Business Point Today

 The UAE's investment outlook looks positive as its policies to tackle the pandemic have infused confidence among investors, said Helal Al Marri, director general of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism. The world looks relatively scary for an investor amid new strains of Covid-19, a war in Europe, recession and inflation but the UAE's actions in the past 50 years have instilled confidence, he said at the inaugural edition of Investopia Summit in Dubai on Monday. “The UAE’s resilience and [the] positive way in which it handles every challenge bring confidence to the world – not just from investors looking to set up their global headquarters here but also individual investors and talent looking to make the Emirates their home,” Mr Al Marri added. The role played by the government is important in a transforming landscape, the official said. “We don’t believe in protectionism and don’t have politics guide our decision making. Our economy is open and borderless, which makes in

  Rajeev Jhawar , the son of Brij Kishore Jhawar, is an Indian industrialist with over three decades of experience in strategic management. He is an alumnus of Ranchi University and London Business School. He started his journey as Sr. Vice President (Commercial) and became the Managing Director of Usha Martin Limited in 1998. He has been the Managing Director at Usha Martin Limited since May 19, 2008, and in the three decades that he has been at the helm of the Usha Martin Group, he has accelerated growth, built a meritocracy and enhanced stakeholder value. Usha Martin started its business as a wire rope manufacturing company. The group has set new standards in the manufacture of wire rods, bright bars, steel wires, specialty wires, wire ropes, strand, conveyor cord, wire drawing and cable machinery. The company is also in the business activities of Steel, Wire & Wire Ropes.   Rajeev Jhawar is the Managing  Director of Usha Martin Limited   Rajeev Jhawar is the Director of Neutr

 The World Bank approved an investment of $20 million into the Palestinian education sector as part of its multiphase programmatic approach (MPA) to support an eight-year scheme that addresses key education challenges in occupied West Bank and Gaza. The 'Supporting an Education Reform Agenda for improving Teaching, Assessment and Career Pathways' programme (Seratac) seeks to improve education outcomes of primary and secondary students and increase student pathways leading to tertiary education. While Palestinian children can, on average, expect to complete 12.2 years of schooling, they are only learning the equivalent of eight years, the World Bank said in a statement on Monday. Seratac, which has an overall envelope of $60m, aims to tackle the root causes of poor quality education through a long-term, systemic approach. “We are proud to adopt a long-term investment in the Palestinian education sector, the first multiphase programmatic approach in the education sector at the Wo

 The daughter of ISIS victim David Haines is travelling to the US this week to make a personal plea at the trial of El Shafee Elsheikh for the terror group to reveal where her father's body is buried. Mr Elsheikh, one of the alleged British ISIS Beatles members, is due to stand trial in Alexandria for the murder of 28 British, American and foreign hostages in Syria between 2014 and 2015. The 33-year-old from west London, who denies the charges, is one of the most senior ISIS members to be prosecuted. David Haines pictured at his parents' home in Ayr, Scotland, in 2012. Bethany Haines' father David was a humanitarian aid worker in Syria when he was abducted in 2013. The group later released footage of his murder. The 24-year-old is travelling to the US to attend his trial and has written a victim impact statement about her family's ordeal which she intends to read to the court if Mr Elsheikh is convicted. Mr Elsheikh is not charged with Mr Haines murder due to the US’s l

 No sooner had the special investigation team (SIT) of the Uttar Pradesh government probing the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Kanpur in which 127 people were killed reached Ludhiana to record the statements of the affected families, their relatives back in Kanpur claimed to have received threats from unidentified people No sooner had the special investigation team (SIT) of the Uttar Pradesh government probing the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Kanpur in which 127 people were killed reached Ludhiana to record the statements of the affected families, their relatives back in Kanpur claimed to have received threats from unidentified people. Only six persons have come forward to record their statements so far, as the others are reluctant, given the threats received by their relatives. 1984 anti-Sikh riots: 127 people were killed in aftermath  of Indira Gandhi’s assassination in Kanpur  After meeting the victims of anti-Sikh riots in Morinda, Rupnagar (Ropar) and Amritsar, the team led by inspector SP Si

 European powers have distanced themselves from US President Joe Biden’s off-message remark that Russian leader Vladimir Putin “cannot remain in power”. Although US officials swiftly denied any change in policy, Mr Biden’s apparent call for regime change jolted the unity of the western alliance and led to fears of an escalation in the war in Ukraine. His comments came at the end of a five-day diplomatic trip to Europe and caused disquiet even among politicians and allies who have largely supported his handling of the crisis. Britain said on Monday that it was up to the Russian people to decide who should govern them but suggested they might be “pretty fed up” with Mr Putin because of the consequences of the war in Ukraine. Speaking for the government on morning television, Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi latched on to an explanation offered by Mr Biden’s allies that he was talking about the Russian president’s attempt to gain power over Ukraine. “I think President Biden is right to s

  Ukraine fighting: Russian forces have made no significant progress in the previous 24 hours, with continuing supply problems and aggressive resistance from Ukrainian fighters, UK defence officials say. Poor morale and a lack of momentum have compounded the problems facing Russian forces, Britain’s Ministry of Defence said in its latest intelligence briefing. Heavy fighting continues around Mariupol as Russian forces try to capture the port on the Sea of Azov, which connects to the Black Sea, the ministry said. Russia was also maintaining a blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea coast, cutting off maritime trade with the country. The Russian navy has launched sporadic missile strikes against targets in Ukraine, the ministry said. Chernobyl fires: Fires covering more than 10,000 hectares across the Chernobyl exclusion zone could lead to increased radiation pollution levels in the air spreading on prevailing winds heading west, Ukrainian officials have warned. Russian military forces are to bl

 Candidates in France's presidential election face a last-gasp push to overcome polls that suggest incumbent Emmanuel Macron is the clear favourite to win. The first round of polling begins in about two weeks. Mr Macron has been buoyed by his diplomacy and toughness on Russia since its troops invaded Ukraine, but has faced accusations of avoiding real debate. French President Emmanuel Macron.  Questioned on Sunday about his minimum campaigning, Mr Macron told broadcaster France 3 that "no one would understand at a moment when there's war" if he was out electioneering "when decisions have to be made for our countrymen". Short of a major upset at the April 10 first round vote, Mr Macron's opponent in the run-off will be far-right National Rally leader Marine Le Pen, in a repeat of five years ago. But Ms Le Pen's far-right rival Eric Zemmour, conservative Valerie Pecresse and left-wing candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon still hope they can reach the second ro

 Fires covering more than 10,000 hectares across the Chernobyl exclusion zone could lead to spiked radiation pollution levels in the air spreading on prevailing winds heading west, Ukrainian officials have warned. Russian military forces are to blame for 31 forest fires, said Lyudmila Denisova, the commissioner of a Ukrainian human rights group. Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said the fires threaten Ukraine and hundreds of millions of Europeans. Chernobyl nuclear plant is seen behind the abandoned town of Pripyat. “Significant fires have started in the exclusion zone, which can have very serious consequences,” Ms Vereshchuk said on Telegram. “However, today it is impossible to control and extinguish fires in full due to the capture of the exclusion zone by the Russian occupation forces.” She said the Russian army was “militarising” the site and storing ammunition “in close proximity” to the station. “It should be noted that recently Russian occupation troops have been using old

 President Joe Biden’s apparent call for his Russian counterpart to be removed from power has created a stir in US policy circles and alarm among its allies, although the White House downplayed the remarks. At the end of his speech from Warsaw on Saturday, Mr Biden said of Russian President Vladimir Putin: “For God's sake, this man cannot remain power.” The remark caused concern within the US political establishment and America’s Nato allies as they try to contain the war in Ukraine and present a united front. US President Joe Biden meets Ukrainian refugees at the PGE Narodowy Stadium in Warsaw during a visit to Poland.  The White House clarified within moments that Mr Biden was not in fact advocating change, and the president replied “no” to reporters who asked if that was what he meant. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also spoke to reporters to clarify the president’s point. “I think the president, the White House, made the point last night that, quite simply, President Putin c

 The UAE continues to be a global talent magnet, ranking fifth in the world for total talent inflow after the US, the UK, Canada and France, a new report by LinkedIn in partnership with the Ministry of Economy has said. Relative to its population, the inflow of talent to the Emirates is the highest in the world, the professional network service said. “The UAE has recorded one of the strongest hiring booms globally, with hiring rates 36 per cent higher in December 2021 compared with December 2019,” said Rajai El Khadem, head of LinkedIn Mena for government and academia. “This represented one of the highest hiring recoveries in the world, trending above other developed economies.” The jobs market in the UAE, the second-largest Arab economy, has recovered strongly from the pandemic-induced slowdown on the back of the government’s fiscal and monetary measures. About 76 per cent of UAE employers plan to expand their workforce in 2022, a February survey by jobs portal Bayt.com and market resea

 Crews searching through the wreckage of the crashed China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 jet have found the second black box. Flight MU5735 crashed into a mountainside in southern China on March 21, killing all 132 people on board. Nine crew members are among the dead. The black box, which records flight data, could shed light on the cause of the crash. It has been sent to Beijing for analysis, state media reported. The first black box, the cockpit voice recorder, was delivered to the Chinese capital after being found last Wednesday. The crash was the deadliest aviation disaster on mainland China for 28 years. The plane was heading to coastal Guangzhou from the south-western city of Kunming when it dived from its cruising altitude at about the time it should have started its landing descent. It briefly appeared to pull out of its nosedive before resuming its plunge to Earth, flight tracking website FlightRadar24 found. Its data showed the aircraft was plummeting about 9,450 metres a

Shyam Maheshwari serves as Chief Executive Officer, Founder and Partner of SSG Capital Management (Singapore) Pte. Limited, and is primarily responsible for SSG’s investment activities in India. He has 17 years of experience in the deal sourcing, analysis and investing industry. Previously, Mr Maheshwari served as a Senior Member of the Lehman Brothers Asia Special Situations Group primarily responsible for making principal investments in India, where he oversaw the efforts to build the India business and initiated pan-Asian ventures in mining and power assets with a focus on Indonesia. He initially joined Lehman Brothers in 1999 as a Credit Analyst in the Asia Credit Research team and later moved to Credit Trading in early 2005. He served as Fixed Income Analyst of Barclays Capital, Research Division. He worked at Barclays PLC, Research Division. He was a Credit Analyst of Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc. from 1999 until 2005. He has been a Non-Executive Director of Future Supply Chain

 Saudi Agriculture and Livestock Investment Company (Salic), a subsidiary of the kingdom's Public Investment Fund, acquired a 35.4 per cent stake in the agribusiness unit of Singapore-based commodity trader Olam Group for $1.2 billion. The transaction implies an equity valuation of $3.5bn for Olam Agri, creating a "strong shareholder base for a potential future listing and [its] demerger", Olam Group said in a statement. Olam Agri is a commodity trading and processing company that specialises in grains, oilseeds, rice and animal feed Proceeds from the deal will be used to repay the debts of Olam Group, help in "right sizing" its capital structure and reduce leverage, it added. Following the deal, Olam Group will remain the biggest shareholder in its agribusiness unit with a 64.6 per cent stake. The transaction is expected to be completed this year, subject to regulatory approval, Salic said in a separate statement. "Our partnership with Olam will expand Sal

 Donald Trump on Thursday sued his rival in the 2016 US presidential election, Hillary Clinton, and several other Democrats, alleging that they tried to rig that election by tying his campaign to Russia. The lawsuit covers a long list of grievances the former Republican president repeatedly aired during his four years in the White House after beating Ms Clinton, and comes at a time when he continues to falsely claim that his 2020 election defeat by Democratic President Joe Biden was the result of widespread fraud. Former US president Donald Trump's lawsuit covers a long list of grievances he repeatedly aired during his four years in the White House. “Acting in concert, the defendants maliciously conspired to weave a false narrative that their Republican opponent, Donald J. Trump, was colluding with a hostile foreign sovereignty,” Mr Trump alleged in a 108-page lawsuit filed in a federal court in Florida. The suit alleges “racketeering” and a “conspiracy to commit injurious falsehoo

 Finland’s national railway operator will suspend services between Helsinki and Saint Petersburg in Russia on Monday, closing one of the last public transport routes to the European Union for Russians. Given sanctions on Russia, the operator VR had been directed by the state that it was no longer appropriate to run the service to Saint Petersburg, known as the Allegro, its head of passenger traffic Topi Simola said in a statement on Friday. “So we are suspending the traffic for the time being,” Simola said. Trains from Russia to Finland’s capital Helsinki have been full of Russians since the invasion of Ukraine, which Russia calls “a special operation”, began and mutual airspace closures cut off flight connections between Russia and the European Union. The border between Finland and Russia remains open for crossings by private car. Finland’s minister in charge of state holdings Tytti Tuppurainen told the country’s largest daily Helsingin Sanomat that one of the reasons for maintaining

 The US and EU announced a joint task force that will increase supplies of liquified natural gas to reduce European dependence on Russian gas and fossil fuels. President Joe Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the forging of the joint task force that aims to strengthen European energy security in the wake of Russia's military offensive in Ukraine. US President Joe Biden gives a joint press statement with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels on Friday. The Task Force for Energy Security will be chaired by a representative from the White House and a representative of the President of the European Commission, the White House said in a statement on Friday. It aims to ensure energy security for Ukraine and the EU in advance of next winter and the following one. The task force aims to diversify LNG supplies in alignment with climate objectives and reduce demand for natural gas. The US will ensure additional LNG volumes for the

 Russian forces are being pushed back from towns around Kyiv by Ukrainian counter-attacks, Britain has said, as President Vladimir Putin’s troops struggle to push towards the capital. Ukrainian troops have recaptured towns occupied by the Russians and are likely to continue with their pushback towards Hostomel Airport. The airfield on the outskirts of the capital is a key target for Moscow which hopes to use the base to fly in extra troops. Invading forces briefly took control of the site at the beginning of the war but the Ukrainians managed to retake it shortly afterwards. In an intelligence update issued on Friday Britain’s Ministry of Defence said the Russians continue to be blighted by logistical issues. “Ukrainian counter-attacks, and Russian Forces falling back on overextended supply lines, has allowed Ukraine to re-occupy towns and defensive positions up to 35 kilometres east of Kyiv,” the MoD said. “Ukrainian Forces are likely to continue to attempt to push Russian Forces back