Norway sovereign fund drops investments in 11 Israeli companies
Oslo, Norway -- Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, said Monday that it was selling its investments in 11...
Geostrategy
Dubai records over 4,000 new-real estate activities in H1 2025
Dubai, UAE -- Dubai’s real estate market recorded 4,049 new activities in the first half of this year, reflecting the...
Business
Business
UK’s biggest retailer Tesco to cut 2100 jobs as inflation hikes costs
Tesco plans to cut about 1,750 management roles.
- Tesco recently posted bumper revenue for the key Christmas season, even as customers switched to less expensive rivals.
- Tesco has benefitted from passing on some of its own rising costs to consumers, many of whom appear willing to stay loyal to the group.
Economy
Kuwait budget deficit could surge to $16 bn, oil revenues fall by 19.5%
Spending will rise by 11.7 percent to more than $86 billion, with 80 percent going on civil service wages and...
- The budget deficit will swell to five billion dinars (more than $16 billion) for the year starting in April.
- Revenues -- 88 percent of which come from oil -- are projected at around $63.8 billion, a 16.9 percent drop.
Business
ExxonMobil 2022 profit at $55.7bn
Results reflect higher production of oil, natural gas.
- The huge profits by oil companies have sparked pushback from governments.
- In 2022, ExxonMobil put $29.8 billion into shareholder distributions, evenly split between dividends and share repurchases.
Geostrategy
Green energy investment tops $1 trillion, matches fossil fuels
Despite the milestone, spending on energy transition technology must immediately triple to meet the target of net-zero emissions by 2050...
- This is up 31 percent on the previous year and marks the first time the investment total has been measured in trillions.
- China -- the world's biggest polluter -- was by far the largest investor in energy transition, with the United States a distant second.
Business
UniCredit 2022 net profit at $7bn
Bank said it would pay out US$5.6 billion to shareholders.
- The news sent the bank's share prices zooming more than eight percent higher in morning trading.
- The European Central Bank has been lifting interest rates since last year to tackle inflation and tame consumer price growth.
Business
UBS Q4 net profit at US$1.7bn
Net profits at the banking giant rose 23% in Q4 of 2022.
- For the full year 2022, UBS meanwhile saw its net profit inch up to $7.6 billion from $7.5 billion a year earlier.
- As revenues generated by global markets dwindled, UBS's investment bank saw revenues shrink 24 percent in the fourth quarter.
Economy
IMF lifts 2023 growth forecast with boost from China reopening
While China's easing of coronavirus restrictions paves the way for a faster-than-expected recovery, the rise in central bank rates to...
- The global financial body expects the world economy to expand 2.9 percent this year, slowing from 2022 to a rate that remains weak by historical standards
- The fund now sees Germany and Italy avoiding recessions, as European growth proved "more resilient than expected" despite war in Ukraine
Business
European demand for US natural gas leads to investment boom
Production of the fuel reached 3.1 trillion cubic feet for the month of October, according to the most recently available...
- The industry has been in growth mode since the summer of 2021 when Russia began trimming shipments to Europe, according to Steven Miles
- In recent years, some 14 new liquefaction terminals have been approved in US, with the first set to begin operating in 2024
Business
Samsung profits slide
Its operating profits in Q4 fell to $3.4 billion, a 69 percent drop.
- The decline is in line with the estimate Samsung released earlier this month and marks the company's worst decline in quarterly profits since the third quarter of 2014
- It singled out weak demand for memory chips, saying the sector had been hit hard "as prices fell and customers continued to adjust inventory amid deepening uncertainties
Economy
Winter rains bring life back to Iraq’s drought-hit marshlands
The relief of rainfall early this month was welcomed by the UN agency, which noted in a statement that in...
- A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the marshes were parched and dusty last summer by drought in the climate-stressed country and by reduced flow from the Tigris and Euphrates river
- In July, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization deplored the "unprecedented low water levels" in the marshes, highlighting "the disastrous impact" for more than 6,000 families
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Norway sovereign fund drops investments in 11 Israeli companies
Oslo, Norway -- Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, said Monday that it was selling its investments in 11...
Geostrategy
Company News
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Thousands bid farewell to Ismail Haniyeh in Qatari capital
Haniyeh was laid to rest in Lusail, north of the capital Doha, following funeral prayers at the Gulf emirate's largest mosque...
Geostrategy
Biden says US committed to defend Israel against ‘all threats from Iran’
Biden, who was joined on the call by Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, also emphasized the "ongoing...
Most Read
Business
British Petroleum to develop four new oil and gas fields in Iraq
Baghdad, Iraq -- Iraq signed an agreement with British energy giant British Petroleum on Thursday to develop four oil and gas...
- BP is one of the biggest foreign players in Iraq's oil sector, with a history of producing oil in the country dating back to the 1920s when it was still under British mandate.
- According to the World Bank, Iraq has 145 billion barrels of proven oil reserves -- among the largest in the world -- amounting to 96 years' worth of production at the current rate
Geostrategy
What next after assassination of Hamas chief Haniyeh?
Jerusalem, Undefined - The killing of Palestinian militant group Hamas's political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran could embolden hardliners in the...
- Haniyeh's killing could have an impact on flailing ceasefire talks to halt Israeli bombardment of Gaza and to see Israeli hostages freed.
- While some have celebrated Haniyeh's death on social media in Israel, many also fear a military escalation
Geostrategy
Iran to hold funeral for Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh
Khamenei, who has the final say in Iran's political affairs, said after Haniyeh's death that it was "our duty to...
- The Islamic republic's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will lead the prayers for Haniyeh, having earlier threatened a "harsh punishment" for his killing
- Haniyeh's death was announced on Wednesday by Iran's Revolutionary Guards, who said he and his bodyguard were killed in a strike on their accommodation