UN Condemns Terrorist Outrage in Nairobi

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday 22nd September condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack at a shopping mall in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, and urged the perpetrators to be brought to justice as soon as possible. In a televised

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European Commission Confirms Billions Lost in VAT Gap

An estimated €193 billion in VAT revenues (1.5% of GDP) was lost due to non-compliance or non-collection in 2011, according to a new study on the VAT Gap in Member States. The study was funded by Commission as part of

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Looking for an Easy Fix: The Great Banking Crisis Five Years Later

Greed, malfeasance, incompetence and a lack of both regulation and oversight brought the world perilously close to a financial Armageddon when Lehman Brothers investment bank collapsed five years ago this week. The tumultuous event left a gaping hole of well

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An Actor Out of His Depth: Clooney Keeps an Eye on Sudan

US heartthrob George Clooney – according People Magazine the Sexiest Man Alive – has found a new calling: Spying. The actor has earmarked the proceeds of his Nespresso coffee endorsement to finance an eye in the sky which is to

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Learning the Ropes in Peru: Chinese Companies Engage Local Communities

Chinese companies are learning how to navigate the tricky waters of community politics in perhaps the most unlikely of places: Peru. Here, Chinese businesses have found it next to impossible to buy their way into the local hearts and minds.

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The War on Tax Evasion: How a Good Pursuit Gets Ugly

At first glance, the showdown between the US government and the Swiss banks seems to have produced a satisfactory outcome: Tax dodgers can no longer park their undeclared monies in Switzerland without fear of discovery. Under a new bilateral deal,

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Experts Debate Dubai’s Post-Recession Property Boom – Another Bubble or Sustained Recovery?

More than 750 senior real estate professionals prepped for Global Real Estate Summit and MENA Mortgage and Affordable Housing Congress Dubai, UAE, 11 August, 2013: With all sectors of the Dubai property market now gaining momentum in making a healthy

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Angola: Powering A Booming Economy with Renewables

Alternative, renewable energy is not merely an afterthought in oil-rich Angola as the country seeks to diversify its booming economy. After an absence of three full decades, sugar cane made its return as a cash crop just five years ago

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Moving into Pakistan Big Time: China to Invest Serious Money

China has the money and is not afraid to invest it in Pakistan. The Chinese Water & Electric Corporation (CWE) is set to disburse some $6bn over the next five years in Pakistan’s energy sector in a bid to help

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A Flash in the Pan Fizzles Out: The Downfall of a Brazilian Tycoon

Playing the markets and getting at the mega-bucks with financial wizardry does not a businessman make: Brazil’s flamboyant Eike Batista – erstwhile owner of the world’s seventh largest fortune – has fallen off his perch in the most spectacular of

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