Vodafone, Verizon in $130 billion deal
3 September 2013
Nokia to sell handset business to Microsoft for $7.2 billion
3 September 2013
OMV acquires stake in Madagascar
3 September 2013
HSBC Holdings will discontinue wealth management products in Bahrain, Jordan and Lebanon as the British lender pulls out of small or insufficiently profitable operations globally as part of a strategic review, the bank said. The global move, which has seen the bank exit or sell 54 businesses to help improve profitability, has also seen it scale back its Islamic and private banking operations. “HSBC’s global strategy for retail banking and wealth management is to offer and grow the wealth business in markets where we can achieve scale,” the bank said in a statement issued to Reuters.
2 September 2013
Temasek of Singapore takes top London property
Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek has established its headquarters in London at an exclusive St James’s address.The investment giant, which has S$215 billion (£108 billion) in assets under management including a stake in Asia-facing bank Standard Chartered, formed a new European company in June and appointed former UBS chief financial officer John Cryan as its president.The firm is paying more than £125 per sq ft for the top two floors of Standard Life Investment’s King Street building at St James’s. The huge rent deal is the biggest since the 2007 boom high of £140 per sq ft when Permal Investment Management Services signed for space at 12 St James’s Square, SW1.
30 August 2013
Pakistan to get $12 billion in three years
26 August 2013
Pak-China Economic Corridor Secretariat inaugurated in Islamabad
working with Chinese companies in Gaddani coastal energy park and in solar energy projects.”
27 August 2013
Gold price rises by Rs 300 per tola
28 August 2013
NBP announces six month accounts ended June 30
24 August 2013
S&P slashes credit ratings of Credit Suisse, Barclays and Deutsche
Standard & Poor have cut the credit ratings of Credit Suisse, Barclays and Deutsche from A+ to A, stating that “increasing risks that Europe’s large banking groups active in investment banking face as regulators and uncertain market conditions continue to make operating in the industry more difficult”.
S&P also confirmed the A/A-1 long/short term ratings on UBS.
-3 July 2013
Former Qatari PM replaced as head of sovereign wealth fund
According to the state news agency, Qatar’s former prime minister, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani, has been replaced as deputy head of the country’s sovereign wealth fund in a restructuring move ordered by the country’s new emir. Ahmad Al Sayed has been appointed chief executive of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the gas-rich nation’s sovereign wealth fund.
-4 July 2013
Croatia becomes newest EU member
Croatia formally became the newest member of the European Union on 1 July, signaling an end to a 10-year campaign for a Balkan state that emerged from the ashes of a bloody civil war. The nation of 4.4 million people is the 28th member of the EU, and the second Balkan country from the former Yugoslavia to join the union. Slovenia became a member in 2004.
-3 July 2013
Nigeria $1 billion Eurobonds four times oversubscribed
Nigeria comfortably raised $ 1 billion in its return to the Eurobond market, taking advantage of a window of relative stability in the markets to issue both a long and shorter-dated bond. The issue was four times oversubscribed, with just over $ 4 billion in bids, highlighting keen investor interest for frontier African paper despite a recent selloff in emerging market assets. Africa’s top oil producer issued a $ 500 million 5-year bond at a yield of 5.375% and a $ 500 million 10-year bond with a yield of 6.625%.
-3 July 2013
Saudi Arabia extends foreign worker amnesty
Saudi Arabia has given foreign workers another four months to obtain legal status in the country a day before a previous three-month amnesty expired, bringing reprieve to hundreds of thousands of expatriates who fear deportation. The decision is expected to benefit 30,000 Pakistanis in Saudi Arabia. Remittances from workers in Saudi Arabia are an important source of revenue in Yemen, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Philippines and Yemen. There was widespread praise for Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for issuing the royal decree that will extend the amnesty to November 3 2013.
-2 July 2013
Eurozone unemployment at record high
Data released showed that Eurozone unemployment is at a record high and consumer prices are being driven upward by volatile energy and food prices. Inflation in the 17-nation Eurozone, which is suffering from its longest ever recession, increased to 1.6% year-on-year in June from 1.4% in May, the EU’s statistics office Eurostat said. Joblessness in the bloc stood at a record 12.2% in May, with the number of people unemployed increasing further above 19 million, Eurostat added.
-2 July 2013
Reserve Bank of India tightens debt fundraising rules for non-bank financials
The Reserve Bank of India tightened debt fundraising rules for non-bank finance companies by setting a minimum wait of six months between two private placements and also mandating that the debt be fully secured by underlying assets.
-28 June 2013
Former Bank of England chief hits out at banks
Former bank of England governor Mervyn King attacked commercial banks for their intense political lobbying against new rules on capital reserves. King, has been replaced by former Canadian central bank chief Mark Carney, told lawmakers that lenders have sought to place “tremendous pressure” on politicians to lean on regulators in a bid to water down demands to strengthen capital levels.
-28 June 2013
HSBC reaches $1.92 billion money laundering settlement
A federal judge approved HSBC Holdings Plc’s record $1.92 billion settlement with federal and state investigators of charges that it contravened rules framed to stop money laundering and prevent transactions with countries under U.S. sanctions.
HSBC acknowledged compliance lapses, including a failure to maintain an effective anti-money laundering programme, and undertaking transactions on behalf of customers in Burma, Cuba, Iran, Libya and Sudan, which were all under U.S. sanctions.
-2 July 2013
Deloitte to pay NY $10 million for misconduct over Standard Chartered
Deloitte LLP’s financial advisory unit will pay $10 million and refrain for one year from new business with certain New York banks to settle charges over its review of money laundering controls at Standard Chartered Bank. In August last year, Standard Chartered agreed to pay New York $340 million for breaking U.S. sanctions against Iran and other countries. Last December, it agreed to another $327 million to resolve similar allegations by other U.S. agencies.
-18 June 2013
India remains top arms importer for the third year in a row
India was the world’s biggest importer of arms in 2012 with a huge increase of 70 per cent since 2008, from $3.1 billion to $ 5.3 billion , according to the defence journal Jane’s.It has overtaken China which has turned into an exporter to become the world’s fifth largest arms supplier selling its military wares mainly to Pakistan.
And now they are willing to talk!
After months of provocative, bellicose language, including threats to launch nuclear strikes at the United States and South Korea, Pyongyang says it is ready for high level talks with the US with a view to easing tensions and denuclearisation.
During the early weeks of June, North Korea indicated its willingness to return to the negotiating table. But Washington remained wary of North Korea’s time-worn tactic of alternating between provocations and engagement.
Dubai inaugurates world’s tallest twisted tower
Dubai has inaugurated the world’s tallest twisted tower built at a cost of $272million, setting a yet another record for skyscrapers and other engineering marvels, reports AFP.
The 310-metre, 75 storey residential Cayan Tower is twisted at 90 degrees from top to bottom. Developer Cayan Real Estate Investment and Development Company said 80 per cent of its residential units have already been sold.
Smartphones spoiling vacations of US workers
An online survey reveals that about 51 per cent of US adults would rather have a root canal than work while on vacation, but 54 per cent said their bosses expected them to stay connected during their time away. About 67 per cent said family members get upset when a loved one worked while on vacation.
Mobile devices let people stay connected with work 24/7, which is both “revolutionary and a curse,” said Terrie Campbell, vice-president , strategic marketing at the global technology company Ricoh American Corp, which commissioned the poll.
Despite all odds Pakistan one of the world’s best investment destinations for MNCs
The Procter and Gamble (P&G), world’s leading consumer goods firm, whose yearly global sales turnover accounts for over $85 billion with a deep-rooted presence in more than 180 countries, has shortlisted Pakistan among ten other nation states as a future destination for its investment.
P&G Global has already invested millions of dollars since its inception in Pakistan over two decades ago and now tends to make fresh investment in Pakistan in three areas : infrastructure, marketing and human resource.
According to P&G’s country communications manager, Omeir Idris Dawoodji, Pakistan was one of the world’s best consumer markets . “For P&G the last three years in Pakistan were the best!”
Malala’s memoirs to make her a millionaire
Malala Yousufzai, who escaped death when she was shot in the head by Taliban in north-west Pakistan on October 9,2012 for advocating girls’ education, has signed a $3million deal to publish her memoir.
The book titled, “ I am Malala” will be published later this year by Weidenfeld & Nicholson in the UK and Commonwealth and by Little Brown in the rest of the world, said a Guardian report. “ I want to tell my story, but it will also be the story of 61 million children who can’t get education,” Malala said.
Chinese company to start wind energy project in Gharo, Sindh
A Chinese company is to set up a 50 MW wind energy project in Gharo, some 60 kilometers from Karachi. HydroChina International Engineering Company Limited Vice-president Wang Youngqiang said the estimated cost of the project was $120 million. Wang said on a recent visit to Pakistan, the project had been initiated by HydroChina Dawood Power Limited(HDPPL) a jointly incorporated company.
Wang said the project was a symbol of China-Pakistan friendship and that it would start functioning by June 2015. He said the project would help generate jobs for local people. He also said the company was also thinking of initiating nine more similar projects of 50MW each, owing to good prospects of wind energy projects.
Bank Alfalah leads the financial sector in “Going Green”
Bank Alfalah signed an MoU with Buksh Energy to lead the financial services industry in switching to renewable energy sources, particularly solar power with the aim of “Going Green”.
Bank Alfalah successfully installed a two-kilowatt solar plant converting two of the bank’s ATMs to solar power.The solar plant produces 12KW of energy per day (4.38 megawatts per annum) per ATM converted on solar. The ATMs are connected to the online portal, where energy production is recorded and logged, and can be monitored constantly.
Speaking at the occasion, Bank Alfalah CEO, Atif Bajwa said, “Given the challenging energy shortfall being faced by the country, it is imperative that we each take responsibility and play our part.”
Cars that communicate!
Mercedes Benz is going to be introducing a technology that would allow two cars, as well as the driver and the manufacturer to communicate with each other. Car-to-X communication will be fitted in each car, which can send out information on danger to drivers and therefore help in improving road safety. Information on road traffic danger can be transmitted to the drivers beforehand and help avoid crucial situations from happening in the first place. These cars will automatically identify many of these dangers without the driver having to take any action against preventing this danger. An adequate manual notification option has been set incase a danger is not detected automatically. It has more than 12,000 developers and is said to be the biggest development of Mercedes Benz outside Germany. An exact date hasn’t been decided for it’s launch but is said to be in the near future.
Samina Baig – first Pakistani woman to scale Everest
Samina Baig, a 21 year old mountaineer made history by becoming the first Pakistani woman to scale the world’s highest peak at 8,848 meters. She was accompanied by her 29 year old brother Mirza Ali who has become the third and youngest Pakistani male to summit Mount Everest .
Nepal Mountaineering Department said that 35 foreigners accompanied by 29 Nepalese Sherpa guides reached the peak after climbing all night from the highest camp on South Col – the pass between Everest and a neighbouring mountain.
Samina Baig and Mirza Ali hail from Shimshal village in Hunza valley. Ali has been climbing since the age of 15 and he was Samina’s mentor, guide and support. On his personal blog, Ali stated that this climb was the “first Pakistani Gender Equality Mt Everest Expedition”.
It so happened that twin sisters from India Tashi and Nugshi Malik also 21 year old, were atop Everest with Samina and Ali. They hoisted Pakistani and Indian flags side by side and by this gesture hoped to spread the message of Pak-India peace and friendship.
Survey reveals Pakistanis to be remarkably tolerant, least racist
Pakistanis are among the most racially tolerant people in the world, despite having less economic development and being located in the region housing some of the least racially tolerant populations, according to findings of World Values Survey published in a report by the Washington Post.
The survey which has been measuring global attitudes and opinions for decades reveals that only 6.5% of Pakistanis object to a neighbor of a different race. This included 43.5 % of Indians, 51.4 % of Jordanians, an astonishingly high 71.8 % of Hong Kongers and 71.7 % of Bangladeshis. Among the dozens of questions that World Values asks, the Swedish economists found one, they believe, could be a pretty good indicator of tolerance for other races. The survey asked respondents in more than 80 different countries to identify kinds of people they would not want as neighbours.
Interestingly, the study concluded that economic freedom had no correlation with racial tolerance.
Pakistani artist’s work atop Metropolitan Museum’s Roof Garden opens
Pakistani artist, Imran Qureshi’s large scale site-specific work atop New York’s Metropolitan Museum’s Roof Garden opened recently in the presence of a big gathering of art lovers. The exhibition, entitled The Roof Garden Commission: Imran Qureshi, the project represents the artist’s emotional response to violence occurring across the globe in recent decades and his earnest hope for regeneration and lasting peace in the aftermath of man-made disasters. Using the nearly 8000 square foot open-air space as his canvas, Qureshi, 41, is the first artist to create a work that has been painted directly onto the roof’s surface, and visitors are encouraged to walk on it as they view it.
The first ever Saudi woman to reach the top of Everest
Raha Moharrak has become the first Saudi Arabian woman to scale the Everest after successfully traversing the Nepalese side of the mountain. The 25 year old graphic designer was the only female to join a group of four Arabs for the climb.
Raaha was part of the team known as “Arabs with Altitude”. The group included Qatar’s royal family member Mohammad Ali Thani, Palestinian real-estate businessman Raed Zidan and ice-cream franchise owner Masoud Mohammad.
Speaking about her record-breaking climb, Raha said, “I really don’t care about being the first… so long as it inspires someone else to be the second.”
The new Chinese Premier’s visit reaffirms strong Pak-China ties
The new Chinese premier Li Keqiang’s two day visit to Pakistan concluded with promise to further strengthen Pak-China friendship and to extend his country’s support to Pakistan in all sectors, especially in strategic sectors including energy, science and technology and agriculture.
During the visit a total of eleven agreements and MoUs were signed, chief among them being long-term economic corridor plan, maritime cooperation and satellite navigation. Mr. Li Keqiang also wanted to enhance mutual trade to $15 billion from the current $12 billion. Premier Li also promised his country’s unflinching support to Pakistan’s territorial integrity.
President Asif Ali Zardari awarded Nishan-e-Pakistan to the Chinese leader stressing how important his visit is considered by Islamabad.
Bill Gates ranked world’s richest man
Bill Gates has become the world’s richest man for the second time after 2007 as he snatched the title from Mexican mobile phone tycoon Carlos Slim after Bloomberg revealed his personal fortune had risen to a whopping $72.7 billion.
For this honour Gates has to thank the Mexican congress which passed a bill aimed at breaking up Slim’s near monopoly on the country’s telecom industry, through flagship firm American Movil SAB, which saw his net wealth plummeting by 14%, erasing nearly $3billion from his accounts. Meanwhile, Gates watched his riches soar by 15% after his investment portfolio, which includes a large stake in Microsoft, enjoyed a bumper few years.
Since retiring as chairman of Microsoft in 2008, Gates has thrown himself into his philanthropy after setting up charity, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which gives aid to some of the most underprivileged countries in the world.
FAO comes up with a solution to tackle food insecurity: Eating insects!
A new book released by the Food and Agricultural Organisation(FAO) says beetles, wasps and caterpillars are also an unexplored nutrition source that can help address global food insecurity.
The book Edible Insects: future prospects of food and feed security stresses not just the nutritional value of insects but also the benefits that insect farming could potentially have on the environment and on addressing the rapidly increasing demand for food worldwide.
FAO says that while the idea of eating a worm, grasshopper or cicada at every meal may seem strange, this has many health benefits. Insects are high in protein, fat and mineral contents. Insects are not harmful to eat; on the contrary, they are quite nutritious!