Author: Steven Sahiounie

Vietnam accounted for 27% of the UAE’s total trade with the ASEAN bloc in 2022 DUBAI – Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, met Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister of Vietnam, during his visit to the UAE as the head of a high-level delegation of senior Vietnamese officials and business leaders participating in COP28 at Expo City in Dubai. The meeting comes as the UAE and Vietnam are finalising the terms of their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which aims to launch a new era of economic cooperation and growth between the two…

The new framework will guide businesses to use resources more responsibly A new circular economy framework has been unveiled to accelerate Abu Dhabi’s transition towards a smart and sustainable economy, the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) said. The Industrial Circular Economy Policy framework aims to achieve a 50 per cent reduction in industrial process waste, at least 40,000 tonnes annually and will cover key sectors to ensure 100 per cent compliance by 2030, with 100 per cent compliance within the plastic manufacturing sector by 2025. “The pivotal role of the industrial sector in fostering sustainability underscores the need…

Pockets of stress in property markets in the Asia-Pacific region were also likely to continue LONDON – Sluggish global growth, a higher risk of borrowers defaulting on loans and pressure on profitability mean that banks face a negative outlook in 2024, credit rating agency Moody’s said on Monday. Prior rate hikes by central banks and rising unemployment in advanced economies will weaken asset quality, Moody’s Investors Services said in an outlook report, adding that real estate exposures in the United States and Europe posed a growing risk. Pockets of stress in property markets in the Asia-Pacific region were also likely to…

RIYADH: A new agreement between Saudi Arabia and Turkiye will see a significant boost in agriculture, livestock, and water management production capabilities. A memorandum of understanding was signed by the Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Ibrahim Yumakli and the Kingdom’s Minister of Environment, Water, and Agriculture Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsen Al-Fadhli, at the ministry’s headquarters in Riyadh on Dec. 3, according to the Saudi Press Agency. The two nations, who aim to enhance their food production sectors by embracing innovative technologies, will collaborate to prepare the agricultural sector in both countries for climate change. The initiative involves the introduction of…

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia’s push toward sustainability has evolved as large corporations aim for regeneration in the Red Sea, according to the person in charge of one of the Kingdom’s giga-projects. During a panel discussion at the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai, John Pagano, CEO of Red Sea Global, highlighted how the company has shifted from sustaining its natural landscape to healing and recovering what has been damaged. “When we started our journey six years ago, we talked about setting new standards in sustainability and we came to realize fairly quickly that sustainability is no longer enough, and…

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia plans to invest $100 million to serve 356 million passengers to further boost its tourism efforts and aviation strategy in line with Vision 2030, according to the president of the Kingdom’s General Authority of Civil Aviation. Abdulaziz Al-Duailej made this revelation at the 15th International Conference on Air Services Negotiations, organized by the International Civil Aviation Organization in Riyadh on Sunday. The event, hosted by GACA, will continue till Dec. 7. Emphasizing the comprehensive nature of the strategy, Al-Duailej provided insight into the multifaceted approach. He said: “We aim at developing and upgrading all aviation sectors, including…

RIYADH: Stressing the key role of the petrochemical industry in the fight against climate change, the Saudi energy minister disclosed the Kingdom’s plan to build a carbon dioxide utilization hub to produce low-carbon chemicals. Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman was speaking at the 17th Annual Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association Forum in the Qatari capital on Sunday. He said the petrochemical sector has a crucial role to play in the global campaign to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Prominent industry leaders attended the forum titled “Using chemistry to achieve impactful transformation” and advocated the use of sustainable practices in the oil and…

The foreign ministers of Iran and Oman weighed plans for ensuring an immediate halt to the Zionist regime’s brutal strikes against the Gaza Strip. In a meeting in Tehran on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and his Omani counterpart Sayyid Badr Albusaidi talked about a range of bilateral, regional and international issues, specifically the ways to end the Israeli regime’s onslaught on Gaza. They also stressed the need for constant joint efforts by the two countries at the regional and international levels to support the Palestinian nation and force the Zionist regime to stop its criminal aggression against Gaza…

Twenty-two-year-old Mohammad al-Faroukh was killed in Sa’ir, near Hebron in the northern area of the territory, the health ministry says. Earlier, we reported that four other Palestinians were killed today: Two in Qalqilya, one in Sa’ir and another in Qalandiya refugee camp. This brings the Palestinian death toll in the occupied West Bank to 467 since the beginning of the year, the ministry said. Source: AJazeera

It is “too early” to assess whether Israel is taking adequate measures to protect civilians in its offensive in southern Gaza, the US State Department says. “They briefed on plans that were very detailed that they said were intended to avoid mass displacement and civilian casualties. But as the secretary [Blinken] made clear, it’s not just intent that matters, it’s results and we’re watching very closely,” spokesman Matthew Miller said. Asked about reports of mass civilian casualties in Gaza since fighting restarted on Friday: “Unfortunately, we do expect to see civilian casualties as a result of this campaign. That is…