February, 2016

• 27 February

  60 percent turnout reported in Iran elections as vote counted

  

  Tehran / AFP Around 60 percent of voters cast ballots in Iran’s elections after polling stations were kept open to allow millions of latecomers to participate, Tehran’s interior ministry said on Saturday. Coming just a month after sanctions were lifted under Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, the outcome of Friday’s vote is being seen as a de-facto referendum on ...

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• 27 February

  Malaysia ruling party suspends deputy as Najib cements hold

  

  Bloomberg Malaysia’s ruling party suspended its second-in-command Muhyiddin Yassin for undermining the organization in his quest to oust Prime Minister Najib Razak, the latest indication of the premier strengthening his grip on power after months of political turmoil. Muhyiddin’s suspension as deputy president of the United Malays National Organisation will be in effect until the next party elections, Secretary-General Tengku ...

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• 27 February

  G20 nations pledge to use all tools to lift growth

  

  Shanghai /AFP The world’s 20 top economies will agree to use all policy tools to lift sluggish global growth, according to a draft communique obtained by Bloomberg News on Saturday, despite German disquiet over fiscal and monetary stimulus. The G20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs meeting in Shanghai agreed to use those methods, as well as structural reforms, “individually ...

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• 27 February

  Group wants govts doing more, and central banks less

  

  Shanghai / AFP Finance chiefs from the world’s top economies committed their governments to doing more to boost global growth amid mounting concerns over the potency of monetary policy. In a pledge that will prove easier to write than deliver and may disappoint investors looking for a coordinated stimulus plan, the Group of 20 said “we will use fiscal policy ...

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• 27 February

  Brexit and refugees join worry list in draft communique

  

  Bloomberg The Group of 20 added a potential “ Brexit” and an escalating refugee crisis to its long worry list, even as it argued recent market volatility didn’t reflect global growth momentum. In a draft of the communique obtained by Bloomberg News, the G-20 members agreed to use monetary, fiscal and structural tools to boost growth and “calibrate and clearly ...

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• 27 February

  Obama laments Congressional inaction on ‘weekly’ shootings

  

  Bloomberg A mass shooting on Thursday at a Hesston, Kansas, factory was overshadowed by coverage of the 2016 presidential campaign, even at the largest news organization in the region, and President Barack Obama isn’t OK with that. “Once a week, we have these shootings and it doesn’t dominate the news,” Obama said , without singling out the Kansas City Star’s ...

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• 27 February

  Clinton banks on African-American vote in South Carolina primary fight

  

  Bloomberg The Democratic presidential nomination race shifted to South Carolina on Saturday, with Hillary Clinton banking on the black vote to beat Bernie Sanders and gain momentum ahead of the multi-state “Super Tuesday” contests next week. But in a blow to Clinton on the eve of the vote, Sanders picked up the endorsement of former labour secretary Robert Reich—who served ...

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• 27 February

  China reassures world over ‘healthy’ economy, currency

  

  Shanghai / AFP China’s normally reclusive central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan is an unusually prominent presence at the G20 finance ministers meeting in Shanghai, racing from seminar to news conference to spread positive messages about the world’s second-largest economy. After months of silence, the governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) wants investors to know that the yuan currency ...

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• 27 February

  Malaysia to become biomass processing hub

  

  New Delhi / AFP New industries must be explored to lessen the country’s dependency on traditional commodities, especially in current times when prices are sliding, said Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak. Najib said developing new industries, like the biomass sector, had great potential for the country. Malaysia, he said, had set its sight on becoming a premier biomass processing hub ...

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• 27 February

  Ascott seals alliance to grow China presence

  

  Singapore / DPA Developer CapitaLand’s serviced residence business unit, The Ascott, aims to fast-track its expansion into China by forging a strategic alliance with a major mainland player, Dongfu Investment Development Corp. The Ascott is already the largest international serviced residence owner-operator in China, with more than 14,000 units in 24 cities. The partnership, gives Ascott first right to manage ...

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