07 March 2017 Geneva – The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for global air freight markets showing that demand, measured in freight tonne kilometers (FTKs), rose 6.9% in January 2017 compared to the year-earlier period. While this was down from the 10% annual growth recorded in December 2016 it still was well above the average annual growth rate of 3% over the past five years. Growth […]
By Ernest Scheyder | HOUSTON HOUSTON Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N), the world’s largest publicly traded oil producer, said on Monday it would invest $20 billion through 2022 to expand its chemical and oil refining plants on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The investments at 11 sites should create 35,000 temporary construction jobs and 12,000 permanent jobs, Chief Executive Darren Woods said in a speech at CERAWeek, the world’s […]
The CEO of Assurant appeared on Bloomberg TV to explain why demand for his services is likely to increase: the chief executive of the mobile phone insurer said he expects a surge in demand as carriers charge customers more to replace their devices. “If you think back five years ago, you as a consumer didn’t know how much that phone cost, you thought it was free or […]
President Donald Trump is siding with rightwing news outlets over his own FBI director in a dispute over unsubstantiated claims that former President Barack Obama ordered the wiretapping of Mr Trump during last year’s election. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a White House spokeswoman, said on Monday that the president does not accept FBI director James Comey’s dismissal of Mr Trump’s weekend claim that Mr Obama had tapped the […]
Drastic cuts in oil industry investment risk creating a shortfall in supply that by 2020 will expose the market to a surge in prices, the International Energy Agency has warned. Despite a chorus of analysts predicting a decline in oil consumption in the coming years, as governments push for energy efficiencies, cleaner fuel usage and electric cars, the IEA cautioned in its five-year outlook: “We see no […]
· Initiative co-founded by Facebook, Intel, Nokia, SK Telecom, Deutsche Telekom and others · Collaboration across the industry in driving and innovating the development of high-quality, scalable and more affordable telecom infrastructure to bridge the digital divide 06 March 2017 Barcelona, Kuwait City – During last week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Zain Group, the leading mobile telecom innovator in eight markets across the Middle East […]
Via Michael Shedlock of MishTalk.com, A quick perusal of Target2 Balances for January shows capital flight from Italy and Spain to Germany intensified again. German target2 imbalances exceed levels hit in the Eurozone crises in 2012. Things improved considerably after ECB president Mario Draghi made his famous statement “Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro. And believe me, […]
By David Lawder | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Trump administration trade adviser Peter Navarro said on Monday the $65 billion U.S. trade deficit with Germany was “one of the most difficult” trade issues, and bilateral discussions were needed to reduce it outside of European Union restrictions. Navarro, the director of the new White House National Trade Council, said at an economic conference in Washington that Germany has used the […]
Bloomberg is fighting to keep the bond house Pimco as a customer on its platform to buy and sell Treasuries, as the advance of automated trading reshapes the $14tn US government debt market. Pimco, one of the most influential debt investors with almost $1.5tn of assets under management, is working on a tie-up with rival trading venue Tradeweb, according to people with knowledge of the discussions, escalating […]
BELFAST Talks to save Northern Ireland’s devolved government ran straight into an obstacle on Monday as Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein repeated its demand that Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Arlene Foster not return as first minister. A snap election on Friday saw Sinn Fein surge to within one seat of the DUP and deny pro-British unionist politicians a majority in the British province’s local assembly for […]
Most entrepreneurs occasionally face unfavourable circumstances, from underperforming staff or chronic complaining customers to difficult economic conditions, mounting fees, and other often unforeseen hassles. However, there are outlier entrepreneurs, those whose decisions to persevere greatly outnumber the impediments they encounter. “I was stubborn. I had been dreaming about that project forever. I didn’t want to give up,” says Ziad Kamel, founder of Couqley UAE, a French bistro […]
· Initiative co-founded by Facebook, Intel, Nokia, SK Telecom, Deutsche Telekom and others · Collaboration across the industry in driving and innovating the development of high-quality, scalable and more affordable telecom infrastructure to bridge the digital divide 06 March 2017 Barcelona, Kuwait City – During last week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Zain Group, the leading mobile telecom innovator in eight markets across the Middle East […]
For an organisation to succeed, there’s no room for petty fighting between marketing and tech. Image: Przemyslaw Koch, Getty Images/iStockphoto Long gone are the days when the CIO alone was responsible for buying technology in a business. Just as likely now is that the marketing chiefs will be expected to procure and use digital tools to build brands and boost customer experiences. So how can CIOs and […]
BEIJING China’s defence budget will rise 7 percent in 2017, to 1.044 trillion yuan ($151.43 billion), state media said on Monday, after the omission of exact figures from an annual report sparked questions over transparency on military spending. The budget increase, a figure that is closely watched around the world for clues to China’s strategic intentions, is the smallest in more than a decade, as economic growth […]
Via JC Collins of Philosophy of Metrics.com, First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—Because I was not a Socialist.Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—Because I was not a Trade Unionist.Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—Because I was not a Jew.Then they came for me—And there was no one left […]
The Nintendo Switch had a successful March 3 global launch, but there are already a variety of issues being attached to the hybrid console. The latest problem that early owners of the Nintendo Switch have pointed out are dead pixels on the hybrid console’s screen. However, according to Nintendo, such a thing is normal, which is a claim that many users do not find acceptable. Dead Pixels On […]
By Balazs Koranyi | FRANKFURT FRANKFURT Two of the world’s biggest central banks are likely to find themselves with a bigger policy gap by the end of the coming fortnight The European Central Bank on Thursday will resist calls to start tightening policy against surging inflation but robust U.S. jobs data on Friday could seal the case for another Federal Reserve hike the week after. So, let’s […]
– Issuance is a Call to Kuwaiti Corporates to take Advantage of Sukuk for Financing Projects – 7-Fold Oversubscription evidence for EQUATE’s robust position, Sukuk Importance 05 March 2017 Kuwait – Chief Executive Officer -KFH Capital, affiliated to Kuwait Finance House Group, Abdulaziz Nasser Al-Marzouq said that KFH Capital acted as a global coordinator and book runner for EQUATE SUKUK SPC Limited’s (“EQUATE SPC”) in […]
As part of the previously previewed “Two Sessions” which started on Sunday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Sunday delivered the annual report on the work of the government in Beijing, summarizing the country’s achievements in the past year, and setting goals for this year. In his policy speech, lasting 97 minutes and 18,600 Chinese characters, Li signaled a course adjustment for the world’s second-largest economy and some […]
Apple has had a pretty good quarter so far, and they have plenty of reasons to be happy apart from their whopping $78.4 billion revenue. A large part of the massive revenue is thanks to strong demand for the iPhone 7 and its new features. What’s more, Apple saw not just upgraders from the older iPhones but also the highest number of switchers from Android to Apple […]
Following public calls for the return of a desert-driving favourite, Nissan today announced the rebirth of its much-loved Patrol Super Safari in the Middle East, one of the most coveted off-road vehicles ever sold in the region. “The return of the legendary Patrol Super Safari reflects Nissan’s willingness not only to listen to its regional customers, but to also respond to their wishes,” said Samir Cherfan, the […]
By Jessica Resnick-Ault and Lewis Krauskopf | NEW YORK NEW YORK The energy sector is the stock market’s dud so far in 2017 after a banner performance in 2016, and the rest of the year may also be rocky for investors due to the unclear path for crude oil prices. Energy outdid all other sectors last year, up nearly 24 percent thanks to a late-year rally on […]
By Ernest Scheyder | HOUSTON HOUSTON The biggest names in the oil world come together this week for the largest industry gathering since the end of a two-year price war that pitted Middle East exporters against the firms that drove the shale energy revolution in the United States. When OPEC in November joined with several non-OPEC producers to agree to a historic cut in output, the group […]
Ras Al Khaimah has continued to outperform the wider UAE and regional tourism markets, according to real estate consultancy firm CBRE. Its latest Ras Al Khaimah MarketView report noted that the emirate’s hospitality market soared last year by recording a 10.9 percent increase in full year visitor arrivals and a 9.8 percent growth in the average occupancy rate, taking the annual occupancy to 71 percent. According to […]
