Bloomberg Primark, the budget fashion chain owned by Associated British (AB) Foods Plc, has closed every store it operates due to the spread of the coronavirus, which will lead to a loss of 650 million pounds ($760 million) for each month the shops are shut. Primark had closed 20% of its selling space as of March 16, and on March ...

Bloomberg China’s economy will swiftly return to its potential growth rate and there’ll be significant improvement in the coming three months, a senior central bank official said on Sunday. “Economic indicators will likely show significant improvement in the second quarter and the Chinese economy will return to potential output level rather swiftly,” People’s Bank of China Deputy Governor Chen Yulu ...

DUBAI / WAM The emirate of Sharjah has listed a $200 million sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai, bringing the total value of sukuk listed in Dubai to $67.06 billion. Nasdaq Dubai’s new sukuk listings in 2020 now total $2.9 billion. Its new sukuk listings in all of 2019 totalled $14.15 billion, an annual record high for exchange and 18 percent more ...

DUBAI / WAM The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) reinforced its role as the representative of the business community in the midst of current global challenges by strengthening its partnerships with its partners, including the Ministry of Economy and other government authorities. The most recent of these efforts was the meeting between its members, who are major fruit ...

Abu Dhabi / WAM Etihad Airways has announced that effective from March 22, its services to Beijing will stop in the city of Xi’an, where passengers will disembark for health screening, customs clearance, and to claim their baggage. “This procedure is likely to be lengthy,” the airline said in a statement, adding that this directive does not affect the return ...

Dubai / WAM On World Water Day, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), urged the public to conserve natural resources to ensure sustainability for current and future generations. The theme of this year’s day, ‘Water and Climate Change’, seeks to raise awareness about the importance of using water efficiently and limiting greenhouse gases that cause global warming and climate ...

Dubai / Emirates Business Etisalat on Sunday announced the launch of ‘Business Edge’, a comprehensive platform offering a wide range of services and solutions that cater to Small and Medium Business (SMB) customers. Collaboration and communication from Business Edge enables SMBs to connect to customers in a secure and scalable way, allowing employees and customers to talk, video-conference and share ...

Dubai / WAM As schools and universities across the country started the first day of distance learning on Sunday, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said, “Schools are closed, but education will never stop. The UAE is the most well-equipped nation for smart learning.” Attending a virtual ...

ABU DHABI / WAM The Ministry of Education on Sunday launched the distance learning system for students in all Emirati schools and higher education institutions. The system will be in place for a period of two weeks. Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi, Minister of Education, stressed that significant efforts have been exerted by education professionals to create a technical academic ...

SHARJAH / WAM Arab Academy for Science Technology and Maritime Transport in Sharjah (AASTS) has announced the implementation of e-learning for the second semester in the College of Maritime Transport Technology. During the spring break, faculty members were trained on giving e-lectures as well as providing the necessary support to students. Commenting on the announcement, Dr. Ismail Abdel Ghaffar Ismail ...