French influence in Middle East rises after inking £4.6bn jet deal May 4, 2015 FRANCE and Qatar signed a €6.3bn (£4.6bn) deal yesterday for the sale of 24 Rafale fighter jets, an accord hailed by President Francois Hollande as a mark of Gulf Arab regard for French regional strategy, including its firm line on Iran. The contract – the third this year for Dassault, after deals to sell Rafale [...]
Three reasons oil prices are climbing May 6, 2015 Oil prices jumped by over a dollar today, taking the price of the black stuff to its highest level this year, and it also comes on the back of a month rally. Here's why oil prices are pushing upwards: 1. US crude stocks Industry group American Petroleum Institution (API) yesterday said US crude oil stocks fell [...]
Britain’s global influence will fade if it turns itself into an Atlantic Singapore July 27, 2015 President Obama’s carefully chosen words last week are a reminder of what is at stake in the forthcoming referendum on Britain’s place in Europe. Known to be a cautious and contemplative leader, the President spoke directly to the British people with a very clear message: the UK’s membership of the European Union “gives us much [...]
Iran’s female Fields medalist is a reminder of prosperity’s liberating power August 14, 2014 Amid all the horror and hard choices dominating the global news this summer, it’s important not to miss the brighter trends as well. So it is worth taking a moment to salute Maryam Mirzakhani, who became the first woman to win a Fields Medal, the Nobel of maths, this week. Mirzakhani was among four researchers [...]
Russia can’t decide if it’s made an oil deal with Iran or not August 5, 2014 Russia announced it had agreed a five-year deal with Iran to help export oil from the Middle Eastern country earlier today, only for Russian energy minister Alexander Novak to later withdraw his statement about the agreement. Novak had said: "Based on Iran's proposal, we will participate in arranging shipments of crude oil, including to the [...]
Standard Chartered hires global team of financial crime fighters March 16, 2015 TROUBLED bank Standard Chartered yesterday picked three new advisers to work with its board’s financial crime risk committee. The British-headquartered bank has run into trouble with the US and other authorities, most notably after it broke sanctions against Iran. It has hired Frances Townsend, who used to advise the US president on homeland security and counterterrorism. Ex-Interpol [...]
Commerzbank gets £973m fine March 12, 2015 Commerzbank will pay a $1.4bn (£973m) fine to the US authorities, after becoming the latest bank to admit to moving money through the US for countries such as Iran and Sudan. The bank was also found to have not complied with anti-money laundering laws by New York’s state Department of Financial Services. Five members of staff, [...]
Iran converts most dangerous nuclear material, leading to easing of sanctions July 21, 2014 Iran has converted its most enriched uranium to less harmful forms such as fuel, according to the UN nuclear agency. This marks significant progress as Iran and six world powers continue to try and reach an agreement about Iran's nuclear programme. The US has said that it will unblock $2.8bn worth of frozen Iranian [...]
Manufacturing data help FTSE to bounce back after big falls – London Report April 1, 2015 DATA RELEASED yesterday showing that Britain’s manufacturing sector grew at the fastest pace in eight months prompted investors to buy equities on the first trading day of the quarter. The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed 0.5 per cent higher at 6,809.50 points after a 1.7 per cent slide on Tuesday that trimmed its first quarter gains [...]
Warren Buffett: Grexit could be good for eurozone March 31, 2015 Warren Buffett believes a Greek exit from the eurozone could be beneficial for the region. The legendary investor and chairman of holding company Berkshire Hathaway waded into the issue currently dominating headlines of business publications across the continent. During a wide-ranging interview on US news channel CNBC, Buffett discussed electronic car manufacturers Tesla, the proposed [...]