News

ABU DHABI / WAM The Association of Agricultural Research Institutions in the Near East and North Africa (AARINENA) has signed a cooperation agreement with Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) to establish and operate research, technology and innovation platform for an integrated production system for date palm in the Middle East and North Africa region, according to …

MAKKAH / WAM/ SPA The Technical and Service Authority at the Grand Mosque in Makkah has intensified its preparations for the Umrah season. Sterilisation and perfuming processes of the Grand Mosque and its outdoor parks are going on round the clock to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. More than 4,000 workers are sterilising the Grand Mosque and related …

Bloomberg Oil posted its fourth straight monthly gain as steady demand and tight supplies calmed concerns that a new wave of Covid-19 infections would cripple energy consumption. Futures in New York ended the week 2.6% higher. While cases of the virus’s delta variant have surged in recent weeks, mobility and other data point to strong demand in key economies that …

GENEVA / WAM Trade in medical goods registered growth of 16.3 percent in 2020 — compared with 4.7 percent growth in 2019 when the Covid-19 pandemic was just starting, according to the World Trade Statistical Review 2021 issued by the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Exports of medical products, including medicines, medical equipment and PPE, rose by more than 16 percent, …

Bloomberg Oil steadied as the resurgent pandemic posed a fresh threat to fuel demand even as global crude markets continued to tighten. Futures fluctuated near $72 a barrel in New York. The rebound in key energy consumers such as the US and China has helped to underpin increasing fuel consumption and drained bloated stockpiles built up during the pandemic. The …

ISLAMABAD / WAM Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday agreed to strengthen their relationship particularly in the economic domain including cooperation in trade, investment and technology. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah in a joint presser held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, vowed to continue extending support to each other …

DUBAI / WAM The distribution of food parcels has been completed in Egypt, providing an equivalent of 30 million meals to low-income families and underprivileged “100 Million Meals” campaign. In partnership with the Food Banking Regional Network, 928 local humanitarian organisations and Egypt Food Bank, around 504,000 beneficiaries across Egypt received parcels of easy-to-store food items including flour, sugar, rice …

Bloomberg The US and China barreled into their first high-level talks since March trading sanctions and rhetorical barbs, raising the stakes for the effort to stabilise strained relations between the world’s two largest economies. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, the US’s No. 2 diplomat, is set to meet Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday in Tianjin, about 60 miles …

Islamabad / WAM The World Health Organisation (WHO), on behalf of the Polio Eradication Initiative, has announced on Saturday that the United Arab Emirates has made available a total of $23 million funding for polio campaigns and around $376000 for the procurement of frontline worker personal protective equipment for protection against Covid-19 in 84 highest-risk districts of Pakisan. This funding …

Bloomberg Oil squeezed out its first weekly gain in three on signs that global demand is holding up despite concerns that the renewed spread of the virus could stall the recovery. Futures in New York rises 0.2% this week, completely recouping a selloff that was stoked by the rapidly spreading delta variant. Fuel demand and road traffic from the US …