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Bloomberg India’s draft e-commerce rules to prevent creation of “digital monopolies” and aid local startups may raise costs and stymie expansion plans at companies such as Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. The draft rules seek to prescribe a code of conduct for online retailers and define cross-border flow of user data, according to a note titled Draft Ecommerce Policy. Prime ...

Bloomberg The Philippines’ renewed surge in coronavirus infections will have limited impact on the economy as authorities impose localised lockdowns and as vaccinations pick up, Economic Planning Secretary Karl Chua said. The Southeast Asian nation, which will likely remain in recession this quarter, has to manage the spike in cases without reinstating stricter movement curbs which will hurt jobs, Chua ...

Bloomberg Indonesia, a top supplier of a key battery metal, will aim to boost sales of electric vehicles with a new regulation that will cut tax breaks for hybrid cars. Battery-powered electric vehicles will retain their 0% luxury tax rate, while plug-in hybrid vehicles will see their tariff increase to 5% from 0%, according to a draft regulation issued by ...

ABU DHABI / WAM The third edition of the Mohamed Bin Zayed Majlis for Future Generations (MBZMFG) opened on Sunday under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. The 2021 Majlis consists of virtual sessions led by decision makers, government officials, experts, ...

Bloomberg India’s foreign-exchange reserves surpassed Russia’s to become the world’s fourth largest, as the South Asian nation’s central bank continues to hoard dollars to cushion the economy against any sudden outflows. Reserves for both countries have mostly flattened out this year after months of rapid increase. India pulled ahead as Russian holdings declined at a faster rate in recent weeks. ...

Abu Dhabi / WAM The trade exchanges between the UAE and GCC states amounted to around AED229 billion in 2019, a 4 percent growth on 2018, according to Younis Haji Al Khouri, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) In statements to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Al Khouri noted that cooperation with its GCC partners lies at the heart ...

NEW YORK / WAM The UAE urged the UN Security Council (UNSC) to unequivocally condemn the obstruction of the delivery of humanitarian aid by armed groups and demand that they fully respect their obligations under international humanitarian law. The UAE submitted a written statement to UN Security Council for its open debate on conflict and food security convened by United ...

ABU DHABi / WAM Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, the newest national airline of the UAE, announced the launch of its latest routes from Abu Dhabi to Almaty and Nur Sultan, Kazakhstan, starting in the middle of May 2021. With the launch of Almaty and Nur-Sultan, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi adds a further two routes to already on sale thirteen routes. ...

DUBAI / WAM In line with its digital transformation drive, the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) implemented the issuance of electronic pre-marital certificates. Couples must undergo a pre-marital health examination to screen for certain genetic and infectious diseases. At the DHA, the screening is available across primary healthcare centres. After the screening, the DHA provides a pre-marital certificate electronically. The move ...

Dubai / Emirates Business Data and artificial intelligence (AI) are expected to become key pillars that will build and grow the UAE’s digital economy in the future, adding a major boost to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the long term, industry experts predicted during a recent virtual panel discussion hosted by Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The ...