Archaeological finds made on an island near the capital in 1959 proved pivotal in defining and promoting the UAE’s relics and antiquities. Sheikh Zayed, the nation’s Founding Father, was one of the first to spot their importance. In the spring of 1959, the Ruler of Abu Dhabi at the time, Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan, made one of several visits to an island 20 kilometres from his ancestral […]
Several months ago, when it was still conventional wisdom that Trump wanted to replace Janet Yellen – at least until Trump’s famous WSJ interview in which he flipped on this and various other issues – with a hawk once her turn runs out in 2018, the financial punditry was busy coming up with potential replacement names, a practice which gradually faded away once it emerged that Trump […]
Warnings were that the first quarter of 2017 would be about as bad financially as the final two of 2016 for newspaper organizations. That proved to be the case today as Gannett kicked off the reporting season for publicly traded companies. Acquisitions led to some revenue growth. But comparing same properties: Print advertising revenues were down 17.7 percent compared to the first quarter of 2016. Circulation revenues […]
There is no love lost between French luxury house LVMH and its smaller rival Hermès despite the financial ties between them. In 2011, then-Hermès chief executive Patrick Thomas reacted with absolute fury when he learnt that LVMH had used derivatives to build up a stake in the company. In a notoriously crude statement, he said: “If you want to seduce a beautiful woman, you don’t start by […]
He refused to speculate on whether the cancellation was a tit-for-tat move after the German leadership postponed a governmental exchange with Israel, originally planned for May, citing scheduling conflicts. “The whole situation has to cool down,” Mr. Gabriel said. Continue reading the main story After the meeting of the two leaders was called off, an Israeli official in Mr. Netanyahu’s office, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, […]
ANKARA President Tayyip Erdogan told Reuters on Tuesday that Turkey would reconsider its position on joining the European Union if it was kept waiting much longer and if the current hostile mentality of some member states persists. Erdogan said a decision on Tuesday by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, a leading human rights body, to put Turkey on a watch list was “entirely political” […]
Etihad Aviation Group on Monday announced the appointment of Robin Kamark as CEO, Airline Equity Partners. Kamark will be responsible for leading and developing the Group’s minority equity investment strategy, which includes stakes in airberlin, Alitalia, Jet Airways, Air Serbia, Air Seychelles, Etihad Regional and Virgin Australia, a statement said. He takes over from Bruno Matheu, who has held the role since May 2016, and is leaving […]
In 2014, a landmark Center investigation detailing controversial denials of black lung benefits to coal miners — “Breathless and Burdened: Dying from Black Lung, Buried by Law and Medicine” — won in the category of investigative reporting. The year-long investigation illuminated how doctors and lawyers working at the behest of the coal industry helped defeat benefit claims of coal miners who were sick and dying of black […]
Just when US trade partners thought it was safe to come out from their hiding places, along comes President Donald Trump to slap a punitive duty on Canada, America’s long-time ally and neighbour — imposing tariffs of up to 24 per cent on imports on its softwood lumber. The new president seemed to have gone quiet on his protectionist instincts, pulling back from a trade confrontation with […]
KUWAIT A prominent Kuwaiti opposition politician and government critic has called for political reforms in the Gulf state in his first public comments since he was freed from prison last week. An outspoken former parliament deputy, Musallam al-Barrak was freed on Friday after serving a two-year prison sentence for insulting the country’s ruler, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah. He has in the past argued for broader electoral laws, […]
The Nasdaq Composite breached the 6,000 level for the first time on Tuesday and extended its double -digit gain for the year as investors focus on owning companies with strong growth prospects. The tech-heavy benchmark climbed as much as 0.7 per cent to 6,022 early in the day after closing at a record high in the previous session. Renewed appetite for technology stocks and a rally in […]
TOKYO The Japanese cabinet minister overseeing reconstruction of areas devastated by the 2011 earthquake and Fukushima nuclear disaster intends to resign after saying it was better that the disaster struck the northeast instead of Tokyo, national broadcaster NHK said. Masahiro Imamura made the comments when talking about the economic costs of the disaster at a party for ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers earlier on Tuesday. The remarks […]
Tuesday 12:30 BST What you need to know ● Stock markets extend rally on French election relief● Euro adds to gains as Paris’ bond yields steady ● Havens attract sellers, pushing down gold, the yen and Bund prices● Traders eye Nasdaq 6,000 as company earnings slip into fast gear● Brent crude prices higher as base metals firm——————- Hot topic The relief over the French election, which boosted […]
The Navy has since 2014 been testing a 30-kilowatt laser on one of its warships, the USS Ponce A sci-fi staple for decades, laser weapons are finally becoming reality in the US military, albeit with capabilities a little less dramatic than at the movies. Lightsabers—the favored weapon of the Jedi in “Star Wars” films—will remain in the fictional realm for now, but after decades of development, laser […]
Scientists have clarified through theory and simulation research that turbulence in a plasma confined in the magnetic field is suppressed and the heat and particle losses are reduced in cases with larger ion mass. This research provides a novel understanding for clarifying the ‘ion mass effect’ which has been a riddle since the beginning of fusion and plasma research. (via WSJ)
Spotify, the music streaming service that reached 50 million premium subscribers last month, is apparently looking to get into the hardware business. The company’s ambition to get into hardware, possibly through a wearable or a smart home device, was shown through a posted job listing that was spotted by blogger Dave Zatz. Job Listing Shows Spotify’s Hardware Ambitions According to Zatz, a trusted source indicated that Spotify will soon […]
After yesterday’s violent gap up in stocks across the globe in response to the “expected” outcome from the French election, today the risk on sentiment has continued if to a lesser extent, with stocks in Europe, Asia all rising while S&P futures point to a higher open. Yen, gold decline, while the euro traded as high as 1.09 this morning before fading some gains; oil is up […]
By Ahmed Aboulenein | MOSUL, Iraq, MOSUL, Iraq, Iraqi forces are using siege and stealth tactics to drive Islamic State militants out of Mosul’s Old City, an Iraqi general said, as his forces sought to minimise casualties among hundreds of thousands of people trapped in the cramped, historic neighbourhood. Explosions from two car bombs could be heard nearby as Lieutenant General Abdul Ghani al-Assadi spoke to Reuters […]
By Linda Sieg and Tetsushi Kajimoto | TOKYO TOKYO The secretary-general of Japan’s ruling party said on Tuesday he will attend China’s New Silk Road summit in May, a sign Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to improve ties with Beijing amid tensions over North Korea’s missile and nuclear programmes. But an adviser to Abe said Tokyo remained cautious about the China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), created […]
Viktor Medvedchuk has an unusually powerful godfather to his daughter: Vladimir Putin, the Russian president. The Ukrainian is also under US sanctions for “threatening the peace, security, stability, sovereignty or territorial integrity” of his country. So why is Mr Medvedchuk involved in negotiations over the future of separatist-held east Ukraine — on Kiev’s side? Mr Medvedchuk, 62, has long been one of Ukraine’s most divisive and enigmatic […]
By Nichola Saminather | SINGAPORE SINGAPORE Asian equities advanced on Tuesday as the return of risk appetite following a centrist victory in the first round of the French presidential election lifted several regional markets to multi-year highs, while the euro retained most of its overnight gains. Safe-haven assets, including the yen and gold remained under pressure, while the Canadian dollar fell after the U.S. announced new duties […]
The Home Office is trying to discourage EU nationals from applying for permanent residence in the UK to avoid being deluged by applications after the triggering of the Article 50 Brexit clause. According to new guidance released this month, EU citizens are instead advised to sign up for emailed news alerts that will tell them if and when they need to take action over their UK residence. […]
By Dustin Volz | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON The Senate’s main investigation into allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election is equipped with a much smaller staff than previous high-profile intelligence and scandal probes in Congress, which could potentially affect its progress, according to sources and a Reuters review of public records. With only seven staff members initially assigned to the Senate Intelligence Committee’s three-month-old investigation, […]
Saudi Arabia is about to cast off its oil-dependence, build brand-new industries and open its economy to foreign investment, according to the government. That might make it a good time to buy into a Saudi bank. And substantial stakes in two of them are up for sale. But in both cases, it’s international lenders who are seeking to get out – and there are no big-name global […]
