Bloomberg After aggressive digitalisation and cost-cutting programs helped turned around Bank Leumi Le-Israel Ltd, Chief Executive Officer Rakefet Russak-Aminoach is preparing an international expansion of its mobile bank. “We are looking at going global; we are checking some business plays and considering some partnerships with others” including technology companies and larger banks, she said in an interview on the sidelines …

Bloomberg Malaysia’s central bank raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2014, with economists guessing that it won’t need to tighten again this year. Bank Negara Malaysia increased the overnight policy rate to 3.25 percent from 3 percent, it said in a statement in Kuala Lumpur, as predicted by 16 of the 20 economists in a Bloomberg …

Bloomberg Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has forged another alliance to counter Amazon.com Inc., partnering with Japan’s Rakuten Inc. to sell e-books in the US and improve its online grocery business in Asia’s second-largest economy. The collaboration will bring Rakuten’s Kobo device and e-book catalog to Walmart’s US stores later this year, the companies said in a statement. The partnership also includes …

Bloomberg US airlines tumbled for a second day as more carriers announced plans to add seating capacity— compounding fears of a fare war that would crimp revenue as fuel costs climb. Alaska Air Group Inc. said it expects to increase capacity 7.5 percent this year, while JetBlue Airways Corp. projected as much as 8.5 percent. Economists predict gross domestic product …

Bloomberg Asos Plc’s domestic sales growth rebounded over the holidays as the UK’s largest online-only fashion retailer profited at the expense of store-based rivals. Sales in the UK, Asos’s largest market, rose 23 percent to $429 million in the four months ended on December 31, the London-based company said. The shares rose as much as 1.3 percent, recouping early losses. …

Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co. is pushing its supplier to fix customer service problems that emerged following a $500 million upgrade of its outdated reservations system. The carrier is leaning on Amadeus IT Group SA to resolve issues with its Altea programme that replaced Southwest’s 30-year-old, mostly home-grown technology. There have been at least five technical outages since August, with most …

DAVOS / WAM Innovation, entrepreneurship and future economies were the main theme of a panel session organised by the UAE during the 2018 World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos. The sessions aimed to share experiences regarding successful innovation policies and actions that can help address some of the current global innovation challenges. The attendees underlined the fact that innovation and …

ABU DHABI / WAM The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) announced an initiative for launching the region’s first-of-its-kind form of trading in emissions that specifically targets carbon dioxide. The initiative reflects the significant growth in passenger and cargo air traffic in the country, with the UAE ports now considered a main destination for a large number of international air carriers, …

DAVOS / WAM Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy, met Federal Councillor Johann N Schneider-Ammann, the Head of the Swiss Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research, during the World Economic Forum 2018. The meeting, attended by Hessa Essa Buhumaid, Minister of Community Development, and Mariam Hareb Almheiri, Minister of State for Future Food Security, saw discussions …

Bloomberg Porsche AG will pursue a three-pronged strategy to diversify its lineup as the German manufacturer gears up for the rollout of its first all-electric sports car next year to tackle a fundamental industry shift towards battery-powered vehicles. “There will be a triad: plug-in hybrids, emotional sports cars with combustion engines and sporty electric vehicles,” Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume …