Farmers are reconsidering the use of biotech seeds as it becomes hard to justify their high prices amid the measly returns of the current farm economy. Bayer AG on Wednesday said it agreed to buy Monsanto for $57 billion, creating one of the world’s largest agrochemical firms. Source: WSJ
China has threatened to attack Vietnamese bases over gas drilling in the disputed waters of the South China Sea, according to diplomatic sources in Hanoi and the Asian oil industry. Source The Sidney Morning Herald
Foreign assets of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) and the commercial Saudi banks reached SR1.996 trillion by the end of May, business daily Al-Eqtisadiah reported on Monday quoting the agency’s official figures. According to the figures, SAMA’s net foreign assets were SR1.844 trillion against foreign demands of SR18.462 billion. Source: Al Arabiya
The UK and US economies will expand more slowly in 2017, according to the IMF. It said “weaker-than-expected activity” in the first three months of the year meant the UK would grow by 1.7% (earlier 2% forecast). The IMF also revised down its US growth forecast from 2.3% to 2.1%. Source: BBC News
