Category: Highlights

The historic oil price crash and Covid-19 pandemic have left major producers of the commodity in a deep economic crisis. Dramatic production cuts by OPEC+ has exacerbated the situation by further lowering export inflows for economies that depend heavily on oil dollars. Some, such as the UAE, have tried to put on a brave face by touting the strength of their banking systems and claiming they can withstand shocks of any scale. Unfortunately, a growing body of evidence suggests pretty much the opposite: A wave of banking mergers is sweeping through the…

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July 13, 2020, Islamabad— The Ministry of Climate Change and UNDP hosted a media briefing today to celebrate Pakistan’s achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 13: Climate Action, well before the 2030 deadline. The recent release of the 2020 Sustainable Development Report shows that out of 17 goals, Pakistan has achieved the Climate Action goal under which countries are required to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. The event was attended by the Prime Minister’s Advisor on Climate Change, Malik Amin Aslam, Additional Secretary Ministry of Climate Change,…

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Good news is in short supply during any crisis, and this one has been no exception. The energy industry is being pummeled to the ground by low oil and gas prices, crippled demand for hydrocarbons, and unfriendly banks. But there is one part of this space generating good news: renewables. And, more specifically, wind power. Often in the shadow of cheap solar, which can be slapped up on a rooftop to generate electricity, wind power is now coming to the fore. Costs, as for solar, have fallen substantially over the years,…

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United States President Donald Trump wore a mask during a visit to a military hospital on Saturday, the first time the president has been seen in public with the type of facial covering recommended by health officials as a precaution against spreading or becoming infected by the novel coronavirus. Trump flew by helicopter to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in suburban Washington to meet wounded service members and health care providers caring for Covid-19 patients. As he left the White House, he told reporters: “When you’re in a hospital,…

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Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, his son and two other family members have tested positive for the coronavirus in Mumbai, India’s financial and entertainment capital, a government minister said Sunday. The Nanavati Super Speciality Hospital said that Amitabh Bachchan was in stable condition with mild symptoms in an isolation unit. Bachchan, 77, said in a tweet Saturday that he had tested positive and appealed to those who were in close proximity to him in the past 10 days to get themselves tested. His son, Abhishek Bachchan, 44, tweeted Saturday night that…

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