Donald Trump’s plans for infrastructure spending are finally materializing, and they already have no shortage of critics. But I think the critics should ease up, and give the president-elect a chance. The plan’s most heavyweight critic is the Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen. In a recent speech to Congress, Yellen cautioned against spending too much on infrastructure, warning that ...

  On Monday, I cast doubt on the many stories about how Black Friday retail sales were off to a disappointing start. This is an important story because retail is such a critical part of the U.S. economy, and because such a large share of the industry’s sales occur during the roughly five weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas. But the ...

  In Sunday’s referendum, Italy will be voting on two things. The first is the question on the ballot — whether to support Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s proposal for constitutional reform. The second is whether the country wants Renzi, who’s made this vote a test of confidence, to stay in charge. The answer to both questions should be yes. First, ...

  The OPEC agreed on Wednesday to cut the crude output to end the global oil glut. The oil cartel defied expectations and nailed down its first joint output cut since 2008 after tough talks in Vienna. The cuts are intended to shrink the world’s bloated oil stockpiles back to a normal level, paving the way for prices to rise ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business DarkMatter, an international cyber security firm headquartered in the UAE, announces its participation at the forthcoming World Islamic Banking Conference (WIBC) 2016, taking place between December 5-7, at the ART Rotana Hotel, Amwaj Islands, Manama, Bahrain. DarkMatter is the Cyber Security Innovation Partner to the event. Celebrating its 23rd year of existence, the conference ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business Schon Properties, recipient of the Top Private Developer award for 2016 by Forbes Middle East, announces the development of iSuites – a massive AED3.2 billion (US$870 million) home-grown hospitality portfolio that will see the development of 2,700 hotel apartments at a single site within Dubai Investment Park – close to the World Expo 2020 site. ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business SWIFT, a global provider of secure financial messaging services, announces that it is hosting its UAE Business Forum in Abu Dhabi on December 7. Senior representatives from the UAE’s banking and financial industry will join regulators and policy makers to discuss the challenges and opportunities for the country’s financial services industry. The Forum will ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business The Emirates College of Management & Information (ECMIT), a leading private higher educational institution based in Dubai, has confirmed its participation in the Oxford Summit of Leaders 2016, the annual event for education, scientific research and business, to be held under the theme ‘Investment in Science and Education: Investing in the Future’ on December 20 ...

  Ras Al Khaimah / Emirates Business According to the Q3 2016 RAK MarketView, RAK’s hospitality market is currently one of the country’s tourism bright spots, as it bucks wider regional trends of declining room revenues, recording year-to-date occupancy growth of 13.6% up to the month of September (STR Global). The Emirate now has well over 5,000 hotel and hotel ...

  New York / AFP More than 350 US universities are urging President-elect Donald Trump to change his mind and keep a program that lets hundreds of thousands of undocumented young people study and avoid deportation. Nicknamed “Dreamers,” they are the estimated 1.2 million young people who were brought to the United States illegally as children, grew up without US residency ...