News

Bloomberg The UK and Canada reached a temporary agreement to prevent tariffs on goods and services between the two countries starting on January 1, when the UK will no longer be covered by Canada’s trade deal with the European Union. In a statement by the Canadian foreign affairs ministry, the governments said they agreed to continue giving each other’s products ...

Bloomberg American shoppers shunned stores and extended their online binge during the last weekend before Christmas, adding to a package-delivery logjam that’s now reaching a crescendo. There’s “a lot of stuff all hitting at once,” said Craig Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners. “I think it’s past the time for creative. They have to charge people extra to get it ...

NEW YORK / WAM The United Nations General Assembly has adopted by consensus a resolution proclaiming February 4 as “International Day for Human Fraternity.” The initiative was introduced by the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and as a result the international community will observe International Day for Human Fraternity annually beginning in 2021. Prior to the adoption ...

ABU DHABI / WAM Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) — alongside partners Masdar, EDF Renewables and JinkoPower — announced on Tuesday the successful financial closing of the Al Dhafra Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Independent Power Producer (IPP) project. The record-breaking project, located approximately 35 kilometres from Abu Dhabi city, will have a capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW) and will supply ...

ABU DHABI / WAM Abu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institute (TII), the applied research pillar of the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC), announced on Tuesday that its Cryptography Research Centre (CRC) has built the UAE’s first national and sovereign crypto library. The milestone is set to enable the country to safeguard vital and confidential sources of information. The development follows a ...

ABU DHABI / WAM The UAE embassy in Beirut, in cooperation with the Zayed Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation, has launched an initiative aimed at distributing 10,000 food parcels and 60 wheelchairs in Lebanon. The initiative is in cooperation with civil society organisations registered with the Lebanese Ministry of Interior, municipalities, and care homes for elderly people. The gesture is part ...

Bloomberg Oil extended this week’s slump on fears that rising virus infections and a faster-spreading strain will inflict a new blow on fuel consumption. Futures are down more than 3% in New York. Many countries have suspended travel with the UK, where a new Covid-19 variant is forcing more than 16 million people to stay at home. A resurgence of ...

JAKARTA / WAM Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has signed a series of agreements with PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Inalum) to provide technological know-how to upgrade the Indonesian company’s aluminium smelter in North Sumatra. The signing was part of Indonesia UAE Week, organised by the two countries’ embassies to further deepen economic ties between the UAE and Indonesia. EGA will provide ...

DUBAI / WAM Emaar, the master developer of the Burj Khalifa, has collaborated with Zoom Video Communications, to host New Year’s Eve celebrations live from Downtown Dubai in a global Zoom video call. Up to 50,000 people from around the world will be invited to tune-in and usher in 2021 on the first ever New Year’s Eve celebration to be ...

ABU DHABI / WAM With immediate effect, Etihad Airways will temporarily suspend its passenger services between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Muscat (MCT) in Oman and Kuwait (KWI) until further notice, based on the directives of the respective authorities to limit the spread of Covid-19. A company spokesperson said the move is aimed to limit the ...