New data show China’s factories are revving up economy but consumer, property weakness persists
China’s exports and imports returned to growth in April after contracting in the previous month while consumer prices rose for the third straight month. Production of 3D printing equipment, new energy vehicles and integrated circuit products increased 55.0 per cent, 39.2 per cent and 31.9 per cent year-on-year, respectively, NBS said.
Crude oil price set for weekly gain on signs of improving demand around the world
Markets were also bolstered by China’s industrial output growth at 6.7 per cent year-on-year in April as recovery in its manufacturing sector gathered pace, pointing to possibly stronger demand to come.
Crime in grime: To get children hooked to junk, food giants ‘turn their tongues against their brains’
Recently, a Goldman Sachs study estimated that by 2028 up to 70 million Americans will be taking the new weight-loss drugs, whose longer-term effects are yet to be known. Their apparent present success in suppressing extra food intake is already worrying the fast-food chains like McDonald’s that thrive on selling huge cheeseburgers.
Nigeria labour unions turn the heat on Tinubu administration over higher electricity prices
Protesting workers said they are frustrated that Nigeria’s chronically erratic power supply has not improved despite the higher prices.
Melinda Gates to walk away with $12.5 billion for own charity work as she exits Gates Foundation
With her departure as co-chair, the foundation will change its name to Gates Foundation and Bill Gates will be its sole chairperson, said CEO Mark Suzman.
Critics say US’ legalisation of plant-grown meat is a ‘dangerous grand experiment’ that’ll hurt health and environment
In the case of Piggy Sooy, “They’re creating a transgenic life form – they’re taking the genes from a totally different species, in this case an animal, and inserting them into existing soy genetics. What could go wrong? We don’t know.” Yet, these products “will eventually be involved in agriculture, because those seeds that they’re genetically modifying will go in soil, will go in the environment,” Kastel said. “The impacts are unknown.”
Rethinking revolution: Ugandan businesses don’t need big guns and bombs to overcome political and economic subjugation
Indians and Chines own factories, get tax holidays and even without fear or favour openly violate the Competition Act 2023. For example, since the enforcement of EFRIS, the local manufacturers have been distributing their manufactures to retailers in the countryside, which wholesale traders say violates the Competition Act, 2023.
European naval force beats back suspected Somali pirates attack raising concerns over safety along eastern Africa coast
Once-rampant piracy off the Somali coast diminished after a peak in 2011. That year, there were 237 reported attacks in waters off Somalia. Somali piracy in the region at the time cost the world’s economy some $7 billion, with $160 million paid out in ransoms, according to the Oceans Beyond Piracy monitoring group.
Kenya telecoms operator Safaricom posts $1.07 billion earnings for full year to March
Overall group service revenue grew 13.4 per cent year on year to 335 billion shillings. Safaricom group’s M-Pesa mobile financial services business grew 8.8 per cent to 117.2 billion shillings, while mobile data revenue grew 11.4 per cent to 54 billion shillings, the company said in a statement.
Bamako-bound Boeing 737 catches fire, skids off runway at Senegal airport and injures 10 people
The incident has raised scrutiny of Boeing to the highest level since two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jets in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. About a dozen relatives of passengers who died in the second crash have been pushing the US government to revive a criminal fraud charge against the company by determining that Boeing violated terms of a 2021 settlement.
