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LONDON / Reuters Oil refineries are shifting into high gear to produce as much gasoline as possible for the world’s fuel-hungry drivers – kicking the problem of a worsening diesel glut further down the road. The “margin” or profit derived from refining crude into diesel has plunged in Europe, hitting multi-year lows this week as demand for the fuel – ...

New Delhi / Bloomberg In the energy world, India is becoming the new China. The world’s second-most populous nation is increasingly becoming the center for oil demand growth as its economy expands by luring the type of manufacturing that China is trying to shun. And just like China a decade ago, India is trying to hedge its future energy needs ...

MUMBAI / Reuters Fairfax India Holdings said it has agreed to acquire a minority stake in privately held Indian petrochemical company Sanmar Chemicals via a roughly $300 million investment. The Sanmar investment is the latest in a string of bets Fairfax India and its sister concern Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd have made in the country within the last year. The ...

Sydney / Bloomberg Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull promised a prudent budget will be handed down next month in comments published by the Australian Associated Press. Turnbull was speaking less than a week after an opinion poll showed the government trailing the opposition for the first time since he deposed Tony Abbott seven months ago. This budget will not be about ...

Bandar Seri Begawan / DPA Brunei should take advantage of the region’s growing Islamic finance industry which is set to develop even further with the support of large Muslim populations in Southeast Asia. In an interview, Jeff Pirie, a senior partner from auditing firm Deloitte Singapore, said that Islamic finance is a good area where Brunei can build expertise outside ...

Taipei / DPA Taiwan is confident that it will be accepted into the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade bloc, a minister-designate who will be in charge of trade talks for the incoming government said yesterday. Shih Jun-ji, who has been named as a minister without portfolio of the incoming Cabinet, said the TPP membership will not be the only task ...

Tokyo / DPA Japan will launch a project under which the public and private sectors will join hands in selling dietary supplements and seasonings at low prices to developing countries in Africa and other areas, in a bid to improve nutrition in those countries, Japanese government sources said. The project is also expected to help Japanese food manufacturers start operations ...

ABU DHABI / WAM Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, one of the world’s most sustainable urban developments, is widely associated with the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, the world’s first graduate-level university focussing on advanced energy and sustainable technologies. With the successful evolution of its business Free Zone and Investment Zone, the development is also increasingly associated with Abu ...

Abu Dhabi / WAM The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MOFAAIC) announced on Thursday that UAE citizens, whose sole purpose of visiting the Republic of India is tourism, can benefit from the E-Tourist Visa scheme (eTV). Citizens of the United Arab Emirates can apply online for eTV which shall be granted through email. The applicants should carry a ...

London / AFP World oil prices slid on Thursday after rallying sharply the previous day following the first drop in US inventories for seven weeks. Around 1700 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in May lost 96 cents to $36.79 per barrel. Brent North Sea crude for June delivery shed 93 cents to $38.91 a barrel compared ...