Bloomberg Japan’s aging and shrinking population is causing labor shortages that should be helping workers win higher pay. But it’s not working out that way, in part because of low productivity in the areas of the greatest shortage, according to economists including Hideo Kumano at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute in Tokyo. Labor intensive sectors like hotels, restaurants and elderly ...

  Brussels / AFP EU and US consumer watchdogs announced they are filing complaints against a clutch of smart toys that can “spy” on children and their homes, for allegedly breaching privacy and data protection laws. The complaints target smart toys My Friend Cayla, i-QUE Intelligent Robot and Hello Barbie, according to the European Consumer Organisation BEUC and US groups ...

  Bloomberg A plastic based on soft contact-lens technology may solve some of the biggest challenges facing electric vehicles by letting them recharge in seconds and travel from London to Edinburgh without stopping, scientists say. Researchers at the University of Surrey developed a polymer that may dramatically boost the performance of supercapacitors, lightweight electronic components that store and distribute high ...

  Bloomberg The growth of digital advertising and how it affects TV ads were key themes on the first day of the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference in New York. “Digital, particularly mobile, continues to take dollars away from print media as consumers use mobile apps and other outlets to consume content digitally,” Zenith said in its year-end forecast ...

  Bloomberg Facebook Inc., Microsoft Corp., Twitter Inc. and YouTube are joining forces to improve their efforts to remove terrorist-related content from their online services, following pressure that tech companies might not be doing enough to deter extremists from using their platforms. The four companies said that they are creating a shared database of the most severe terrorist videos and ...

  Dubai / WAM The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai has signed two Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Khalifa University and the University of Dubai, calling for stepping up cooperation in the field of robots and drones. The step is part of RTA endeavours to keep pace with the latest technological trends, share expertise with the academic institutions ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM Ways of strengthening relations between the UAE and China were discussed on Sunday by Pilot Staff-Brigadier Sheikh Ahmed bin Tahnoun bin Mohammed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the UAE National and Reserve Service Authority, and Ni Jian, Ambassador of China to the UAE. A number of topics of common concern were also discussed by the duo ...

  DUBAI / WAM Emirates Global Aluminium has received four awards at the 2016 Quality Group Continual Improvement and Innovation Symposium, cementing its reputation as an innovative UAE industrial champion. EGA swept the ‘Kaizen’ category, named after the Japanese practice of continual improvement in business, winning gold, silver and bronze awards for its unique process innovations and contributions to the ...

  Dubai / WAM The Real Estate Regulatory Agency, the regulatory arm of Dubai Land Department, affirmed that a Real Estate Marketing Agreement is mandatory between owners and real estate brokers which will result in the issuance of permits through its e-service system. There must be a written agreement in which property owners authorise real estate brokers to carry out ...

  ABU DHABI / WAM More than 300 exhibitors from around the globe are expected to participate in the 4th International Franchise Conference and Exhibition 2016, to be held on December 14, in Abu Dhabi, organisers said on Sunday. The two-day event seeks to enhance the contribution of the private sector to economic growth and diversification in the UAE and ...