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  Bloomberg Low interest rates are helping to reduce euro-area public debt, but rigorous enforcement of European Union fiscal rules is also needed to bring the burden down by a “sizable” amount, the European Central Bank said. Since the end of the financial crisis, euro-area countries have struggled to unwind a debt ratio that stood at around 93 percent of ...

  Bloomberg The U.S. may be the lone bright spot in an otherwise sluggish global economy as American consumers continue to buy expensive new vehicles at record levels. The U.S. industry sold 1.51 million cars and light trucks in April, according to researcher Autodata Corp. That broke an 11-year-old record, according to Edmunds.com. Sales skewed toward more expensive sport utility ...

  Bloomberg Petrobras has agreed to sell assets in Argentina and Chile for about $1.4 billion as Brazil’s state-controlled oil producer looks to raise cash and focus on deep-water projects in Brazil. The Rio de Janeiro-based producer has completed negotiations to sell its 67.2 percent stake in Petrobras Argentina SA to Pampa Energia SA for $892 million, it said Tuesday ...

  Bloomberg Brazilian prosecutors filed a 155 billion reais ($44 billion) civil suit against Vale SA, BHP Billiton Ltd. and their iron-ore venture over a November dam rupture that killed as many as 19 people and caused severe environmental damage. The prosecuting task force is demanding the two companies and Samarco Mineracao SA provide initial payment of 7.8 billion reais ...

  Bloomberg The best rally for corn prices in 10 months meant U.S. farmers were frantic to sell from the mountain of grain they’d been hoarding. Growers have been stockpiling supplies following a string of bumper harvests, waiting patiently for a rebound in prices. Their hopes have finally been answered after dry weather threatened crops in Brazil, sending futures traded ...

Bloomberg Located just 30 miles east of Rio de Janeiro’s bustling Copacabana beach, Itaborai looks like many oil boomtowns after the bust — except the deserted stores and empty glass towers that loom over this town of 220,000 speak of some bigger cataclysm than the collapse of crude prices. “They said this would be the new oil city,” says Jefferson ...

  Sunaina Rana / Emirates Business The UAE construction industry is currently moving up its growth ladder, thanks to buoyant infrastructure projects that are in the pipeline as part of the country’s Vision 2021. One of the ventures on the cards is Boulevard Point in Downtown Dubai. UAE-based construction firm Arabian Construction Company (ACC) has been awarded the contract to ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business With the UAE joining other global governments in harnessing innovation and data to provide effective decision-making capabilities, the 2nd SAS Government Innovation Summit 2016 successfully concluded and received an overwhelming response from domestic government entities. Organized by SAS, the leader in analytics, the 2nd SAS Government Innovation Summit was held under the banner of ...

  Sharjah / Emirates Business Striking a balance between innovation and ongoing customer support for legacy products is crucial to realizing success in a dynamic business environment, according to CEO of Emirates-based yacht and boat builder Gulf Craft. Speaking to a group of undergraduate business students at the American University of Sharjah, Erwin Bamps warned that brands which do not ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business Putting a spotlight on the marketing ideas that could work and encourage thoughtful dialogue about the drivers of marketing effectiveness, Effie Worldwide — a non-profitable organisation — has released an index ranking the companies, including UAE corporates, which are that creating the most effective marketing communications ideas around the world. “The Effies have been the ...