Business

President Emmanuel Macron will seek to revive a French initiative on Lebanon when he hosts an international aid conference on Wednesday, but with the country’s fractious political class bickering, hopes of a breakthrough appear slim. Four months after a massive explosion that killed more than 200 people and destroyed swathes …

Germany, France and Britain urged the Trump administration in late October to reconsider broad, new sanctions against Iran’s banks, arguing that the move would deter legitimate humanitarian trade and hurt the allies’ common interests, diplomatic correspondence shows. Germany’s Bundesbank also kept a multi-billion-euro deposit facility open for Iranian banks, including …

Twenty-nine arms control and human rights organizations have signed a letter opposing the sale of $23 billion worth of missiles, fighter jets and drones to the United Arab Emirates and asking the U.S. Congress to block the deal. “The hope is to stop these sales altogether,” said Seth Binder, advocacy …

Saudi Arabia formally suspended imports of meat, eggs and other products from Turkey earlier this month, the Turkish exporters’ union said, after a months-long informal boycott of Turkish goods over political tensions between the two regional rivals. Turkish exporters have reported increasing obstacles to trade in Saudi Arabia, as businessmen …

Turkey does not expect ties with the United States to be strained under President-elect Joe Biden and does not anticipate sanctions over its purchase of Russia S-400 defence systems, a senior official in President Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Party said. Relations have been tense between Ankara and Washington over issues from …

The Trump administration plans to tighten sanctions on Tehran during its final months in power, the top U.S. envoy on Iran said on Wednesday, as he urged President-elect Joe Biden to use the leverage to press for a deal that reduces the regional and nuclear threats posed by the Islamic …

The United Arab Emirates has stopped issuing new visas to citizens of 13 mostly Muslim-majority countries, including Iran, Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan, according to a document issued by a state-owned business park. A source briefed on the matter told Reuters the visas had temporarily stopped being issued to Afghans, Pakistanis …

Western Union suspended its operations across Cuba on Monday evening as new US sanctions kicked in, cutting a key lifeline for many struggling Cuban families as the coronavirus pandemic deepens the Communist-run island’s economic crisis. US President-elect Joe Biden has promised to roll back some sanctions on remittances. But any …

Turkey protested to Germany and the EU on Monday after German forces belonging to an EU military mission boarded and tried to search a Turkish cargo ship that they suspected of taking weapons to Libya illegally. Soldiers from the frigate Hamburg, part of an EU mission enforcing a U.N. arms …

From my personal perspective and experiences , I would say that learning from our mistakes and network advises and recommendations boost our endeavor to overcome all challenges. It is with no doubt that mastering your strength areas will help you focus on its development and achieve your optimum performance. By …

When Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter and a leading U.S. ally, took over the G20 presidency in December 2019, hopes in the kingdom were high. A global summit would help rehabilitate the country on the international stage and turn the world’s attentions to key reforms launched by de …

Iraq and Saudi Arabia opened the Arar border crossing for trade for the first time in three decades, the Iraqi border ports commission said on Wednesday. Arar has been closed since 1990 after the two countries cut ties following Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. Iraqi and Saudi officials including the …

A group led by privacy activist Max Schrems on Monday filed complaints with German and Spanish data protection authorities over Apple’s online tracking tool, alleging that it allows iPhones to store users’ data without their consent in breach of European law. It is the first such major action against the …

Saudi Aramco 2222.SE said on Monday it has hired a group of banks ahead of a multi-tranche U.S. dollar-denominated bond issuance, as the world’s largest oil company seeks to raise cash amid lower oil prices. The announcement comes as Gulf issuers show no sign of slowing this year’s blitz on …

Bolivia’s new president, Luis Arce, has moved swiftly to restore ties with Iran and Venezuela, receiving the credentials of ambassadors from the two countries on Wednesday, just three days after his socialist party retook the reins of power. Bolivia’s government said in a statement it wanted to “reestablish diplomatic relations …

France expects smoother trade relations with the United States should Democratic contender Joe Biden win the presidential vote, with greater alignment on sustainable development and more multilateral cooperation, trade minister Franck Riester said. President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs on French wines in a row over Airbus subsidies, threatened levies …

Lebanon’s prosecutor general decided Tuesday not to charge fugitive ex-auto tycoon Carlos Ghosn for visiting Israel in 2008 because the statute of limitations has expired, a judicial source said. Three lawyers filed a motion in January calling for the 66-year-old businessman to be prosecuted over his trip to the Jewish …

The World Bank (WB) supports Uzbekistan’s investment in research and commercialization of innovations. The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has approved $50 million for the “Modernization of the national innovation system in Uzbekistan” project. “The new project, supported by the World Bank, will help the government develop a national …

On October 24, a discussion was held in the format of a videoconference on the progress of the implementation of tasks to strengthen trade-economic, investment, financial-technical, transport-logistics and cultural-humanitarian cooperation with China and the Republic of Korea. Heads of ministries, departments and industry associations took part in the discussion, which …

ADB to finance the construction of power transmission lines from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan. As part of the visit of Uzbekistan’s government delegation to Afghanistan, the heads of ministries and departments of the two countries held an expanded meeting in Kabul. During the event, an agreement was signed between the Islamic …

Iran’s foreign ministry on Saturday described a U.S.-brokered Sudan-Israel deal to normalise ties as “phoney” and accused Khartoum of paying a ransom in return for Washington removing it from a list of state sponsors of terrorism. The deal agreed on Friday marked the third Arab government after the United Arab …

Israel said on Friday it will not oppose U.S. sales of “specific weapons systems” to the United Arab Emirates, in an apparent reference to the F-35 warplanes sought by Abu Dhabi. Under a principle of preserving Israel’s “qualitative military edge”, the United States consults with it on proposed sales of …

U.S. President Donald Trump and Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok on Friday called for an agreement to be reached over the dam dispute with Ethiopia and Egypt. “We hope to reach an amicable solution soon,” Hamdok said, speaking by phone with Trump following Sudan and Israel’s announcement to normalize ties. …

The United States on Monday said it blacklisted two Chinese men and six Chinese entities for having dealt with Iranian shipping company Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and, in some cases, helping it to evade U.S. sanctions. The U.S. State Department named the entities as Reach Holding Group …

President Donald Trump announced on Monday the United States would remove Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism as soon as Khartoum sets aside the $335 million it has agreed to pay to American victims of militant attacks and their families. The deal could also set in motion …

Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy said on Sunday the U.S. President’s push for an Israeli-Arab rapprochement was gaining momentum and he hoped more accords would follow even if Trump loses next month’s election. Avi Berkowitz, who accompanied an Israeli delegation which visited Bahrain on Sunday, said the so-called “Abraham Accords” …

A landlocked Central Asian country that shares its southern border with Afghanistan, the Republic of Uzbekistan shipped an estimated US$11.1 billion worth of goods around the globe in 2019. That dollar amount reflects a 10% increase since 2017 and a 1.5% gain from 2018 to 2019. From a continental perspective …

The first official delegation to Israel from the United Arab Emirates may remain at the airport and fly home the same day, rather than conduct a wider visit, due to coronavirus precautions, an Israeli minister said. Israel is under a second coronavirus lockdown, which it plans to begin easing next …

Israel’s finance minister promised on Sunday the long awaited 2021 state budget would be ready in December amid accusations the government was dragging its heels for political reasons and after a third senior economic official quit in three months. Failure to pass last year’s budget was a big factor in …

Israel’s cabinet approved a normalisation deal with the United Arab Emirates on Monday and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he and Abu Dhabi’s crown prince had spoken and agreed to meet soon. The U.S.-brokered “treaty of peace” establishing full relations with the Gulf Arab country broke new diplomatic ground in …

Israel would oppose any U.S. sale of advanced F-35 warplanes to Qatar, Israel’s intelligence minister said on Sunday, citing a need to maintain Israeli military superiority in the region. Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen made the comments in response to a Reuters report that Qatar – whose Iran links trouble Israel …

Passionate teams and employees drive businesses to form winning teams and strive into more success in the corporate world. What are the keys to success into becoming the winning team? By Emile Fakhoury I believe performance and passion walk hand in hand on the success ladder, a team can start …

Turkey’s leading business groups urged Saudi Arabia on Saturday to take action to improve trade relations as Turkish firms encounter growing problems in doing business with the Gulf Arab state. Saudi Arabia and Turkey have been at odds for some years over foreign policy and attitudes towards Islamist political groups. …

Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab said on Friday any step to lift subsidies now on vital goods would be unacceptable and would cause a “social explosion”. In a televised address, Diab, who resigned two months ago after a huge explosion damaged much of Beirut and worsened the country’s economic …

Uzbekistan, long unknown to most Westerners, is already shaping the travel scene for 2020. This culturally rich and historically compelling country, along with the rest of central Asia, has been named the No. 1 travel region for the new year by travel website Lonely Planet due to its easy access …

Lebanon’s leading Sunni Muslim politician, former premier Saad al-Hariri, called for the restoration of a French plan to lift the nation out of its worst financial crisis since its 1975-1990 civil war. Former colonial power France, which has led foreign aid efforts, has tried to rally have Lebanese leaders to …

Saudi diplomats, Sikh separatists and Indian business executives have been among those targeted by a group of hired hackers, according to research published on Wednesday by software firm BlackBerry Corp BB.BA. The report here on the group, known publicly as Bahamut, the name assigned to the mythical sea monster of …

Tourism in Uzbekistan has always drawn people from far and wide. For anyone who knows about the country, this is easy to understand – bright colours, intricate patterns, rich flavours, and friendly people await every visitor. Traces remain of great empires that have long since been blown away by the …

Managing, leading and inspiring your team can be quite challenging in uncertain times. In this article the focus is on the latter: what are the best ways to inspire your team to boost its productivity and performance? By Emile Fakhoury First, let me start by defining the word team as …

The Covid-19 pandemic and related measures will bite into growth this year. Internally, demand will likely be downbeat amid social distancing measures and weaker remittance inflows. On the external front, feeble external demand and rising uncertainty will keep exports subdued. The possibility of further domestic restrictions clouds the outlook. FocusEconomics …

Palestinian Authority security services recently began a campaign to arrest opposition activists in the West Bank. The campaign has targeted activists in the Democratic Reform Bloc of parliament member Muhammad Dahlan, a high-profile critic of President Mahmoud Abbas. Key members of the Fatah Revolutionary Council, former security officials and university …

Syria’s foreign minister accused U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Saturday of attempting to suffocate Syrians with sanctions “just like George Floyd and others were cruelly suffocated in the United States.” New U.S. sanctions that took effect in June under the so-called Caesar Act have further crippled the war-torn country’s …

ACWA Power (Saudi Arabia) has installed 10 meteorological masts out of the 18 planned for studying the wind potential in Peshku and Gijduvan districts of the Bukhara region, where the company will build wind power plants (WPPs) with a total capacity of 1000 MW, the press service of the Energy …

Sudan does not want to link its removal from a U.S. terrorism list that is hindering access to foreign funding for the country’s economy with a normalisation of relations with Israel, Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said on Saturday. Sources said this week that U.S. officials indicated in talks with a …