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  Hanoi, Vietnam / AFP President Barack Obama said on Monday he remained confident the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal would be ratified in the United States despite strong political opposition in Washington. “The reason I remain confident is it’s the right thing to do,” he told reporters in Vietnam where he is currently on a three-day visit. “I have not ...

    Bloomberg This month, Telefonica SA was able to raise the price of landline phone service in Argentina for the first time since 2000 — by a whopping 192 percent. The increase in the line-rental fee to about 38 pesos ($2.70) a month from 13 pesos in the carrier’s second-largest Latin American market comes after 16 years of government-frozen ...

  Bloomberg Oil dropped for a fourth day as producers in Canada worked to resume operations after wildfires curbed output and Iran continued to raise exports amid a global surplus. July futures slid as much as 1.5 percent in New York. Cooler weather is helping to control a blaze in the heart of Canada’s oil-sands region and allowing Suncor Energy ...

BLOOMBERG Brazil economists forecast lower interest rates this year on the expectation incoming central bank president Ilan Goldfajn will ease monetary policy to stimulate growth. Economists reduced their 2016 Selic forecast to 12.75 percent from 13 percent the prior week, according to the weekly Focus survey conducted May 20. They also raised their IPCA inflation forecast to 7.04 percent, from ...

  London / AFP With one month to go until Britain’s EU referendum, the Remain campaign is pulling ahead amid warnings over the international consequences of a Brexit and increasingly outlandish claims at home. The battle for votes ahead of the June 23 referendum has drawn in US President Barack Obama, EU leaders and the IMF, prompted comparisons between the ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM The Mohammad Bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund (MBZ Fund) announced the launch of US$5.8 million grant to save the endangered dugong and its seagrass ecosystems in the Indian and the Pacific Oceans. The programme will implement 38 projects in Indonesia, East Timor, The Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Madagascar, Mozambique, and Vanuatu. As part of ...

DUBAI / WAM The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has announced the establishment of the Kuwait Business Council in Dubai to boost economic cooperation and enhancement of trade and commerce between the business communities of Dubai and Kuwait. Taking the total to 47 business councils operating under the umbrella of Dubai Chamber, and 2nd in the GCC after the ...

  Ajman / Emirates Business The Ajman Tourism Development Department (ATDD) wrapped up a successful road show in Europe held from May 16-20, returning with encouraging feedback from the European tourism and travel market. More than 500 representatives from leading travel and tourism companies attended the UAE Destination presentations held in the cities of Prague in Czech Republic, followed by ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM As globalisation transforms international economic relationships, economic diplomacy has a key role in influencing policy decisions of governments and international organisations, Paulo Portas, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Portugal, said in a lecture on the topic, ‘Economic Diplomacy: The Core of New International Affairs’, organised by Emirates Diplomatic Academy recently. “There are no more local ...

  Dubai / WAM The Department of Economic Development (DED) in Dubai launched on Sunday ‘DEDTalks’, a knowledge exchange platform for thought leaders and decision-makers from the public and private sectors to meet regularly and share experiences, ideas, analyses and best practices relating to the economy and doing business. DEDTalks is the latest initiative from DED for continued engagement with the ...