AFP
19995 articles published since 08 Mar 2022
19995 articles published since 08 Mar 2022
Russian oil giant Lukoil will sell its overseas assets, the company said late Monday, after it was hit with US sanctions over the war in Ukraine. "Owing to the introduction of restrictive measures against the company and its subsidiaries by some states, the company announces its intention to sell its international assets," Lukoil said in a statement.
Asian equities surged Monday as investors cheered a breakthrough in US-China trade talks that set the stage for leaders Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to finalise a deal, averting an escalation in the world's biggest trade dispute. Futures for US copper surged on the trade deal optimism, bolstering the outlook for global demand.
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Monday a trade deal with the United States could happen within days, possibly easing punitive tariffs after months of animosity. Lula met President Donald Trump at an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit on Sunday, after urging the US leader earlier this month to lift punitive 50 percent trade tariffs.
The European Central Bank is expected to hold interest rates steady this week for its third straight meeting, with inflation under control and the long-struggling eurozone economy looking healthier. The eurozone economy has long been treading water, dragged down in particular by a poor performance in Germany, with growth rates lagging far behind those of China and the United States.
Australia's competition watchdog accused Microsoft on Monday of misleading people into paying for its AI assistant Copilot. But there was a partly hidden third option -- visible only when people started to cancel -- of sticking to existing "Classic" plans without Copilot for the original price, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a statement.
Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis announced Sunday it had agreed to buy Avidity Biosciences, with the San Diego-based biopharmaceutical company being valued at $12 billion. Novartis, based in Basel in northern Switzerland, announced in April that it planned to invest $23 billion in the United States over five years. rjm/jj
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday signalled a tentative deal with China to de-escalate their damaging, tariff-fueled trade war -- just days before a summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. Bessent said he expected the two leaders to formally announce the deal at their summit.
Nigeria's Dangote oil refinery, already the largest in Africa, aims to become the biggest in the world in three years' time with an expansion doubling its capacity, its owner said on Sunday. "This expansion reflects our confidence in Nigeria's future, our belief in Africa's potential and our commitment to building energy independence for our continent," Dangote said.
India and China resume direct flights on Sunday after a five-year suspension, a move important both for trade and a symbolic step as Asia's giants cautiously rebuild relations. Exports from India to China were $ 1.47 billion, modest by comparison, but up around 34 percent year-on-year.
AFP
Load more