August, 2016

• 7 August

  India’s green version of ‘jumbo idol’

  

    AFP When Indian artist Dattadri Kothur saw the pollution caused by an annual Hindu tradition of immersing elaborately decorated idols of the elephant-headed god Ganesha in the sea, he decided to do something about it. The 30-year-old has come up with an environmentally friendly alternative that will make its debut during this year’s festival in the western city of ...

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• 7 August

  Aluminum rises as China stockpiles near 5-year low

  

    Bloomberg Aluminum climbed as inventories tracked by exchanges in London and Shanghai declined, signaling tighter supplies. Most other industrial metals rose, while copper posted its biggest weekly loss in a month. Stockpiles of aluminum held in Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses fell this week to the lowest since 2011 and those tracked by the London Metal Exchange had the biggest ...

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• 7 August

  Japan’s Kirin snaps four days of losses

  

    Bloomberg Kirin Holdings Co. snapped four days of losses after reporting first-half operating profit beat its own forecast by 25 percent. Operating profit rose 1.5 percent to 58.8 billion yen ($581 million) for the six months ended June from a year earlier on increased sales of soft drinks domestically and growth in its pharmaceuticals and bio-chemicals operations, the Tokyo-based ...

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• 7 August

  Fighting rages as rebels ‘break Aleppo siege’

  

  Beirut / AFP Syrian regime forces were on the defensive around Aleppo on Sunday after a rebel alliance said it inflicted a major setback by breaking a three-week government siege of the battered city. A coalition of rebels and fighters surged through regime territory on Saturday to open a new route into Aleppo’s besieged eastern neighbourhoods, home to an estimated ...

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• 7 August

  Thailand votes on ‘junta’ constitution

  

    Bangkok / AFP Thailand began voting on a junta-crafted constitution on Sunday in a referendum where open debate has been banned, as opponents warned the document will perpetuate military power and deepen divisions. The poll offers Thais their first chance to vote since generals toppled the elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra in 2014. The kingdom is split after a ...

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• 7 August

  Canada denies visas to 200 ahead of global forum

  

    Montreal / AFP Organizers of the World Social Forum set for next week in Montreal said that Canadian authorities have denied travel visas to more than 200 delegates invited to the anti-globalization event. Others are still waiting for a word from Canada’s immigration ministry, which issues travel documents. The summit is set to open on Tuesday. Currently “234 guests ...

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• 7 August

  Thousands march for Turkish democracy

  

    Istanbul / AFP Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Istanbul on Sunday for a pro-democracy rally organised by the ruling party, bringing to an end three weeks of demonstrations in support of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after last month’s failed coup. Followers of Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) have taken to the streets every night since the ...

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• 7 August

  Egypt’s Suez Canal revenues up to $3.183bn

  

    AGENCIES Revenue from Egypt’s Suez Canal reached $3.183 billion in the period between January 1 and August 6, up 4 percent from $3.059 billion in the same period last year, the Suez Canal Authority Chairman said. Mohab Mameesh, who was speaking at a one-year anniversary celebration of the opening of an expansion to the canal, said the canal’s revenues ...

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• 7 August

  Louisiana leaders blame Big Oil for coastal ruin

  

    AP The oil industry has left a big footprint along the Gulf Coast, where a Delaware-sized stretch of Louisiana has disappeared. But few politicians would blame Big Oil for ecosystem abuse in a state where the industry employs up to 300,000 people and injects $73 billion into the economy. Following the lead of Gov. John Bel Edwards, Louisiana political ...

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• 7 August

  Deal to bring electricity to Navajo Nation

  

    AP More than 1,000 Navajos who live without electricity in their homes soon could get power for the first time as the tribal utility buys a system of rural Utah substations and electrical lines under the terms of a decades-old deal with a power company. Across the 27,000 square-mile Navajo Nation, an estimated 15,000 people live off the grid ...

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