PARIS / Reuters The new chief executive of Italy’s defence and aerospace group Leonardo will target the Gulf and Far East as part of an aggressive expansion drive to boost its international presence, according to company and government insiders. After years of cuts to defence budgets that have curbed demand for military equipment, including in Italy, Alessandro Profumo is looking …

SINGAPORE / Reuters Fuel oil profit margins have surged to their highest in more than five years on lower supplies and rising demand from electric power generators, which may push some refiners to increase their runs. Fuel oil, the residue left over after initial crude refining, has become scarce in Asia as refiners make their plants more complex by upgrading …

Abu Dhabi / WAM A total of 12.922 million cheques worth AED643.7 billion were handled by the UAE Clearing Cheque System during the first five months of 2017, according to the UAE Central Bank data. A total of AED28.9 billion worth of 546,000 cheques were bounced from January through the end of May, accounting for 4.5 percent of the cheques’ …