March, 2016

• 31 March

  Iran ‘certain’ Security Council will not act on missile tests

  Tehran / AFP Iran’s defence minister has said he is “certain” the UN Security Council will not take any action over its ballistic missile tests despite calls from Western powers. Britain, France, Germany and the United States wrote a joint letter on Monday calling for action over tests they said violated last year’s landmark nuclear deal between Iran and major ...

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• 31 March

  6 killed in Somalia Shebab hotel suicide attack

  Mogadishu / AFP Somalia’s Shebab insurgents said they carried out a suicide attack at a hotel in the central town of Galkayo on Thursday in which six people died, including a senior local government official. “There was a blast, a suicide bomber blew himself up killing several people including a senior official,” said police officer Abdiweli Adan. Witnesses said there ...

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• 31 March

  Profits soar at China’s big 3 airlines

  

  Singapore/ Bloomberg China’s three biggest airlines reported soaring net profits in 2015 despite the country’s worst economic growth in a quarter of a century, as more Chinese travelled abroad. Cheaper jet fuel helped the bottom line, but losses from foreign exchange hurt as China’s yuan currency slid against the dollar, they said. “With the slowdown in world economic growth, and ...

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• 31 March

  German retail sales down in February

  

  Frankfurt / AFP German retail sales, a closely watched measure of household confidence, declined in February, as consumer morale in Europe’s top economy feels the heat from global economic risks, official data showed on Thursday. Retailers’ sales fell by 0.4 percent in February compared with January, the federal statistics office Destatis said in a statement. The previous month, retail sales ...

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• 31 March

  Japan’s construction firms plan new gas power stations

  

  TOKYO / Reuters Japan plans a wave of new gas-fired power stations as the country’s electricity retail market opens up from April 1, allowing new entrants to compete for a market of 85 million customers with annual sales of about $70 billion. In the biggest shakeup in the industry’s history in Japan, regional utilities are losing their monopoly rights for ...

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• 31 March

  Metro shares fly off the shelf as German biggie splits businesses

  

  Frankfurt / AFP German retail giant Metro announced it will spin off its businesses into two separately listed units, sending its shares sharply higher. “The management board of Metro is preparing the creation of two independent and sector-focused companies through a demerger of the group,” Metro said in a statement. Metro shares were the strongest performer on the mid-cap MDAX ...

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• 31 March

  Drought reduces lives to dust bowls

  

  AFP Somalia’s bread basket has become a dust bowl as the life-giving waters of the mighty Shabelle river run dry amid intense drought in the war-torn country. River-fed farmlands have become parched playgrounds for children who kick footballs beneath a cloudless sky, as one sign among many of the failed rains that the United Nations warns has put more than ...

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• 31 March

  Now, LA sun shines on tech too

  

  AFP Better known for its palm trees and celebrities, Los Angeles is also emerging as a tech hub, with its so-called Silicon Beach area offering a sun-kissed alternative to Silicon Valley. In recent years tech companies large and small, including Facebook, Google and Snapchat, have opened offices in Santa Monica, Venice or Marina del Rey — better known for shirtless ...

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• 31 March

  ‘Gender diversity is real progress’

  

  Sunaina Rana / EMIRATES BUSINESS Women are under-represented in the workforce globally, and if organisations maintain the current rate of progress, female representation will reach only 40 percent globally in the professional and managerial ranks in 2025, according to Mercer’s second annual When Women Thrive global report. One key trend revealed in the report that women’s representation within organisations actually ...

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• 31 March

  Transitioning into a healthy lifestyle

  

  Sunaina Rana / Emirates Business Ahmed Al Raeesi found his father as his inspiration to follow the path of Business Development and Management. Ahmed explored different career options including Interior Design and Real Estate and finally found his niche in the food and beverage industry. Ahmed Al Raeesi, Chairman of Adyton One Genreal Trading told Emirates Business, “Waiwera water is ...

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