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Republican President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to reshape U.S. policy with a blizzard of executive orders within hours of taking office next week.Here is a look at what the president can and cannot do by executive order.What is an executive order?An executive order is an order issued unilaterally by the president that has the force of law. Notable executive orders issued by Trump in his first term include a ban on travel from some Muslim-majority countries and an order expanding the leasing of offshore waters for oil exploration. Trump issued 220 executive orders in his first term, more than any other president in a single four-year term since Jimmy Carter. President Joe Biden issued 155 executive orders as of Monday.How fast can an executive order take effect?Once a president signs an executive order, it can take effect immediately or not for months, depending on whether it requires formal action from a federal agency.For example, Trump’s Muslim ban took effect immediately, because it invoked a 1952 federal law that explicitly gave the president the authority to bar “any class of aliens” from the country if he deemed them detrimental. Other executive orders instruct federal agencies to take action. For example, Democrat Biden ordered health agencies to take action to safeguard reproductive rights after the US Supreme Court allowed states to ban it. This had no immediate effect, but agencies in the following months passed new rules through the usual rulemaking process, such as a regulation meant to safeguard the privacy of people who exercise reproductive rights.Where does the power to issue executive orders come from?While the extent of the president’s executive order power has been disputed, legal experts agree that it comes either from Article II of the US Constitution, which makes the president the commander in chief of the military and the head of the executive branch of government, or from powers explicitly given to the president by Congress.Laws passed by Congress typically delegate rulemaking authority to federal agencies, which ultimately report to the president. Many executive orders instruct the agencies to take actions or make rules in order to fulfil certain goals, effectively functioning as an announcement of the president’s policies.What can’t the president do through executive orders?The president cannot make new law beyond the powers specifically given to him by the Constitution or Congress simply by issuing an executive order.If an executive order instructs agencies to take action, any resulting agency rulemaking is subject to the federal Administrative Procedure Act, which requires agencies to allow public comment on any rules and forbids rules that are “arbitrary and capricious”.Agency rules also cannot violate basic constitutional rights, such as due process and equal protection under the law, or laws that have been passed by Congress.Can executive orders be blocked by courts?Yes. Executive orders can be challenged in court and have been blocked for exceeding the president’s authority. A judge in 2017 blocked Trump’s order meant to withhold federal funding from so-called sanctuary cities that did not co-operate with his immigration policies, finding that the president could not impose new conditions on federal spending that had been approved by Congress. A federal appeals court in 2023 blocked Biden’s executive order requiring federal workers to be vaccinated against Covid-19, finding that it overstepped his authority by interfering with personal medical decisions. On the other hand, courts have often backed the president’s executive order powers, as when the Supreme Court in 2018 upheld the Muslim travel ban.

Kyoto authorities announced yesterday plans to hike lodging taxes, as Japan’s ancient capital seeks to assuage grumbles from locals about too many tourists. Lured by its myriad sights and a weak yen, Japan has seen foreign tourism numbers explode in recent years, with arrivals in 2024 expected to have hit a record of more than 35mn.But like other hotspots worldwide such as Venice in Italy or Maya Bay in Thailand, this is not universally welcome, particularly in tradition-steeped Kyoto. The city, which is a modest bullet train ride away from Tokyo - with a view of Mount Fuji on the way - is famed for its kimono-clad geisha performers and Buddhist temples.Residents have complained of disrespectful tourists harassing the geisha like paparazzi in their frenzy for photos, as well as causing traffic congestion and littering. For rooms costing between 20,000 and 50,000 yen ($127-317) per night, visitors will now see their tax double to 1,000 yen ($6.35) per person per night, under the new plans.For accommodation over 100,000 yen per night it will soar tenfold to 10,000 yen. The new levies will take effect next year, subject to approval from the city assembly. “We intend to hike accommodation tax to realise ‘sustainable tourism’ with a high level of satisfaction for citizens, tourists and businesses,” a statement said. Tensions are highest in the Gion district, home to teahouses where “geiko” - the local name for geisha - and their “maiko” apprentices perform traditional dances and play instruments.Last year authorities moved to ban visitors from entering certain narrow private alleys in Gion after pressure from a council of local residents. One council member told local media about an instance of a maiko’s kimono being torn and another who had a cigarette butt put in her collar.In 2019, the Gion district council put up signs saying “no photography on private roads” warning of fines of up to 10,000 yen. “I appreciate tourists visiting the city, but there are also some downsides like the impact on the environment,” resident Daichi Hayase told AFP, welcoming the new taxes.“But it doesn’t mean the city should impose excessive taxes. Tourists are coming despite painful inflation,” the 38-year-old photographer said. “If there’s a burden on the infrastructure, I do think taxing tourists is a good idea,” said Australian tourist Larry Cooke, 21. But he said that the city had to find the “right balance”.Tourism has been booming for over a decade in Japan, with foreign arrivals rising five-fold between 2012 and when the Covid pandemic torpedoed foreign travel in 2020. Since restrictions were lifted, and the government is hoping to welcome 60mn tourists per year by 2030, almost double last year’s expected total. Authorities have also taken steps beyond Kyoto, including introducing an entry fee and a daily cap on the number of hikers climbing Mount Fuji.Last year a barrier was briefly erected outside a convenience store with a spectacular view of the famous snow-capped volcano that had become a magnet for photo-hungry visitors. And in December Ginzan Onsen, a Japanese hot spring town with made-for-Instagram snowy scenes began stopping anyone arriving after 8pm if they don’t have a hotel booked.

Qatari Businessmen Association (QBA) received HE the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal al-Thani and HE the Minister of State for Foreign Trade Affairs, Dr Ahmed bin Mohamed al-Sayed, at the association headquarters here on Monday. "The visit was aimed at enhancing communication with the Qatari business community and entrepreneurs, listen to their views, and discuss with them the ministry's initiatives dedicated to serving and developing the national economy" a QBA statement said. The two dignitaries were received by HE Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim al-Thani, QBA Chairman, and Hussain Ibrahim Alfardan, First Deputy Chairman, along with QBA board members, Sheikh Hamad bin Faisal al-Thani, Sheikh Nawaf bin Nasser al-Thani, Sherida al-Kaabi and Saud al-Mana. The meeting was attended by QBA members, Sheikh Mansour bin Jassim al-Thani, Khalid al-Mannai, Salah al-Jaidah, Moataz al-Khayyat, Ibrahim al-Jaidah, Ashraf Abu Issa, Abdul Salam Issa Abu Issa, Faisal al-Mannai, Abdullah al-Kubaisi, Maqbool Habib Khalfan, Rashid al-Mansouri, Mohammed Althaf, Ihsan al-Khyiami and Abdulrazzaq al-Kuwari. The meeting was also attended by HE Mohammed Hassan al-Malki, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry; HE Saleh Majid al-Khulaifi, Assistant Undersecretary for Industry and Business Development Affairs; HE Ayedh Munahi al-Qahtani, Assistant Undersecretary for Trade Affairs; Sultan bin Ali al-Falasi, Office Manager of the Minister of Commerce; and Sarah Abdallah, QBA Deputy GM. QBA Chairman and members expressed their appreciation to the minister for this initiative and emphasised the "importance of close collaboration" between the public and private sectors in serving the national economy. They highly praised the effective economic initiatives, including policies, legislation, and diverse projects, implemented under the guidance of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. These initiatives aim to empower national institutions and encourage entrepreneurs to engage in the industrial sector. QBA members also congratulated HE the Minister of Commerce and Industry on the launch of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Strategy and Qatar National Manufacturing Strategy 2024–2030. The Minister expressed his happiness to the Chairman and members of the QBA for their warm welcome. He praised the association's prominent role and the business community's efforts in promoting Qatar as a regional investment hub and attracting investors and expertise through various economic activities such as conferences and workshops. He also praised QBA's initiatives to strengthen collaboration with economic institutions and business associations worldwide, as well as its organisation of delegations led by Qatari business leaders to international markets. These efforts contribute to raising awareness of the Qatari market and opening new opportunities for co-operation with global markets. HE Sheikh Faisal said his "ministry places great importance on supporting the private sector as a key partner in achieving sustainable economic development". He pointed out that Qatari institutions and companies have gained global competitiveness and are present in major international markets through successful investments that have contributed to the development of the national economy and the transfer of expertise and knowledge to the local market. QBA members shared several economic ideas and aspirations with the minister, all aimed at enhancing the role of Qatar’s private sector and facilitating its operations. Several joint initiatives were discussed, through which economic initiatives will be examined. These initiatives will focus on facilitating joint collaboration to support the implementation of the Ministry's programmes and initiatives and ensure they are communicated effectively to the business community. During their discussions, business leaders expressed concerns related to the private sector across various areas, including investment facilitation, financing, and legislative procedures. QBA Chairman HE Sheikh Faisal pointed out that the private sector has become the "fundamental pillar" of national economies worldwide. He emphasised that Qatar’s Third National Strategy reinforces this concept by granting a more significant role to the Qatari private sector in the local economy. QBA First Deputy Chairman Hussein Ibrahim Alfardan highlighted the significant progress made by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in recent years, highlighting the Minister's initiative to meet with the business community, noting that it will contribute to enhancing effective communication in a collaborative manner QBA Board Member Sheikh Hamad bin Faisal al-Thani emphasised that the association is a “national supporter of the State and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.” QBA Board Member Sheikh Nawaf Nasser bin Khaled al-Thani, highlighted the success of the Obstacle Resolution Committee, established between the private sector and the Ministry, in resolving several outstanding issues. He also emphasized the importance of forming a joint committee with the Prime Minister's Office in the near future, as such a committee would play a significant role in facilitating business operations and addressing challenges faced by both local and foreign investors. QBA Board member Saud al-Mana addressed the issue of industrial land, opening factories, and the Ministry's role in attracting foreign investors. Moataz al-Khayyat addressed challenges in the construction sector, which has faced significant difficulties over the past five years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, rising global shipping costs, and increased fuel prices. An agreement was reached to hold a dedicated meeting to find appropriate solutions for this vital sector. Several other QBA members also discussed topics such as e-commerce, trade exhibitions, and protecting local products.

In August 2021, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued $209bn to developing countries in the form of special drawing rights (the IMF’s reserve asset). SDRs are much like cash, because recipient governments can convert them to hard currency. As such, they are a highly effective tool, and the IMF can and should make greater use of them.While the 2021 issuance helped billions of people around the world, hundreds of thousands of Americans also benefited – and would do so again. Exports of US goods and services to developing countries total around $1tn, and if these countries get an infusion of reserves, they will import even more.This effect can be quite significant. An SDR distribution the size of the 2021 issuance would be expected to create about as many jobs in the United States in one year as the $740bn Inflation Reduction Act did in its first year. We are talking, conservatively, about 111,000-191,000 new jobs, most of which would be in export-related areas such as manufacturing, transportation, and warehousing.In fact, the total number of jobs created could be substantially more, since we also must account for the role of SDRs – as reserves – in stabilising developing economies. This effect would be even more important if the world economy slowed, as it seems to be doing now. (The global growth rate has declined sharply since the last SDR distribution, from a record 6.6% in 2021 to half that today.).Nor is this the only compelling reason to favour another SDR issuance. With so many countries facing tight budgetary constraints in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, it could help countries make the investments needed to mitigate climate change.And even if one puts these considerations aside, it is obvious that the world needs another SDR issuance. Many countries are facing debt crises, with the result that some 3.3bn people live in countries that spend more on interest payments than on health care, while 2.1bn people live in countries that spend more on interest than on education.So why hasn’t a new issuance already happened? It turns out that the US Treasury Department is the biggest hurdle. Under IMF rules (which were written in 1944), the 190-member organisation does not follow the principle of “one country, one vote.” Instead, the US has 16.5% of the votes, and any decision to authorise a new SDR issuance requires 85% approval. The Treasury Department, which represents the US at the IMF, thus wields a veto, and as long as it brings along other high-income countries, it can push through almost any measure it wants.What is needed for another SDR issuance, then, is America’s support. Though the Treasury Department would be required to give Congress a 90-day notice, a 2021-size issuance would not actually require a congressional vote. The outgoing Biden administration could start the process today, and Donald Trump’s incoming administration need only concur with the decision.Would Trump go along with this? It is certainly possible, considering that a new issuance would create jobs in the US. If it happens quickly, without any slowdown in Congress, it could even be distributed as early as April.While US organised labour has already voiced support for a new issuance, Wall Street also has a big stake in the matter. US financial firms are holding tens of billions of dollars in debt-distressed developing countries’ sovereign bonds, and a fresh infusion of cash into those economies could save them from potentially massive losses on their investments. As global economic growth has slowed, the bonds they are holding are more at risk than they were three years ago. Moreover, like the 2021 issuance, a new one would have zero cost to the US budget.Of course, the biggest impact would be on the developing world. Globally, 282mn people are at risk of starvation, up from 135mn before the pandemic, and from 258mn in 2022. The additional reserves created by new SDRs would enable more imports of food and medicine, as well as investments in badly needed public-health equipment and infrastructure.In 2021, the $209bn SDR issuance exceeded all official development aid that developing countries received that year. Issuing SDRs can save hundreds of thousands of lives around the world, and, unlike most aid, it comes with no debt and no strings attached. For all of these reasons, the Catholic Church and other religious organisations have consistently supported new SDR allocations.No economists, including at the US Treasury, have offered any plausible argument that a new issuance would carry significant downside risks. The IMF’s own assessment concluded that the last issuance “contributed to global financial stability,” with “no evidence that allocation materially contributed to global inflation.”The Biden administration should take the advice of virtually all the economists who have looked at this question and initiate a new issuance of SDRs. Doing so would steer the IMF onto a path toward creating hundreds of thousands of US jobs and saving countless lives around the world. — Project Syndicate• Joseph E Stiglitz, a former chief economist of the World Bank and former chair of the US President’s Council of Economic Advisers, is University Professor at Columbia University, a Nobel laureate in economics, and the author, most recently, of The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society.•Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, is the author of Failed: What the ‘Experts’ Got Wrong About the Global Economy.

As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes economies and societies, business leaders must consider how they will work with policymakers to govern the technology’s development. In the European Union, the recently adopted AI Act requires businesses to take precautionary measures depending on the risks associated with different use cases. Thus, using AI to engage in “social scoring” is deemed “unacceptable”, whereas AI-augmented e-mail filters come with “minimal risk”.The success of this approach will depend on businesses contributing technical expertise and practical insights to strike a balance between promoting innovation and addressing societal concerns. Leaving regulation entirely to policymakers and a few powerful companies risks creating rules that serve only Big Tech’s interests, while sidelining other industry perspectives.In the case of the EU’s AI Act, a lack of business participation in the drafting process has already left critical implementation details unresolved. For example, the law could be construed as regulating conventional statistical techniques such as linear regression, which is commonly used in the financial sector. If so, that would add an unnecessary compliance burden. Similarly, the law is ambiguous about which standard tools in drug development fall under its scope; such uncertainty could slow development and increase costs in an already heavily regulated industry.Such issues can be avoided if CEOs from these sectors get more involved. Although the text of the AI Act is finalised, questions of interpretation, implementation, and enforcement are still evolving. The precise list of high-risk AI systems – the most important category for sectors ranging from health care to banking – may change over time, based on industry feedback.Moreover, with rules and frameworks being formulated in the United States and other countries, as well as through international collaborations, business leaders need to broaden their scope. They could make valuable contributions to what is quickly becoming a complex, multi-jurisdictional regulatory landscape.Historically, public-private collaboration has been key to managing transformative technologies. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it ensured a proper balance between innovation and safety in achieving accelerated vaccine development. Similarly, the nuclear energy industry’s early engagement with regulators yielded rules for small modular reactors that reduced costs, streamlined licensing, and harmonised standards, enabling companies to expand into new markets, attract investment, and improve their competitive position – a notable departure from the sector’s traditionally burdensome regulatory landscape.In both cases, regulatory frameworks benefited from real-world input. Yet in the case of AI, too many companies remain on the sidelines, heightening the risk of poorly designed rules that hinder progress. This absence of business engagement does not reflect a lack of opportunity. Only 7% of corporate participants invited to the EU’s drafting process for its General-Purpose AI Code of Practice turned up, leaving NGOs and academics to dominate the discussions. Meanwhile, a recent BCG survey found that 72% of executives say their organisations are not fully prepared for AI regulation.If you are a CEO, what should you do? Since AI regulation and deployment are primarily sector-specific processes, a first step is to align with your industry so that you are all speaking in unison. That is the best way to make yourself heard alongside tech giants that are spending more than $100mn per year lobbying policymakers in Brussels (with Meta leading the pack).But AI regulation is not only about erecting guardrails and setting limits. In addition to building industry coalitions and agreeing on common AI standards, CEOs need to contribute to the full set of digital regulations that may affect their industries.As part of its broader digital strategy, the European Commission has implemented four other major laws and introduced the concept of “data spaces”. These are supposed to allow data to flow securely within the EU and across sectors, while maintaining compliance with EU laws. It now falls to industry to build these channels (with public funding). CEOs that align their corporate strategies with this emerging regime will be best positioned to capitalise on sector-specific opportunities.Executives also should identify and establish relationships with top policymakers and other influential stakeholders in their respective sectors, and at all levels of governance. These include the European Data Protection Board and national AI regulatory bodies in Europe, as well as agencies like the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice in the United States. In each case, it is best to play the long game by building stable relationships based on expertise and trust, not transactional exchanges.To support these efforts, CEOs should have a specialised team dedicated solely to regulatory engagement. Simply rejecting proposed regulations is not an option, so defining fair trade-offs is key. Corporate leaders should be prepared to respond with clear, actionable alternatives presented in policymakers’ language, not industry jargon. For example, banks could propose that assessments of creditworthiness be exempted from the AI Act’s high-risk designation, on the grounds that these assessments strike an appropriate balance between innovation and accountability, and could reduce costs and make financing more available to consumers.AI regulation is not merely a compliance exercise. Industry leaders have an opportunity to shape rules that directly affect innovation and operations. By remaining disengaged, businesses risk allowing regulations to evolve without their input, leading to frameworks that are disconnected from operational realities. We do not want an environment in which regulators have overreacted to theoretical risks at the expense of practical progress.Just as the Industrial Revolution demanded new rules to govern transformative technologies, advances in AI call for guardrails. Business leaders have always had important contributions to make at such moments, and this one is no different. — Project Syndicate• Sylvain Duranton is Global Leader of BCG X. Kirsten Rulf is a partner and associate director at Boston Consulting Group.

Before it suffered the deadliest crash in South Korea’s history, budget airline Jeju Air was moving fast: racking up record passenger numbers and flying its aircraft more than domestic rivals and many of its global peers, data show.The high “utilisation rate” of Jeju Air’s planes - the number of hours they fly in a day - is not problematic in itself, experts say, but means scheduling enough time for required maintenance is crucial.Authorities have suggested a bird strike contributed to the accident, but as part of their probe into the incident aboard Boeing 737-800, police have raided the airlines’ Seoul office to seize documents related to the operation and maintenance of the plane.“You’re literally looking at everything,” said aviation safety and crash investigation expert Anthony Brickhouse. “You’re going to start off with their accident history and safety history. What kind of events have they had in the past, what happened, what was done to correct the issues?”Jeju Air told Reuters that it did not neglect maintenance procedures and that it would step up its safety efforts. The December 29 crash, which killed 179 people, was the airline’s first fatal accident since its 2005 founding and the first for any Korean airline in more than a decade.The company’s CEO, Kim E-bae - who has been barred from travelling overseas during the investigation - told a news conference last week that Jeju’s maintenance is in line with regulatory standards and that there were no maintenance issues with the doomed jet during pre-flight inspection.He acknowledged the airline’s safety measures had not been sufficient in the past, but said improvements had been made.The authorities have not said poor maintenance contributed to the crash and the exact circumstances behind the disaster remain unclear.Besides the reported bird strike, authorities are looking into why the pilot may have rushed a second landing attempt after declaring an emergency, and why the landing gear was not deployed.Investigators have recovered the cockpit and flight data recorders but have not released any details.The country’s transport regulator is inspecting all 101 737-800s in South Korea - more than a third of which are operated by Jeju Air - focusing on how often and how well the planes were maintained, among other considerations.Although it had recorded no violations in the last two years, it was hit with more fines and suspensions for aviation law breaches than any of its domestic rivals in 2020-2022, just during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, records show.According to transport ministry data on major airlines from 2020 to August 2024, Jeju Air was hit by about 2.3bn won ($1.57mn) in fines and the affected aircraft were kept out of operation for a total of 41 days, according to Reuters calculations based on the data.The next-most penalized airline, T’way Air, had 2.1bn won in fines and four days of suspended operation during that period.Jeju Air flies its planes more than any other major airline in the country, data show, and also outpaces most global peers such as Ireland’s Ryanair and Malaysia’s AirAsia.Jeju Air 7C2216 was flying from the Thai capital of Bangkok to Muan in southwestern South Korea at night when it belly-landed, overshot the runway and burst into flames after hitting an embankment. The aircraft flew every day in 2024, according to flight data reviewed by Reuters.High utilisation rates are prized in the industry as an indicator of economic efficiency, especially at low-cost carriers, experts say.Jeju Air, which ranks behind only Korean Air and Asiana Air in terms of passenger volumes in the country, saw record numbers from January to December 2024, according to transport ministry data.Its monthly utilisation hours for passenger jets nearly doubled to 412 in 2023 from 2022, higher than Korean Air at 332 hours and Asiana Airlines at 304 hours, according to stock exchange filings.T’way averaged 366 hours per month in passenger and cargo jets combined, Jin Air averaged 349 hours, and Air Busan 319 hours, according to their filings.In 2024, Jeju Air flew its airplanes more each day - 11.6 hours - than almost any other airline offering cheap tickets and flying only narrowbody aircraft, according to data from aviation analytics company Cirium, which calculates utilisation rates differently from the earnings filings.Only Saudi Arabia’s Air Arabia flew its planes more - 12.5 hours a day. Vietnam’s VietJet flew its planes 10 hours a day. Ryanair’s average use was 9.3 hours, while Malaysia’s AirAsia was 9 hours. China’s Spring Airlines flew 8 hours a day.“The utilisation itself is not a problem,” said Sim Jai-dong, a professor of aircraft maintenance at Sehan University in South Korea. “But there could be higher fatigue for pilots, crew members and mechanics given the higher utilisation rates.” - Reuters

The Qatar International Court and Dispute Resolution Centre (QICDRC) has highlighted the critical need for an insolvency framework in view of the changing economic landscape.This was highlighted at a panel discussion titled A Resilient Economy: Financial Restructuring and Insolvency Frameworks, organised by QICDRC in collaboration with Lexis Nexis and Deloitte Professional Services.The event convened industry leaders to shed light on the evolving financial restructuring landscape in Qatar and the wider region.Focusing on key topics essential to strengthen economic resilience, the discussion highlighted the importance of a robust legal framework, cross-border solutions for industry-specific restructuring, critical turnaround strategies, liquidity trends and approaches to financial and corporate simplification."At a time when economic landscapes are constantly shifting, the need for a resilient financial restructuring and insolvency framework has never been more critical," said Umar Azmeh, Registrar of QICDRC, who moderated the panel. "This panel highlights the importance of forward-thinking solutions and collaborative approaches to safeguard economic stability and foster growth in an increasingly complex global market.""At QICDRC, we are committed to facilitating meaningful discussions on key economic and legal issues, contributing to the continued growth and stability of Qatar and the wider region," according to him.The panellists contributed their insights, emphasising that financial restructuring goes beyond crisis management.They highlighted its role in building a resilient framework to withstand future economic challenges. Their input underscored the importance of fostering forward-thinking strategies and cross-sector collaboration to achieve long-term stability in a constantly changing environment."Qatar has consistently demonstrated the ability to recover from economic setbacks, such as the challenges posed by Covid-19, showcasing the resilience of its economy. A key factor in this resilience is its robust energy sector," said Emma Higham, partner at Clyde & Co, Qatar.Jim Sturman, Barrister, 2 Bedford Row (UK), said resilient economies adapt to shocks like sanctions, with businesses playing a key role."Their strategies, such as compliance and diversification, help sustain economic stability and recovery," he said.Thomas Bulock, Turnaround and Restructuring Partner at Deloitte, said a resilient economy relies on a well-structured organizational framework."This structure ensures stability, adaptability, and efficiency in responding to challenges and changes," he added.Rita El Helou, Chief Legal and Compliance Officer at Lesha Bank – Qatar, said amid today's challenges, companies and foundations must implement financial monitoring plans that address cash flow, debt management, and other critical factors to prevent crises, avoid insolvency, and achieve stability.

QNB expects the Chinese economy to grow this year in the absence of a major trade conflict with the US and certain other conditions. “In our view, absent a major trade conflict with the US, Chinese economic growth will be supported by positive momentum, more aggressive policy stimulus, and improving global financial conditions, favouring an above-consensus expansion rate of close to 4.8%,” QNB said in an economic commentary. In recent decades, China has been a dominant engine of economic growth for the global economy. During the period 2008-2019, which includes the years between the Great Financial Crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic, the Chinese economy expanded at an average rate of 8%, accounting for approximately 1/3rd of global growth. Since then, a combination of domestic factors has led to a marked deceleration in the pace of economic expansion, QNB noted. Over the last years, pessimism regarding China’s growth performance has become widespread as economic indicators failed to meet expectations. This was substantiated by the China Economic Surprise Index, which provides a formal measure of how data releases stand relative to forecasts. Since June last year, the index plunged into the negative territory and displayed how negative news prevailed for the next 4 months before recovering since mid-Q4, QNB said. Furthermore, fears began to rise as attention shifted to the correction in property markets that seemed unable to find its trough, as well as the growing threat implied by mounting debts of local governments. In this context, there was growing impatience with the cautious and incremental approach by the government to implement policy stimulus to the economy. The Bloomberg consensus forecasts pointed to 4.7% growth of GDP for 2024. Although this number is remarkable by international standards, it was 3.3 percentage points (p.p.) below the 8% average for China between 2008 and 2019. It is unlikely that growth rates could return to the rocketing pre-pandemic average, given the structural developments that conduct the economy to a natural long-term trend of growth moderation. However, several tailwinds allow for an improvement in its growth performance this year. In this article, QNB discusses three factors that will support growth in China in 2025. First, economic indicators are delivering positive surprises, with signals that the constructive momentum will persist. The Economic Surprise Index comfortably entered the positive range in Q4-2024, amid better-than-expected gauges across key production sectors. Property markets displayed signs of stabilisation as the declines in prices and sales moderated, with some statistics even exhibiting positive growth. This comes after the government ramped up incentives in the sector by relaxing conditions on mortgages and announced funds for targeted projects and housing for lower-income families. Additionally, robust growth in sales of electric vehicles and household appliances points to stronger appetite for consumption by households. More generally, the Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) also entered the expansionary range in the last quarter of last year, after 5 consecutive months in the negative region. The improved evolution of indicators across various sectors imply that current projections should be revised upwards. Second, the Chinese government is launching an aggressive battery of coordinated monetary and fiscal policy measures to provide stimulus to the economy. The Politburo led by President Xi Jinping announced it will conduct a “moderately loose” monetary policy strategy this year, anticipating a stance that had not been adopted since the Global Financial Crisis. Specifically, this has translated into expectations of interest rate cuts by 40-60 basis points by the PBoC, but will undoubtedly be accompanied by other measures of monetary easing. In the fiscal front, policymakers are expected to set a budget deficit target of 4% of GDP, the widest since 1994, and larger than the typical levels below 3%. The recent announcements add to previous rounds of initiatives that included the re-capitalisation of state banks, cuts in interest rates and reserve requirement ratios, public spending, support measures for the real estate and capital markets, and a $1.4tn package to alleviate local government debt pressures, among many others. These policies will gradually permeate into consumption and investment to bolster economic growth this year. Third, the continuation of the easing cycles of central banks in major advanced economies contribute to improve external conditions for China. Last year, as inflation was brought under control, the European Central Bank and the US Federal Reserve cut rates by 100 and 100 basis points respectively. This year, expectations point to additional cuts of 100 and 75 basis points. As a result, global financial conditions will continue to improve significantly. As central banks in major advanced economies cut rates, liquidity and credit expand. In addition, the PBoC will have more room to ease, as lower interest rate differentials means lessened concerns of capital flows leaving China to seek higher returns abroad. Thus, more favourable global financial conditions represent an additional factor to allow for more proactive policy easing that boosts growth, QNB added.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) will forecast steady global growth and continuing disinflation when it releases an updated World Economic Outlook on January 17, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told reporters on Friday.Georgieva said the US economy was doing "quite a bit better" than expected, although there was high uncertainty around the trade policies of the administration of President-elect Donald Trump that was adding to headwinds facing the global economy and driving long-term interest rates higher.With inflation moving closer to the US Federal Reserve's target, and data showing a stable labour market, the Fed could afford to wait for more data before undertaking further interest rate cuts, she said. Overall, interest rates were expected to stay "somewhat higher for quite some time," she said.The IMF will release an update to its global outlook on January 17, just days before Trump takes office. Georgieva's comments are the first indication this year of the IMF's evolving global outlook, but she gave no detailed projections.In October, the IMF raised its 2024 economic growth forecasts for the US, Brazil and Britain but cut them for China, Japan and the euro zone, citing risks from potential new trade wars, armed conflicts and tight monetary policy.At the time, it left its forecast for 2024 global growth unchanged at the 3.2% projected in July, and lowered its global forecast for 3.2% growth in 2025 by one-tenth of a percentage point, warning that global medium-term growth would fade to 3.1% in five years, well below its pre-pandemic trend."Not surprisingly, given the size and role of the US economy, there is keen interest globally in the policy directions of the incoming administration, in particular on tariffs, taxes, deregulation and government efficiency," Georgieva said."This uncertainty is particularly high around the path for trade policy going forward, adding to the headwinds facing the global economy, especially for countries and regions that are more integrated in global supply chains, medium-sized economies, (and) Asia as a region." Georgieva said it was "very unusual" that this uncertainty was expressed in higher long-term interest rates even though short-term interest rates had gone down, a trend not seen in recent history.The IMF saw divergent trends in different regions, with growth expected to stall somewhat in the European Union and to weaken "a little" in India, while Brazil was facing somewhat higher inflation, Georgieva said.In China, the world's second-largest economy after the US, the IMF was seeing deflationary pressure and ongoing challenges with domestic demand, she said.Lower-income countries, despite reform efforts, were in a position where any new shocks would hit them "quite negatively", she said.Georgieva said it was notable that higher interest rates needed to combat inflation had not pushed the global economy into recession, but headline inflation developments were divergent, which meant central bankers needed to carefully monitor local data.The strong US dollar could potentially result in higher funding costs for emerging market economies and especially low-income countries, she said.Most countries needed to cut fiscal spending after high outlays during the COVID pandemic and adopt reforms to boost growth in a durable way, she said, adding that in most cases this could be done while protecting their growth prospects."Countries cannot borrow their way out. They can only grow out of this problem," she said, noting that the medium-growth prospects for the world were the lowest seen in decades.

Britain’s big retailers, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, M&S and Next, say they are stepping up their drive for efficiency through automation and other measures, to limit the impact of rising costs on the prices they charge their customers.As the UK economy struggles to grow, the new Labour government’s solution is a hike in employer taxes to raise money for investment in infrastructure and public services, which has prompted criticism from the business community.Retailers have said the increased social security payments, a rise in the national minimum wage, packaging levies and higher business rates - all coming in April - will cost the sector £7bn a year.Concerns of the wider economic impact sent retail share prices sharply lower this week and drove up government borrowing costs. In the retail sector, larger players have more scope to adapt and are cushioned by previous healthy profits, but analysts have said smaller players could find themselves under severe pressure. Clothing retailer Next said it faced a £67mn increase in wage costs in its year to end-January 2026, but still forecast profit growth.It reckons it can offset the higher wage bill with measures including a 1% increase in prices that it said was “unwelcome, but still lower than UK general inflation”. It can also increase operational efficiencies in its warehouses, distribution network and stores, the company said.CEO Simon Wolfson said more automation was inevitable across the sector. “With any mechanisation project you’re always looking at a pay-back on it - you’re saying ‘what’s the saving versus the cost of the mechanisation, or AI or software’,” he told Reuters. “If the price of the mechanisation doesn’t go up, but the price of the labour it saves does go up, it’s going to mean that more projects can be justified.”Baker and food-to-go chain Greggs last year opened a highly automated production line at its Newcastle, northeast England, site, meaning it can make up to 4mn more steak bakes and other products each week from its current 10mn.Tesco, Britain’s biggest supermarket, is also increasing automation and will open a robotic chilled distribution centre in Aylesford, southeast England, this year.No 2 grocer Sainsbury’s is encouraging more shoppers to use its SmartShop handheld self-scanning technology.Even though Tesco faces a £250mn annual hit from the hike in employer national insurance contributions alone, CEO Ken Murphy said it would cope. Having navigated the Covid pandemic, supply chain disruption and commodity and energy inflation, he said Tesco was used to dealing with rising costs by finding savings elsewhere.Finance chief Imran Nawaz said Tesco’s “Save to Invest” programme was on track to deliver £500mn of efficiency savings in its year to February 2025, having delivered £640mn in 2023/24. “As we look ahead it’s clear it’s going to be another year where we’ll need to do a stellar job,” Nawaz said, singling out savings from better buying by Tesco’s procurement organisation, in logistics, in freight, and in cutting waste.Sainsbury’s, facing an additional £140mn national insurance headwind, is similarly targeting £1bn of cost savings by March 2027. Clothing and food retailer M&S, facing £120mn of extra wage costs, said it aimed to pass on “as little as possible” to consumers. One of the biggest names on the British high street, the 141-year-old retailer is in the middle of a successful turnaround programme and believes it can continue to grind out further savings, modernising its distribution and supply chain. “My summary is: big job, but lots in our control and we’ve got to be ruthlessly focused on costs in these next 12 months,” CEO Stuart Machin said.“We talk a lot about volume growth, because the more we sell, the more that offsets some of these cost pressures.”But for many smaller players raising prices is the only option. A British Chambers of Commerce survey of 4,800 businesses, mostly with fewer than 250 staff, found 55% planned price increases - potentially hampering the fight to contain inflation and grow the economy. And for some, more drastic action may be required. British discount retailer Shoe Zone has said the additional costs of the budget meant some stores had become unviable and would be closed.

Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg said on Tuesday that the group’s platforms including Facebook and Instagram would in future imitate rival X’s “Community Notes” feature rather than using professional fact-checkers.The feature “empower(s) their community to decide when posts are potentially misleading” thanks to “people across a diverse range of perspectives,” Zuckerberg wrote in a blog post.Facebook’s fact-checking programme currently operates in 26 languages, partnering with more than 80 media organisations worldwide including AFP.When an X post has had a note appended, it is displayed to users with a small box titled “Readers added context”.Usually short and factual, expanding on or contradicting the original post, most published notes also include a link to relevant source material. Introduced in January 2021 under the name Birdwatch, Community Notes were boosted by Elon Musk after he took over Twitter in late 2022 and renamed it X, and they now appear to users in 44 countries. The social network “needs to become by far the most accurate source of information about the world”, Musk posted at the time. Any willing X user can sign up to Community Notes.Before writing notes of their own, they must first spend time rating other people’s suggested notes, contributing to the process that decides whether they are published. Even once allowed to write notes, users can lose the right if others consistently rate them unhelpful. X underscores that voting on notes is not by simple majority.Instead, the company looks for agreement between raters who have disagreed in the past — a system it says “helps reduce one-sided ratings and helps to prevent manipulation”.This has not stopped charges from politicians that highly motivated groups carpet-bomb posts they dislike with notes, hoping at least one will get through.There is little conclusive scientific analysis available of Community Notes’ effectiveness. One April 2024 paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that a sample of notes on misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines “were accurate, cited moderate and high-credibility sources, and were attached to posts viewed hundreds of millions of times”.But the authors did not study the notes’ impact on users.Meanwhile in a survey of notes posted on November 5 — US election day — Cornell University digital harm researcher Alexios Mantzarlis found that just 29 percent of “fact-checkable” tweets for which notes were suggested in fact displayed a note rated as helpful.“If Community Notes had an impact on election information quality on X, it was marginal at best,” Mantzarlis wrote in an article for the Poynter Institute. Some experts AFP spoke to were confident that Community Notes could improve information quality on Meta platforms.“Community notes as such is a very, very effective tool in content moderation if applied in an equitable way, we can see that on Wikimedia or Wikipedia,” said Katja Munoz of the Berlin-based think-tank DGAP.Nevertheless, “the crowd may say something correct, but there can also be ill-intentioned people who are there to spread disinformation,” said Christine Balaguer, a professor at France’s Institut Mines-Telecom who studies the phenomenon. Eliminating fact-checking could set Meta up for a clash with the European Union if it expands the model outside the United States. The bloc’s Digital Services Act encourages platforms to fight misinformation with tools including professional fact-checkers. Zuckerberg’s move “is a major shock” that “announces the clashes that the tech platforms are going to be having with EU regulation in general”, Munoz said.In his statement, Zuckerberg said fact-checking had been “a program intended to inform (that) too often became a tool to censor”.“Fact-checkers weren’t censors,” said Bill Adair, a professor of journalism and public policy at Duke University and co-founder of the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN).Those working with Meta “were signatories of a code of principles that requires they be transparent and nonpartisan”, he noted.IFCN chief Angie Drobnic Holan also defended fact-checkers’ work, writing on X that Zuckerberg had faced “extreme political pressure from a new administration and its supporters”.Trump said Tuesday that Meta’s move had “probably” been in response to his threats against the company and Zuckerberg.

South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group said on Thursday it planned to boost domestic investment by 19% to a record 24.3tn won ($16.65bn) this year to ensure growth as it navigates political turmoil as well as US economic unpredictability. The group, which includes Hyundai Motor and Kia, ranks third in global vehicle sales behind Toyota Motor and Volkswagen. Its planned investment includes 11.5tn won in research and development for next-generation products, electrification, software-defined vehicles, hydrogen fuel-powered products and other technology. It will also spend 12tn won on ordinary investment such as expanding production of electric vehicles and new models, and about 800 bn won on strategic investment such as for autonomous driving, the group said in a statement. As part of this, the group plans to build a plant at its Ulsan production site for its new "hypercasting" manufacturing technique for EVs. Hyundai and other automakers are following Tesla's "Gigacasting" technology in which major sections of vehicles are made with large single parts, thereby streamlining production and lowering costs. "Hyundai Motor Group is making the largest investment ever in South Korea this year because it believes that continuous and stable investments are essential to overcome the crisis and secure future growth engines in the face of growing uncertainties," the group said without detailing the crisis. Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung last week referred to recession and global conflict as external risks. Shares in Hyundai Motor and Kia were up 2.3% and 3.8% respectively in early trade before paring gains to close down 0.2% and up 2.3%. The broader market closed up 0.03%. Hyundai and Kia said last week they aimed to grow combined global sales by 2% to 7.39mn vehicles in 2025, after reporting a dip in 2024 and missing targets. At home, consumer sentiment dropped in December by the most since 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, hit by political uncertainty following President Yoon Suk-yeol's declaration of martial law and his impeachment. In the US, President-elect Donald Trump has said he would impose universal 10% tariffs on imported goods. Hyundai Motor started production at a factory in the US state of Georgia last year to make its vehicles eligible for tax credits under the incumbent administration which Trump has said he would scrap. The automaker in November named Jose Munoz, its US chief and global chief operating officer, as co-CEO and the first foreign national to assume that rank at a major South Korean conglomerate. Company watchers said the appointment was aimed at helping the automaker navigate potential challenges posed by the incoming Trump administration.