The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.

Bloomberg All of a sudden, big box stores are beating out their bargain bin brethren. Walmart Inc. and Target Corp. are reporting comparable sales at higher rates than the dollar stores, according to Quo Vadis Capital’s John Zolidis. Part of the pain? The dollar outlets have no strong e-commerce presence, which now “looks like a liability.” Target’s quarterly results reflected …

Bloomberg An attempt by United Airlines to duck the sticky issue of Taiwan has invited rebuke from China’s foreign ministry. After China told global carriers earlier this year to tweak their websites and list the separately ruled island as part of China — a directive the White House termed “ Orwellian nonsense” — American airlines are still finding themselves in …

DUBAI / Emirates Business The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) has recorded its highest ever daily Indian Rupee (INR) volume, trading 126,055 contracts on August 13. On the same day, the Exchange’s overall volume touched 185,630 contracts worth $4.17 billion, its second highest daily notional value since inception. Amidst continued market volatility, the DGCX traded over 2.08 million contracts …

Bloomberg President Donald Trump slammed what he termed ‘decades of abuse’ by Canada with a new threat to terminate the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta), a day after talks with the US’s northern neighbor stalled hours before a deadline. “There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new Nafta deal. If we don’t make a fair deal …

Bloomberg Crude rose this month as sanctions on Iranian oil stoked concern that supplies will contract, overshadowing speculation that a US-China trade war will weaken demand. Futures in London settled 4.3 percent higher in August, the biggest monthly gain since April and US crude also rose for the month. Yet, both benchmarks faltered as Saudi Arabia was said to raise …

Bloomberg India’s economy expanded at the fastest pace in nine quarters, as strong domestic consumption and robust manufacturing growth stamped out global trade-war worries. Gross domestic product grew a stunning 8.2 percent in the three months ended June from a year earlier, the Statistics Ministry said in a statement in New Delhi. That was faster than the 7.6 percent median …

DUBAI / Emirates Business Damac Properties has awarded an AED512 million construction contract to China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) to build tower C of AYKON City, DAMAC’s luxury mixed-use development on Sheikh Zayed Road. The new contract covers civil construction works for tower C, the residential tower in the award-winning $2 billion development, overlooking the Dubai Water Canal. “CSCEC …

Bloomberg PetroChina Co. is rewarding shareholders with a higher — and symbolic — payout after its best half-year profit in more than three years. The nation’s biggest oil and gas producer raised total dividends for the first six months by almost one-third to 0.0888 yuan per share. The lucky payout — eight is widely considered an auspicious number in China …

Bloomberg California isn’t ready yet to give up autonomy when it comes to its electric grid. State lawmakers declined to advance legislation that would have laid the groundwork to connect California’s grid to as many as 13 other states. Under the measure, a multi-state regional authority would have managed the flow of power across the U.S. West, allowing more electricity …

Bloomberg Penn Virginia Corp. has reached out to potential buyers including Hilcorp Energy Co. and WildHorse Resource Development Corp. ahead of a sale process slated to start next month, according to people familiar with the matter. The Houston, Texas-based company will open a data room and solicit initial bids in September, said the people, who asked to not be identified …