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(Bloomberg) -- Isolated bushfires broke out in Sydney on Tuesday, fanned by strong winds and soaring temperatures as Australia’s largest city faced its first ever “catastrophic” fire danger.Authorities battled a blaze in the affluent neighborhood of South Turramurra, just 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of the CBD, before a plane brought it under control by dumping red fire retardant. A handful of other fires broke out in other suburbs of the city, which is dotted with national parks and bushland, shrouding the skyline with an acrid smoke haze.More than 70 wildfires are burning across New South Wales state, devastating rural areas left tinderbox dry by a two-year drought. Three people have been killed and more than 150 homes destroyed in the state in recent days -- a disastrously early start to the nation’s bushfire season considering summer has not even begun.A southerly wind swept through Sydney on Tuesday evening, lowering temperatures...
United Arab Emirates' Minister of Energy Suhail al-Mazrouei said on Tuesday that he sees no conflict between his country's compliance with OPEC output cuts and plans to list Murban crude oil by the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC). Intercontinental Exchange Inc will next year launch a new exchange in the UAE to list ADNOC's flagship Murban crude grade. Mazrouei said the UAE remains committed to cuts agreed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, plus allies led by Russia....
When high school student Shan Wenran signed up to join video-and-animation-sharing site Bilibili six years ago, she was surprised to find that membership entailed passing a lengthy examination. The 100-question test included zingers like who was "the lead singer of the Japanese Rainbow band" and "the starting goalkeeper of the German men's national soccer team"."I tried to answer one or two questions and then quit," said Shan, now 24, from the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang. "It was troublesome, and I didn't know the answers to those questions." Shan said she took the exam again in college and passed.Shanghai-based Bilibili, founded in 2009, has become the biggest video-comics-and-gaming entertainment platform for China's fast-growing Generation Z market segment, made up of consumers born between 1990 and 2009. But the company, according to analysts, has also reached a crossroads, which could hasten its decision to further water down its rigid examination to increase...
Investors could face a bumpy ride next year as geopolitical tensions, including the US-China trade war, continue to bring volatility to the markets, according to Goldman Sachs Asset Management.But, the global economy, while at a late stage in the economic cycle, is likely to avoid a recession next year, meaning there are opportunities for investors in equities, James Ashley, head of the asset management business's international market strategy team, said."From a macro perspective, I think the key question going into the new year is going to be do we have a further extension of what is already unprecedented, really long global expansion or do we see the economy roll over? When you see the start of a recession, our view is very firmly in the camp of the former ... there will not be a global recession," Ashley said."That does not mean it's going to be a smooth ride. That does...
Individual and corporate homebuyers piled into Hong Kong property last month to pick up bargains as city developers offered the most number of units for sale in several months after a surprise relaxation of mortgage entitlements for first-home buyers.Buyers' stamp duty, a 15 per cent surcharge on the price of a property that must be borne by non-permanent Hong Kong residents and corporate buyers, soared 2.8 times last month to HK$880 million (US$112.4 million), while the number of transactions jumped 1.8 times to 296, according to data by the Inland Revenue Department.October was one of the more active months for property sales, after Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor on October 16 announced an unexpected increase in loan entitlements for homebuyers. At least 1,356 units were offered for sale last month, including Sun Hung Kai Properties' Cullinan West III in Nam Cheong, CK Asset's Seaside Sonata in Sham Shui...
