UAE’s food security initiatives: Growing rice in the desert

The Covid-19 pandemic, while ringing in other changes, is also spurring the UAE to grow more of its food

Coronavirus pandemic drags global M&A to lowest level since 2012

Little more than $1 trillion of deals have been announced this year, making for the slowest first half since 2012

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Facebook to close its TikTok clone Lasso app this month

Facebook has reportedly decided to focus on Instagram’s Reels feature

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Google paying billions to Apple to remain default search engine in Safari

Google reportedly pays approximately $1.5bn every year to Apple to remain as its default search engine in mobile Safari in the UK alone

Uber partners with Mastercard to offer free rides home to all inbound UAE residents

The service will be applicable for rides home from Dubai International Airport, Al Maktoum International Airport and Abu Dhabi International Airport

OPEC cuts output to lowest since 1991 as virus slams oil demand

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries cut production by 1.93 million barrels a day to 22.69 million a day last month

Dubai’s Emirates processes nearly 650,000 refund requests, returns over Dhs1.9bn to customers

The airline crossed its target by early June, expanding its processing capability from a monthly average of 35,000 requests to nearly 200,000

Etihad operates 106 UAE humanitarian aid charters to combat Covid-19 globally

The flights were undertaken to 54 destinations to transport medical and food aid

Microsoft to upskill 25 million people worldwide amid virus recovery

The new global skills initiative includes immediate steps to help those looking to reskill and pursue an in-demand job, combining resources from LinkedIn, GitHub and Microsoft

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UAE residents and citizens cannot travel abroad for tourism

Residents who wish to visit their home countries and return to the UAE will be permitted to do so

Saudi clothing retailer Alhokair cuts staff pay

The retailer reported a full-year loss of $182m after a profit year ago

Abu Dhabi City United Arab Emirates

UAE’s Taqa to offer more shares in asset-transfer deal

Taqa has 23 gigawatts of power-generation capacity globally, with assets in Canada, Ghana, India, Iraq, the US and several other countries

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UAE citizens abroad with Covid-19 symptoms, virus should inform embassy

The total number of cases in the UAE has risen to 49,069

The new Windows File Recovery tool will be a system command program that can recover various types of files and documents

Microsoft launches Windows tool to retrieve deleted documents

The tool can recover MP3 files, MP4 videos, PDFs, JPEGs, and various other office types too

UAE oil-storage hub to open new tanks this year

Brooge is adding eight tanks at the site in the UAE port of Fujairah

China Innoway to set up regional office in Dubai's DMCC free zone

China’s Innoway to set up an office in DMCC to spur Dubai’s tech startup ecosystem

Innoway, dubbed China’s Silicon Valley, has incubated over 3,400 startups and raised approximately Dhs4.7bn

Indonesia lists three sukuk valued at $2.5bn on Nasdaq Dubai

The listings consist of a 10-year issuance of $1bn and two issuances of $750m each

Emirates Mars Mission’s Hope Probe to launch on July 15

The unmanned probe is expected to enter Mars’ orbit on February 2021

Digital transformation: These are the key things for regional companies to keep in mind

Digital transformation should always be linked to business metrics, says Anas Jwaied, managing director – Middle East and Africa at Micro Focus

Abu Dhabi’s AI university signs research cooperation agreement with Virgin Hyperloop

The Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence is the world’s first graduate-level, research-based AI university

UAE approval of Boeing 737 Max likely to closely follow FAA

The planemaker and the US Federal Aviation Administration began a series of flights this week to test whether the revamped aircraft is safe to resume operations

KUWAIT-HEALTH-VIRUS-ECONOMY malls

Kuwait enters second phase of easing Covid-19 restrictions, with malls, cafes and parks reopened

Public and private sectors can resume work with a maximum of 30 per cent capacity

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Netflix 4K support expected on Mac devices via Apple’s upcoming Big Sur update

Apple is expected to release the update this fall

GCC heading for hotel supply glut

How can GCC countries turn economic diversification into a reality

In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and plummeting oil prices, GCC governments must reconsider their approaches to build diversified economies

Revealed: Key facts about the new data protection law issued by Dubai’s DIFC

The new law will cement the centre’s position as well as enhance its data protection practices

Dubai Islamic Bank lists $300m sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai

There is a total of $71.09bn sukuk now listed on the exchange

Update: No NOCs will be issued to UAE residents in India to facilitate return

All residents seeking to return to the UAE must receive approvals from the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship

Dubai World pays $8.2bn two years early to complete debt revamp

The payment was made using funds from asset sales, dividend payments and the delisting of port operator DP World

UAE announces fuel prices for July 2020

Prices are unchanged from April 2020

Dubai’s Emirates resumes on-ground services for premium customers from July 1

The carrier will resume its Chauffeur Drive service and airport lounge for premium customers following a full health and safety review