Bloomberg London’s housing market faces severe price declines if the U.K.’s vote to leave the European Union triggers an extended period of economic weakness, according to UBS Group AG. A severe recession could halt the “unsustainable price growth fueled by ample liquidity and tight supply,” UBS said in a report accompanying its Global Real Estate Bubble Index. London is ...

  London / AFP Soft drinks giant A.G. Barr, maker of Scotland’s famous Irn-Bru fizzy drink, slammed the British government Tuesday over its proposed sugar tax against obesity, as it reported falling sales. Barr — whose brands include carbonated drink Tizer and Rubicon juices — said there had been a move towards sugar-free drinks in the face of “negative media ...

  Berlin / AFP German data protection authorities on Tuesday said they had blocked Facebook from collecting subscriber data from its subsidiary WhatsApp, citing privacy concerns. Facebook and WhatsApp promised in the wake of the Silicon Valley giant’s 2014 acquisition of the messaging app that they would not share data, Hamburg’s Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information Johannes ...

  London /AFP A stocks rally triggered by Hillary Clinton’s upbeat performance in the first US presidential debate over Republican rival Donald Trump slid away on Tuesday on a dim outlook for an oil deal. In Asia, indices closed with solid gains as a confident Clinton bested her rival in the 90-minute showdown, but in Europe the gains were short-lived ...

  Bloomberg Saudi Arabian stocks fell more than any other market in the world as the kingdom announced fresh measures to narrow the budget gap. Not a single stock rose on the Tadawul All Share Index, which retreated 3.8 percent on Tuesday, the most since for a single session since January. The hotel and media indexes were the biggest decliners ...

  ROCHESTER / AP All is not well in cranberry country this harvesting season, the 200th anniversary of the world’s first known commercial cultivation. In the birthplace of the industry, many Massachusetts growers whose families have tended bogs for generations are in “dire straits,” facing challenges that include rising production costs, decreasing crop values, changing consumer habits and increasing competition ...

  Rio de Janeiro / DPA Carlos Saman is a 54-year-old library employee in the city of Nilopolis, not far from Rio de Janeiro, but oftentimes you will find him sifting Copacabana’s sandy beaches, hunting for treasure. Not pirate treasure, but the valuable objects that beach-goers drop. Very early on a recent morning on the beach, Saman and his 31-year-old ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business According to a new report by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), FinTech companies in the GCC now account for 7% of all FinTech business in the Middle East and Africa region. Taking on the successful business models of the United States of America (USA), payment solutions account for approximately 40% of all FinTech business in ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature picked up another accolade on Tuesday, winning Best Family Friendly Day Out at the Time Out Dubai Kids Awards 2016. Isobel Abulhoul, OBE, CEO and Trustee of the Emirates Literature Foundation and Director of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, accepted the Award. ‘We could not be prouder of ...

  Sharjah/ Emirates Business The Arabic script is well-known in the world for its beauty and elegant intricacies. Arabic calligraphy, the artistic practice of handwriting based on the Arabic alphabet has been seen in important texts. The Sharjah Public Library (SPL) — a Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) subsidiary — recently organised a workshop focusing on the promotion of Arabic Calligraphy, ...