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LONDON / Reuters A blockade on production at Libya’s Sharara oil field, the country’s largest, was lifted after it shut down output for more than two weeks, a Libyan oil source said. A valve on a pipeline leading from the field that was closed during the shutdown has reopened, though it was not clear how quickly production would resume at …

Bloomberg Europe’s biggest energy companies have a message for the aging UK North Sea oil industry: We may be selling assets, but that doesn’t mean we’re heading for the exit. The North Sea will always be “one of the great basins,” said BP Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley. Royal Dutch Shell Plc will keep investing in a place where it …

SINGAPORE / Reuters Several bookings for oil product tankers from Asia to the United States and Latin America have been cancelled as traders have not been able to find spot supplies to fill them and as demand has tapered off slightly, traders and shipbrokers said on Wednesday. About one-third of the estimated 25 vessels that were provisionally booked to load …

Bloomberg This summer, Japanese real estate investment trusts benefited from an unexpected group of net buyers for the first time in nearly seven years: mom and pop investors. Encouraged by the relatively lucrative returns, an increasing number of retail investors are putting their money in some of 58 publicly-traded REITs tracked by the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s gauge. Individuals were net …

Bloomberg Apple Inc.’s refusal so far to approve the Indian government’s anti-spam iPhone app is infuriating regulators, potentially harming the company’s efforts to sell more products in the country. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has been trying unsuccessfully to get its Do Not Disturb software included in the App Store. The programme lets people share spam call and text …

Bloomberg McDonald’s Japan is adding to its restaurant count for the first time in five years, underscoring a turnaround that prompted its US parent to reverse a decision to sell a stake in the company. McDonald’s Holdings Co. Japan plans to open more restaurants than it will close in the second half, said Chief Executive Officer Sarah Casanova, adding that …

Bloomberg Russia wants its biggest diamond miner to work more closely with the country’s top gem cutters so the industry can better compete in a market that’s dominated by Indian manufacturers. As part of a plan to boost the competitiveness of Russian diamonds, the government wants Alrosa PJSC to offer more favorable terms to cutters including Kristall Production Corp., Russia’s …

ABU DHABI / WAM The net income of Abu Dhabi-based commercial banks amounted to AED9 billion during Q2 2017, a growth of 4.1 percent from AED8.64 billion during the corresponding period in 2016. Net interest income amounted to AED5.268 billion during Q2 of 2017, accounting for 58.5 percent of commercial banks’ net income in the Emirate, according to the Statistics …

FUJAIRAH / WAM Foreign investments in the Fujairah Free Zone amounted to more than AED8 billion, with FFZ Authority accommodating more than 3500 companies from over 44 countries. Sharief Habib Al Awadhi, Director General, FFZA, has stated, “FFZ is witnessing growing demand on the part of investors wishing to establish different types of projects, especially in the oil and logistics …

DUBAI / Emirates Business Shuaa Capital announced that its real estate asset management division will be managing the development of a new mixed-use AED1.5bn skyscraper on Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai. The project, details of which will be unveiled at next week’s Cityscape Global Conference and Exhibition in Dubai, is intended to serve the ever-growing demand in the UAE’s residential, tourism …