Bloomberg The Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) is pushing ahead with a KD3bn ($9.98bn) loan, according to local banking sources. The mandated lead arrangers have been appointed for the Kuwaiti dinar, Islamic and dollar tranches of the commercial loan. They will work on the loan syndication in the first half, with the size of the tranches depending on appetite. The …

Japanese policymakers expressed diplomatic interest in the Arctic – a region rapidly being transformed by climate change –as early as 2009, when the country officially submitted an application to become a Permanent Observer in the Arctic Council. Japan’s bid (supported by, surprise, Russia), was approved in May 2013, along with China and South Korea’s. This instance of Russo-Japanese cooperation, particularly …

Five years ago, a magnitude nine earthquake off the east coast of Japan triggered a tsunami that killed almost 20,000 people and led to meltdowns and release of radioactive material at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The disaster inflicted nearly half a trillion dollars in economic losses and caused the shutdown of more than 50 nuclear reactors, depriving Japan …