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Bloomberg J Sainsbury Plc reported a surprise increase in fourth-quarter sales as it ponders whether to boost its bid for Argos owner Home Retail Group Plc. Same-store sales rose 0.1 percent excluding gasoline in the nine weeks ended March 12, London-based Sainsbury said in a statement on Tuesday. The gain ended two years of declining sales and compares with analyst ...

San Francisco / AP Online retail colossus Amazon is seeking a US patent on using selfies — instead of passwords — for shopping when using smartphones. Seattle-based Amazon reasoned that combining sensor and camera capabilities in smartphones with face and gesture recognising software results in higher security than passwords or identification numbers. “Such approaches provide for user authentication without the ...

NEW YORK / AP The Fresh Market, a grocery store chain, has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm Apollo for more than $1.3 billion. The deal, which is expected to close in the second quarter, comes after Fresh Market said in October that it was seeking to possibly sell itself. Apollo said that it is paying $28.50 for ...

Montreal / AFP The UN aviation agency called on Tuesday for regulations on space travel to be enacted within five years in order to bolster a burgeoning space tourism and transportation sector. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) “recognises that sub-orbital and outer space flights will foster new tourism and transport markets, and that investments in related research and development ...

DPA The story of the computer-savvy Indians has been around for a while: India has legions of well-trained IT specialists who provide high-tech services for tiny pay to firms round the globe. Get set for another story to replace it: Many of those smart Indian software experts are now becoming their own bosses. India is experiencing an incredible start-up boom. ...

DPA South Korean convenience stores have evolved from simple 24-hour corner shops into all-in-one stopovers for foods, goods and services tailored to modern needs. Despite sluggish consumption, convenience stores have constituted the country’s fastest-growing retail segment, outpacing offline retailers by a large margin with a 29.6 per cent on-year hike in sales in 2015, according to Statistics Korea. KDB Daewoo ...

ALKESH SHARMA / EMIRATES BUSINESS If you want to have the taste of the world, Ramada Plaza Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) is one of the most ideal addresses in Dubai. Located just between Jumeirah beach and Dubai Marina, this cosmopolitan hotel is located at only five-minute walk from the public beach and the closest Dubai tram station. This ultra-modern property ...

ALKESH SHARMA / EMIRATES BUSINESS Visiting a shopping mall could also be a cumbersome experience for many. Bombarded with countless offers, while boasting the presence of scores of brands under one-roof, a shopping mall could also lead a prospective customer into a an utter cerebral chaos. Gauging the retail industry’s perennial need to connect malls with the smart-phone by offering ...

ABU DHABI / WAM HH Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chief of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s Court, on Monday inaugurated the Microcredit Summit, which is being held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Council. Organised jointly by Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, the Arab Gulf Programme for ...

ABU DHABI / WAM Tawazun Holding announced it will inaugurate the launch of two new companies; Advanced Pyrotechnics, ATP, and Al Hosn Armored Systems, during its participation in the 7th edition of the International Exhibition for Security and National Resilience, ISNR Abu Dhabi 2016. The two new companies will be present on Tawazun’s stand at ISNR 2016, along with a ...