Germany pledged 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion) at a meeting of G20 finance ministers to help the world’s poorest countries, the finance ministry said on Saturday. The funds will be made available as long-term loans for the International Monetary Fund’s Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT). In April, IMF officials …
Read More »EU leaders resume ‘grumpy’ summit on budget, virus fund
European Union leaders were hunting for compromises Saturday as a summit to reach a deal on an unprecedented 1.85 trillion euro ($2.1 trillion) EU budget and coronavirus recovery fund entered its second day with tensions running high. A full day and night of discussions by the 27 leaders on Friday …
Read More »Iraq Exports 900,000 Tons Of Barley Within Days
The Parliamentary Agriculture Committee announced that Iraq intends to export 900,000 tons of barley during the coming days after achieving self-sufficiency, stating: “Iraq will announce its readiness to export fish, chicken and eggs during the next six months.” The head of the committee, Salam al-Shimmari said in a statement that …
Read More »End of the jumbo: British Airways retires 747 early due to coronavirus crisis
British Airways, the world’s largest operator of Boeing 747s, will retire its entire jumbo jet fleet with immediate effect after the COVIDcovid-19 pandemic sent air travel into freefall. For over 50 years, Boeing’s “Queen of the Skies” has been the world’s most easily recognized jetliner with its humped fuselage and …
Read More »China’s economy roars back to growth after record coronavirus contraction
China has become the first major economy to show signs of recovery and avoid recession amid the coronavirus pandemic, with its gross domestic product (GDP) rising 3.2 percent in the second quarter. The positive economic growth, reported by China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Thursday, came after a sharp …
Read More »China says UK ban on Huawei ‘severely’ damages investment confidence
Britain’s “discriminatory” ban on Huawei has severely damaged China’s investment confidence in the country, China’s commerce ministry said on Thursday, adding it will take necessary measures to defend Chinese firms’ legal rights. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday ordered Huawei equipment to be purged completely from Britain’s 5G network by …
Read More »Oil gains after big U.S. drawdown; eyes on OPEC committee meeting
Oil prices rose on Wednesday following a sharp drop in U.S. crude inventories, with the market waiting for next steps from a meeting later in the day on the future level of output cuts by OPEC and its allies. Brent crude LCOc1 futures were up 22 cents, or 0.5%, at …
Read More »Apple Wins EU Court Fight Over $14.9 Billion Tax Bill
Apple Inc. won its court fight over a record 13 billion-euro ($14.9 billion) Irish tax bill in a crushing blow to European Union antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager’s crackdown on preferential fiscal deals to selected companies. The EU General Court sided with the iPhone maker, ruling on Wednesday that Ireland’s tax …
Read More »Big U.S. banks predict more economic pain from coronavirus
Three of the largest U.S. banks said on Tuesday they had set aside a whopping $28 billion for loan losses, in a stark reminder that much of the economic pain from the coronavirus pandemic is still to come. Borrowers have been propped up by trillions of dollars in government and …
Read More »Oil rises slightly as OPEC+ complies with production cuts
Oil prices rose slightly on Tuesday as OPEC and its allies cut production by more than agreed to in June, although demand concerns lingered due to increased cases of COVID-19 in the United States. Brent crude futures were up 35 cents to $43.07 a barrel at 11:54 a.m. EST (1554 …
Read More »White House campaign urges jobless to ‘find something new’
A new White House-backed ad campaign aims to encourage people who are unemployed or unhappy in their jobs or careers to go out and “find something new.” The opening ad in the “Find Something New” campaign beginning Tuesday features ordinary people sharing their stories. A companion website provides links to …
Read More »IMF: Mideast loses $270B oil income amid virus, recession
The imf’s energy producers are expected to earn $270 billion less in oil revenue compared to last year as the region’s economic heavyweight, Saudi Arabia, sinks deeper into recession amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the International Monetary Fund’s outlook released Monday. The international lender expects an overall economic contraction …
Read More »India to buy Venezuela oil under swap deal amid US sanctions
India has decided to receive a cargo of Venezuelan crude under a swap deal in the face of a US sanctions regime which has put the Latin American country in throes of a fuel crisis. Mumbai-based Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) announced its plan to load its first cargo of Venezuelan …
Read More »Oil production resumes in Libya after months-long shutdown
The Libyan National Oil Company announced Friday the resumption of oil production and exports after a nearly six-month shutdown due to conflict dividing the country. “The NOC has lifted force majeure on all oil exports from Libya,” the company said in a statement, adding that production will take time to …
Read More »Oil falls on resurgence of virus cases, oversupply
Oil prices dropped on Friday and were headed for weekly declines as inventories rose and record-breaking new coronavirus cases in the United States stoked concern about the pace of economic recovery and fuel demand. Brent crude was down by 95 cents, or 2.2%, at $41.40 a barrel by 0926 GMT, …
Read More »United Airlines sending layoff notices to nearly half of US employees
United Airlines will send layoff warnings to 36,000 employees – nearly half its U.S. staff – in the clearest signal yet of how deeply the virus outbreak is hurting the airline industry. The outlook for a recovery in air travel has dimmed in just the past two weeks, as infection …
Read More »Oil down as U.S. virus spike stokes demand worries
Oil prices fell on Tuesday amid concerns that a surge in new coronavirus cases, especially in the United States, will hamper any recovery in fuel demand. Brent crude LCOc1 futures declined by 24 cents, or 0.56%, to $42.86, by 1236 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 futures fell …
Read More »Herd immunity is ‘unachievable’, says Spanish study
A nationwide antibody study in Spain has found that only 5.2 percent of the country’s population has been exposed to coronavirus, suggesting that herd immunity could be unachievable. The findings marked the conclusion of a three-month study into the prevalence of the virus, which involved testing almost 70,000 people across …
Read More »EU foresees “deeper recession” in 2020 than previously expected
The eurozone economy will drop deeper into recession this year and rebound less steeply in 2021 than previously thought, the European Commission forecast on Tuesday, with France, Italy, and Spain struggling the most due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The downbeat assessment of Europe’s economy comes amid concern the U.S. recovery …
Read More »Oil mixed on tighter supply, surge in US virus cases
Oil prices were mixed on Monday, with Brent crude edging higher, supported by tighter supplies and positive economic data, while U.S. benchmark WTI futures dropped on concern that a spike in coronavirus cases could curb fuel demand in the United States. Brent crude LCOc1 was up 41 cents, or 1%, …
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