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RAMALLAH, West Bank — Foreign financial support to the Palestinian budget is running at about half the forecast level, the Palestinian prime minister told local media on Tuesday, meaning deep cuts will have to be made to the budget this year.

At its Cabinet meeting, the government said it expected to run a budget deficit of 4.12 billion shekels in 2017 ($1.06 billion), approaching 15 per cent of the gross domestic product.

"We had expected to get $1.2 billion in [external] support and offers but we have only received $640 million so far," Prime Minister Rami Al Hamdallah told Al Quds newspaper.

Saudi Arabia has in the past been a reliable supporter of the Palestinians, as have the United Arab Emirates and Turkey, but it has cut back its contributions sharply in recent months.

Normally, Saudi Arabia pays about $20 million a month into the budget, but it stopped making regular contributions last April, in part to apply pressure on President Mahmoud Abbas to implement political changes.

The European Union and the United States have also reduced direct budget support, preferring instead to fund development programmes that target
specific areas.

The Cabinet statement said the total shortfall in foreign funding was forecast to be $765 million in 2017, which will put pressure on government departments to cut costs.

"Such a decline compels us to adopt an austerity policy in all fields," the statement said.

More than half of all spending — 55 per cent — goes on salaries and wages for the Palestinian Authority's 156,000 state employees, from teachers and doctors to police and public security staff, according to the finance ministry's 2016 budget.

While the economy in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza grew by about 1.5 per cent in 2015, the last full figures available, unemployment continued to rise, standing at 27.4 per cent overall — 18.7 per cent in the West Bank and 42.7 per cent in Gaza, the ministry said.

AMMAN — The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.8 per cent during the third quarter of 2016 compared to the figure recorded in the same period of the previous year due to better performance by several service sectors.

The Department of Statistics (DoS) report indicated that most economic sectors reflected positive growth in 2016’s third quarter, compared to the same period of 2015, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Tuesday.

The electricity and water sector registered the highest growth, totalling 6.3 per cent at fixed market prices, followed by the finance, insurance, real estate and business service sectors at 4.2 per cent. 

LONDON — Eurozone stocks opened 2017 by climbing to their highest in more than a year on Monday after data showed manufacturers in the currency bloc ramped up activity at the fastest pace in more than five years.

With all of Asia's major markets closed for the New Year holiday — along with Britain and Switzerland in Europe — trade was thin, which could cause some volatility. The United States and Canada markets were also closed.

The eurozone's blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index rose half a per cent to its highest since December 2015 after the purchasing managers' index (PMI) for factories in the currency bloc came in at 54.9 — well above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.

The euro, though, took no comfort from the figures, slipping 0.4 per cent back below $1.05 after climbing to as high as $1.07 during a flash surge in low trading volumes in Asia on Friday.

Analysts said the fall was mainly due to a resumption of an up-trend in the greenback that saw it surge to 14-year highs in December on the view the US Federal Reserve will hike rates as many as three times this year, and that Donald Trump's administration will stoke growth and inflation with a programme of fiscal expansion.

The dollar index — which measures the greenback against six major rivals — climbed half a per cent, having hit a two-week-low on Friday.

"In the last days of 2016 we saw the dollar retreat somewhat, and there might be some sense of a correction from Europe this morning. I don't see any fundamental drivers for the moves," said Commerzbank currency strategist Esther Reichelt, in Frankfurt.

Italy's top share index hit its highest level since January last year, outperforming other major European stock indexes, with a rally in its banks and a strong manufacturing report improving sentiment.

Italy's FTSE MIB index was up 1.5 per cent by 1215 GMT at its highest level since January 15 of 2016. Germany's DAX was up 0.9 per cent at its highest in nearly 17 months, while France's CAC was up 0.5 per cent at a 13-month peak.

As European stocks climbed, a rally in risk appetite also pushed down the yields on lower-rated government bonds in the eurozone to multi-week lows. Italian, Spanish and Portuguese 10-year bond yields were down roughly 8 basis points each on the day.

Terrorist attacks

A gun attack in Istanbul that killed 39 people was seen having little impact on markets, with the Japanese yen — traditionally used as a safe haven — falling 0.3 against the dollar, close to an 11-month low.

The Deash terror group claimed responsibility on Monday for the New Year's Day mass shooting, which was carried out by a lone gunman in a packed nightclub in the Turkish city.

A separate Daesh attack in Baghdad killed 24 people on Monday.

"After all the big political shocks last year and muted market reaction, it is tempting to argue that the markets are very resilient," said Finland-based Nordea Chief Market Strategist Jan Von Gerich.

"I would say this is too optimistic an assumption and I think we will see more volatility this year."

The Turkish lira slipped half a per cent after the attack to 3.5440 per dollar, close to a record low of 3.5840 the lira touched in December.

"The problem is that this once again stresses the increasing instability and the security issues, and we're seeing tourist numbers going down, which will have a lasting negative impact on the Turkish economy... and that's Turkish lira-negative," said Commerzbank's Reichelt.

Data released earlier in the day showed China's manufacturing sector expanded for a fifth month in December, though growth slowed a touch more than expected in a sign that government measures to rein in soaring asset prices are starting to have a knock-on effect on the broader economy.

The Chinese yuan suffered its biggest annual loss in more than 20 years in 2016, with an almost 7 per cent fall making it the worst-performing currency in Asia.

Digital currency bitcoin started the year by jumping above $1,000 for the first time since late 2013.

BEIJING — Taiwan tech-giant Foxconn plans to build an $8.8-billion factory in China, state media said Saturday, amid reports its billionaire boss is cooling off on future US investments.

Foxconn, a major Apple supplier, will spend the vast sum on an industrial complex in the sprawling southern city of Guangzhou.

The factory will make large-screen liquid crystal displays (LCD), the firm said at an event in the Chinese city on Friday. It will be operational by 2019.

"We have in China a government that knows how to be efficient and supports new technology," said Foxconn President Terry Gou in an interview with China's 21st Century Business.

"As to whether we'll invest in the US in the future I've no idea. As a matter of fact, the new administration isn't in office and its new policies aren't in place," Gou added.

Foxconn employs around a million workers at its factories across China and has operations in more than 10 countries.

In the US, it has a plant in Virginia for packaging and engineering which employs over 400 people. 

Earlier this month Foxconn confirmed it was in talks over a new US investment, while Japanese telecom giant SoftBank shares soared after President-elect Donald Trump unveiled a $50 billion deal with the two firms.

Trump announced the agreement — which he said would bring 50,000 jobs — in the lobby of Trump Tower in New York.

Gou said he would only divulge details after discussions with relevant US authorities, but made no mention of it during the factory announcement Friday.

The Guangzhou plant will be jointly run by Foxconn and Japan electronics firm Sharp, which Foxconn has a 66 per cent stake in.

DUBAI — Dubai-based port operator DP World said Thursday it has acquired an additional 23.94 per cent stake in South Korea’s Pusan NewPort Company (PNC), giving it a majority shareholding.

The purchase from Samsung Corporation brings to 66.03 per cent DP World’s stake in PNC, which operates the largest terminal at the port of Pusan, the company said in a statement.

“We expect the port of Pusan to remain an important part of our global network and this investment further underlines our commitment to South Korea,” DP World Chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said in the statement. 

PNC is a joint venture led by DP World together with Samsung, Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction and a number of other Korean construction companies.

It commenced operations in 2006.

The port is situated on the southeastern tip of the Korean Peninsula and is South Korea’s leading port city and gateway to the Pacific Ocean.

DP World operates 77 marine and inland terminals across six continents, with container handling being its core business.

In 2015, it shipped 61.7 million TEU, 20-foot equivalent units used to measure containers, across its portfolio.

ALEPPO, Syria — Midnight means lights out in Syria's Aleppo: as the clock strikes 12, overworked power generators shut off across the city, plunging war-ravaged neighbourhoods and heritage sites into darkness.

It will take many months and millions of dollars to breathe life back into Aleppo's devastated water, electricity, and transportation networks.

Four years of fighting have transformed it from Syria's industrial and commercial powerhouse to a divided and dysfunctional city.

"We sold our vacuum cleaner — what's the point in having one if we don't have electricity?" asked Umm Fayez, a housewife who lives in the central district of Furqan.

"It's been two years since we used our washing machine. We wash everything by hand, but the water is too cold now and I can't take it anymore," the mother-of-two told AFP, sitting in the dark amid piles of dirty laundry.

Forces loyal to President Bashar Assad declared full control over Syria's second city last week, after a landmark evacuation deal ended years of clashes.

Rocket fire, air strikes and shelling partly or totally destroyed more than half Aleppo's infrastructure and buildings, according to a "preliminary, optimistic evaluation" by local authorities.

Water shortages 

The main power station at Safirah to the southeast has been off line for two years because of the fighting.

Aleppo's residents are forced to rely on noisy generators that supply electricity through a web of thick cables snaking through scarred streets.

But they are shut down at midnight to save diesel supplies.

Umm Fayez's husband walks home every night from his sweetshop using a small torch to guide the way through pitch-black darkness.

"We have two projects that will re-establish electricity to Aleppo," an electricity ministry official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

He said new power lines would be laid from the neighbouring province of Hama within a year, but that it would cost more than four billion Syrian pounds, or about $8 million (7.6 million euros).

Residents are also impatient for water shortages to end, with the main pumping station currently operating at just a third of its capacity.

"We can only pump water to 20 per cent of Aleppo. Before the crisis, it was 70 per cent," said Issa Korj, chief mechanic at the Suleiman Al Halabi water plant.

He said it would take "many months" to repair the facility, but even then, water provision was likely to remain a problem for residents.

Most of the water pumped to Aleppo comes from the Euphrates Dam in the adjacent province of Raqa, which is held by the Daesh terror group. 

"They regularly cut off the water," said Fakher Hamdo, who heads Aleppo's water administration.

He added that global economic sanctions imposed on Syria since 2011 make spare parts nearly impossible to import.

‘Aleppo is one' 

But before any major rebuilding projects can begin, local authorities must clear away barricades and sand berms that had divided Aleppo between the rebel-controlled east and the government-held west.

Bulldozers can already be seen in the bombed-out streets, clearing rubble and dismantling metal barriers.

"The municipality immediately mobilised to open up the main thoroughfares," said city administrator Nadim Rahmoun.

"Opening up the roads will allow us to pump life back into the city with economic and social activity and public services," he added.

Aleppo's Old City — a renowned UNESCO World Heritage site — is at the heart of this effort.

The district witnessed some of the most brutal moments of the battle for Aleppo, and restoring its celebrated buildings will pose major challenges.

Municipal teams are carefully sorting through the rubble, setting aside original centuries-old stonework that will be used in the restoration.

In the nearby district of Aqyul, Abduljawad Najed, 32, had to negotiate heaps of sand to check on his brother's house. 

"It took more than an hour and a half," he said.

After the barricades were cleared, the same journey took Najed 10 minutes.

"Things were much easier and I was able to come by car," he said, loading some household effects into his small pick-up.

Najed's enthusiasm was shared by furniture store owner Zakariya, 42.

"Thank God, all the roads are now linked together. Aleppo is one again," he said.

WASHINGTON — US consumer confidence posted sharp gains in December, hitting its highest level in 15 years, according to survey data released on Tuesday.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index jumped 4.3 points for the month to 113.7, easily surpassing an analyst forecast and extending gains made in November to reach the highest point since August 2001.

The monthly jump was solely due to an increase in survey respondents' expectations for business, income and employment in the coming six months, the board said in a statement.

Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators, said the Expectations Index also hit a 13-year high at 105.5, with post-election optimism most pronounced among older consumers.

"Consumers' assessment of current conditions, which declined, still suggests that economic growth continued through the final months of 2016," Franco said in the statement. 

The share of consumers saying business conditions were good fell 0.5 points to 29.7 per cent, but those saying things were bad rose by a greater degree, 2.1 points to 17.3 per cent.

Views on the current jobs situation were more stable: the share of people saying jobs were "plentiful" fell 0.9 points to 26.9 per cent, while those who said jobs were hard to get rose 1.3 points to 22.5 per cent.

The short-term outlook was much rosier. Expectations for business conditions jumped 7.2 points to 23.6 per cent and those foreseeing more jobs moved up 5.9 points to 21 per cent.

"Looking ahead to 2017, consumers' continued optimism will depend on whether or not their expectations are realised," Franco said.

AMMAN — Airport International Group (AIG), the Jordanian company responsible for the rehabilitation, expansion and operation of Queen Alia International Airport (QAIA) said QAIA welcomed 488,215 passengers during November, registering a 9.1 per cent rise compared to the figure recorded in the same month last year. 

The airport also registered 5,278 aircraft movements (ACM) compared to 5,173 in 2015, indicating a 2 per cent year-on-year rise, according to an AIG statement. 

Cargo figures dropped 5.6 per cent as QAIA handled 8,130 tonnes as opposed to 8,612 tonnes during the same month of last year, the statement added.  

The increase in airport traffic during November raised the 2016 year-to-date (YTD) passengers to 6,871,408. 

Additionally, YTD ACM increased by 2.9 per cent to settle at 67,831 ACM, while YTD cargo traffic figures went up 1.5 per cent to reach 92,255 tons. 

“We’re excited about the growth we witnessed in November, and we’re looking forward to closing the year with even higher numbers than last year. 2016 has been great for QAIA, filled with achievements across the board, and we look forward to adding one final triumph to its record during the final month of the year,” AIG CEO, Kjeld Binger said.

CAIRO — Egypt targets a 5 per cent economic growth in the year to June 2018, the finance ministry said on Sunday as the government seeks to revive an economy battered by political turmoil.

Egyptian authorities have battled high unemployment, inflation and a collapse in tourism income since the 2011 uprising that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak.

President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, who led the 2013 military overthrow of Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's first elected civilian president, vowed to get the economy back on track after his election the following year.

In a statement Sunday, the finance ministry said it aimed to "raise growth for 2017/2018 to 5 per cent" and to create "real, productive jobs that help lower unemployment to 11 per cent and raise citizens' incomes”.

Consumers have been hit by surging price hikes since November when Cairo floated its currency and slashed fuel subsidies as part of an economic reform package linked to a $12 billion International Monetary Fund loan.

The Egyptian pound had been pegged at 8.83 to the dollar, but has since weakened to more than 19 pounds to the dollar.

Egypt's inflation rate jumped to 19.4 per cent in November from 13.6 per cent the previous month, according to the central bank.

Despite its woes, the government has projected 5.2 per cent GDP growth in the year to June 2017.

Economic output grew 4.3 per cent in the year to June 2016, the ministry of planning said in November.

The finance ministry hopes to bring unemployment — which officially stood at 12.6 per cent from July to September — down to 11 per cent in the year to June 2018.

The ministry said it also wants to cut its budget deficit to 9.5 per cent of the GDP in the year to June 2018, down from 12.2 per cent the previous year.

It said it hopes to cut public debt to 94 per cent of the GDP in the year to June 2018, with a medium-term target of 80 per cent.

"The government will continue to implement a structural reforms package to support productive sectors especially industry and exports, while attracting investments," the ministry said.

It said it would press ahead with implementing a value-added tax and "policies to rationalise spending”.

Neanwhile, Sisi on Saturday said that the military's economic activity accounted for no more than 2 per cent of the country's output, dismissing suggestions that the military could control as much as half of the economy.

Speaking at an event celebrating the expansion of a military-owned company, Sisi said the military made up 1.5-2 per cent of economic output which he said was 3-4 trillion Egyptian pounds ($160 billion-$213 billion).

That would put the military's share of economic activity at between $2.39 billion and $4.26 billion.

"It has been said that the military's economy is worth 20 or even 50 per cent of the economy. I wish. We have nothing to hide; the military accounts for between 1.5 and 2 per cent of the economy," Sisi said, adding that the military paid taxes on all projects and that they were subject to regulations and auditing.

"We would love for it to be 50 per cent."

Sisi, a former general who took office in 2014, has promised to revive the economy, which has struggled since a 2011 uprising scared away investors and tourists, Egypt's main sources of foreign currency.

He has called in the military to assist in major infrastructure projects and with distribution of subsidised commodities to keep a lid on rising prices amid an acute shortage of dollars.

The economic weight of the military, which produces everything from bottled water to macaroni, has long been a topic of speculation in Egypt but official comment on the scope of its economic activities is rare.

LONDON — Britain’s economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter, revised official data showed Friday, indicating no impact yet from the nation’s looming exit from the European Union.

Gross domestic product expanded by 0.6 per cent in the three months to the end of September, up from the previous estimate of 0.5 per cent, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in a statement.

Activity was greater than expected due to upward revisions on the output of the business services and finance industries, it added.

“Robust consumer demand continued to help the UK economy grow steadily in the third quarter of 2016,” noted Darren Morgan, the head of the GDP at the ONS.

“Growth was slightly stronger than first thought, though, due to greater output in the financial sector.

“New figures on services also suggest that growth in that predominant sector of the economy continued into October, helped in large part by another strong showing from the retailers.”

The ONS, meanwhile, revised down its growth estimates for the first and second quarters by 0.1 percentage points, to 0.3 per cent and 0.6 per cent respectively.

“The fundamentals of the UK economy are strong, but there remain challenges ahead,” a treasury spokesman said.

Economists point to an economy intact since the June 23 referendum in favour of Britain leaving the EU — but some also warn of looming trouble.

“The latest set of UK national accounts leave the economy looking even stronger after the referendum than previously estimated,” said economist Ruth Gregory at research consultancy Capital Economics.