March, 2016

• 28 March

  Moody’s lauds Philippine economy as stable

  Manila / DPA The Philippines’ stable macroeconomic profile would enable the country to withstand external shocks better than most of its neighbors could, debt watcher Moody’s Investors Service said. In a statement, the government’s Investor Relations Office (IRO) cited a recent Moody’s report which assessed the Philippines’ macroeconomic profile as “Moderate+,” better than the assessment of “Moderate” for China, India, ...

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• 28 March

  Indian Rupee rebounds from two-year low

  New Delhi / Bloomberg India’s foreign-exchange reserves climbed to a record as the rupee heads for its biggest monthly advance in two years. The currency stockpile rose by $2.54 billion in the week through March 18 to an unprecedented $355.95 billion, a Reserve Bank of India statement showed. That capped a third straight week of increases. The rupee has jumped ...

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• 28 March

  Debt reductions to be announced, say 1MDB

  Kuala Lumpur / DPA 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) will make further announcements on debt reductions in the coming weeks. It has also fully settled a 700 million ringgit (US$173.57 million) loan based on the proceeds from the sale of Edra Global Energy Bhd. On Saturday, 1MDB president and chief executive officer Arul Kanda Kandasamy said the sale of Edra had ...

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• 28 March

  Pakistan vows to eliminate extremism after Easter carnage

  

  Bloomberg Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif vowed to eradicate radical ideologies from Pakistan after a Taliban suicide bomber targeted many women and children celebrating Easter on Sunday at a park in one of its biggest cities. “Our goal is not only to eliminate terror infrastructure but also the extremist mindset which is a threat to our way of life,” Sharif said ...

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• 28 March

  Israel drops controversial Brazil envoy pick

  Jerusalem / AFP Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu backed down on Monday from his attempts to appoint a former settler leader as ambassador to Brazil, which has since August refused to accept the nomination. Netanyahu “decided to appoint Dani Dayan as consul general in New York. He will replace foreign ministry career official Ido Aharoni, who is completing his term,” ...

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• 28 March

  Seoul activists launch anti-Kim leaflets into N. Korea

  Seoul / AFP South Korean activists on Monday launched tens of thousands of anti-Pyongyang leaflets into North Korea for the second time in three days, amid heightened military tensions on the divided peninsula. The conservative activists, including many North Korean defectors, used gas-filled balloons to float 100,000 leaflets criticising North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un over the heavily militarised border. Some ...

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• 28 March

  Saudi, Yemen rebels exchange prisoners ahead of peace talks

  

  Bloomberg Rebels who control the Yemeni capital Sanaa have released nine Saudis in exchange for 109 Yemenis, the Riyadh-led coalition fighting them said on Monday, in the latest sign of tensions easing before peace talks. “Nine Saudi prisoners have been recovered and 109 Yemenis who were arrested in the military operations zone” near the border have been handed over, the ...

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• 28 March

  Syria troops press advance after blow to IS in Palmyra

  

  Damascus / AFP Syrian forces strengthened their hold on Palmyra on Monday and pushed forward against the IS extremist group after dealing it a major blow by retaking the ancient city. Antiquities director Maamoun Abdulkarim said that with UNESCO’s approval the treasured monuments damaged or destroyed by the extremists could be restored in five years. Government troops and allied militia, ...

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• 28 March

  Brussels Airline decamps after terrorists wreck main hub

  

  Bloomberg Brussels Airlines NV, which lost its main airport hub after the worst terrorist attack in Belgium’s history, has decamped to four other cities to maintain service, even using buses to get people to flights at alternative airports. After the bombing, which killed 11 at the airport, the carrier shifted some airplanes and crew to Frankfurt and Zurich, to maintain ...

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• 28 March

  Skymark exits bankruptcy, predicts first profit in 3 years

  

  Bloomberg Skymark Airlines Inc. exited bankruptcy administration and forecast its first operating profit in three years after reducing its fleet, cutting routes and getting new funding. The carrier expects to report 1.5 billion yen ($13 million) in operating profit and sales of 70 billion yen for the year ending March 31, Skymark said in a statement on Monday. Skymark also ...

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