the last week, did take everyone by surprise.
Probably not, Richard, to answer your question, because these grievances amongst these high school students are long standing, and you ve had this
kind of wave that has seen barricades pop up at more than a thousand schools on some days.
And there, you ve seen remarkable levels of violence, as you say, policemen wounded, teaching staff wounded, students wounded, some of them very
severely and that violence and those injuries and what the students say is that police violence have caused the anger that you saw today from the
unions, from the grown-ups now joining them -- Richard.
QUEST: Melissa, I am grateful for you, actually, before you go, Melissa, quick -- one quick question I just want to throw to you. Melissa, is there
a likelihood in any shape, form or description that others, whether it be healthcare workers, others -- they sort of jump onto this and what was
originally an education-based protest becomes all things to all people and everything sort of gets out-of-control?
BELL: Certainly, that's exactly what is happening, Richard. And you had this big protest from public sector workers last week. Now, they see an
opportunity to feed off this particular anger. And in the end, this is about France's creaking welfare state. The fact that they can't fund it
anymore, a rising borrowing costs and so on.
The fact that the government simply can't spend another penny on any of it, and what we are going to see over the next few weeks, I think, is growing
anger from those unions and they smell blood.
They know that the government can't do anything about it. They need to cut costs in time for 2027 if they want to keep the markets relatively content
and fix those jittery markets and fears about the debt crisis and they know that the government is really caught between a rock and a hard place.
This also allows, by the way, Richard, the far-left and the far-right to argue ahead of that election cycle that the government is simply not able
to govern anymore -- Richard.
[16:05:10]
QUEST: Melissa, I am grateful for you.
Melissa Bell is on the streets of Paris tonight. Thank you for joining us.
And so to a voice of Antoine Arnault. He is the eldest son of France's richest man and one of the heirs to the giant LVMH empire, the luxury group
globally.
He says companies like LVMH play an important role in supporting the French economy. Arnault is Director of Image and Environment at LVMH and a member
of the company's Executive Committee.
So I asked him what he made of the latest situation and the economic situation here.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANTOINE ARNAULT, DIRECTOR OF IMAGE AND ENVIRONMENT, LVMH: So we've always tried to stay a little bit aside of the political aspect of things. Of
course, we know what is going on. We are especially as a big contributor to the taxes in France, we want to try to put on the forefront of the views of
the deciders, how important it is to have a solid -- you know, companies like ours who are contributing and who would want to continue opening
atelier in France and to be incentivized to open ateliers.
Right now, we feel that it might be the opposite happening. So, you know, as a very patriotic French family and French group, we want to make sure
that we continue, but sometimes we feel like politicians and French politics might forget that.
QUEST: You know, it is fascinating what you ve just said. Absolutely fascinating because you ve drawn the line directly from these workshops.
You have a nicer name for them.
ARNAULT: Atelier.
QUEST: Yes. From these atelier, you ve drawn a line directly to, again, what your father wrote about in his letter, which is, who would have
thought that this company X number of years ago would be the largest one of luxury goods companies in the world, and it is French.
ARNAULT: Yes, yes, and it is French and it is probably, you know, one of the only sectors that we, French, dominate, sorry for that term.
QUEST: But it is true.
ARNAULT: It is true. You know, thousands, if not millions of people come every year to France, of course, to visit Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, but
also Champs-Elysee and on Champs-Elysee, they love to come and see, you know, one of the biggest and most beautiful stores in the world. They come
on Avenue Montaigne to visit, you know, all the, the sector's beautiful brands.
They come to Champagne to discover our wines and champagnes. They also come for shopping. Let's be honest.
And my father, when he travels abroad is not only perceived but also received by the different countries he travels to as an Ambassador of
France, and he feels like it, and you know, we have that responsibility. And I think, yes, in a way, the French politicians should acknowledge that
it is a very important sector, and as the leader of this sector, sometimes maybe it should be more recognized.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: And that's only a portion of the interview. You can hear more of that interview with Antoine Arnault next week on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS,
where I will be getting a firsthand look at his Journees Particuliere Project, where LVMH shows off its workshops and invites the public to their
private ateliers, that's next week on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
Now, the economic problems here in France are running deep, indeed. Years of overspending have pushed the nation deeper into debt. You had the
pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and of course, rising energy costs, all of which have made matters far worse.
Investors are demanding higher yields to hold French government debt, and any attempt to reassure investment or investors with a budget -- look at,
there you see the leaders over four percent, anyway, we will have to wait until next year's election.
The economic differences here are drawn along generational lines, a push and pull between an older generation that's reluctant to raise the
retirement age, and young people who say their education system is under attack.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERWAN LE CLECH, UNION REPRESENTATIVE AND TEACHER (through translator): There is a blatant lack of resources, whether at the level of the buildings
that are poorly renovated or the buildings that are missing as well.
[16:10:00]
We have an overflow of students for each school and therefore in each class, which makes the conditions more difficult. From the moment when too
many people are put in one room, it follows that it exacerbates any tensions.
There is also a lack of teachers, and the only way out of that is to have resources to build facilities and hire teachers so that we have teaching
conditions that are much more effective.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Joining me is Cleo Boza Rocca. She is a student at the Paris City University, and she was out and about on in today's protests. And Cleo, why
did you take part? What do you hope to achieve against the government that is not going to really respond in any great way to sort of noisy protests
on the street?
CLEO BOZA ROCCA, STUDENT, PARIS CITY UNIVERSITY: Okay. So first, I have participated in the blockade of my university in protest and blockade in
other high school and we as students want the government to listen to us, to listen to our demands because our working conditions are compromised,
whether it is by unsanitary buildings or by working hours that leave us exhausted, and especially for high school students.
QUEST: Right. So do you expect to get a result, as we would say? Do you expect the government because from what I've read, the money simply isn't
there for. The French government can't really borrow more, spending is through the roof. The deficit is off the charts, so there is no more money.
ROCCA: Yes, and that's a huge problem and we try to be heard by the government because we know that the debt is big, like it is impacting us
and our future and all we get in return of when we protest is repression and violence as today's protest has shown.
And we are aware that the government is flooded with debt, but we are very impacted and we suffer from this and everyone knows this including our
teachers, like our -- at my university is closed. So the courses are supposed to be online, but even the teachers have refused to teach their
classes online to support us and everyone knows there is a problem with the money and nobody takes care of it and students are impacted, teachers are
too. So it is really hard. And when we try to be heard, we get violence. So that's the nonsense.
QUEST: So let me just ask you finally, finally with elections next year, presidential elections coming up, do you worry that your protests and
similar protests could encourage a right-wing backlash that we've already seen? We are already seeing a right-wing movement in France, and that could
be pushed stronger.
Do you worry about that?
ROCCA: So personally, I am very worried because, the right-wing is getting a lot of power and I am really scared because we know that if they -- if
the government is on the far-right, we are going to be very much more impacted than we already are. And personally, I am very scared that our
voice that already are not heard will not be heard at all.
And the police right now is very violent towards the students, as everyone knows, but I think it will be even worse after the right-wing wins if they
do, and that's why we really need to fight against them, because we cannot let them come back to the power.
QUEST: I am grateful, Cleo, for you joining us tonight. Thank you very much for speaking to us in Paris.
ROCCA: Thank you for having me.
QUEST: Lovely to be in your city. Very grateful indeed. Thank you.
Now, as you and I continue, gosh, it is great to be in Paris.
When we return, Germany's former spy chief has been arrested, and it is for suspected treason, if you will. I will you what he and his former aide are
accused of doing. It is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS tonight, live in Paris.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:17:51]
QUEST: Welcome back.
QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in Paris tonight, Germany's former top spy has been arrested on suspicion of attempted treason. August Hanning led the Foreign
Intelligence Service from 1998 to 2005. He is accused of passing state secrets to an agent for another country after leaving public office.
Hanning's former chief-of-staff was also arrested for allegedly aiding and abetting him. All of this happened as somewhat of a surprise. No one was
expecting it today, and there has been no word from the federal prosecutor's office about who the two men were suspected of spying for.
CNN's Nic Robertson is with me following the story. Nic is in London. This is rather remarkable, isn't it? I mean, what does one say?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: A foreign intelligence chief of a spy agency, the BND, is renowned and reputable as that, who
would have dealt with the director of the CIA, who would have dealt with the heads of other intelligence agencies.
When I interviewed him in 2010, we were talking about him being involved in the hunt for Osama bin Laden, working with the United States and others. He
was very much at the sort of tip of the spear in Europe, combating radical Islamists who were trying to propagate terrorist attacks at that time in
Europe.
So this is a man who has had a huge amount of responsibility, who understands the value of not sharing state secrets with anyone, yet, here
he is charged, accused by the federal prosecutor of doing precisely that.
QUEST: Right.
ROBERTSON: Two thousand documents, the federal prosecutor said had passed from his former chief-of-staff to his hands. Again, the motivation. What
was it? What were the details that were passed? The concern would be, does it put other agents and assets of foreign intelligence agencies or
Germany's own intelligence agency in danger?
QUEST: Now, Nic, just looking back at the introduction to you, and I realized I read that he is accused of passing state secrets to an agent for
another country. Do we have an inkling or a gossip which that other country might be?
[16:20:10]
ROBERTSON: Richard, you and I often gossip away from the camera. It is a bit hard to sort of spread rumors here. Look, Germany's premiere news
magazine, "Der Spiegel," has a view on who it was. Others in Germany have a view on why it might have taken place.
You know, I think when money is involved and the German prosecutor says that Hanning was giving his former chief-of-staff money for the documents,
which would imply that Hanning was probably receiving money from that foreign agent for those documents, money might have been a motivator.
QUEST: I am grateful. Nic Robertson quite rightly reminded me. Let's wait till we get a few facts before we go much further down that particular
road.
Nic, good to see you, as always, in London tonight. We are in Paris.
And so we move on, a lawyer for Disney is calling on a U.S. judge to block the FCC, that's the regulators early review of the licenses for its ABC
stations.
Disney has argued in federal court today that its free speech is being chilled. Now, the regulatory authority, the FCC, the chair, Brandon Carr,
says the early review of the licenses was triggered by his probe into Disney's DEI -- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies.
Disney says the Trump administration is trying to silence coverage it doesn t like. Other companies are being pressured, too -- CNN, MS NOW and
POLITICO -- all in court on Thursday to try convincing a judge to indefinitely maintain their White House access. President Trump tried to
ban them.
Brian Stelter is with me.
The decision to do an early review of these licenses. Now, I don t know much about the whole process, except it is just about unheard of. I think
there was one case about 30 or 50, whatever it is years ago. It almost never happens.
So for Brendan Carr to do this in this way, you tell me the significance.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Normally, licenses are rubber stamped every eight years in the U.S. and you might think that's a good
thing or a bad thing, but that's just the way it has worked for decades.
So Carr is in unprecedented territory, challenging Disney, and he is picking on ABC's local stations. ABC is known for an anti-Trump comedian,
Jimmy Kimmel, a talk show during the day with lots of anti-Trump voices. So, this does feel like retaliation and intimidation by the Trump
administration and a number of former FCC officials and Republicans and Democrats have all stated that point of view.
But Carr continues to claim this is about an investigation into Disney's diversity practices, and today, his lawyers argued that ABC is in the wrong
court at the wrong time trying to challenge this proceeding.
So, we did not hear from the judge today. She will likely rule in a week or two, but it is an incredible thing to see, Richard, one of the biggest
media companies in the world, trying to sue and actually suing the Trump administration over a First Amendment violation. That's why every other
media company is watching this one very carefully.
QUEST: And I guess, do we need to know the political president that appointed the judge? You know, I've tried to watch on these cases again and
again, Brian, whether one can glean, and I don t think one can very often glean how they're likely to rule, by which president appointed them.
STELTER: The courts have upheld First Amendment rights and freedom of speech in the U.S. dozens of times during Trump's return to office, and
that includes Trump appointed judges, as well as those appointed by others.
In Washington, on Thursday, you referenced the next hearing that's going to happen. That is in the CNN, MS NOW, POLITICO case. That's a Trump appointed
judge who has already sided with the news outlets against Trump's ban. We expect to hear more arguments about that on Thursday as the administration
tries to reinforce the ban, and those news outlets push back.
And importantly, earlier today, the new owner of CNN, David Ellison, said he supports that lawsuit. He supports CNN's efforts to defend its rights in
court.
QUEST: And Brian, you neatly and elegantly, as I would expect, took me into talking about the fact that you and I have new bosses, today, Skydance,
which is finally -- look, the way David Ellison at the -- I can't really talk too much about what was said, even though it has been well leaked, it
was an internal town hall, but at the very beginning, I don t think I am giving away great secrets.
Ellison did go through, you know, the difficulty, the years' long difficulty to get to this point. But at the end of the day, no matter how -
- whatever great words and warm feelings, this company is starting with more than $70 billion in debt with higher interest rates and that's not
going to be easy.
[16:25:11]
STELTER: Yes, Ellison is about to hold a press conference in Los Angeles, and he is going to ask -- going to get asked about the finances. How is he
going to make this deal work? This is an extraordinarily leveraged company, and he has a very aggressive timeline to start to pay it down.
So, the layoffs and the cost cutting will happen very quickly. But notably, Skydance today said that most of the savings will not come from layoffs.
They will come from other synergies and other moves. So a lot remains to be seen in the next few months how this merged company is going to operate.
It is a major victory lap for Ellison today, though, 43 years old, he has pulled off something that many in Hollywood doubted, bringing together two
of the biggest movie studios, dozens of T.V. channels. But Richard, as they say, now comes the hard part having to actually make this work.
It is notable on the CNN front, he said, there will be no editorial independence -- excuse me, let me pull up the exact quote: "We believe in
editorial independence and we will never interfere." That's the comment about CNN and about CBS News. So he will be held to that quote.
QUEST: I am just trying to work out, Brian, in my 25 years at this company, I think it is our fifth. Don t hold me to that, our fifth change of
ownership.
STELTER: And that's the thing, Richard. We just keep going.
QUEST: I will have to count it properly and I will work out some of the subsidiaries --
STELTER: No matter who is in charge, no matter who owns the channel, we just keep going.
Have a great time in Paris.
QUEST: And that is the way it is going to continue, Brian, I promise you that for both of us.
All right, thank you, Brian.
Brian Stelter, we just keep going.
As we keep going tonight, in Paris, a Japanese watchmaker is looking past the threat of U.S. tariffs. Seiko says it is looking to target U.S. buyers
as part of future growth. But how is it doing with "ma" -- or pause.
I will pause for a moment for a break. QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Good evening from Paris. QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in Paris tonight. I'm delighted to be here.
In Paris, protests over school funding and national education have led to violent clashes with the authorities. The police have used tear gas to
disperse crowds in Paris and other major cities. The French police estimate now that a quarter of a million people have taken part in the protests.
Student organizers say the number is closer to half a million, so no agreement on that.
Sophie Pedder is a Paris bureau chief at "The Economist."
Sophie, thank you. I'm very grateful to have you with us tonight. I guess the call because protests, whether by one sort or another, are not unusual.
In your view, how serious and defining are these protests?
SOPHIE PEDDER, PARIS BUREAU CHIEF, THE ECONOMIST: I mean, they are serious, you're absolutely right. You know, protests as a form of -- a well-known
form of, you know, conveying political grievances in France. And it's been the case for decades, but it's from time to time, you know, these things
really do spill over. And we saw that with the gilets jaunes, remember that? Back in 2018, when that became a sort of nationwide movement out of
nowhere.
And it's I think the rapidity with which this movement has taken off and the fact that it started with high school pupils, which is unusual. And
then it's really spread very fast and become very violent very fast. So I think it is worrying. And it feels like a pretty worrying time in France.
You know, I think that reflects a sort of general underlying worry in the country.
QUEST: Is that not just economic, but an unease because of next year's presidential election, that whatever happens next year, change is going to
take place? That is already transmitting itself through to the populace, and I would say, to the economy.
PEDDER: Look, I think you're right that this is a kind of -- we're six months away from a French presidential election. Emmanuel Macron has been
in power for 10 years. Most of the high school pupils wouldn't even remember life before him being president. And there's a real sense of
uncertainty about what happens next. The poll favorite, as you know, is Marine Le Pen on the far-right. Then, you know, there is Jean-Luc Melenchon
on the far left. There's a sense that there could be a battle between two extremes. There's a lot of uncertainty in France.
QUEST: Right.
PEDDER: And all of that is compounded by, you know, the lack of -- the cost of living crisis, the high price of petrol at the pump. I mean, there's a
lot of difficulties for the government getting the budget together under pressure from the bond market. So it's a kind of, you know, a conspiracy of
circumstance, which means I think there is -- it is very tense. And that's why this has sort of taken off so fast.
QUEST: But, you know, the other issue, of course, and we've heard it in the U.K., which has had, however many prime ministers in as many years, people
are starting to say France is ungovernable, if you look at the number of prime ministers and governments that Macron has had, if you look at the
weakness that he has and the lack of support in many ways, and now you have these protests.
Is this just hyperbole? And that actually, if you look underneath the hood and, pardon the -- let's mix my metaphors completely. If you dig a bit
deeper into the sand, things are actually much better than the critics would have you believe.
PEDDER: Well, look, you know your French history. You know, protests ungovernability is part of what makes France. It's the way in which people
express grievances. I think that, you know, you have to remember that you can also come to Paris and spend time in cafes, museums, walk around the
streets, and you won't come across any burning barricades outside schools. You won't be interrupted by tear gases.
It's not as if the whole city has come to a standstill, and the French economy. I mean, this is one of the reasons that, you know, that France is
still able to issue its debt because the French economy is large, it's diversified, and it has very strong companies that are doing very well.
QUEST: Right.
PEDDER: So all of that has to be put in perspective. And when I was on the streets this afternoon with some of the students and the protesters, you
know, a lot of them are peaceful protesters who are just trying to say, you know, we want better conditions in schools. So I think there is an
important -- it is important to put some of that in context.
QUEST: Finally, on our program earlier, we had Antoine Arnauld, and he was making the point that obviously the way the family is such a major employer
in the country. But he was saying generally, when it comes to wealth creation that he thinks sometimes French politicians don't give enough
credit to companies, to large businesses, to the luxury goods market, which have now become so significant to the French economy.
[16:35:07]
PEDDER: I think he's right up to a point. I mean, there's certainly a sense among a lot of political parties that as soon as a company does well, you
want to tax it as much as possible. So, you know, there is a kind of difficulty in understanding that if you do that, you are deterring wealth
creation in the first place. But I would say also that there have been, you know, there's a much bigger and more vibrant tech startup sector than there
was a decade ago in France.
And you just have to look at what Mistral is doing in A.I. to see how, you know, that has sort of emerged from a much more interesting ecosystem than
there used to be. So I think, you know, you have this interesting combination. It's a bit paradoxical between political parties, which are
keen, you know, to sort of slap taxes on anything they can get their hands on. And a lot of entrepreneurs in France who are doing their best despite
the difficult situation, to make profits and as well as the big groups like the luxury goods companies that you mentioned.
QUEST: I'm grateful. Thank you for taking time to join us tonight. It's kind of you. Good to see you tonight in Paris. Thank you.
Now, let me update you with the Wall Street markets and how they've traded today, because it really did hit new records. Oil prices are holding steady
and that seems to have moved things. The Dow gained 253 points. And if you look at the triple stack, you've got -- in fact that's quite an interesting
day. Even Stevens pretty much across with the S&P 500 hitting a new record. The Nasdaq closed at a record high for the second straight day, up nearly
half a percent.
All at the same time of some economic woes and particularly U.S. tariffs. Now, U.S. tariffs are adding pressures on to France's economy. It's a
challenge that extends well beyond Europe at the moment.
Japanese imports have been subject to 15 percent levies since last September. A local watchmaker is shrugging off the extra costs. Seiko,
Seiko watches says the U.S. market is driving overseas sales and is a major target for future growth. The company recently appointed a Major League
Baseball star, Shohei Ohtani, of course, as its global brand ambassador.
Hiromi Kanagawa is the senior executive vice president of the Seiko Group Corporation and is with me.
Ma'am, it is good to see you, and I'm grateful that you're joining us tonight. You've got this new campaign. It's called Ma, which means pause.
I'm sure I may have -- it's only two letters, Ma, but I've probably mispronounced it and feel free to put me right. This is an idea that Seiko,
which I've heard of and know well, but others have not, is moving back into the U.S. in a big way.
HIROMI KANAGAWA, SENIOR EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, SEIKO GROUP CORPORATION: Hello. I'm very happy to be here in New York because I'm -- why I'm here is
I introduced our short film, "The Gift of Time" to New Yorker. And yes, even the tariff is, yes, big problem for us Seiko. But as a global company,
we had taken a lot of actions to adapt the tariff pressure because USA is a very important market for us. So we bring -- we are very happy to be here
to welcome New Yorkers to our event.
QUEST: Right. So the name Seiko I think is probably better known in Europe, certainly in the U.K. for a variety of products that it's had over the
years. But why do you think it has not had the same level of recognition in the U.S.? Is it a harder market to crack?
KANAGAWA: Yes. Yes. The U.S. market is very important for us. So we -- our ambassador is a Shohei Ohtani. And yes, we just make an advertisement, but
we are so big investment on sports like world athletics. And so --
QUEST: Right.
KANAGAWA: And we are very important to tell our story. We deliver our story to everybody. So we make an event in Tokyo and Paris, and then this time in
New York.
QUEST: Where do you want to position Seiko in terms of the watches, in terms of the market? Now, we know tariffs have a particular problem, but
let's not worry about that too much. Where do you believe Seiko properly fits into the watch market?
[16:40:08]
KANAGAWA: Yes. Yes. Our history is so long. Our founder, Kintaro Hattori, opened a small shop in Tokyo in 1881, and we really imported the technology
from the European country, and we ourselves invested a lot of the craftsmanship and innovation.
QUEST: Right.
KANAGAWA: Yes. And we, again, export our product to the globally. And you - -
QUEST: Right.
KANAGAWA: Yes. And we have a big potential in the U.S. market, not only because the U.S. market, but U.S. market is a tremendous opportunity we
found it. So we would like to --
QUEST: Right.
KANAGAWA: We remain committed to --
QUEST: I think I'm having difficulty -- I'm grateful for you. Forgive me, ma'am. I'm having difficulty hearing you tonight here in Paris. It's good
to talk to you. And we'll talk more and certainly see more of your watches. Thank you.
I need to just show you before we leave you tonight, Wall Street has new records with oil prices. I want you to look at the triple stack again.
We've got across the board roughly the same sort of gains. But what is interesting and we can turn this into a sort of a profitable market of
sorts, is the way in which the markets holding steady, showing gains and hitting records. And that in itself is interesting. So tonight, a short,
brief, profitable market for you from Paris.
We have been delighted to be here at a time when the economy in France is in such difficulty. But we heard today, of course, from Antoine Arnauld,
about the way in which the luxury goods sector. You've only got to look around this city, you've only got to feel not just the wealth, the luxury
and the elegance, the savoir faire, if you will, but the fact that it has become an integral part of this economy.
And that's why we've been so grateful to be here, hear both sides of the view, and we're honored and privileged tonight to have Mr. Arnault on the
program, of which you can hear more in a week's time.
And that's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in Paris. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead -- oh, listen to the bell. The
bell, the bell. I hope it's profitable.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:45:46]
(CONNECTING AFRICA)
END
