What were you thinking Microsoft? The company’s just-released Surface Laptop is meant to challenge Chromebooks, but at a starting price of $999, who the heck will buy it? It sure won’t be schools, which Chromebook dominates now. Windows 10 S and Surface Laptops are neither Chrome OS or Chromebook killers. They’re another pair of Microsoft mistakes. Sure, there have been premium-priced Chromebooks. I own two of them, […]
By Nick Carey and Joseph White | DETROIT DETROIT Automotive supplier Delphi Automotive Plc (DLPH.N) on Wednesday said it plans to spin off operations tied to internal combustion engines and focus on technology for electrically powered and self-driving vehicles, boosting its share price and highlighting the challenges for legacy auto industry players. Vehicles driven by humans and powered with petroleum will dominate roads from Shanghai to San […]
DUBAI // Education systems in the Middle East must improve and the root causes of youth unemployment have to be tackled, experts say. A panel on Wednesday responded to the findings of the Arab Youth Survey saying public schools in the region were not preparing young Arabs for the challenges of the future jobs market. “Curricula are a big problem in this region,” said Roy Haddad, director […]
The law justifying Britain’s Brexit bill is hotly contested, the variables in the calculation are legion and the negotiation has yet to start. But there can be no doubt that the EU’s €100bn demand to settle Britain’s exit dues is one of the biggest political dangers in the Brexit process. The Financial Times estimated the bill using the EU’s negotiating guidelines, the more detailed draft mandate for […]
Recent articles have declared that deposits of mineral raw materials (copper, zinc, etc.) will be exhausted within a few decades. An international team of scientists, however, has shown that this is incorrect and that the resources of most mineral commodities are sufficient to meet the growing demand from industrialization and future demographic changes. Future shortages will arise not from physical exhaustion of different metals but from causes […]
Saudi Arabia said Tuesday that it will issue a quarterly budget progress report for the first time as part of efforts to boost transparency while diversifying its oil-dependent economy. The world’s biggest oil exporter is wooing investors as it tries to reduce budget deficits caused by a collapse in energy revenues. “We will for the first time in Saudi announce, possibly in a couple of weeks or […]
News from the FT that the UK may face an initial Brexit bill of up to €100bn has dented sterling this morning. The currency fell by 0.2 per cent against the dollar to $1.29, nibbling into some of its eye-catching recent gains before recovering slightly. Against the euro, the pound is also down by 0.14 per cent to €1.1823. Broadly, the path for sterling since the general […]
OPEC and allied oil producers should extend their collective production cuts into the second half of the year when an expected upturn in demand will help to re-balance the crude market, UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei said. All countries participating in the cuts must agree to any extension, he said Tuesday in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and other major […]
Oman Air plans to move ahead with a multi-billion dollar order for wide-body jets early next year even though it won’t now break even in 2017 as the low oil price curbs growth in the Gulf. The carrier is now aiming to end losses by the end of next year, contingent on demand not deteriorating further, Chief Executive Officer Paul Gregorowitsch said in an interview on Tuesday. […]
In 2001, “Frontline” aired a documentary by investigative reporting legend Lowell Bergman. The movie, which chronicled the new cowboys of “Energy Alley,” contained never-before-seen interviews with Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling and other players in the energy scandal. It was compelling footage. After Enron imploded, filmmaker Alex Gibney bought the video from PBS and used some of it in his 2005 documentary about the scandal, “The Smartest Guys […]
Shares in Advanced Micro Devices logged their biggest one-day drop in more than 10 years on Tuesday after the chipmaker posted downbeat first-quarter sales and received an analyst downgrade. AMD was the biggest decliner on the S&P 500, falling 24.4 per cent to $10.30 after the company said net revenues rose 18 per cent from a year ago to $984m but was shy of analysts’ estimates of […]
By Susan Heavey | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON U.S. President Donald Trump came to office promising that he would produce so much winning that Americans would be sick of it. As he struggles to produce wins, some signs of frustration are starting to appear. Democrats’ gleeful declarations that they outsmarted Republicans in a battle over a spending bill that avoided a government shutdown drew the ire of the president. […]
By Anya George Tharakan and Stephen Nellis Apple Inc (AAPL.O) reported a surprise fall in iPhone sales for its second quarter on Tuesday, indicating that customers may have held back purchases in anticipation of the 10th-anniversary edition of the company’s most important product later this year. Shares of the world’s most valuable listed company were down 2.1 percent at $144.37 in after-hours trading. Under pressure from shareholders […]
By Alexandra Ulmer and Eyanir Chinea | CARACAS CARACAS Venezuela’s opposition blocked streets in Caracas on Tuesday to denounce a decision by leftist President Nicolas Maduro to create a “constituent assembly,” a move critics said was a veiled attempt to cling to power by avoiding elections. After a month of near-daily protests by opponents demanding early general elections, the unpopular leader announced on Monday he planned to […]
Managed by Frasers Hospitality Group, the Magnificent Fraser Suites West Bay property in Doha is set to Open its Doors in May 2017 Qatar, May 2 2017 Fraser Suites West Bay – Doha, today announced it has received 5 star hotel recognition from Qatar Tourism authority (QTA), surpassing all requirements in offering a 5 star hotel and service for guests to come. Set to open its doors […]
Photos of Fitbit‘s first “proper” smartwatch have leaked. The company is currently developing the follow-up to its Blaze Smart Fitness Watch of yesteryear, and it appears that the said device features a more evolved look of Fitbit’s Blaze line. Fitbit Higgs Specs Codenamed “Higgs,” the watch will reportedly feature specs that can hold a candle to the Apple Watch Series 2. As per Yahoo Finance, which nabbed the exclusive […]
DUBAI // A cleaner accused of attacking a woman from behind and snatching a smartphone out of her pocket presented a receipt in court to show that he had bought the device. At Dubai Criminal Court on Tuesday morning, the 28-year-old Filipino denied stealing from his 31-year-old countrywoman on February 10 as she was unlocking her apartment door. “I bought the phone,” he said through a translator […]
When I visited a dozen news organizations on our Innovation Tour last November, there was a surprising consensus among the biggest players on the next big thing they had in focus: Voice-activated news for devices like Amazon Echo and Google Home. As was true for Virtual Reality/360-degree video a year earlier, the medium is so new that publishers are just beginning to figure out where to start. But […]
For nearly two months, American International Group Inc (AIG.N) has planned to replace its chief executive but a successor has yet to be named, creating a void that has fueled investor concern about the insurance company’s future. AIG reports its first-quarter earnings on Wednesday and analysts and investors said they want to know more about AIG’s succession plans. Chief Executive Officer Peter Hancock announced on March 9 […]
By Andrew Cawthorne and Alexandra Ulmer | CARACAS CARACAS Venezuela’s socialist President Nicolas Maduro announced on Monday the creation of a new popular assembly with the ability to re-write the constitution, which foes decried as a power-grab to stifle weeks of anti-government unrest. “I don’t want a civil war,” Maduro told a May Day rally of supporters in downtown Caracas while elsewhere across the city security forces […]
Cisco has announced that it is acquiring Viptela, a software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) startup based in San Jose, California, in a deal worth $610 million. Founded by former Cisco engineers Amir Khan and Khalid Raza, Viptela delivers end-to-end network virtualisation that allows for application aware routing, service chaining, centralised policy, and orchestration capabilities. The company has raised more than $108 million since its founding in 2012. […]
Since the emergence of the single market in Asean, many companies are expanding their markets outside of their home country whereas others are still struggling. Some firms have already entered neighbouring markets while others are looking even farther beyond the Asean Economic Community. Research shows that firms in different industries look at the AEC from different perspectives. For example, firms in the financial industry seem to support […]
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) published its first quarter financial results on Monday, meeting market expectations. However, AMD shares fell in after-hours trading. As Wall Street anticipated, the company posted a non-GAAP net loss of $38 million, or 4 cents per share, on revenue of $984 million. Revenue was up 18 percent year-over-year, largely driven by demand for Ryzen CPUs, CEO Lisa Su noted. “We are positioned for […]
Authored by Mark Melin via ValueWalk.com, Bullish on oil, Andurand Commodity Fund Manager Pierre Andurand looks around the world for justification of his long exposure. Since the start of 2017, patience has been emphasized by the famous French oil trader, perhaps best known for his previous BlueGold Global Fund management, who is now struggling with an -11.6% loss year to date as of March and is in the […]
