August, 2018

• 28 August

  Trump’s Mexico trade deal looks like a lemon

  

  A car can look like a fantastic bargain on the lot, only to reveal itself as a lemon when you drive it away. It’s not so different with trade agreements. Take the deal hammered out between the US and Mexico on automotive imports, which the two countries hope to extend to Canada, the third member of the North American Free ...

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• 28 August

  Sinopec plans to spin off wrong unit

  

  Shareholders in China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, the giant oil refiner known as Sinopec, have little to complain about this year. Thanks to excitement around the planned spinoff of its pipelines and marketing businesses and better margins in a time of weaker crude prices, the shares are up 38 percent this year. After announcing a record half-year profit over the ...

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• 28 August

  Dark clouds are brewing over technology sector

  Storm clouds are brewing over the global technology industry. A host of hardware companies, including Apple Inc, Samsung Electronics Co, Foxconn Technology Group and Intel Corp are sitting on inventory stockpiles not seen since the financial crisis a decade ago. And it comes amid a possible US-China trade war; likely monetary tightening by the Fed; more expensive growth in China’s ...

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• 28 August

  How to realise promise of gene-edited crops

  Crispr is coming to the farm. The gene-editing tool, best known for its potential to prevent disease and fight cancer, is now being used to improve corn, wheat, rice, mushrooms and much else. It could lead to hardier, more plentiful crops and tastier, cheaper, more nutritious food. The problem is that Europe and the US are both pursuing flawed approaches ...

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• 28 August

  Fed policy is to keep hiking until something breaks

  

  Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell took to the podium at the annual Jackson Hole monetary conference, delivering a message of support for the central bank’s policy of ongoing gradual interest-rate increases. This policy stance is less about commitment to estimates of key policy variables such as the natural rate of interest and more about data dependence. Unfortunately, Powell left the ...

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• 28 August

  Toyota should get over its Uber fascination

  

  The world’s largest automaker is flinging big bets around in the hope that something sticks. It might be better off doing what it knows best. Toyota Motor Corp said it’s deepening ties with Uber Technologies Inc, investing $500 million and making Sienna minivans equipped with the tech company’s self-driving software. A yet-to-be determined third party will operate that fleet. One ...

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• 28 August

  Apple doesn’t do low budget with sound reason

  

  Apple Inc proved one thing this year: It can charge whatever it wants for iPhones. Its growth rests on its ability to maintain that pricing power. Mark Gurman and Debby Wu of Bloomberg News revealed more details of Apple’s planned makeover for its fall 2018 iPhone models. There will be an updated version of the 2017 iPhone X; a higher-end, ...

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• 27 August

  Emirati women’s role, achievements hailed

  ABU DHABI / WAM HH Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Council, has hailed the remarkable achievements of Emirati women and their efficient contributions to the advancement of the country’s cultural development. On the occasion of the Emirati Women’s Day, Sheikh Hazza said, “During the Year of Zayed, we hail with pride the historic ...

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• 27 August

  Abu Dhabi hotel occupancy hits 81% during Eid

  ABU DHABI / WAM The Department of Culture and Tourism — DCT Abu Dhabi said hotel occupancy rates in Abu Dhabi during Eid al-Adha averaged 81 percent from August 21 to 24. This represented an impressive 6 percent increase compared to the average occupancy figure of 75 percent during the same period last year. It also underlines the emirate’s strong ...

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• 27 August

  Emirates adds fourth daily flight to Riyadh

  DUBAI / WAM Emirates has announced that it will boost its services to Riyadh with the addition of a fourth daily flight to the Saudi capital from September 1. The addition of the fourth daily service will take the total number of weekly Emirates flights serving Riyadh to 28. Adil Al Ghaith, Senior Vice President Commercial Operations, Gulf, Middle East ...

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