Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) will soon be able to adopt a more optimistic tone on the euro-area economy — a possible first step in winding down stimulus — according to Executive Board member Yves Mersch. “The recovery in the euro area is gaining more and more traction,” Mersch said in a speech in Tokyo on Monday. “The ...

  Bloomberg Attijariwafa Bank, Morocco’s biggest lender, is planning to complete expansions in East and West Africa this year as it focuses on consolidating its new acquisitions to spur growth. The Casablanca-based bank aims to finalize a deal to buy Rwanda’s Cie Generale de Banque, known as Cogebanque, start commercial banking operations in Chad and apply for a banking license ...

  Riyadh / Emirates Business Alawwal bank was named the ‘Best Retail Bank’ in Saudi Arabia 2017 at the Asian Bankers, International Finance Excellence Awards held at the Ritz Carlton in Dubai on 20 April. The award recognises Alawwal bank’s customer centric approach and focus on innovation in products, services and its digital channels. “We are delighted and honoured to ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The Etihad Aviation Group Board of Directors on Monday appointed Ray Gammell as interim Group CEO, and confirmed that James Hogan, current President and Group CEO, will leave the company on July 1. Consistent with the company’s leadership transition plan, Gammell will assume full management responsibilities from today. Gammell is Etihad Aviation Group’s current ...

  Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co. plans to shift its domestic reservation system to a new platform on Tuesday, attempting to avoid the havoc that plagued similar transitions at other carriers. “These are very complicated,” said Bob Edwards, a former chief information officer at United Airlines who supervised the merger of reservation systems for United and Continental in 2012. “All of ...

  Bloomberg WestJet Airlines Ltd. plans to order as many as 20 Boeing Co. 787-9 Dreamliners valued at $5.4 billion, adding the wide-body to its fleet as Canada’s second-biggest carrier expands long-distance service. The move takes a page from Air Canada, which has relied on the Dreamliner’s fuel efficiency to lower operating costs. The order also helps clarify WestJet’s strategy ...

  Bloomberg Qatar Airways Ltd. signed an agreement with FIFA to sponsor two World Cup tournaments until 2022, filling a spot left vacant by Emirates when it quit its sponsorship following corruption allegations at soccer’s global governing body. The state-owned carrier will become FIFA’s official partner and airline for the 2018 World Cup in Russia and 2022 World Cup in ...

  Bloomberg JD.com Inc. posted its first quarterly profit as a public company with the integration of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s Chinese web business and strong consumer spending driving a surge in sales. China’s largest e-commerce company after Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has benefited from the rise of online shopping in a country with patchy retail infrastructure. JD, which bought Wal-Mart’s ...

  Bloomberg Emmanuel Macron beat the anti-euro nationalist Marine Le Pen in France’s presidential election. Macron, a 39-year-old centrist, leads Le Pen by about 65 percent to 35 percent, according to the estimates of four separate pollsters. The firms sampled real votes as they were being counted and weighted their results to reflect the composition of the French electorate. Their ...

  Bloomberg Nigeria said 82 more girls were freed by the Boko Haram militant group out of the hundreds abducted from a school dormitory more than three years ago in exchange for some of its jailed leaders. “After lengthy negotiations, our security agencies have taken back these girls in exchange for some Boko Haram suspects held by the authorities,” Garba ...