Author: News Desk

World stocks plummeted again on Thursday and government bonds hovered at multi-year highs after a series of rate rises from global central banks rekindled fears that aggressive policy tightening could drag economies into recession. Following a relief rally on Wednesday when investors welcomed the U.S. Federal Reserve’s aggressive move to raise rates by 75 basis points – its biggest rate hike since 1994 – by buying shares, two other spates of policy tightening in Britain and Switzerland seemed to have sobered investors into refocusing on the chance that economies could slow as rates rise. “Can the economy take it? So…

The ceremony for the ministers to take the oath before His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa was held today at Al Sakhir Palace. HM the King received His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, who introduced the new members of the Cabinet following their appointment by HM the King by a royal order issued on Monday. The deputy prime minister and ministers took the constitutional oath before HM the King. HM King Hamad congratulated them on their new positions, and wished them success in performing their duties to the best…

The Labour Fund (Tamkeen) in partnership with the Central Bank of Bahrain, the London-based Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, and the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) announced an initiative to train and employ Bahraini talent in the field of actuarial science which will prepare them for quality career opportunities in insurance firms in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries is a globally renowned provider of licensing and qualifications for actuaries through its extensive curriculum and examinations that ensure professionals in the field acquire the fundamental skills they need. This is done through a series…

Information and eGovernment Authority (iGA) Chief Executive Mohammed Ali Al Qaed held the second meeting of the third session of the Information and Communication Technology Governance Committee (ICTGC). The meeting discussed the procurement requests by government entities valued at approximately BD1.7 million. Al Qaed highlighted strategic government projects and procurement requests and discussed Bahrain’s taxi meter initiative aimed at making taxi services more accessible to citizens, residents, and visitors. The committee reviewed an Information Management System (IMS) project for the Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs & Urban Planning that will streamline the updating and management of data at testing laboratories…

UAE and Japan celebrate 50 years of diplomatic ties through the Abu Dhabi Festival “Variation and Autonomy: The Prints of Contemporary Japanese Painters.” The traveling show is set to run until July 7 and is curated by Kyoji Takizawa of the Machida City Museum of Graphic Arts in Tokyo and presents the work of ten artists who experimented with prints in the world of contemporary art in the 1970s. The show is part of the Abu Dhabi Festival 2022 held under the theme “Crafting the Emirates State of Mind: Creation, Innovation and Joy.” “Audiences in the UAE an opportunity to experience…

The World Health Organisation is looking into reports that the monkeypox virus is present in the semen of patients, exploring the possibility that the disease could be sexually transmitted, a WHO official said on Wednesday. Many cases in the current monkeypox outbreak, largely centred on Europe, are among sexual partners who have had close contact, and the agency reiterated that virus is mainly transmitted via close interpersonal contact. In recent days, scientists say they have detected viral DNA in the semen of a handful of monkeypox patients in Italy and Germany, including a lab-tested sample that suggested the virus found…

The White House is expected as soon as Wednesday to begin announcing around $1 billion worth of new weapons aid for Ukraine, including anti-ship rocket systems, artillery rockets, and rounds for howitzers, people familiar with the packages said. The aid packages, which come as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is meeting with allies in Brussels, could be split into two categories: transfer of excess defense articles from U.S. stocks and other weapons being funded by the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), a separate congressionally authorized program. Three people said that Biden was expected to announce more than $350 million worth…

President Emmanuel Macron voiced a tougher line on Russia on Wednesday and said Europe needed to send a strong signal to Ukraine as he sought to assuage concerns in Kyiv and among some European allies over his previous stance towards Moscow. Macron arrived in Romania on Tuesday for a three-day trip to Ukraine’s eastern neighbours including Moldova, before possibly heading to Kyiv on Thursday on a visit with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, two diplomatic sources said. The symbolic visit would come a day before the European Commission makes a recommendation…

The Saudi Royal Court today issued the following statement: “Upon the invitation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and to enhance the bilateral historic relations and strategic partnership between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and The United States of America, and reflecting the shared desire to develop the partnership in all fields, President Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States of America will be conducting an official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on July 15-16, 2022. “During the visit, President Biden will meet with the Custodian of the Two…

Her Royal Highness Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, Wife of HM the King and President of the Supreme Council for Women (SCW), today sent cables of congratulations to Health Minister, Dr. Jalila bint Al Sayyed Jawad Hassan, Housing and Urban Planning Minister, Amna bint Ahmed Al Romaihi, Sustainable Development Minister, Noor bint Ali Al Khulaif, and Tourism Minister, Fatima bint Jaffar Al Sairafi, following the issuance of a royal decree on reshuffling the Cabinet. HRH Princess Sabeeka extended deepest congratulations to the new female ministers, expressing pride in the great support enjoyed by Bahraini women, as a result of…