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  Frankfurt/ AFP German chemicals giant Bayer said on Wednesday it had agreed to buy the controversial US seeds and pesticides firm Monsanto for $66 billion, in a deal that triggered immediate criticism from environmentalists. After a months-long pursuit, Bayer said its US peer had accepted an improved offer of $128 per share for Monsanto in an all-cash transaction, avoiding ...

  Brasília / AFP Brazil announced a series of auctions and tenders aimed at privatizing infrastructure — part of new President Michel Temer’s plans to revive the moribund economy. Under the new program, four airports will be put on the auction block this year, along with two port terminals. Tenders in the transport and mining sectors will also be up ...

  Beijing / AFP A US billionaire’s giant gift to one of China’s top universities for a programme echoing Oxford’s Rhodes Scholarships comes as the country seeks to boost its schools’ prestige while tightening ideological control in classrooms. Tsinghua University in Beijing inaugurated its new Schwarzman College at the weekend, named after the co-founder of the Blackstone hedge fund Stephen ...

Buenos Aires / AFP Argentina opened a major investment conference, seeking to persuade executives from the world’s top multinational corporations to bet on Latin America’s third-largest economy and its new center-right government. With Argentina stuck in recession, President Mauricio Macri is keen to show foreign investors that things have changed since he took office. The former businessman took over in ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM At this year’s Zurich Film Festival, taking place from September 22-October 2, visitors will be able to experience Etihad Airways’ 360-degree virtual reality movie featuring Academy Award winning actress Nicole Kidman, and have the chance to win flights to Abu Dhabi by participating in a draw for the Audience Award presented by Etihad Airways. Peter ...

  WASHINGTON / AFP The head of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde on Tuesday said politicians who campaigned on promises of protectionism and economic barriers were a threat to global trade. “There is a growing risk of politicians seeking office by promising to ‘get tough’ with foreign trade partners through punitive tariffs or other restrictions on trade,” Lagarde said, ...

  Dubai / EMIRATES BUSINESS Sustainability and construction experts have said that a new approach to traditional architecture designs, intelligent products, climate-tailored building designs, and 3D technology are optimal solutions for tackling the UAE’s cooling bill. The carbon footprint of the Emirates will be one of the core topics discussed at the upcoming Middle East Façades Summit, taking place on ...

    Dubai / Emirates Business Dubai Carbon has launched a new version of Sustainability Self-Assessment specifically focused on measuring the risk and exposure towards socio-environmental impacts thus allowing both public and private organisations to benchmark their resource efficiency amongst industries and peers. The launch was met with an overwhelming participation by the finance industry during an event at the ...

ABU DHABI / WAM The UAE will host the world’s first Global Cultural Leadership Summit in April, 2017, which will bring together leaders from the worlds of government, the arts and media to address the role that culture can play in addressing some of the great challenges of our time. The summit will also explore how new technologies are changing ...

  Sharjah / Emirates Business In a new achievement to be added to its list of prominent successes, Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) has announced that its CEO Marwan Jassim Al Sarkal has received the ‘Middle East CEO of the Year Award’ by the prestigious Burj CEO Awards. Bestowed recently during a ceremony held in Washington DC, USA, the ...