DUBAI / AP Bahraini authorities on Sunday put to death three men found guilty of a deadly bomb attack on police, the kingdom’s first executions since an Arab Spring-inspired uprising rocked the country in 2011. The executions of the men drew swift criticism from human rights groups and sparked outrage among opponents of the Sunni-ruled government, who see the charges ...
Read More »Military: Mosul University fully liberated by Iraqi troops
BAGHDAD /Â AP US -backed Iraqi government troops on Sunday fully liberated the sprawling complex of Mosul University, an Iraqi military spokesman said, a major step in the massive operation to retake the IS group-held city of Mosul. The spokesman for the Joint Military Command, Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasool, declared the campus was under the full control of Iraqi special ...
Read More »Trump clashes with civil rights leader as inauguration looms
NEW YORK / AP Donald Trump’s feud with civil rights icon John Lewis is highlighting the president-elect’s willingness to attack any and all political rivals even with his inauguration less than a week away. The Republican billionaire slammed the Democratic congressman — and his Atlanta-area district — on Saturday, a day after Lewis described Trump as an illegitimate president. Lewis, ...
Read More »China again rejects Trump’s suggestion to negotiate Taiwan
BEIJING / AP China’s foreign ministry on Sunday again rejected President-elect Donald Trump’s suggestion that he might use American policy on Taiwan as a bargaining chip between the two sides. Spokesman Lu Kang said Sunday that the “one China†policy is “non-negotiable.†Since recognizing Beijing in 1979, Washington has maintained only unofficial ties with Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing ...
Read More »Duterte orders troops to blast militants, ‘hostages’
MANILA / AP Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he has ordered his troops to bomb extremists who flee with their captives in a bid to stop a wave of kidnappings at sea, calling the loss of civilian lives in such an attack “collateral damage.†Duterte has previously stated that he had told his Indonesian and Malaysian counterparts their forces can ...
Read More »China can’t quit the dollar
China’s leaders are hardly disguising their fears about money leaving the country. They’ve imposed new disclosure rules limiting how Chinese — who are allowed to convert up to $50,000 worth of yuan into foreign currency each year — can spend that money overseas. Simultaneously, they’re striving to tamp down worries about the tumbling yuan, which has fallen to an ...
Read More »Working for an algorithm might be an improvement
Bridgewater, the world’s largest hedge fund, has been portrayed as a bizarre, Moneyball-type machine in which employees’ every move is monitored and assessed, increasingly by computer algorithms. Awful as that may sound, what if it’s actually a step toward a happier and more prosperous world? Granted, descriptions of the place — including a recent Wall Street Journal article to ...
Read More »10 points about pundits, facts and the future
Howard Marks, co-founder of Oaktree Capital Group, is one of the smartest guys I know. Each quarter, he sends out a letter to investors filled with sharp insights and observations. I find all of his letters to be worthwhile, but this quarter he played right to my confirmation bias in his discussion about experts. Here are the key concepts: ...
Read More »Saudi stock market stalls, Kuwait outperforms, Dubai slips
DUBAI / Reuters Stock markets in the Gulf diverged on Sunday with Saudi Arabia stalling near a six-week low and Dubai retreating on profit-taking, while Kuwait continued to outperform. Saudi Arabia’s index added 0.1 percent. Nine of the top 10 performers were from the insurance segment with Wafa Insurance in the lead, jumping 9.1 percent. Interest in the sector has ...
Read More »Emerging-market stocks little changed as Mexico’s peso climbs
Bloomberg Emerging-market stocks and currencies were little changed after US economic data bolstered the case for higher interest rates that could dim investors’ appetite for riskier assets. Mexico’s peso and Turkey’s lira rose. Shares and currencies in emerging markets struggled to find direction as traders boosted wagers the Federal Reserve will raise borrowing costs by its March meeting. Bears ...
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