News

  Bloomberg Oman, the largest Arab oil producer that’s not an OPEC member, plans to sell between $1.5 billion to $2 billion of bonds internationally in 2017 to plug a deficit caused by low crude prices. “There’s an appetite still and I think even when interest rates are raised there will still be appetite,” Ali Hamdan Al-Raisi, vice president for ...

  Sydney / AFP Australia’s economy contracted for just the fourth quarter in 25 years, official data showed on Wednesday, slowing the annual growth rate to 1.8 percent amid weaker government and consumer spending on top of softer trade figures. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported a 0.5 percent contraction for the September quarter. It was the weakest figure in ...

  Bloomberg India’s money-losing state power retailers may be scaring off power plant investors, according to Sembcorp Industries Ltd., compounding the industry’s woes that have left about 20 percent of the country without electricity. Delayed payments by the distributors and their reluctance to sign long-term purchase contracts are risks for investors, said Vipul Tuli, chief executive officer at the Singapore-based ...

  Bloomberg India will risk jeopardizing billions of dollars of investment by Japanese companies if it does not implement an arbitration award favoring NTT Docomo Inc. in its spat with the Tata Group, a senior Japanese government official said. A decision to double investment to 3.5 trillion yen ($31 billion) in India hinges on a quick settlement of the award, ...

  Bloomberg Stretched property valuations mean Hong Kong’s economy is vulnerable if interest rates rise faster than expected, the International Monetary Fund said. In its annual assessment of the Asian financial hub, the IMF identified three main risks — rising interest rates and potential global market volatility, China-linked stress, and a possible downturn in the property market. With the US ...

  Washington / AFP The US Supreme Court overturned a $399 million patent infringement penalty imposed on Samsung for copying Apple’s iPhone design, in a case watched for its implications for technology innovation. The shorthanded justices ruled 8-0 that Samsung should not be required to forfeit the entire profits from its smartphones for infringement on design components, sending the case ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM Abu Dhabi’s agribusiness leader Al Dahra Holding and Abu Dhabi Ports on Tuesday launched the Gulf region’s largest and only rice factory of its kind at Khalifa Industrial Zone (Kizad). The AED 140-million facility will produce up to 120,000 metric tonnes of rice per annum with 40 silos, each boasting a 750-tonne capacity. Owned by ...

  CAIRO / WAM A number of issues especially the follow-up on the implementation of the Greater Arab Free Trade Area (GAFTA) will be discussed at the 42nd meeting of the senior officials of Implementation and Follow-up Committee of the Arab Ministries of Economy and Trade, which began on Tuesday in Cairo. Nizar Faisal Al-Meshaal, Director of Department of Economic ...

  Dubai / EMIRATES BUSINESS Leaders, scientists and experts from around the world gathered on Tuesday at one of the biggest international conferences dedicated to quinoa. More than 150 leaders, policymakers, scientists, experts and professionals from over 46 countries came together to discuss and share the latest developments in quinoa research, production and trade around the world, and develop a ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan sent a congratulatory cable to His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn on the occasion of his accession to the throne. Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al ...