Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus sign economic union pact May 29, 2014 AN AGREEMENT to form a Eurasian Economic Union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus was yesterday signed in the Kazakhstan capital Astana, with Vladimir Putin calling the event a “historical milestone”. The agreement was signed by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, and Russian President Putin, and follows on from the previous customs union the [...]
Putin fears an EU fracking bonanza – but environmentalists don’t have to May 29, 2014 RUSSIA and China agreed on a $400bn, 30-year deal last week, wherein Gazprom will deliver 38bn cubic metres of natural gas a year to China. This will exacerbate the EU energy crisis, but the bloc still seems intent on ignoring the only obvious solution – fracking – and fidgets at the margins with renewables. Large [...]
Days of future present May 28, 2014 The future is here and it’s slightly terrifying. We present some soon-to-be-released technologies straight out of science fiction. Swallowable sensors Whatever the future holds, we’re going to be seeing a lot more sensors; sensors in clothes, sensors in flower-beds and even swallowable sensors, which US company Proteus Digital Health is preparing to trial in the [...]
Asian markets climb higher after positive US data May 28, 2014 Asian markets are up this morning after a slew of positive economic data from the US and rising Chinese industrial profits. Data released yesterday showed a surprise increase in US durable goods orders in April of 0.8 per cent – the consensus had been for a 0.5 per cent fall. Consumer confidence and home prices [...]
Ukrainian air strikes take on rebels at airport May 27, 2014 UKRAINE’S new President, Petro Poroshenko, yesterday promised a tougher military response to rebels attacking key infrastructure in the troubled east of the country. The government attacked rebels with air strikes and paratroopers after a group of pro-Russian separatists captured Donetsk airport. Helicopters were seen firing on the main terminal, while ground troops are reported to [...]
Letters to the Editor – 27/05 – Dangerous rates, China’s rise, Best of Twitter May 27, 2014 Dangerous rates [Re: Britain’s mortgage prisoners must act now or face financial meltdown, Friday] The fate of the “mortgage prisoners” (those who have used the opportunity of low rates to take out misjudged loans for new properties) is no doubt troubling. But to argue that this means we should put off a rise in base [...]
CNBC Comment: Putin’s bravado masks financial stress May 26, 2014 VLADIMIR Putin’s pivot to the East can no longer be in any doubt. Attending the St Petersburg Economic Forum (the annual meeting he set up to rival Davos) last week, high profile US attendees, like Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs, were notably absent. The most high-profile foreign delegates were from China, like vice premier Li [...]
Luxury holidays… to the moon May 23, 2014 The Virgin Galactic zero gravity holiday plane As the global super-rich multiply, their travel demands get more and more extravagant. These days, a stay in a five star hotel fails to impress… Meet the companies who say the next frontier in luxury tourism is above the clouds. The rise of the global super-rich [...]
What you need to know before the open May 23, 2014 A mixed open for European markets this morning, with sentiment constrained amid EU and Ukrainian elections. Ukrainian authorities have said over a dozen servicemen were killed yesterday while clashing with pro-Russian separatists. First quarter growth in Germany’s come in as expected, at 0.8 per cent. Year-on-year, that puts the GDP figure at 2.5 per cent [...]
Polymetal plummets after it agrees to buy challenging gold mine May 22, 2014 RUSSIAN precious metals miner Polymetal’s share price plunged six per cent yesterday, after it said it had agreed to buy a gold project in Kazakhstan for $618.5m (£366.8m). The FTSE 250-listed firm is buying the assets from private owners Sumeru Gold and Sumeru LLP, for $318.5m in cash and £300m of new Polymetal shares, marking [...]