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VATICAN / WAM His Holiness Pope Francis, Head of the Catholic Church, reflected on his Journey to the United Arab Emirates, at his General Audience on Wednesday. The journey to the UAE “wrote a new page in the history of dialogue between Christianity and Islam,” His Holiness the Pope said, affirming that the visit underlined the commitment to “promote peace ...

Bloomberg Oil steadied below $54 a barrel as signs of weakening economic growth from Europe to the US and a reported increase in American crude stockpiles were offset by supply curbs from Opec and its allies. Futures in New York fell as much as 1.5 percent before paring losses. Growth concerns were fueled by a drop in German factory orders, ...

ABU DHABI / WAM HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union (GWU), Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation (FDF) and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, stressed that the UAE is a nation of tolerance and peace whose foundations were laid by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and the ...

DUBAI / WAM Aramex, the leading global provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation solutions, on Tuesday announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ending on December 31, 2018. The 2018 full year revenue increased by 8% to AED5,086 million, compared to AED 4,721 million in FY 2017. Aramex’s net profit in 2018 increased by 13% to ...

DUBAI / WAM Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower), the world’s largest district cooling services provider, has announced that it has secured a syndicated loan of AED1.5 billion through a group of local, regional and international banks to finance its new projects. The loan will be used to expand the capacity and district cooling infrastructure in various projects.

Dubai / Emirates Business Mergermarket, the leading provider of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) data and intelligence, has released research showing that in 2018 the Mena region experienced a significant spike in deal value, reaching $26.76 billion, compared with $15.86 billion in 2017 — an increase of 68.7%. The significant growth in deal value was driven by increased deal-making in the ...

Dubai / Emirates Business Emirates NBD Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) released January data for the UAE non-oil private sector. The survey, compiled by IHS Markit, contains original data collected from a monthly survey of business conditions in the industry. Khatija Haque, Head of Mena Research at Emirates NBD, said: “The Emirates NBD Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the UAE rebounded ...

Bloomberg Oil held gains near a two-month high after data showed US production growth slowing at a time when Opec cuts and American sanctions on Venezuela have already eased concerns over a supply glut. Futures in New York rose as much 0.9 percent to reach the highest intraday level since November 21, after adding 2.7 percent. Opec’s crude output fell ...

TOKYO / WAM Japan imported from the United Arab Emirates 22.778 million barrels of crude oil in December 2018, data released by the Agency of Energy and Natural Resource in Tokyo showed. This accounts for 24.5% of Japan’s total crude imports, the agency that belong to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, said. Saudi Arabia provided 39.437 million barrels, ...

Bloomberg Petroleos Mexicanos bonds cratered after Fitch Ratings downgraded the state-owned company to just a notch above junk, spurring a slide in sovereign debt and the peso. The yield on Pemex bonds due in 2027 rose 28 basis points to 7.251 percent at 1:02 pm in New York, after jumping as much as 40 basis points earlier in the day. ...