Oil prices surge as Trump hits Russian crude with sanctions
The international benchmark contract, Brent North Sea crude, jumped 4.8 percent while West Texas Intermediate was up 5.1 percent. Trump on Wednesday announced...
Geostrategy
Norway’s wealth fund to enlist AI for managing climate risks
Oslo, Norway -- Norway's sovereign wealth fund said Wednesday that it would incorporate artificial intelligence tools into its investment analysis...
Geostrategy
Science
Energy-related global CO2 emissions hit record levels in 2023, says IEA
PARIS, FRANCE – Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions rose to a record level in 2023, but the growth slowed from previous years...
- CO2 emissions from energy rose by 1.1 percent in 2023, increasing by 410 million tonnes to a record 37.4 billion tonnes.
- Without the drought and water shortfalls, global carbon emissions from power generation alone would have fallen last year.
Economy
World resource extraction could surge 60 percent by 2060, UN warns
Paris, France - Extraction of Earth's natural resources could surge 60 percent by 2060, imperiling climate goals and economic prosperity, the...
- The hunger for natural resources -- everything from food to fossil fuels -- keeps growing by an average of more than 2.3 per cent per year, it said.
- Extraction and processing of the huge amount of resources accounts for over 60 percent of planet-warming emissions, the report said.
Geostrategy
Global criticism of Israel after ‘massacre’ of Gazans lining for food
Global condemnation flowed after Israeli forces in war-ravaged Gaza opened fire as Palestinian civilians scrambled for food aid during a...
- Iran denounced "the barbaric attack by the Zionist regime", China said it was "shocked", and head of the Arab League said the "brutal" act showed "total contempt for human life".
- Saudi Arabia strongly condemned what it called the "targeting" of unarmed civilians, while Kuwait and the UAE also issued condemnations.
Geostrategy
France calls for ‘independent probe’ into killing of Palestinians receiving aid in Gaza
Paris, France--France wants an independent inquiry into the deaths of scores of Palestinians during an aid delivery in the northern Gaza...
- French foreign minister said there will have to be an independent probe to determine what happened
- The foreign minister said that France would not apply "double standards" to the Mideast conflict
Geostrategy
‘Difficult discussions’ as WTO talks extended for third time
The WTO -- the only international body dealing with the rules of trade between nations -- is under pressure to...
- "Our challenge this week is to demonstrate that MC12 wasn't a one-off miracle," WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said on Monday.
- With farmer protests sweeping Europe and India, agriculture agreements have emerged as a particularly sensitive topic of debate.
Facebook parent Meta to stop paying Australian news media
Meta had previously announced it would not renew content deals with news publishers in the United States, Britain, France and...
- Extending a global retreat from news content, Meta said it would scrap the Facebook News tab in Australia
- The decision had been on the cards, but will come as a hammer blow for Australian news outlets already struggling to stay afloat
Geostrategy
Former US ambassador to plead guilty to spying for Cuba
Rocha additionally faces a lawsuit filed Thursday in Florida by the widow of Cuban dissident Oswaldo Paya. She alleges Rocha...
- Victor Manuel Rocha, 73, was held in December for what US officials called "one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the US government by a foreign agent
- Rocha, a naturalized US citizen originally from Colombia, allegedly began aiding Havana as a covert agent of Cuba's General Directorate of Intelligence (DGI) in 1981
Geostrategy
Split over Gaza and Ukraine, G20 meeting ends in discord
Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad told a news conference in Sao Paulo that it was "impossible" to reach a final...
- The group is divided over Gaza, with the US and allies reluctant to condemn Israel
- A French official insisted that Russia should be named as the aggressor in Ukraine
Geostrategy
WTO ministers struggle to forge deals as talks go into overtime
ABU DHABI, UAE – World trade ministers were locked in disagreement Thursday on fisheries subsidies, agriculture and digital customs duties as...
- The meeting opened with disagreements between the body's 164 member states on key issues that dominated the agenda of the talks.
- They include fisheries subsidies, agriculture and a moratorium on customs duties for digital transactions.
Business
European airlines witness a rise in profits in 2023
LONDON, UK – Europe's aviation industry is extending its bounceback from the Covid pandemic, as British Airways owner IAG and Franco-Dutch...
- Offsetting a jump in the aviation sector is persistently-high inflation pushing up fuel and staff costs.
- Delays in deliveries of commercial jets produced by Boeing and Airbus is hampering the sector’s rise.
Most Read
Revenue from Saudi cinema may exceed $1bn by 2030KSA, UAE play well as e-gaming trends across GCCExclusive: Middle East’s retail sector rides on AR and hybrid shopping to become $600bn digital economyTECOM Group profit soars 13%UAE startups eye Saudi Arabia for growth, expansionSaudi Arabia leads GCC AI healthcare raceDisparity remains as Saudis, Emiratis see wealth gains
Oil prices surge as Trump hits Russian crude with sanctions
The international benchmark contract, Brent North Sea crude, jumped 4.8 percent while West Texas Intermediate was up 5.1 percent. Trump on Wednesday announced...
Geostrategy
Company News
Million-plus pilgrims to begin hajj under blazing sun
Arts & Culture
Latest News
Iran says no nuclear talks if US insists it stop uranium enrichment
Washington and Tehran had been engaged in several rounds of negotiations seeking to strike a deal on the Islamic Republic's...
Geostrategy
Trump gives Russia 50 days to make Ukraine deal or face new economic sanctions
US President Donald Trump told Russia on Monday to end its Ukraine war within 50 days or face massive new...
Geostrategy
Japan’s World Barber Classic tries to bring back business
Tokyo, Japan -- Hundreds of rowdy spectators, many heavily tattooed, roared Monday at a Tokyo arena usually reserved for boxing...
Geostrategy
Most Read
Business
Low-cost carrier Wizz Air to stop Abu Dhabi operations
Budapest, Hungary -- Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air said Monday that it would end its Abu Dhabi operations, which have...
- The airline will exit its Abu Dhabi hub starting from September.
- The seventh biggest European airlines in terms of daily flights operated around 30 routes in the Middle East.
Geostrategy
Trump’s state visit to Britain set for September 17 to 19: palace
US President Donald Trump's second state visit to the United Kingdom will be between September 17 to 19, Buckingham Palace...
- Trump was invited by a personal letter from King Charles, which Prime Minister Keir Starmer handed to him last February during a visit to Washington
- Unlike French President Emmanuel Macron, who addressed the British Parliament during his recent state visit, Trump is not scheduled to address the House of Commons
Geostrategy
Trump says US will send Ukraine Patriot air defense systems, and may sanction Russia
President Donald Trump on Sunday said Washington would send Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv and hinted at new sanctions...
- The US president's announcement of the much-needed weapons for Ukraine came after he earlier said he would make a "major statement... on Russia" on Monday