Bloomberg Folli Follie’s network of stores in its key Chinese market shrank by more than half last year even as its sales in Asia increased, according to the latest figures published by its parent company FF Group this week. The main brand of the Greek retailer reported 113 points of sale in mainland China in a document published and reviewed ...

Bloomberg Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc plans to quit its headquarters in one of London’s swankiest districts for cheaper offices as the company seeks to bring down long-term expenses and cover the more immediate costs of fixing a faulty jet-engine model. Rolls-Royce needs a “smaller, more cost-effective London head-office location” than the current premises midway between the Houses of Parliament and Buckingham ...

DUBAI / WAM Petrochemical companies operating in Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), the region’s premier business and logistics hub, generated trade worth AED16 billion in 2017. Jafza is home to 526 companies in the sector from 67 countries and will be exhibiting its services in the petrochemical sector at the 10th GPCA Supply Chain Conference in Dubai. Sultan Ahmed bin ...

Emirates Business In yet another blow to Qatar and its covert financing to terrorist group aiming to destabilise the region, the Trump administration has called on Doha to stop funding pro-Iranian militias following revelations about the Gulf state’s dealings with terror groups in the Middle East. Securities officials of the United States are concerned about Qatar’s links to a number ...

ABU DHABI / WAM The historic first cargo of crude oil from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), destined for the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL) has, on Saturday, been loaded and is en-route to India. The cargo is the first under an agreement between Adnoc and ISPRL, an Indian government-owned company mandated to store crude oil for ...

GUANGZHOU / WAM Ali Obaid Ali Al Dhaheri, UAE Ambassador to China, has met with Chen Liangxian, Vice-Governor of Guangdong Province, China, in the presence of Rahma bin Abdulrahman Al Shamsi, UAE Consul-General in Guangzhou, China. During the meeting, they discussed the opportunities available between the two countries in the trade, investment and tourism sectors. Liangxian emphasised his province’s keenness ...

ABU DHABI / WAM British nationals have invested $8.47 billion (AED31.1 billion) in Dubai’s real estate during the last four years (2014-2017), according to the statistics released by Dubai Land Department (DLD). The United Kingdom is one of the largest investment source markets for Dubai’s real estate. Following the Brexit vote in 2016 and subsequent move for separation from European ...

Bloomberg Mexico has taken the first steps in the world’s largest annual oil deal, asking Wall Street banks and other traders for quotes to lock-in its income from production through next year, according to people familiar with the matter. The country has been asking counterparties this week for quotes to hedge output, the people said, asking not to be identified ...

Dubai / WAM His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council has stated that Dubai’s rising global rankings in a range of economic indicators show that it is closing the gap with the world’s most competitive economies according to the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid ...

LAGOS / WAM Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Founder and President of Emirates Publishers Association (EPA) and Member of the International Publishers Association (IPA) Executive Committee, said that the African publishing industry has enormous potential for the future, including building essential cultural bridges with the rest of the world. Speaking to some of the most influential figures in publishing ...