Egyptian farmers behind world’s perfumes face climate fight alone, yield drops by half
For years, Egyptian jasmine picker Wael al-Sayed has collected blossoms by night in the Nile Delta, supplying top global perfume...
Economy
Musk’s megarocket faces crucial new test after failures
Washington, United States -- Elon Musk's SpaceX is gearing up for the next test of its Starship megarocket on Sunday,...
Geostrategy
Google stops work on big Silicon Valley campus: report
The internet titan is scheduled to release its most recent quarterly earnings figures next week. A site in San Jose...
- Google's parent company Alphabet early this year announced it would cut about 12,000 jobs globally, citing a challenging economic reality
- Alphabet reported lower revenue and profit than expected in the final three months of last year as harsh economic times cooled its ad business
Business
London seeks to keep Europe fintech crown despite Brexit
London, United Kingdom -- From digital bank Revolut to money-transfer group Wise and payments company Checkout, London is Europe's fintech champion...
- Britain's exit from the European Union without an EU-London deal on financial services has complicated access to the gigantic market and talent.
- The UK last year saw injections of funds into its fintechs slump by 56 percent to just over $17 billion.
Geostrategy
Can war be foreseen, prevented? Researchers explore possibilities
Geneva, Switzerland -- Researchers from around the world have embarked on an effort to try to build a system allowing...
- Researchers from around the world will examine dramatic advances in artificial intelligence and how the decisions taken by the world's leaders could be swayed.
- Some 30 researchers gathered in Geneva earlier this month for a first round of discussions focused on "Anticipating the Future of Peace and War".
Business
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund posts $84 billion quarterly profit
According to a ranking by the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute (SWFI), the Norwegian fund is the biggest in the world,...
- The robust showing, representing a return of 5.9 percent, erases about half of the fund's massive $165.4-billion loss last year amid turbulence over the start of the war in Ukraine
- The fund, one of the world's biggest investors, was worth a dizzying $1.34 trillion at the end of March, or almost $245,000 for each of Norway's 5.5 million inhabitants.
Musk all the way: Pope loses Twitter verification Tesla’s stock fall, rocket explodes
Shares of Tesla slumped after reporting a drop in quarterly earnings and hinting the Musk-led company could face further profit...
- Twitter began the mass removal of blue ticks, with the symbol previously signifying a verified account vanishing from users including the Pope, Trump and Justin Bieber
- Despite the failure to complete the flight test and reach orbit, SpaceX and Musk, the founder and CEO of the private space company, declared it a success
Morocco intercepts 550 migrants trying to reach Europe
Coastguards of the kingdom's navy operating in the Mediterranean and Atlantic rescued 552 illegal migrants of varying nationalities between April...
- Morocco in northwest Africa is a transit country for many migrants trying to get to Europe -- Spain's mainland or its Canary Islands in the Atlantic
- According to the United Nations, the first quarter of 2023 was the deadliest since 2017 for Europe-bound migrants in the Mediterranean
Lebanon expels dozens of Syrian refugees amid dire economic crisis: security officials
Lebanese authorities have long pushed for Syrian refugees to return, and have made several repatriation efforts they describe as voluntary,...
- Hundreds of thousands of Syrians fled to neighbouring Lebanon after the country's civil war began in 2011 with the brutal suppression of anti-regime protests
- The army officials said that Lebanese authorities did not deport the refugees, adding that some of the expelled refugees had returned to Lebanon with the help of smugglers
Eurozone economy accelerates to 11-month high in April
Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank (HCOB), said the indices for the eurozone showed "a very...
- Data from the HCOB Flash Eurozone purchasing managers' index (PMI) survey published by S&P Global rose to 54.4 in April from 53.7 in March
- Inflation fell to 6.9 percent on an annual basis in March, but is still far above the European Central Bank's two-percent target
Business
Bahrain: The ultimate destination for natural pearl lovers
Customers at a Bahrain jewellery store study displays of pearls that are, unusually, 100 percent natural -- the result of...
- While rare elsewhere, natural pearls prised from seabed oysters by divers are the only variety produced in the Gulf kingdom, which is fiercely proud of its pearling tradition
- A tiny island state neighbouring Qatar, Bahrain is the sole country worldwide to have banned the cultivation of artificial pearls, which have flooded the market since the 1920s
Economy
Erdogan launches Black Sea gas deliveries ahead of vote
The facility will begin producing 10 million cubic metres of gas daily in a first phase - which Erdogan said...
- The ceremony comes as Erdogan braces for a tight race on May 14 in what is widely seen as the most consequential vote in Turkey's modern history
- In 2020, the country discovered gas reserves off the coast of Zonguldak in the Black Sea region, which Erdogan hailed as Turkey's largest ever natural gas field
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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
Egyptian farmers behind world’s perfumes face climate fight alone, yield drops by half
For years, Egyptian jasmine picker Wael al-Sayed has collected blossoms by night in the Nile Delta, supplying top global perfume...
Economy
Company News
BP issues upbeat Q1 outlook
Geostrategy
Latest News
Israel and Hamas near ceasefire talks, spy chief heads to Qatar as truce momentum builds
Israel’s Mossad chief will travel to Qatar for ceasefire negotiations as Hamas signals readiness to halt fighting, contingent on Israel...
Geostrategy
Israel to send negotiators to new Gaza truce talks in Qatar
The head of Israel's Mossad spy agency, David Barnea, will head to Qatari capital Doha on Sunday, the Israeli prime...
Geostrategy
Beirut’s suburbs ravaged by Israeli air raids as Blinken urges de-escalation with Iran
Israeli airstrikes on Hezbollah's southern Beirut stronghold destroyed six buildings in the deadliest assault since the war began, despite U.S....
Geostrategy
Most Read
Updates: Israel confirms killing of Hezbollah leader’s successor as Blinken presses for Gaza truce
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Israel to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, while Israeli airstrikes continued targeting Hezbollah's...
- A member of Hezbollah's decision-making body and a distant relative of Nasrallah, Safieddine was out of contact since Israeli strikes on Beirut weeks ago,
- Grey-bearded and bespectacled, Safieddine bore a striking resemblance to his distant cousin Nasrallah, but was several years his junior, aged in his late 50s or early 60s
Economy
IMF predicts slightly slower global growth in 2024 and 2025
In its new World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, the International Monetary Fund also estimates that global inflation will continue to...
- "In our baseline analysis, in advanced economies (inflation) will be back at central bank targets in 2025," he said.
- The IMF expects growth in the Middle East and Central Asia to pick up slightly to 2.4% in 2024, before jumping to 3.9% in 2025 as the effect of oil and shipping disruptions fades.
Geostrategy
Is Musk’s million-dollar US voter lottery legal?
Donald Trump surrogate Elon Musk's offer of a million dollars to one registered voter in a swing state every day...
- "I think it's something that law enforcement should look at."- Democratic Governor of Pennsylvania
- Musk defends his move by saying it is a simple get-out-and-vote effort