Abu Dhabi / WAM The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) announced that it conducted 240,035 additional Covid-19 tests over the past 24 hours, using state-of-the-art medical testing equipment. In a statement on Saturday, the ministry stressed its aim to continue expanding the scope of testing nationwide to facilitate the early detection of coronavirus cases and carry out the necessary ...
Read More »Crimea’s water crisis is a huge problem for Putin
A water emergency in Crimea is absorbing billions of taxpayer rubles as Russia tries to patch up an impossible problem stemming from the peninsula’s annexation in 2014. President Vladimir Putin’s Black Sea gem looks increasingly like a millstone. Ukraine dammed the North Crimean Canal seven years ago, cutting off the source of nearly 90% of the region’s fresh water and ...
Read More »Dear World: Let’s get rid of time zones
This is one of those weeks when, sitting here in Berlin, I feel much closer to my place of birth, New York. By one hour, to be precise. Most of the US switched to daylight savings time last weekend, whereas Germany — the first country to introduce “summertime†about a century ago — will spring forward next Sunday. As a ...
Read More »Modi’s India Bitcoin ban would be a terrible idea
If India proceeds with a rumoured ban on cryptocurrency, it wouldn’t be the country’s first attempt to impose currency controls. This time, however, a ban is even less likely to succeed — and the consequences for India’s economy could be more dire. The country shouldn’t make the same mistake twice. In the 1970s and 80s, at the height of what ...
Read More »Biden is making migrant border surge even worse
In an interview with George Stephanopoulos of ABC News, President Joe Biden denied that the perception that he is softer than his predecessor has contributed to a surge of migrants at the border with Mexico. A lot of people who are well disposed to the president — including Democratic Representative Don Beyer of Virginia and Juliette Kayyem, an official in ...
Read More »Walmart opens marketplace to non-US vendors in shift
Bloomberg Walmart Inc. has removed rules requiring sellers on its marketplace website to be registered in the US — an attempt to close the e-commerce gap with Amazon.com Inc. and tap into China’s vast network of manufacturers. This month, the world’s largest retailer began opening up its third-party marketplace to foreign sellers, who no longer need a US address or ...
Read More »Airlines face new challenge with fuel prices on upswing
Bloomberg Just as airlines start to emerge from their biggest slump on record, the industry is facing a new headache: a rapid rise in fuel prices. Escalating fuel costs will create a dilemma for carriers who unwound hedges that proved costly when demand suddenly disappeared when the coronavirus hit last year, said John Grant, senior analyst at OAG, which tracks ...
Read More »Germany’s retailer tackles debt with hefty equity input
Bloomberg German beauty retailer Douglas GmbH is tackling its 2.1 billion-euro ($2.5 billion) debt pile after struggling through a series of pandemic-fueled lockdowns that shuttered its stores across Europe for almost a year. The 179-year-old firm, owned by CVC, is seeking to refinance its bonds and loans with new debt supported by a 220 million-euro equity injection. CVC was coming ...
Read More »Nike slides after supply-chain woes hit North America sales
Bloomberg Nike Inc. fell the most since October after its pandemic rebound suffered a setback last quarter, when supply-chain problems kept products from reaching North America, its biggest market. The athleticwear giant, which posted surprisingly strong growth in the previous quarter, missed Wall Street estimates with its latest results. Sales amounted to $10.4 billion in the third quarter — far ...
Read More »Norse Atlantic to use Norwegian planes with fresh paint job
Bloomberg Norse Atlantic Airways is copying more than just the long-haul playbook of insolvent discounter Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA. It’s using the carrier’s old planes. The startup airline has agreed to lease nine Boeing Co. 787 jets formerly used by Norwegian, Norse Chief Executive Officer Bjorn Tore Larsen said in an interview. The new company, which announced that it plans ...
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