Business Morocco – Moroccan News Portal

Post-Brexit UK Could Find Hope in Morocco

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

Rabat- Faced with a December 31, 2020 deadline, the UK has a narrow 11 month transition period in which to negotiate a trade deal with the European Union (EU), after officially exiting the organization on January 31.Recent commentaries surrounding the issue suggest that it will be very difficult for the two parties to agree on the terms of a trade deal, given their ideological differences. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s emphasis is on maintaining the UK’s sovereignty and independence, while the European Union wants the UK to adhere to EU commerce regulations if it is to continue trading with EU member states.During a speech in Greenwich on February 3, Johnson drew a hard line against any deal involving Britain’s alignment with EU regulations, giving preference to a deal absent of tra...

Business

Spain: Morocco saves 14 migrants, 14 others feared drowned

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

Renata Brito, Associated Press Updated 2:01 pm EST, Wednesday, February 19, 2020 BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Moroccan authorities rescued only 14 migrants from a boat carrying 28 people that capsized off the Western Sahara coast, raising fears that the others drowned, Spain's maritime rescue service said Wednesday. The news came after reports a day earlier from Alarm Phone — a hotline for migrant boats in distress — that cited survivors as saying 14 people, including two children, had died when their boat sank Monday off the Western Sahara city of Dakhla. The hotline said it spoke to some of the 14 survi...

Business

Spain: Morocco saves 14 migrants, 14 others feared drowned

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

Business

Fed policymakers cautiously optimistic on U.S. economy despite new risks, minutes show

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve policymakers were cautiously optimistic about their ability to hold interest rates steady this year, minutes of the central bank’s last policy meeting showed, even as they acknowledged new risks caused by the coronavirus outbreak.The readout on Wednesday of the policy discussion, at which policymakers unanimously voted to keep interest rates unchanged in a target range of between 1.50% and 1.75%, also showed Fed officials were skeptical about any big rethink of the central bank’s inflation target.“Participants generally saw the distribution of risks to the outlook for economic activity as somewhat more favorable than at the previous meeting,” the Fed said in the minutes of the Jan. 28-29 meeting. It went on to say the current stance of monetary policy was...

Business

Watchdog finds shortcomings with how Canada’s biggest banks handle consumer complaints

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

A federal regulator says there are a number of flaws in the policies and procedures that Canada’s biggest banks use to deal with customer complaints, and the watchdog says it will try to force lenders to shore up those gaps.The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada on Wednesday released two reports detailing the results of a review of internal bank complaint-handling procedures and the use of external complaint bodies, or ombudsman offices.According to the FCAC, it is estimated that more than five million consumers lodge at least one complaint with a bank each year, most of which are dealt with internally. However, the watchdog also found there are shortcomings with both the internal and external processing of consumer concerns, such as lengthy delays when customers try to escalate the...

Business

Spain: Morocco saves 14 migrants, 14 others feared drowned

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

Renata Brito, Associated Press Updated 12:09 pm EST, Wednesday, February 19, 2020 BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Moroccan authorities rescued only 14 migrants from a boat carrying 28 people that capsized off the Western Sahara coast, raising fears that the others drowned, Spain's maritime rescue service said Wednesday. The news came after reports a day earlier from Alarm Phone — a hotline for migrant boats in distress — that cited survivors as saying 14 people, including two children, had died when their boat sank Monday off the Western Sahara city of Dakhla. The hotline said it spoke to some of the 14 surv...

Business

Spain: Morocco saves 14 migrants, 14 others feared drowned

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

Business

Canada’s VIA Rail to temporarily suspend 1,000 employees amid pipeline protests

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

TORONTO — Canada’s VIA Rail will temporarily suspend close to 1,000 employees due to rail disruptions amid pipeline protests, the company said on Wednesday.The employees are suspended as a result of VIA Rail canceling service on much of its network, until Canadian National Railway Co re-opens tracks for service, VIA Rail said in an emailed statement.Protestors opposed to an energy project have blocked rail lines across the country. (Reporting by Denise Paglinawan; writing by Moira Warburton in Toronto; editing by Chris Reese) Source link ...

Business

Bloomberg’s transaction tax sets stage for clash with Wall Street clients

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

WASHINGTON — Presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg’s decision to back a tax on trades marks a blow for Wall Street lobbyists which had seen the moderate Democrat as a potential ally, said analysts and lobbyists.On Tuesday, the former New York mayor and Wall Street investment banker, who made his $60 billion fortune in finance, proposed imposing a 0.1% tax on trading stocks, bonds and derivatives as part of a broader financial services agenda.Bloomberg’s decision to back the tax is likely to bring him into conflict with Wall Street firms that are fighting the policy, many of which are the very same clients that helped him make the fortune with which he is funding his campaign.A spokeswoman for Bloomberg did not immediately provide comment. Bloomberg, who was a Republican, has said ...

Business

Should Facebook, Google be liable for user posts? asks U.S. Attorney General Barr

affairemarocFebruary 19, 2020

WASHINGTON — U.S. Attorney General William Barr on Wednesday questioned whether Facebook, Google and other major online platforms still need the immunity from legal liability that has prevented them from being sued over material their users post.“No longer are tech companies the underdog upstarts. They have become titans,” Barr said at a public meeting held by the Justice Department to examine the future of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.“Given this changing technological landscape, valid questions have been raised about whether Section 230’s broad immunity is necessary at least in its current form,” he said.Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act says online companies such as Facebook Inc, Alphabet Inc’s Google and Twitter Inc cannot be treated as the publisher ...