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

  McDonald’s Corp. looks like it’s gotten itself a happy meal in China. The consortium purchasing the assets, however, risks a bout of indigestion. The world’s biggest fast-food chain couldn’t have done much better than locking up Citic Group Corp. and Carlyle Group LP as buyers of its franchise in Asia’s largest economy. The $3 billion price tag that’s being ...

  US airlines rejoiced earlier this year when it was announced that commercial flights would resume to Cuba after more than a half century, with one executive at a major carrier calling it almost a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” Yet as service begins this week to Havana, the long-awaited travel surge to the island is already in doubt. Citing weak demand, American ...

  DUBAI / Reuters Most stock markets in the Gulf rose on Sunday as investors cheered a rally in crude oil prices, while foreign buyers continued to support Egypt’s index. Brent crude futures ended their best week in at least five years on Friday, settling at $54.46 a barrel following OPEC’s agreement to cut output to prop up prices. Saudi ...

  Bloomberg Bond investors are weighing rising risks that smaller Chinese banks will fail against growing signs the government will do anything to avoid a financial meltdown. A lender called Guiyang Rural Commercial Bank Co. in the southwestern province of Guizhou sparked concern that risks among smaller lenders are spreading after its rating outlook was cut last month following a ...

  Bloomberg European Union lawmakers plan to soften draft rules on asset-backed securities after concerns that an earlier proposal would hinder a market-revival drive. Negotiators for the main political parties in the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee agreed to give ground on risk-retention levels, the most contentious aspect of their initial plan. The risk-retention requirement is intended to ...

  Brasília / AFP Brazil’s central bank cut its key interest rate for the second month running, as data showed that the recession hitting Latin America’s largest economy continued into the third quarter. The central bank lowered the benchmark Selic rate by a quarter of a percentage point, to 13.75 percent — still one of the world’s highest. “The available ...

Emirates Business Barclays was named Best Overall GCC Private Bank at the WealthBriefing GCC Region Awards 2016, further emphasizing the bank’s continuous commitment to delivering outstanding services in the private banking sector across the region. This recognition from Wealthbriefing comes from a distinguished panel of independent jury members and is considered to be one of the most prestigious awards for ...

  Chengalpattu / AFP A small scythe, a crowbar and a bundle of canvas bags are all that Kali and Vedan carry when they venture into the fields of southern India to catch some of the world’s deadliest snakes. Their skills, passed from generation to generation of the Irula tribe they belong to, are crucial for the production of anti-venom ...

  Laval / AFP Welcomed with open arms — some even received coats from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself — the Syrian refugees who arrived in Canada a year ago are now facing their share of difficulties. Among them, 50-year-old Fahed Fattouh came with his wife and their two children after they fled the war-battered city of Aleppo via Beirut ...

Tehran / AFP Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani presented his budget on Sunday, with OPEC’s decision to cut production helping to boost its expected oil revenues. Rouhani’s 2017-2018 budget is based on oil prices of $50 per barrel, up from $40 last year, with a focus on unemployment, water resources, railways and the environment. The sums look realistic after last week’s ...