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Bloomberg The UK’s biggest supermarket companies have joined forces to warn the government of significant disruption and rising food prices if Britain leaves the Eu without a deal. Retail giants including J Sainsbury Plc, Walmart Inc.’s Asda, Marks & Spencer Group Plc and John Lewis Partnership Plc’s Waitrose have signed a letter from the British Retail Consortium to members of …

Bloomberg Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is feeling the heat as China’s economy decelerates. China’s dominant e-commerce company will offer clues to the health of the nation’s middle-class, and how it’s navigating the slowdown, when it unveils earnings on January 30. While revenue is expected to have risen 44 percent during the December quarter, that’s its slowest pace of expansion since …

DUBAI / WAM Abdul Rahman Mohammad Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) met with Dr Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, Saudi’s Minister of Health, and Dr Basel Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti Minister of Health, and discussed ways of boosting cooperation in the health sector between the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. During the meeting, which was held on the sidelines …

HADRAMAUT / WAM The Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) has completed the digging of six artesian wells, connected them to the main water line, installed pumping units and ran extensions to their targeted locations, to benefit regions and villages in the edge of Hadramaut Desert. The construction of the wells is part of a project launched by the ERC to provide …

Bloomberg Saudi Arabian Oil Co is taking a nearly 20 percent stake in South Korean oil refiner Hyundai Oilbank Co for $1.6 billion (AED5.87 billion), tightening the grip of the world’s top crude exporter on the biggest oil consuming region. The Saudi state-owned giant, known as Aramco, is seeking to firm up its customer base and market share in Asia …

Abu Dhabi / WAM Emirates Global Alumin-ium (EGA) announced that commissioning of its new Al Taweelah alumina refinery has entered its final stages. Commissioning is the detailed process of testing equipment and systems in a new plant before start-up. First production from Al Taweelah alumina refinery is expected during the first half of this year. EGA has begun hot water …

Bloomberg Crude tumbled below $52 a barrel as disappointing corporate earnings forecasts in the US stoked concern about the global economy, weighing down a market already anxious about America’s oil boom. Futures in New York dropped as much as 3.5 percent, joining the slide in equities after chip-marker Nvidia Corp and heavy-equipment company Caterpillar Inc warned of slowing global growth. …

Bloomberg China’s oil refining giant said its trading unit lost almost $700 million last year after being wrong-footed by zigzagging markets, revealing one of the biggest losses by a commodity trader in the last decade. Sinopec blamed the losses at its Unipec unit in part on “inappropriate hedging techniques” and said it closed its positions after discovering the problem. Oil …

Bloomberg China’s offshore oil and gas experts are dipping their toes in wind power, bringing their experience working on the ocean floor and adding a new twist to their portfolios. Cnooc Ltd., the country’s top offshore oil explorer, said it wants to use its expertise in marine geology to replicate its success in the offshore wind sector. The company entered …

Bloomberg America’s gasoline producers can run, but they can’t hide from a plunge in refining profit margins that sanctions against Venezuelan crude would only worsen, analysts said. The biggest US refiners are expected to report strong fourth-quarter earnings thanks to profits from diesel processing in a strong US economy, as well as a drop of about 40 percent in crude …