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 …