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DUBAI / Emirates Business The Smart Dubai Office (SDO), has partnered with regional technology business solutions (TBS) provider Nearbuy to host a trial of the first ‘robot receptionist’ in the Middle East. Farah, which stands 1.50 metres tall, started work today at the Smart Dubai Office headquarters in the Dubai Design District. It features a touch-screen panel where visitors to ...

Abu Dhabi / WAM The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC), has launched a two-year renewable energy training programme for Pacific Island countries financed by Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), the leading national entity for development aid. The training is being led by Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company. The capacity-building initiative falls within the framework of ...

Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, once again marked the start of the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with a low-level fly-past over Yas Marina Circuit. The fly-past has become synonymous with the race with the flagship A380 aircraft flying over the iconic circuit at approximately 4.50pm. The A380 was ...

Bloomberg State-run Steel Authority of India Ltd. is heading for a turnaround this year as the government orders belt-tightening and asset disposals at the loss-making 63-year-old mill. “This year we’re expecting some cash profit to come into SAIL,” Aruna Sharma, secretary at the steel ministry, said in an interview in New Delhi. The ministry has directed the company to better ...

Bloomberg China is making another attempt at keeping Shanghai at the cutting edge of economic reforms after its latest try in 2013 floundered. The State Council, the nation’s cabinet, will soon unveil plans for a “free-trade port” in the world’s biggest shipping hub, according to Chen Bo, an adviser on the proposal who researches free trade zones at the Huazhong ...

Bloomberg China’s new plan to slash import taxes on a wide range of consumer goods promises to boost the prospects of multinationals in the Chinese market, with everything from the likes of Procter & Gamble Co.’s diapers to other items becoming more affordable to local consumers. Tariffs for 187 product categories will drop from an average 17.3 percent to 7.7 ...

Bloomberg A high-stakes legal clash is unfolding over President Trump’s temporary pick to run Elizabeth Warren’s favourite bank regulator, and the White House is holding its ground. Trump said he’s naming White House budget director Mick Mulvaney to be the temporary head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The announcement came hours after outgoing CFPB Director Richard Cordray said ...

Bloomberg Elon Musk knows how to make promises. Even by his own standards, the promises made while introducing two new Tesla vehicles—the heavy-duty Semi Truck and the speedy Roadster—are monuments of envelope pushing. To deliver, according to close observers of battery technology, Tesla would have to far exceed what is currently thought possible. Take the Tesla Semi: Musk vowed it ...

Bloomberg The UK is close to running out of time in its divorce negotiations with the European Union and would be set back by missing a December deadline to resolve several thorny issues, Scottish Conservative Party leader Ruth Davidson said. Failing to resolve issues such as the status of the Irish border and the payment from the UK would further ...

Sydney / WAM The UAE and Australia have affirmed their commitment to the free trade agreement between Australia and the GCC, being an efficient mechanism conducive to broadening economic ties. This came during the maiden session of the joint UAE- Australia Economic Committee, which convened in Sydney under the chairmanship of Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy, and ...