The Kurdistan Regional Government sells Kurdistan region and Kirkuk crude oil shares independently and will receive the money without going through Baghdad, said a Kurdish MP in the Iraqi Parliament on Wednesday. Source Rudaw
Author: The Board
U.S. crude futures fell almost 2 percent on Wednesday as a surprise build in stockpiles pushed the market back down toward the three-month low it touched the previous session. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said inventories rose last week for crude, gasoline and distillates. That surprised market players. Source Reuters
Greece’s finance ministry on Wednesday dismissed a newspaper report that the country was preparing to issue a second currency to pay state pensions and wages and the end of the July. Source Ekhatemirini
Both China and Taiwan have an obligation to assert claims to the South China Sea, China’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday, in a sign of rare political agreement between the old foes on either side of the Taiwan Strait. Rivals China and Taiwan share claims to virtually the entire South China Sea. Source Reuters
For Beijing, Greece is a platform for China to further penetrate the European market. China has been a serious investor in the Greek economy, buying up public assets and increasing its share in the port of Pireaus controlling several container piers to ensure a growing flow of Chinese products into Europe. Source Want Chinese Times
Taiwan’s exports contracted 13.9% in June year-on-year, the fifth consecutive month in which they registered a drop. June exports amounted to US$23.07 billion, while imports in the same month fell 16.1% year on year to US$20.89 billion. The trade balance for the month was favorable, reaching US$2.18 billion. Source Want China Times
Against the backdrop of the Greek referendum result sparking fresh concerns of yet another blip in the already fragile global economic recovery, the BRICS nations are expected to set the ball rolling on a proposal to trade with each other in their local currencies. Source The Indian Express
South Korea will send a naval destroyer with a crew of 300 to the Strait of Hormuz in an independent mission, the defense ministry said Tuesday, a decision that followed months of U.S. pressure as Washington seeks help amid tensions with Iran. Source: Stars and Stripes
Nord Stream 2 expects regulators to decide by May whether its contested natural gas pipeline linking Germany to Russia will be able to operate as planned. Already suffering U.S. sanctions, the project led by Gazprom PJSC is pinning its hopes on German regulator Bundesnetzagentur to help it clear hurdles erected by European Union competition authorities. So-called unbundling rules rolled out by the trade bloc last year require the owners of gas and those who deliver it by pipeline or ship to be separate legal entities, even the fuel comes from outside the EU. Source: Bloomberg
The first case of bird flu in Germany this winter has been discovered near the Polish border, with an outbreak already causing havoc throughout Eastern Europe. Half a million birds had to be culled in Germany in 2017. Source: Deutsche Welle
The knife crime epidemic in London continues after three men, believed to be from the Sikh community, were stabbed to death, prompting calls for a change of mayor amid claims Sadiq Khan has “lost control of our streets.”
The Metropolitan Police launched a murder inquiry after the victims, thought to be in their 20s and 30s, died on Sunday evening following the incident in Seven Kings, Ilford. Source RT
France will take 400 asylum seekers from Greece, with priority given to families and other vulnerable individuals, France’s Deputy Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said after meeting with Alternate Minister of Migration Greece Koumoutsakos in Athens on Monday. Source Ekathimerini
The German-Afghan man is accused of passing state secrets to the Iranian secret service while working as a translator and consultant to the German military. He faces charges of treason and violating state secrets. Source Deutsche Welle
Following a meeting of EU foreign ministers, the EU’s foreign policy chief has said EU countries have agreed to restart the bloc’s Mediterranean naval mission with a focus on enforcing an arms embargo on Libya. Source Deutsche Welle
The American newspaper The New York Times writes that in its report on the plane crash in Amsterdam in 2009, the Dutch Safety Board unjustly released manufacturer Boeing from guilt and that later crashes could be prevented. Source AT5
The US state of Virginia is bracing for a pro-gun rally on Monday that experts and political leaders warn could descend into violence. The rally, billed by its organisers as a peaceful event to lobby legislators to protect the Second Amendment, is expected to draw dozens of militia groups to the state capital, Richmond, according to social media and statements by the groups. Source Al Jazeera
Greece’s proposal to send forces to observe a fragile truce in Libya could lead to an indirect conflict between Ankara and Athens, analysts told RT, warning that the NATO allies could soon lock horns over the issue. Nikos Dendias, the Greek foreign minister, announced that his government was willing to deploy forces to the war-torn North African nation in order to monitor the ceasefire between the Libyan National Army (LNA) and the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA). Source RT
The Louvre museum in Paris was closed Friday as dozens of protesters blocked the entrance to denounce the French government’s plans to overhaul the pension system.
The Leonardo Da Vinci exhibit marking the 500th anniversary of the Italian master’s death, which is displayed at the Louvre, was also closed as a result, the museum said. Source France24
The financial crisis at South African Airways deepened Tuesday with one of the nation’s largest travel agencies announcing that the airline had cancelled several domestic and international flights. Source: BusinessReport
Belarus has started importing oil from Norway after its main oil provider, Russia, suspended supplies earlier this month amid stalled talk on further strengthening economic ties between two countries. Source: Energy Voice
China’s economy grew last year at the slowest pace in almost three decades. Official figures show that the world’s second largest economy expanded by 6.1% in 2019 from the year before – the worst figure in 29 years. The country has faced weak domestic demand and the impact of the bitter trade war with the US. Source BBC
The European Central Bank (ECB) is willing to provide further stimulus to the eurozone economy in order to boost below-target inflation, say the minutes of its last policy meeting, held in December. Source Central Banking
France’s longest continuous transport strike has shaved up to 0.1 percentage points off fourth-quarter growth in 2019, the central bank said Wednesday as the showdown over pension reforms entered its 42nd day. Source France24
Trade relations between China and the Netherlands would be damaged if Dutch semiconductor equipment supplier ASML (ASML.AS) is not allowed to ship its newest machines to China, Beijing’s ambassador to the Netherlands was quoted as saying on Wednesday. Source Reuters
Germany’s decade of growth may be coming to an end, the latest data shows. Experts blame Brexit and trade conflicts, while Merkel’s government has come under pressure to eschew its no-new-debts policy and spend more. Source Deutsche Welle
In rare joint statement of Jewish state and southern Arab neighbor, countries hail economic boost
The exportation of natural gas from Israel to its southern neighbor Egypt began Wednesday morning, Israel’s energy ministry announced as reported by local media. Source I24
- The Treasury Department announced that China is no longer labeled as a currency manipulator.
- The move came two days before the U.S. and China are scheduled to sign a phase one trade deal.
- China is now on a “monitoring list” for currency practices, along with other countries such as Germany and Japan. Source CNBC
Germany ended 2019 with a budget surplus of €13.5 billion. The government wants to spend on infrastructure and other projects, but critics say the money isn’t getting where it needs to go. Source DW
ABN Amro is the first large bank where customers with savings will no longer receive any interest at all. Customers with more than 2.5 million euros in the bank account must even start paying 0.5 percent interest from 1 April. Source AD
