News

Emirates Business Oman Power and Water Procurement Company (OPWP), the sole buyer of all electricity and desalinated water output in the Oman Sultanate, plans to shortly invite prequalified bidders to submit proposals for the development of Independent Water Projects (IWP) in Sharqiyah and Dhofar governorates, a top official has revealed. Ahmed bin Saleh al Jahdhami, CEO of OPWP , said ...

Dubai / EMIRATES BUSINESS The government of the Republic of Azerbaijan has lifted advance visa requirement for citizens of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi, Japan, Malaysia, People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea and Singapore. His Excellency Mr. Abulfas Garayev, Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Azerbaijan, has been closely monitoring the lifting of visa process and ...

Beijing / Bloomberg Persistent capital outflows from China since mid-2014 were probably driven more by local companies paying down their dollar-denominated debt — in anticipation a stronger US currency — than investors ditching Chinese assets, according to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). The outpouring of China’s currency “led to two different narratives,” researchers for the Switzerland-based institution said in ...

Beijing / AFP China’s economy “absolutely will not” suffer a hard landing, the chief of its top planning body said on Sunday, as Beijing’s leaders try to reassure global investors about the world’s second-largest economy. Xu Shaoshi, head of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), made the comments to reporters on the second day of the annual meeting of ...

Tokyo / DPA The Japanese government plans to start talks with the European Union to conclude a deal that would require EU airlines to provide Passenger Name Records, a move aimed at beefing up antiterrorism defences at Japan‘s borders. According to sources, EU airlines that have routes to Japan would have to provide this electronic record before a flight departs. ...

Beijing / Bloomberg AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., controlled by China’s richest man, agreed to buy Carmike Cinemas Inc. in a $1.1 billion all-cash deal that would create the world’s largest cinema chain and extend Chinese influence in the movie industry. AMC, majority owned by billionaire Wang Jianlin’s Dalian Wanda Group Co., will pay $30 a share for Carmike, a 19 ...

Kuala Lumpur / AFP Families devastated by the loss of flight MH370 vowed on Sunday never to quit fighting for answers in the aviation mystery and said the huge search for the Malaysia Airlines plane should continue until something is found. Families gathered for a poignant ceremony in Kuala Lumpur ahead of Tuesday’s second anniversary of the jet’s disappearance and ...

New York / AFP Mid-sized and regional airlines in the US are suffering from a pilot shortage that could threaten the health of the broader US aviation industry. The labour shortfall has led to cancelled flights at carriers like Mesa Airlines and Silver Airways. That has hit smaller airports, such as in Redding, California, or Erie, Pennsylvania, according to figures ...

Brasilia / BLOOMBERG Embraer SA reported fourth-quarter profit that fell short of analysts’ estimates as the company made a 390.6 million-real ($100.3 million) provision related to Republic Airways Holdings Inc.’s bankruptcy filing. The Brazilian planemaker said net income attributable to controlling shareholders rose 76 percent to 425.8 million reais, trailing the 527.5 million-real average estimate for adjusted earnings of seven ...

TOKYO / Bloomberg Shareholders of Tokyo-based Lotte Holdings Co., a key unit of Korean-Japanese retail conglomerate Lotte Group, voted to oppose a measure to remove Chairman Shin Dong Bin at an extraordinary general meeting on Sunday. Family-controlled Lotte Group is in the midst of a power struggle between Shin Dong Bin and his older sibling who was stripped of his ...