The summary of the last week's business headlines and the most interesting stories.

The UK could secure a big economic boost by unilaterally removing tariffs on all imported goods, a group of pro-Brexit economists have claimed....

Total announced that the boards of Total and A.P. Møller – Mærsk have both approved the acquisition of 100% of the equity of the E&P company Maersk Oil & Gas A/S (Maersk Oil), a wholly owned subsidiary of A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S, by Total in a share and debt transaction....

Kazakhstan continues setting new records in the sunseed export market in the current 2016/17 season....

John Wood Group reported an 86.7 percent fall in half-year profit, due to an exceptional charge and as weak oil prices hurt demand for its services....

China's smartphone market is showing signs of saturation, according to a recent report showing that growth in the market slowed in the first half of this year....

Non-oil trade between the UAE and the USA hit more than AED111.1 billion ($30.3 billion) by the end of 2016, including free zone trade, against $27.8 billion in 2015, said Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy....

The Chilean government rejected a $2.5-billion copper and iron project proposed by privately-held Andes Iron, though the company vowed to appeal....

Russia will grant a public loan worth $700 million to Belarus this year to repay its debt to Moscow, according to the Russian cabinet a draft agreement published on the website of the legal information....

IDC New Zealand has released its 2017 ConsumerScape 360° survey findings....

The Papua New Guinea company Oil Search Limited has estimated that the oil and gas sector will attract about $20 billion in the next seven years if given the right environment....

Organic grocery chain Whole Foods Market said that the shareholders had approved its $13.7 billion acquisition by e-commerce giant Amazon....

The J. M. Smucker Company revealed a profit for first quarter that decreased compared to the same period last year....

Irish building materials firm CRH has sold its U.S. distribution business to Beacon Roofing Supply for $2.63 billion in cash and will use the proceeds to continue an acquisition spree....

Guess? reported financial results for its second quarter ended July 29, 2017....

Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Company (MSI) is acquiring Singapore's First Capital Insurance for $1.6 billion from Canada's Fairfax Financial Holdings....

Qantas reported an underlying profit before tax of $1,401 million and a statutory profit before tax of $1,181 million for the 12 months ended June 30, 2017....

Office sharing startup WeWork announced that Japan's SoftBank Group has made a $4.4 billion investment in the company....

Exports of Ukrainian goods to Canada in the first six months of 2017 amounted to $22.7 million, which is 76.3% more than for the same period in 2016, Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade Natalia Mykolska said....
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