Business

AMMAN — The Jordan Chamber of Industry said that the industry index, recorded a growth of 1 per cent during the second quarter of this year compared to the same period last year, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Saturday.

More than 62 per cent of industrial companies and businessmen expressed optimism and positive expectations for performance during the coming period of this year, According to a statement by the chamber,  

The President of the Jordan Chambers of Industry Fathi Jaghbeer pointed out that the growth was achieved despite the consequences of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and the developments of events in the region and their impact on industrial exports and supply chains, the decline in price levels and fluctuations globally, and the decline in demand for various sectors.

He pointed out that five industrial sectors achieved growth within the index of the second quarter of this year compared to the same period last year, led by the food and catering industries, livestock, chemical, cosmetics, leather, knitting, plastic, rubber, therapeutic and medical supplies.

While Jaghbeer pointed to the decline in other industrial sectors, which are packaging, engineering, mining, wood, furniture and construction.

AMMAN — The real estate market in Jordan recorded a total trading volume of approximately JD4.447 billion from January 2024 until the end of August, with a transaction volume of JD710 million in August, the Jordan News Agency 
(Petra) reported on Thursday.

According to the monthly report from the Department of Land and Survey, real estate revenue decreased by 5 per cent compared to the same period in 2023, totaling around JD167 million. The report noted a 2 per cent drop in apartment sales and a 7 per cent decline in land sales compared to the same period in 2023.

On a monthly basis, real estate revenue for August saw a 6 per cent decrease compared to the same month in 2023, amounting to approximately JD25 million.

SHANGHAI — Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Wednesday the European Union should "reconsider" a plan to impose tariffs of up to 36 per cent on Chinese electric cars, calling for a "compromise" between the economic powerhouses.

The European Commission, which oversees the bloc's trade policy, announced last month that it planned to levy five-year import duties of up to 36 per cent on electric vehicles imported from China.

The following day, Beijing said it would launch a probe into EU subsidies of some dairy products exported to China.

"I have to be blunt and frank with you that we need to reconsider all of us, not only member states but also the Commission, our position towards this," Sanchez told journalists after being asked about the tariffs at a news conference near Shanghai.

"As I said before, we don't need another war, in this case a trade war," he added.

"I think that we need to build bridges between the European Union and China and from Spain.

"What we'll do is to be constructive, and to try to find a solution, a compromise between China and the European Commission."

Sanchez's visit has seen him meet top officials including President Xi Jinping and call for "dialogue and cooperation" with the world's second largest economy.

The trip comes against the backdrop of mounting trade tensions between the European Union and China, primarily over Beijing's subsidies for its electric vehicles sector.

In June, China launched an anti-dumping investigation into pork imports from the bloc in response to an application submitted by a local trade grouping on behalf of domestic producers.

The Iberian nation is the European Union's largest exporter of pork products to China, selling more than 560,000 tonnes last year totalling 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion), according to industry body Interporc.

'Fair trade'

On Monday, Sanchez called for Madrid and Beijing to defend what he called a "fair trade order".

"We must work together to resolve differences through negotiation, in a spirit of dialogue and collaboration, and within multilateral frameworks," he wrote on social media after meeting Xi.

China and the European Union have butted heads in recent years on a range of issues relating to trade, technology and national security.

Brussels has launched a raft of probes targeting Chinese subsidies for solar panels, wind turbines and trains.

But it faces a delicate balancing act as it tries to defend Europe's crucial auto industry and pivot towards green growth while also averting a showdown with Beijing.

On Wednesday, the president of an EU business lobby in Beijing said overcapacity of Chinese electric vehicles was among the top concerns facing European firms in the country.

The risks of doing business in China are "mounting and the rewards [are] seemingly decreasing", the EU Chamber of Commerce said in a position paper on Wednesday.

"Many investors are now confronted with the reality that the problems they are facing in the China market may be permanent features," said the chamber, which drew on the views of the more than 1,700 EU firms operating in the country.

"A substantial strategic rethink" may now be required, it warned.

A European Commission official has said the EU executive remained "open" to resolving the trade dispute without resorting to tariffs — but that "it's very much up to China to come up with alternatives".

Beijing has so far filed an appeal against the measures with the World Trade Organisation (WHO) — which Brussels has acknowledged while voicing confidence the tariffs are WTO-compatible.

SHANGHAI — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for "a negotiated solution" at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to end a stand-off between Beijing and the European Union.

Sanchez's visit to China has seen him meet top officials including President Xi Jinping and call for "dialogue and cooperation" with the world's second largest economy.

The trip comes against the backdrop of mounting trade tensions between the European Union and China, primarily over Beijing's subsidies for its electric vehicles sector.

Speaking at the inauguration of the Spain-China Business Forum in economic powerhouse city Shanghai, Sanchez called for "a European Union and a China open to the world, beyond geopolitical and economic tensions".

"That's why we are betting on honest dialogue to solve existing tensions, that result in large part from the imposition of tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles," he added.

"And what do we propose from Spain? A solution negotiated and agreed in the WTO framework, that contributes to developing balanced and fair and avoids commercial escalation that benefits no-one," Sanchez said.

The European Commission, which oversees the bloc's trade policy, announced last month that it planned to impose five-year import duties of up to 36 per cent on electric vehicles imported from China.

In China's capital Monday, Sanchez called for Madrid and Beijing to defend what he called a "fair trade order".

"We must work together to resolve differences through negotiation, in a spirit of dialogue and collaboration, and within multilateral frameworks," he wrote on social media after meeting President Xi.

BEIRUT, Lebanon — A Lebanese judge Monday issued an arrest warrant for ex-central bank chief Riad Salameh, a judicial official said, after the embattled former governor was questioned in an embezzlement case.

Salameh, 74, who headed the central bank for three decades, faces numerous charges including embezzlement, money laundering and tax evasion in separate probes in crisis-hit Lebanon and abroad.

The most senior Lebanese figure to be arrested in the wake of the country's dramatic economic collapse in 2019, Salameh has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

The investigating judge questioned Salameh for two and a half hours and "issued an arrest warrant against him", the official told AFP, requesting anonymity as they were not authorised to brief the media.

The judge scheduled another hearing Thursday to continue questioning Salameh, the official said.

The warrant, a procedural formality, ends his provisional detention and places him under formal arrest, the official added, with the measure indicating the judge's suspicions against Salameh had "strengthened".

On Tuesday last week, Lebanese authorities for the first time provisionally arrested Salameh after questioning over the alleged embezzlement of more than $40 million, another judicial had told AFP.

The official said at the time that the case was "completely separate" from others being investigated.

The following day, Lebanon's financial prosecutor initiated legal proceedings against Salameh over allegations of "embezzling" public funds, as well as "illicit enrichment and money laundering", and the case was referred to the investigating judge, the same official told AFP.

In a statement on Friday carried by Lebanon's official National News Agency, Salameh's office said he had cooperated with the Lebanese judiciary "before and after finishing his official duties" and "has continued with this cooperation since his detention".

'Thief' 

Salameh, who also has French nationality, is widely viewed as a key culprit in Lebanon's economic crash, which the World Bank has called one of the worst in recent history.

A handful of protesters gathered outside Beirut's justice palace on Monday, some trying to attack a convoy of vehicles transporting Salameh as he arrived, hitting the windows and yelling "Riad Salameh is a thief," an AFP correspondent said.

Unemployed protester Simon al-Barrak, among many Lebanese who have been unable to access their savings since late 2019, said his money had been "stolen".

"We're here in support of a clean justice system," he said, in a country known for its history of official impunity.

"It's not just Riad Salameh we want to see in prison," he added, accusing the political class broadly for the economic collapse.

After Monday's questioning, Salameh was returned to the jail where he has been detained in recent days, the first judicial official said, adding he was being held in an individual cell in "good conditions".

In May last year, Germany and France issued arrest warrants for Salameh over accusations including money laundering and fraud, though German prosecutors later cancelled their warrant, saying Salameh could no longer use his post to suppress evidence.

In August last year, the United States announced coordinated sanctions with Canada and Britain against Salameh.

Salameh, who left office at the end of July last year, has repeatedly said his wealth comes from private investment and his previous work at US investment firm Merrill Lynch.

He has defended his legacy, saying he is a "scapegoat" for Lebanon's economic collapse.

ATHENS — Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced a new set of policies aimed at boosting citizens' purchasing power and tackling the country's housing crisis.

The measures include a 14 per cent increase in the minimum wage, a 2.5 per cent increase in pensions and a new tourist tax.

Mitsotakis vowed to bring prosperity to Greece — which in 2023 had the second lowest GDP per capita in the European Union — by 2027 during a speech at the opening of the Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) on Saturday.

The premier referred to nine challenges facing his government, including the convergence of public and private sector wages, the green transition using cheaper energy and the mitigation of the effects of the runaway growth in tourism.

He also vowed to create an effective response to the country's declining and ageing population.

The country of 10 million people — which relies heavily on tourism — has endured a near decade-long economic crisis exacerbated by the post-pandemic recession.

Housing and food prices had soared due to sky-high inflation, which has only just begun to fall.

Average annual income in Greece was half the European average in 2023, while the minimum wage of 830 euros a month ($920) is less than half that of France.

Mitsotakis vowed to increase pensions by up to 2.5 per cent in 2025 and to gradually push up the minimum wage to 950 euros by 2027.

He also announced new incentives to boost the birth rate and tax benefits to galvanise the rental market.

A special levy on the self-employed will be gradually abolished, while the 243 million euro revenue from a windfall tax on energy companies will be distributed to vulnerable citizens.

Mitsotakis also announced a new fee for passengers disembarking from cruise ships in Greek ports and a Golden Visa scheme for foreigners investing at least 250,000 euros in start-ups.

JANAJAH, Iraq — Bare feet pressed against the rough trunk of a palm tree, his back supported by a metal and fabric harness, Ali Abed begins the climb to the dates above.

In Iraq, the date palm and its bounty are national icons, but they are being battered by drought.

Once known as the country of "30 million palm trees", Iraq's ancient date-growing culture had already suffered from upheaval, especially during the 1980-88 war with Iran, before climate change became a major threat.

In the still lush countryside of central Iraq, near Janajah village in Babylon province, hundreds of date palms stand tall and majestic, surrounded by vines and fruit trees.

During harvest season, the branches are heavy with clusters of yellow and red dates.

Rising at dawn to avoid the searing heat, harvesters climb the palms using only their upper body strength, aided by a harness and rope wrapped around the trunk.

"Last year, the orchards and the palm groves were thirsty; we almost lost them. This year, thanks to God, we had good water and a good harvest," said Abed, a 36-year-old farmer from Biramana, a village a few kilometres from Janajah.

Once at the top, they pick the ripe dates, filling baskets that are lowered to the ground and emptied into basins, which are then loaded onto lorries.

Abed noted, however, that the harvest is much smaller now — about half of what it used to be. He once collected more than 12 tonnes but now brings in just four or five.

Abed criticised the lack of government support, saying aerial insecticide campaigns are not enough.

'Used to be paradise'

Iraq has spent over a decade trying to revive the date palm, a vital economic asset and national symbol.

Authorities and religious institutions have launched programmes and mega-projects to encourage tree planting and growth.

An agriculture ministry spokesperson told the official INA news agency last month that, "for the first time since the 1980s", the number of date palms had risen to "more than 22 million", up from a low of just eight million.

During the Iran-Iraq War, palm groves were razed in vast areas along the border to prevent enemy infiltration.

Today, dates are Iraq's second-largest export product after oil, which dominates export revenues and generates more than $120 million, according to the World Bank.

In 2023, Iraq exported around 650,000 tonnes of dates, official statistics show.

Yet, around Janajah, many palm trees lie dead and decapitated.

"All these palm trees are dead due to the drought; the whole region is suffering," said 56-year-old farmer Maitham Talib.

"Before, we had water. People irrigated abundantly. Now, we need complicated machinery", he said, observing the harvest.

The United Nations has labelled Iraq one of the five countries in the world most vulnerable to some of the effects of climate change.

The country has endured four consecutive years of drought, though this year saw some relief with winter rainfall.

Alongside rising temperatures that have hit 50ºC (122 Fahrenheit) in summer and declining rainfall, Iraq also faces falling river levels, blamed on dams built upstream by Iran and Turkey.

Kifah Talib, 42, lamented the slow devastation wrought by the drought.

"It used to be paradise: apple, pomegranate, citrus trees and vines  — everything grew here," he said.