Business

MELBOURNE, March 4 (Bernama) — The 2024 ASEAN-Australia Special Summit is commencing today, bringing together Southeast Asian (SEA) and Australian leaders, business and community leaders, experts and academics to discuss key focus areas such as business; emerging leaders; climate and clean energy; and maritime cooperation. 

The three-day summit, held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), also marks the 50th anniversary of Australia’s dialogue partnership with ASEAN.

04 March 2024; MEMO: Jordan has asked Israel to extend a water supply deal between the two countries by an additional year, according to Israeli media on Monday, Anadolu Agency reports.

The Jordanian-Israeli water agreement is set to expire in May.

According to the Israeli public broadcaster, KAN, Israel has not yet responded to the Jordanian request to extend the deal.

04 March 2024; MEMO: Turkiye’s annual inflation exceeded expectations and jumped to above 67 per cent in February, official data showed on Monday, maintaining pressure for tight monetary policy amid strong rises in food, hotel and education prices, Daily Sabah reports.

According to the report, measured in the consumer price index (CPI), inflation surged to 67.07 per cent over 12 months ending in February, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) said.

03 March 2024; MEMO: Russia, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Algeria have announced further cuts in oil production cuts. All are members of the OPEC+ group of petroleum producing states.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Sunday that Russia will reduce its oil production by 471,000 barrels per day by the end of the second quarter of 2024.

Mumbai, Feb 27 (PTI) The rupee turned flat at 82.88 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday amid subdued equity market sentiment and withdrawal of foreign funds.

26 February 2024; AA: US-based online travel platform Expedia said Monday that it plans to cut 1,500 jobs globally as it evaluates the appropriate allocation of its resources.

26 February 2024; AA: Thousands of Spanish farmers staged another massive protest in Madrid on Monday, this time coinciding with a key agriculture meeting in Brussels.

Government officials said at least 5,000 farmers and 100 tractors joined the march in the Spanish capital.

Unlike last week’s massive farmers’ protest in Madrid, this one was organized by the country's three main agricultural unions, which are in dialogue with the Spanish government.

26 February 2024; AA: Denmark on Monday closed its investigation into the 2022 Nord Stream blasts, saying there was a "deliberate sabotage" but no "sufficient grounds" to pursue a criminal case.

The joint investigation was conducted by Copenhagen Police and the Danish Security and Intelligence Services (PET).

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that sending Western troops on the ground in Ukraine is not “ruled out” in the future after the issue was debated at a gathering of European leaders in Paris, as Russia’s full-scale invasion grinds into a third year.

The French leader said that “we will do everything needed so Russia cannot win the war” after the meeting of over 20 European heads of state and government and other Western officials.

20 February 2024; MEMO: Israel’s economy shrank by almost 20 per cent in the last quarter of 2023, amid Israeli forces’ ongoing offensive and bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

According to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, preliminary figures showed that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by an annualised 19.4 per cent in the final three months of last year, which was almost double the market expectation of the decrease.