International News

  Havana, Cuba / AFP Starwood Hotels took over management of a luxury hotel in central Havana, becoming the first big American hospitality chain with a presence on the island since the Cuban Revolution a half-century ago. The newly-rechristened Cuba Four Points by Sheraton on Havana’s Quinta Avenida — a hotel owned by the Cuban military — now will be managed ...

  Bloomberg Brazil’s new central bank chief Ilan Goldfajn suggested it’s too early to think about cutting rates as inflation remains above target and the government has yet to implement budget cuts. Short-dated swap rates rose. Consumer prices will increase 4.7 percent next year, still above the target set by the government, the central bank said in its quarterly inflation ...

  Bloomberg The widening rich-poor divide in America has robbed the economy of a year’s worth of consumption, according to the International Monetary Fund. Middle-class households declined as a share of the population between 1970 and 2014, while the proportion in high- and low-income brackets expanded, according to new research by IMF economists Ali Alichi, Kory Kantenga and Juan Sole. ...

New Delhi / Bloomberg India’s plan to replace energy-intensive appliances with more efficient designs is expected to save as much as 600 billion rupees ($8.9 billion) a year, according to the head of the government arm spearheading the country’s drive. The federal power ministry’s plan to replace incandescent lights with LED bulbs and use energy-efficient irrigation pumps, fans and air ...

  Beijing / Bloomberg China Shipbuilding Industry Co. plans to raise as much as 3.9 billion yuan ($587 million) through a private share sale to reduce debt. The company intends to sell 718 million shares at 5.43 yuan each to its parent, China Shipbuilding Industry Corp., and two wholly owned units of the group, it said in a statement dated ...

  Colombo / AFP Sri Lanka said its trade would be hurt by the United Kingdom’s “nightmare” vote to leave the European Union, with $1 billion in annual exports to the British market now clouded by uncertainty. The South Asian nation famed for its tea and spices is on the brink of signing up to a scheme with the European Union ...

  Hanoi / AFP Vietnam’s economy slowed in the first half of 2016, official figures showed on Wednesday, with a severe regional drought and a spate of fish deaths adding to losses caused by turmoil in global markets. GDP growth dropped to 5.52 percent in the first six months compared to 6.32 percent in the same period last year. The ...

  Tokyo / Bloomberg Toyota Motor Corp. said it’s recalling about 3.4 million vehicles to repair separate flaws involving leaky fuel tanks and curtain air bags that may crack and injure occupants. The larger fuel tank recall affects 2.87 million vehicles worldwide, including Prius hybrids and Corolla compacts, the company said in an e-mail. Toyota said fuel emissions control canisters ...

  Tokyo / AFP India’s 10-year bond yield was near a six-week low as a pickup in monsoon rains eased concern that a reduction in crop output will stoke food costs. Total rainfall has been 13 percent below normal since June 1, according to the weather department. The shortfall was 25 percent mid-June. Investors are drawing comfort from this year’s ...

  London / AFP Britain’s exit from the European Union may erode the bloc’s leadership role in fighting climate change and stymie crucial efforts to set more ambitious targets for cutting greenhouse gases, officials and experts said. The damage will become worse the longer the divorce proceedings drag on, or if Brexit inspires other EU nations to follow suit, they said. ...