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DUBAI / WAM The UAE Cabinet adopted a resolution on the Civil Procedure Code, which outlines important amendments in line with the UAE Vision 2021 and UAE Centennial Strategy 2071. The amendments are aimed at strengthening and modernising the judicial procedures to ensure their ease of application. The decision comes after concerted efforts between the federal and local authorities within ...

Bloomberg Indonesia and Australia signed a free-trade agreement, overcoming more than eight years of negotiations and 11th-hour delays in a move designed to bolster their under-developed economic relationship. Indonesia’s Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita and Australia’s Trade Minister Simon Birmingham inked the deal in Jakarta on Monday. It will need to be ratified by parliaments in both nations before it comes ...

Bloomberg China is planning to cut the value-added tax rate that covers the manufacturing sector by 3 percentage points as part of measures to support the slowing economy, a person familiar with the matter said. The reduction in the highest of the nation’s three VAT brackets could be announced as soon as this week, when political leaders are gathering in ...

Bloomberg Singapore will allocate a further S$300 million ($222 million) to spur research in digital innovation as the government transforms the economy through technology. The amount, almost double the current budget, is part of the next phase of the National Research Foundation’s five-year plan ending 2020, Minister for Communications and Information S. Iswaran said during a parliamentary session on Monday. ...

Bloomberg The inflation outlook is looking dismal for the Bank of Japan as cheaper oil and falling mobile phone charges threaten to push price growth towards zero by mid-summer. The Bloomberg Inflation Barometer, which draws on eight drivers of prices, points to a sharp slowing in the months ahead as lower oil costs feed their way into electricity bills. Over ...

Bloomberg Carlos Ghosn’s new lawyer escalated his public appeal to release the former Nissan Motor Co. chairman from prison by hinting at the involvement of a “higher power” in the case and questioning why only Ghosn and an associate have been accused of crimes so far. Junichiro Hironaka, the lawyer hired by Ghosn last month, also said on Monday his ...

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc., which scrapped a deal this month to open offices in New York after clashing with local politicians, is pulling out of a lease in Seattle that was at the center of a battle with the city council. Last year, as the Seattle City Council was weighing a tax on large employers to fund affordable housing and homeless ...

Bloomberg The owner of Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper will distribute its stake in the publisher of Euromoney magazine to shareholders in a move that will tie the fortunes of Chairman Lord Rothermere closer to the company. Daily Mail investors will see some of their stock exchanged for Euromoney shares. Lord Rothermere, also known as Jonathan Harmsworth, won’t take part in ...

Bloomberg Novartis AG’s new gene therapy targeting a disease that kills infants would be cost-effective at as much as $1.5 million, according to a US nonprofit that assesses the value of drugs, well short of the potential price range the company has suggested. Zolgensma, a one-time treatment for a severe genetic disorder called spinal muscular atrophy, would provide substantial benefits ...

Bloomberg Volkswagen AG’s delicate balancing act between the old and new automotive eras will be on full display this week at the Geneva car show, where a fun-loving electric beach buggy will share the limelight with the trusty Passat sedan. VW’s I.D. Buggy concept combines battery power with styling reminiscent of carefree days tearing around California sand dunes, tapping a ...