London / AFP Theresa May became the sole contender to be Britain’s next prime minister on Monday after her only rival pulled out in a dramatic twist as turmoil sweeps the political scene in the wake of the Brexit vote. Andrea Leadsom, who had come in for heavy criticism after appearing to imply that she was more qualified than May because ...

  Bloomberg Germany will take on greater military leadership in global conflicts, requiring a sustained increase in defense spending and troop strength, according to plans for the nation’s first overhaul of security policy in a decade. A “renaissance of classic power politics” is increasing “the risk of violent conflict between states, including in Europe and its neighborhood, as the example ...

  Kiev, Ukraine / AFP Ukraine and Canada signed a “milestone” free trade agreement on Monday designed to bolster support for the war-scarred former Soviet republic in the face of an increasingly assertive Russia. Canada has a vast Ukrainian diaspora and been a strong supporter of Kiev since its February 2014 pro-EU revolution was followed by Russia’s annexations of Crimea ...

  On June 14, 2016, Zimbabwe and Japan signed a major automobile industry trade deal to ship 10,000 Japanese tractors to Harare and train 40 Zimbabweans in Japanese automobile manufacturing techniques. This deal mirrors similar contracts signed by China, Zimbabwe’s principal Asian partner, and reaffirms Japan’s desire to compete with China for economic influence in sub-Saharan Africa. Japan’s investment in ...

  Taylor Butch SPECIAL TO EMIRATES BUSINESS In January 1999, Starbucks opened its first store in mainland China at the China World Trade Building located in Beijing. As of May 2016, the world’s largest coffee company has more than 2,100 stores in 102 Chinese cities and is adding more. It plans to operate an estimated 3,400 stores in China by ...

Nupur Acharya / Maria Levitov Emerging-market assets rose for a third day as a hiring surge in the U.S. spurred confidence in the world’s biggest economy, bolstering stock markets from China to Poland. Exporters led gains as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. rose to a record. A gauge of Chinese shares traded in Hong Kong jumped the most since May. Equities ...

  Tokyo / AFP Tokyo’s benchmark stock index soared Monday morning after a strong US jobs report and as the landslide victory of Japan’s ruling coalition in weekend elections boosted stimulus hopes. The Nikkei 225 surged 3.21 percent, or 485.26 points, to 15,592.24, while the broader Topix index of all first-section shares climbed 3.01 percent, or 36.39 points, to 1,246.27. ...

  Goyal India’s rupee rose the most in almost two weeks amid optimism a rally that propelled local stocks to a bull market will lure more foreign inflows. The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex index of shares surged 1.8 percent to its highest close since August, tracking gains across emerging markets after a stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report improved confidence in the ...

  AFP Mark Carney’s third week managing Britain’s response to the economic shock of Brexit is about to begin. With UK politics in disarray after the nation opted to split from the European Union, the Bank of England governor has been leading the charge in offering stability. After boosting liquidity, freeing banks to lend more and signaling a willingness to ...

  Bloomberg Forget Brexit, go for raw materials. Citigroup Inc says that it’s bullish on the outlook for commodities in 2017 as the impact of the UK’s vote to quit the European Union will fade, global growth chugs along and investors will plow more cash into funds. “Citi is especially bullish commodities for 2017,” analysts led by Ed Morse wrote ...