Business

KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 (NNN-BERNAMA) — Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) is ready to accommodate travel bubble when the government agrees to reopen its international borders, said Group chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Shukrie Mohd Salleh.

ANKARA, July 1 (NNN-ANADOLU) – Turkey announced that, the leaders of Turkey, Russia and Iran will hold an Astana summit today via teleconference, as part of their efforts to end the conflict in Syria.

“The 6th Tripartite Summit Meeting in Astana format, will be held on July 1, 2020, via video-conference with the participation of our president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the president of the Republic of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, and the president of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin,” the Turkish presidency said in a written statement.

BERLIN, July 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Chancellor Angela Merkel aims to strengthen a divided European Union and help its hard-hit economy recover from the coronavirus pandemic when Germany takes over the rotating presidency of the 27-member bloc on Wednesday (July 1).

Critics have in the last three months raised questions about the future of the bloc as national borders shut and each state resorted, at least initially, to national policies to tackle COVID-19, which has killed more than 100,000 people in the EU.

BOGOTA, July 1 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — A bilateral trade agreement between Colombia and the United Kingdom has passed in Colombia’s plenary senate session and now passes to the Andean nation’s lower house for approval.

The legislation seeks to maintain uninterrupted trade access, terms and conditions between Colombia and the UK that have existed under the Colombia – European Union agreement.

Colombia’s exports to the UK last year totaled US$ 470.4 million and represented about 10% of what Colombia sells to the European Union.

BANGKOK, July 1 (NNN-TNA) – The Tourism Council of Thailand said, it expects to see only an estimated eight million foreign tourists this year, 80 percent down from last year, due to the impact from COVID-19.

“However, we are confident that tourism in Thailand will begin to pick up in 2021,” said Chairat Triratanajaraspon, the council’s president.

He said, last year, Thailand had a record 39.8 million foreign tourists, whose spending accounted for about 11 percent of Thailand’s GDP.

30 June 2020; MEMO: Two Turkish energy companies signed an agreement for the development and construction of a solar power plant in Italy, Anadolu Agency reported today.

Turkish companies Naturel Enerji and KURTEKS Tekstil Enerji announced that they will be working with Italy to develop and construct a 50-megawatt solar power plant.

It is stated that the total value of the contract is €45 million ($50.4 million), excluding VAT, with Naturel Enerji providing project funding.

30 June 2020; MEMO: A rare 15th century Quran from Iran written on Chinese paper has sold at an auction in London by Christie’s for $8.6 million (£7,016,250) almost 12 times more than its estimated value.

New Delhi, Jun 30 (PTI) The output of eight core infrastructure industries shrank by 23.4 per cent in May due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown, according to the official data.

The eight core sectors had expanded by 3.8 per cent in May 2019, the data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Tuesday showed.

Wellington, Jun 30 (AP/PTI) New Zealand on Tuesday canceled its plans to host a major meeting of U.S. and Asian leaders next year because of the coronavirus, opting instead to lead a virtual summit.

New Zealand was scheduled to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Auckland. The event would have brought thousands of people to the country throughout the year, culminating in a leader's week in November 2021.

New Delhi, Jun 30 (PTI) TikTok on Tuesday said it is in the process of complying with the government's order on blocking of the app, and asserted that it has not shared information of Indian users with any foreign government, including that of China.

The short video-sharing company said it has been invited to meet with concerned government stakeholders for an opportunity to respond and submit clarifications.