Author: Steven Sahiounie

Moscow’s Ambassador to Riyadh Sergey Kozlov says last year exports neared $1 billion. Russian agricultural exports to Saudi Arabia saw an unprecedented surge last year, Russia’s Ambassador to Riyadh Sergey Kozlov said on Sunday in an interview with RIA Novosti. The envoy noted that Moscow’s cooperation with Riyadh in the agricultural sector is one of the major catalysts for the development of the entire range of Russian-Saudi trade and economic relations. “In 2022, exports of Russian agro-industrial produce to Saudi Arabia saw an unprecedented increase by 49.9% and approached a significant milestone of $1 billion,” Kozlov said. The diplomat recalled the…

The company says the safety and wellbeing of its workforce is its priority, but a union has claimed it was not taken seriously enough. McDonald’s has signed a legal agreement with the equality watchdog amid concerns over how it has handled sexual harassment complaints made by UK staff. A union representing some employees had claimed in 2019 that more than 1000 complaints had been logged. The Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU) had alleged a “toxic culture” at UK sites in the wake of strikes that hit restaurants in several US cities in 2018 on the same issue. The…

The Call of Duty maker responds to the CMA’s competition concerns by claiming the regulator doesn’t understand the gaming market while Microsoft says “solutions” will be found. The UK’s competition watchdog has moved a step closer to potentially blocking Microsoft’s planned $69bn (£56bn) takeover of Call of Duty gaming firm Activision. In a provisional ruling, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the proposed tie-up could lead to higher prices, fewer choices and less innovation for UK gamers. Activision responded by claiming the regulator did not understand the market. The massive deal, first announced over a year ago, was designed to…

Global oil producers may have to reconsider their output policies if demand in China recovers, Reuters reports, citing the International Energy Agency (IEA). The warning comes as the OPEC+ alliance of major oil-producing nations, led by Russia and Saudi Arabia, decided last week to maintain output at current levels. “We expect about half of the growth in global oil demand this year will come from China,” the IEA’s executive director, Fatih Birol, told the media outlet on Sunday on the sidelines of the India Energy Week conference. He added that China’s jet fuel demand is exploding, putting upward pressure on demand.…

India will continue to import oil from suppliers it deems reliable, despite mounting pressure from the West to stop buying the commodity from Russia, according to the country’s energy minister, Hardeep Singh Puri. In an interview with CNBC, Puri said New Delhi “didn’t allow the geopolitical turbulence or the pandemic or anything else to come in the way of our ability to supply to our consumer.” The minister added that India has no plans to change this approach. “Today we feel confident that we’ll be able to use our market to source from wherever we have to, from wherever we…

The trade deficit in France almost doubled last year and reached a new record as the country’s energy imports surged, official data published on Tuesday showed. France’s trade deficit jumped to €164 billion ($176 billion) from €86 billion year-on-year, triggered by the energy crisis in the EU. According to trade ministry data, 86% of that increase was directly due to surging imports of oil, gas and electricity. Energy flows to the EU from Russia dropped to historic lows last year over the conflict in Ukraine, pushing prices up to record levels. To make up for the shortfall, EU nations have…

The loss of spending power last year was driven by soaring inflation, official statistics show Real earnings in Germany decreased by an average of 4.1% in 2022 compared with a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the statistics agency Destatis released on Tuesday. A drop in real earnings refers to a situation where wage increases are unable to keep up with rising inflation, thus reducing spending power. Last year was the third consecutive year in which real wages declined in Germany. “High inflation has led to the largest loss in real earnings for employees since the beginning of the…

Türkiye’s stock exchange announced on Wednesday it was suspending trading of equities for the first time in 24 years, following a market rout triggered by two massive earthquakes. The benchmark Borsa Istanbul 100 Index (BIST 100) was suspended after a 7.09% drop at the start of trading. The index, which entered bear-market territory on Tuesday, is headed for its worst weekly performance since the 2008 global financial crisis. Meanwhile, the banking sub-index (.XBANK) declined 6.03% as trading was halted. “Our stock exchange has decided to halt trading in equities, futures, and options markets,” Borsa Istanbul said in a statement after two…

Resources Minister Madeleine King says Labor will not be adopting Greens-based climate policies which are “economy-wrecking”. She said the Labor government is committed to achieving net zero by 2050. “We will continue to make sure this economy keeps working and to be frank, we all know that parts of this country will continue to need gas for at least a very medium term,” she said during Question Time. This article was originally published by Sky News.

Bitcoin has been one of the most talked about topics in the finance world for the past few months. As more trading volume comes in and a growing number of investors enter the market, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to predict where Bitcoin’s price will go next. On 2nd February, Cathie Wood, CEO of ARK Investment Management, revealed that they had not expected businesses and governments to adopt bitcoin as quickly as they have. She and her team were surprised by the speed at which it has been embraced. Wood maintains her belief that Bitcoin will experience drastic growth in the near…