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Mikati shelves Iranian fuel grant after 'US warning'

The reports about a U.S. warning against bringing Iranian oil into Lebanon were confirmed after caretaker PM Najib Mikati met with visiting USAID chief Samantha Power in the presence of U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea, ad-Diyar newspaper said on Friday.

“During the meeting, Mikati was informed that the U.S. considers all Iranian oil as subject to sanctions, and that’s why he has in principle decided to shelve the grant if there won’t be an exemption from the U.S. Treasury similarly to what’s happening with Iraq,” the daily added.

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European stocks rally accelerates

European stocks rallied in afternoon trading on Thursday after data showed U.S. inflation slowing, dimming the prospect of further aggressive U.S. rate hikes.

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Wall Street stocks surge amid optimism on lower inflation

Seizing on data showing a slowdown in annual consumer price inflation, U.S. equities pushed sharply higher in early trading Thursday.

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EU eyes cheap loan plan for 'stable' Ukraine funding in 2023

The European Union on Wednesday unveiled a plan to provide Ukraine with around 18 billion euros (dollars) in financial aid next year in regular payments to help the war-ravaged country keep its energy and health care facilities running as well as to fund salaries and pension schemes.

The EU's executive branch, the European Commission, said the aid would involve loans with extremely favorable terms worth around 1.5 billion euros every month, possibly starting in January. Ukraine would not have to reimburse the funds for at least a decade and EU member countries would cover the interest costs.

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Elon Musk sells $3.95 billion worth of Tesla stock

Twitter's new owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk sold nearly $4 billion worth of Tesla shares, according to regulatory filings.

Musk, who bought Twitter for $44 billion, sold 19.5 million shares of the electric car company from Nov. 4 to Nov. 8, according to Tuesday's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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Syria increases gas production, hopes for more electricity

Newly installed turbine compressors at a gas facility in central Syria will lead to a production increase that will help ease the war-torn country's electricity crisis, officials at the sprawling facility said Wednesday.

The Syrian Gas Co. facility in the central province of Homs suffered a series of attacks during Syria's 11-year conflict, including the kidnapping of staff, a suicide car bomb, barrages of rockets and strikes by drones that killed 11 people at the facility, according to Fadi Ibrahim, who heads the Syria South Gas plant.

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Facebook parent Meta cuts 11,000 jobs, 13% of workforce

Facebook parent Meta is laying off 11,000 people, about 13% of its workforce, as it contends with faltering revenue and broader tech industry woes, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a letter to employees Wednesday.

The job cuts come just a week after widespread layoffs at Twitter under its new owner, billionaire Elon Musk. There have been numerous job cuts at other tech companies that hired rapidly during the pandemic.

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Emirates buys 5 Boeing 777 freighters in $1.7B-valued deal

Long-hauled carrier Emirates is buying five Boeing 777 freighters in a deal valued at more than $1.7 billion, further expanding its cargo flight capacity, the two companies announced Tuesday.

Emirates previously announced a $1 billion investment to its cargo flights, including buying two new Boeing 777s and converting 10 Boeing 700-300ER passenger planes into freighter aircraft. The two new aircraft joined Emirates' fleet in 2022, while the conversions are scheduled to begin in 2023.

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Lebanese pound surpasses 39,000 again

The Lebanese pound's market value reached again 39,000 against the dollar Tuesday after it had slightly recovered in the past few weeks.

Last month, the dollar exchange rate had dropped from LBP 40,600 to 36,000 on the black market, shortly after Central Bank Governor Riad Salamah said in a statement that the Central Bank would stop buying dollars on the Sayrafa platform.

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EU threatens US over electric car subsidies

The European Union threatened Monday to take retaliatory measures against the United States for electric car subsidies that favor domestic manufacturers.

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