Author: Steven Sahiounie

Trade between Iran and the United Arab Emirates surged in this period, business people and officials said on Sunday. The executives said the UAE has in recent months rolled back limits on corporate registrations and the issuance of visas to companies from Iran. Iranian financiers are also exploring how to enhance bilateral trade by creating financial mechanisms to fund legitimate transactions, they added, the Financial Times reported. Flourishing trade relations between Iran and the UAE, the traditional center for re-exports into the Islamic Republic, forms part of the Persian Gulf state’s pivot towards regional de-escalation and a focus on business. …

The measure is necessary to support the ruble, according to the head of VTB, Andrey Kostin The CEO of Russia’s second-largest bank, VTB, has argued that the country must close loopholes that allow unregulated capital outflows. Andrey Kostin claimed that the current situation is damaging the ruble. Speaking to the RBK news agency in an interview published on Monday, Kostin said that while residents are banned from sending more than $1 million or the equivalent in foreign currency abroad per month, there are no such limits on ruble transfers. “There are still loopholes. Let’s say you decide to transfer money…

Increased conversion of hard-currency revenues by exporters is expected in the upcoming months, Maksim Oreshkin has said The recent depreciation of the ruble has run its course, Russian presidential adviser Maksim Oreshkin has told Interfax on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok. The official added that a surplus of foreign currency is likely to materialize in the local market over the next few months. The Russian currency has been testing multi-month lows against the dollar and the euro but rebounded last month after the central bank stepped in. “Larger amounts of forex revenue from higher prices for…

Switching to national currencies is a sanctions-induced necessity, not a goal in itself, the head of VTB Andrey Kostin has explained Russia has been compelled to transition to national currencies in foreign trade due to Western sanctions but will not abandon Western currencies outright, Andrey Kostin, the CEO of Russia’s second-largest bank VTB, said in an interview with RBK news outlet published on Monday. “I believe that, of course, we should not voluntarily abandon [the euro and dollar]. We are not opposed to engaging in exports and imports with Western companies; it was their decision to impose sanctions, not ours.…

The bloc’s manufacturers are forced to adjust their processes to fit non-Russian supplies, Moscow’s deputy energy minister says The EU’s industrial sector is suffering from the consequences of last year’s ban on Russian coal, Russian Deputy Energy Minister Sergey Mochalnikov told RT on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) on Monday. According to the official, Russia’s coal producers have successfully fended off the challenges posed by the embargo, redirecting most of the supplies to the Global South and Asia-Pacific. However, the bloc has been forced to seek alternative coal sources and has dealt with quality issues despite substituting…

Growing energy revenues will allow Moscow to boost its rainy day fund, Anton Siluanov has said Surging oil and gas revenues will allow Russia to add to its sovereign wealth fund despite Western sanctions, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov announced on Monday.      The National Wealth Fund (NWF), which accumulates revenue from energy exports, was created to support the national pension system and to help cover budget deficits when needed. The latest figures showed that revenues from oil and gas sales grew 5.3% year-on-year in July and amounted to $8.66 billion. The largest intake was from gas exports, while earnings…

The cross-border motorway connecting the countries opened in June 2022 The volume of freight transported via a highway bridge connecting the Russian city of Blagoveshchensk and China’s Heihe has more than doubled in the space of a year, according to the governor of Amur Region, Vasily Orlov. The official shared the figures at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok on Monday, during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Traffic on the 1,080-meter highway across the Amur River was opened in June 2022. Construction of the bridge began simultaneously in Russia and China in late 2016. The opening of…

 At least 150 people were killed in freak floods in eastern Libya as a result of storm Daniel which has swept the Mediterranean, an official said on Monday.Images filmed by residents of the disaster area showed massive mudslides, collapsed buildings and entire neighborhoods submerged under water.“At least 150 people were killed as a result of flooding and torrential rains left by storm Daniel in Derna, the Jabal Al-Akhdar region and the suburbs of Al-Marj,” Mohamed Massoud, a spokesman for the Benghazi-based administration in Libya, told AFP.“This is besides the massive material damage that struck public and private properties,” he added.He…

Kim last visited Russia in April 2019, when he and Putin met in Vladivostok for their first talks ever North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will soon come to Russia on an official visit at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin announced on Monday. “At the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, President of the State Affairs of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un will make an official visit to Russia in the next few days,” the Kremlin said in a report. Kim last visited Russia in April 2019, when he and Putin…

The death toll from the earthquake in Morocco has risen to 2,122 people, with 2,421 others receiving injuries, Moroccan media reported on Sunday, citing the Interior Ministry. At the same time, the Moroccan government agreed to accept assistance from the United Kingdom, Spain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in search and rescue efforts, reports said. In addition, Morocco’s government spokesperson Mustapha Baitas told reporters that the kingdom’s authorities, following a cabinet meeting, decided to create a special fund to support earthquake victims. On Friday, a 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit Morocco 77 kilometers (48 miles) southwest of the city of…