ANKARA German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she stressed the importance of press freedom and freedom of opinion in Turkey during talks with President Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday in Ankara. “With the (attempted) putsch, we saw how the Turkish people stood up for democracy and for the rules of democracy in Turkey,” said Merkel, with reference to July’s failed coup. “That is exactly why, in this decisive phase, […]
An international team of researchers has developed a new blue-phase liquid crystal that could enable televisions, computer screens and other displays that pack more pixels into the same space while also reducing the power needed to run the device. The new liquid crystal is optimized for field-sequential color liquid crystal displays (LCDs), a promising technology for next-generation displays. (via WSJ)
KINSHASA The death on Wednesday of Congo’s opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi leaves opponents of President Joseph Kabila seriously weakened in their bid to force Kabila to quit power after he defied constitutional term limits to stay on last year. Democratic Republic of Congo has never experienced a peaceful transition of power and Kabila’s refusal to stand down when his final term expired in December has raised fears […]
Saudi Aramco is likely to list its shares simultaneously on more than one exchange but this is still under evaluation, Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said on Thursday. Asked by reporters if Aramco would list first on the Saudi bourse and then on another exchange abroad, Falih said: “It will probably be done concurrently, but we have not announced. We are evaluating. All our options are open.” The […]
The Cohort is Poynter’s bi-monthly newsletter about women kicking ass in digital media. Earlier this week, I wrote a piece about whether journalists should participate in political demonstrations and online conversations. While the guidance has always been fairly straightforward (simply put: no), the events of the past few weeks and number of political protests have reignited the debate in newsrooms. More often than not, the answer is […]
02 February 2017 MARC has removed the ratings on WCT Holdings Berhad’s (WCT Holdings) RM1.0 billion MTN Programme and RM1.5 billion Sukuk Murabahah Programme from MARCWatch Developing. The ratings were placed on MARCWatch Developing on November 4, 2016 to enable the rating agency to reassess WCT Holdings’ business plan and the impact on its credit metrics following a major change in shareholders after the group’s founding members […]
The Bank of England kept its key interest rate at 0.25%, gilt purchase program at GBP435BN, and corporate-bond plan at GBP10b, voting 9-0 on all 3 decisions. The BOE also raises growth forecasts, while keeping its inflation forecasts broadly unchanged, and said the current policy stance “depended on the trade-off between above-target inflation and slack in the economy.” The central banks also reiterated that “monetary policy could […]
ULAANBAATAR/HONG KONG Private citizens in Mongolia are donating cash, jewelry, gold and even horses to help the government make a near $600 million payment to bondholders next month. The cash-strapped nation has been embroiled in an economic crisis brought about by a collapse in foreign investment, slowing growth in China and weak commodity prices. Its currency, the tugrik, lost nearly a quarter of its value last year. […]
Boston Dynamics is showing off its latest creation: a “nightmare-inducing” robot equipped with two wheels called Handle. At the Abundance360 event in Los Angeles, company founder Marc Raibert took the stage to unveil the machine via a video, and he had this to say as an introduction: “This is the debut presentation of what I think will be a nightmare-inducing robot, if you’re anything like me.” Looking […]
ABU DHABI // Fatima Al Marzouqi is helping to steer the next generation of Emiratis toward careers in science, technology, engineering and maths. As head of Mubadala’s education and training division, she plays a crucial and direct role in developing academic programmes that introduce pupils to Stem, and professional training opportunities that offer students and recent graduates hands-on experience with major engineering and manufacturing companies at home […]
Targeting the weak The us-versus-them dynamic is “easy for many people to rally around,” said Jonathan D. Weiler, a political scientist at the University of North Carolina. Targeting feared or unpopular minorities is a way of “setting a boundary,” said Sheri E. Berman, a political scientist at Barnard College — a way to distinguish between “us” deserving of protection, and “them” who are a threat. Continue reading […]
Chocolate industry executives breathed a collective sigh of relief earlier this year after the impact of the bankruptcy of a key cocoa industry player at the end of 2016 remained muted as a result of a weak cocoa market. Expectations of bumper supplies from west Africa, the leading regional producer of cocoa beans, have been weighing on bean prices of the key chocolate ingredient. This has helped […]
Grab has announced plans to invest US$700 million in Indonesia over the next four years, as part of efforts to increase its footprint in a market where it has seen growth. The Southeast Asian ride-sharing operator said Thursday the new investment would support the Indonesian government’s ambition of becoming the region’s largest digital economy by 2020. It would include plans to set up a research and development […]
This worldview borrows from the “clash of civilizations” thesis of the political scientist Samuel P. Huntington, and combines straightforward warnings about extremist violence with broad-brush critiques of Islam. It sometimes conflates terrorist groups like Al Qaeda and the Islamic State with largely nonviolent groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood and its offshoots and, at times, with the 1.7 billion Muslims around the world. In its more extreme […]
Almost a decade on from the financial crisis, a global deadline for reform of the $544tn derivatives market has triggered a last-minute scramble by hundreds of small banks, insurers and pension funds. Many of these institutions use bespoke derivatives such as swaps to protect their operations from sudden changes in asset prices. In a month’s time they face higher costs and regulatory burdens. Plenty are not ready. […]
SYDNEY U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he will review a “dumb deal” to take hundreds of Australian asylum seekers after the Washington Post reported he had angrily berated Australia’s prime minister and abruptly ended a tense telephone call. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told reporters the call on Saturday had been frank and candid but refused to provide further details on a “private” conversation that […]
Telstra has said that as a result of a fire at its Chatswood exchange, it is possible that customers’ SMS messages have been delivered to people other than the intended recipients. “As a result of the Chatswood exchange fire today, it’s possible some SMS messages have been incorrectly delivered,” a Telstra spokesperson said. “As mentioned previously, customers won’t be receiving SMS messages in the short term while […]
TOKYO Asian shares inched up to four-month highs while the dollar was finding its feet on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve stuck to its mildly upbeat economic view but gave no hint of accelerating rate hikes. While strong economic data from the United States and elsewhere have underpinned risk assets, uncertainty and concerns over U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies have markets on edge. “With many of […]
The death of Chief Petty Officer William Owens came after a chain of mishaps and misjudgments that plunged the elite commandos into a ferocious 50-minute firefight that also left three troops wounded and a $75 million aircraft deliberately destroyed. There are allegations — which the Pentagon acknowledged on Wednesday night are most likely correct — that the mission also killed several civilians, including some children. The dead […]
February 2, 2017 by: Hudson Lockett in Hong Kong Thursday 02.00 GMT Overview Stock markets were mixed in Asia after the US Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged but hinted at further rises this year. The Australian dollar gained against its US counterpart on data showing a record trade surplus, while oil pared back some of Wednesday’s gains. Hot topic The Australian dollar gained 0.6 per cent […]
Dubai, United Arab Emirates – February 2nd 2017: In an official announcement, Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) has confirmed the launch of the UAE Public Policy Forum next month, to be hosted under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. Taking place on March 12th and 13th 2017 under the theme of […]
By Shihar Aneez | HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka China signed a deal with Sri Lanka late last year to further develop the strategic port of Hambantota and build a huge industrial zone nearby, a key part of Beijing’s ambitions to create a modern-day “Silk Road” across Asia. The agreement was welcome relief for the island nation of 20 million people. As they try to reduce […]
By Rodrigo Campos | NEW YORK NEW YORK The S&P 500 edged higher on Wednesday to cap a four-day losing streak, buoyed by gains in Apple shares and after the Federal Reserve kept U.S. interest rates unchanged, as expected. Apple (AAPL.O) shares rose 6.1 percent to $128.75, its highest close in a year and a half. This made it the biggest positive influence on the three major […]
Brady started getting questions about Trump last fall when a red “Make America Great Again” cap was spotted in his Gillette Stadium locker, reportedly put there by Kraft. Brady at first gave sheepish, gee-whiz responses suggesting that it would be cool to have a golf pal as president. (“There’d be a putting green on the White House lawn,” he predicted.) But the questions took on an edgier […]
