Tokyo / Bloomberg The Bank of Japan’s controversial march to the top of shareholder rankings in the world’s third-largest equity market is picking up pace. Already a top-five owner of 81 companies in Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average, the BOJ is on course to become the No. 1 shareholder in 55 of those firms by the end of next ...

  LONDON / AP The chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland says the company will move its headquarters out of Scotland if the country votes for independence. RBS said before Scotland’s 2014 independence referendum that it would leave in the event of independence. CEO Ross McEwan says Britain’s June 23 vote to leave the European Union had not changed ...

  Berlin / AP Germany’s Bundesbank said raising the legal retirement age to 69 by 2060 could ease some of the pressure on the country’s state pension system as the population ages. Recent reforms won’t protect citizens from a drop in the level of pension payments from 2050, the central bank said in its monthly report published on Monday. Citizens ...

  Bloomberg The European Union is considering adding to protections for banks’ riskiest debt securities by requiring that lenders pay coupons on such bonds before stock dividends and staff bonuses. Coupons on additional Tier 1 securities, such as contingent convertibles, or CoCos, “should be given priority” if capital levels are breached that trigger limits on payouts, according to an undated ...

  Dubai / WAM The Board of Directors of Dubai Government-owned Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) have announced a new growth strategy aimed at serving Dubai’s growing energy needs while simultaneously developing an integrated upstream and downstream energy value chain to drive future growth. As part of the five-year strategy 2016-2021, ENOC will focus its efforts and investments on fulfilling Dubai’s ...

  Dubai / WAM The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), represented by Public Transport Agency, has recently signed an agreement with the British Council whereby prospective taxi drivers will undergo linguistic, psychological and behavioural tests as a pre-requisite for obtaining professional permits. The step comes as part of the RTA’s strategy in forging partnerships to serve its objectives at world-class standards. ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) launched its annual sacrificial animal campaign nationwide to raise funds for the project set to benefit over 298,600 beneficiaries, of whom 70,100 beneficiaries are in the UAE. The cost of the sacrificial animals is estimated at AED12 million this year. The project, which will see slaughter and distribution of 28,305 sacrificial animals ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM The Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) organised a one-day orientation session for newly hired teachers who will be joining Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Western Region schools for the 2016/2017 academic school year. Dr Ali Al Nuaimi, ADEC’s Director-General, welcomed more than 600 Emirati, English Medium and Arabic Medium teachers, who will be teaching in different ...

  Sharjah / WAM The Sharjah Charity International (SCI) has begun the distribution of schoolbags to the enlisted students as part of its ‘Back to School’ Campaign. The foundation launches its annual campaign at the beginning of each new academic year. Abdullah Sultan bin Khadim, Executive Director and Board Member of SCI, said that about 7,000 schoolbags, which include all the ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business The UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science (UAEREP) is nearing the completion of its next milestone phase with August 17 (midnight) serving as the cut-off deadline for receiving full proposals for the second cycle of the program. Aiming to advance rain enhancement science, technology and applications, the first-of-its-kind program encourages more investments in research, ...