DUBAI / WAM As part of its continuous efforts to enhance services to meet customers’ needs, as well as achieve its strategic objectives and the m-Government indices, the Ministry of Finance (MoF), held a workshop on the issuance of tax certificates which included Value Added Tax (VAT), and Tax Domicile. The ministry also held a live streaming session on its …

ABU DHABI / WAM Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), showcased its latest innovative digital services and applications during GITEX Technology Week 2017. The applications, which include the Investors App, Smart Watch App, and My ADX, are accessible through the Apple and Google Play stores and can be used on either smartphones, tablet computers or smart watches. Speaking on the occasion, …

Bloomberg BNP Paribas SA promised to stop financing shale and oil sands projects as part of its latest efforts to tackle climate change. France’s biggest bank will no longer do business with companies whose main business stems from oil and gas obtained from shale or oil sands, it said in a statement on Wednesday. The policy covers companies involved in …

Bloomberg Oil held gains near $51 a barrel as OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo reiterated a rapid market re-balancing is under way, and as US production was again disrupted by a storm. Futures added 0.8 percent in New York after advancing 3.3 percent in the previous two sessions. The global economic recovery has gained traction and oil de-stocking gathered momentum over …

Bloomberg South Africa plans to engage with traders who acquired strategic oil reserves two years ago, even as it prepares legal action to try to cancel the deal. The Strategic Fuel Fund, responsible for managing the reserves, sold 10 million barrels of oil in December 2015 to Taleveras Group and joint ventures of Vitol Group and Glencore Plc. A probe …

Bloomberg Italy is looking to shed its status as one of Europe’s most expensive gas markets, but the way it plans to do so has riled traders. Lawmakers will likely discuss a proposed national energy strategy that would overhaul the country’s gas sector and may cut prices by 5 percent. Economic Development Minister Carlo Calenda seeks to turn the plan, …

SINGAPORE / Reuters Spot prices for October-loading Iraqi Basra Light crude in Asia have slipped to discounts against its official selling price and could stay weak for another month after the producer did not cut prices for November, four trade sources said. Iraq kept the November official selling price for Basra Light to Asia unchanged even as Saudi Arabia trimmed …

ALGIERSE / Reuters Algeria’s state energy company Sonatrach is facing difficulties meeting clients’ demands for gas exports, its chief executive said, citing unwieldy beaucracy and the need to attract more foreign expertise. Sonatrach, Algeria’s cash cow and a major gas supplier to Europe, has been shaken by corruption scandals, the frequent departure of top executives and bureaucratic inefficiencies that have …

Bloomberg Steel demand in India is gathering speed amid an infrastructure building boom that’s set to more than double capacity of the nation’s mills, according to the government. “We’re expecting domestic consumption to accelerate in the decade between 2020-2030,” Steel Secretary Aruna Sharma said in New Delhi. Annual capacity stands at 126 million metric tons and is forecast to rise …

Bloomberg Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. will more than double research and development spending to $15 billion over the next three years to develop next-generation technology, drive its sprawling business and explore moonshot projects that could upend industries. The e-commerce giant plans to set up seven research labs and hire 100 scientists around the world to delve into artificial intelligence, the …