Sunaina Rana / Emirates Business UAE’s first public joint stock retail operator Marka has announced its plans for international expansion. The retail company is gearing up to step into the Qatar market with the launch of Morelli’s Gelato ice cream, fashion brands City Chic and Weill, and jewelry house dinh van at Mall of Qatar by the third quarter of …

Emirates Business The UAE-based member of Sheikh Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, Geoscience Testing Laboratory (GTL), was bestowed with two international awards — ‘Excellence in the Analysis of Water Quality and Compliance’ and ‘CEO of the Year’, at the World Water Leadership Congress Awards 2016 held recently in Mumbai, India. The World Water Leadership Congress & Awards recognises both individuals …

New Delhi / Bloomberg Essar Steel India Ltd., grappling with about 440 billion rupees ($6.6 billion) in debt amid an industry downturn, has drawn takeover interest from domestic rivals Tata Steel Ltd. and JSW Steel Ltd., people with knowledge of the matter said. SSG Capital Management, a Hong Kong-based special situations fund manager, and some private-equity firms and international companies …

TOKYO / DPA The Japanese government released the latest version of its Regional Economy Society Analysing System (RESAS), which enables people to access visualised flows of people, goods and money on the Internet free of charge. The system uses big data based on cell phone roaming and provides maps and charts on such subjects as the entry and departure of …

Tokyo / Bloomberg Sharp Corp.’s banks are ready to push back the deadline for most of the company’s 510 billion yen ($4.5 billion) in loans and credit lines beyond March 31, people with knowledge of the matter said, giving the electronics maker more time to reach a renegotiated deal to be acquired by Foxconn Technology Group. The extension may be …

Yangon / AFP Myanmar’s outgoing government granted the country’s fourth telecom licence to a joint venture owned by a Vietnamese operator and a local consortium that includes the military, state media reported on Saturday. The deal comes days before Myanmar’s army-backed government is scheduled to cede power to a civilian administration led by Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for …

Bangkok / DPA Thailand’s exports in February swung back to positive territory for the first time in 14 months, with a value of US$18.99 billion (670.37 billion baht) — 10.27 per cent higher than in the same period last year — the Commerce Ministry said. However, the increase was irregularly large due to significant exports of gold and military-drill equipment, …

Beijing / Bloomberg China’s coal use is forecast to fall a third year as industrial output slows, adding force to President Xi Jinping’s drive to cut overcapacity and dimming the hopes of global miners for an uptick in demand by the world’s biggest consumer. Demand will slide 2 percent this year and prices will remain at a low level, according …

HONG KONG / AP For decades, Hong Kong thrived as an Asian business hub thanks to its killer combination of Western freedoms, independent courts and closeness to mainland China’s booming market. Now political and economic ills from the mainland are eroding that edge. Swedish-Chinese author Gui Minhai was counting on Hong Kong’s freedoms when he chose the city as the …

Bloomberg The European Union is considering easing bank-failure rules introduced to end the era of expensive taxpayer-funded bailouts. A discussion paper prepared by the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, envisions setting EU loss-absorbency requirements for its biggest banks, led by HSBC Holdings Plc and Deutsche Bank AG, in line with those issued in November by the Financial Stability Board …