February, 2020

• 4 February

  Etisalat, Microsoft ink multi-year digital transformation deal

  

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business In a multi-year partnership, Etisalat announced that it has teamed up with Microsoft to drive public cloud first strategy through a digital transformation program that enables Etisalat to build a digital platform infused with automation and AI providing a simplified network architecture and operations empowering Etisalat subscribers and improving customer experience. “Today, Etisalat and Microsoft ...

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• 4 February

  Virus puts China economic goals on a collision course

  

  Bloomberg Two sweeping goals have dictated the direction of China’s economic policy during President Xi Jinping’s presidency: Doubling per-person GDP and household incomes over the 10 years ending this December and containing an explosion in debt. Tiptoeing between the two conflicting ambitions hasn’t been easy, especially last year as the trade war with the US deepened. Yet policy restraint held ...

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• 4 February

  China car sales to see a historic plunge in first months of 2020

  

  Bloomberg China’s car sales are likely to slump the most on record in the first two months of 2020 as the coronavirus keeps buyers away from showrooms, intensifying headwinds for automakers in the world’s biggest market. Sales are set to fall by 25% to 30% in the January-February period, according to a preliminary forecast by Cui Dongshu, secretary general of ...

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• 4 February

  Hyundai halts production in South Korea

  

  Bloomberg Hyundai Motor Co is halting production in South Korea this week because of a component shortage caused by the coronavirus, the first global automaker to suspend output outside China because of the outbreak. The carmaker has been hit by a shortage of a wiring component made at a South Korean supplier’s plant in China, which has been halted after ...

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• 4 February

  India’s gold imports fall as record prices hit demand

  

  Bloomberg India’s gold imports tumbled by half in January as record domestic prices and a slowdown in economic growth curbed demand in the world’s second-biggest buyer. Imports fell to 21.7 tons last month from 45.9 tons a year earlier, according to a person familiar with the data, who asked not to be identified as the information isn’t public. Finance Ministry ...

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• 4 February

  Sony hikes profit forecast over image censor

  

  Bloomberg Sony Corp raised its profit forecast for the second time this fiscal year, boosted by strong demand for the image sensors that power smartphone cameras. Operating income will probably reach 880 billion yen ($8.1 billion) in the year ending on March 31, compared with the 840 billion yen Sony forecast in October and the 877 billion yen average of ...

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• 4 February

  India’s plan to open up bond access gets lukewarm response

  Bloomberg India is looking to overseas funds to rescue its battered bond market, but relief may be slow to come. A move to allow global funds to buy more government and corporate debt is unlikely to reverse sentiment hurt by record bond sales and shrinking returns, investors say. “High bond supply means potential pressure on bond prices, so easier access ...

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• 4 February

  Kim’s next submarine may make N-talks even harder

  

  Bloomberg Kim Jong-un has spent much of his time as North Korea’s leader developing bigger and more advanced nuclear weapons. This year, he may try to make them harder to find by putting them under the sea. Recent North Korean reports touting a new submarine and its test of a ballistic missile designed to be launched from one have fuelled ...

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• 4 February

  China’s coronavirus death toll tops 425

  

  Bloomberg The US said it’s preparing for a possible pandemic and Hong Kong closed more checkpoints with mainland China, as the death toll from the coronavirus rose to at least 425. As Beijing tries to contain the damage from the worsening crisis, officials are evaluating whether the target for economic growth this year should be softened. China is hoping the ...

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• 4 February

  Bulgaria president warns of crisis amid rift with PM

  

  Bloomberg Bulgaria’s president deepened his rift with Prime Minister Boyko Borissov’s government, saying it had lost his trust and that the country was spiraling into a “sharp crisis” under its rule. The comment from Rumen Radev escalates a confrontation with Borissov’s cabinet, which the president says has failed to fight graft. Bulgaria has been under scrutiny from the European Union ...

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