The Maldives, a honeymoon hotspot, sits on a key global shipping route, making it a strategic power play for both China and India.

President Mohamed Muizzu defends his ties with Beijing while speaking to Bloomberg's Haslinda Amin, and talks about why he wants Indian troops out of his country.

Watch the full episode of Latitude: https://trib.al/hlty0ba

New York is no longer the world's most expensive city to live in.

Watch this video to find out which cities grabbed the top spot this year, according to a new worldwide survey: https://trib.al/lQzvqKs

For years, India’s tech graduates could bank on a job offer from one of the country’s IT giants. Now those starting positions are suddenly waning, leaving hundreds of thousands in peril and creating a fresh headache for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. https://trib.al/DQyPl56

Under threat from rising sea levels, the Maldives is building a new island more than six feet above the ocean to house its people. President Mohamed Muizzu talks about the country's climate struggle in a wide-ranging interview with Bloomberg's Haslinda Amin.

Watch the full episode of Latitude: https://trib.al/hlty0ba

Solar plans: The world’s biggest climate fund is backing Acumen's plans for a $250 million facility that will bring electricity from off-grid solar projects to 72 million people in some of Africa’s poorest countries. https://bloom.bg/46HvGiT

Kenya's shilling weakness: The head of the East African nation’s largest bank by market value says the depreciation of the country’s currency, which has weakened almost 20% against the dollar this year, has peaked. https://bloom.bg/419HlGo

Elections among top risks for South Africa: General elections due in 2024 are among the key risks facing the sub-Saharan nation's economy, says Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago. https://bloom.bg/46HlAia

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

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Breaking News: Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to travel to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia Wednesday, defying efforts by the US and Europe to isolate him over his war in Ukraine. https://trib.al/sj9O55e

Rising Debt: Moody’s cut its outlook for Chinese sovereign bonds to negative, underscoring deepening global concerns about the level of debt in the world’s second largest economy. https://trib.al/qLeC4oz

Big Take: The FDA is resisting using an independent lab to evaluate drugs in the US. The Pentagon believes cheap generics may pose a danger to troops. https://trib.al/2TO29AW

South Africa's economy shrinks: The sub-Saharan nation's GDP shrank in the third quarter as logistics constraints and a chronic electricity shortage took their toll. https://bloom.bg/47EIzvJ

Egypt's richest man: Nassef Sawiris is moving his family office to Abu Dhabi, joining a wave of prominent investors that have set up operations in the sun-splashed emirate. https://bloom.bg/3sZYF3V

Zimbabwe bond listing: The country has scrapped a plan to list a $200 million dollar bond on its stock exchange in the resort city of Victoria Falls. https://bloom.bg/47IyZYv

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

India’s stock market value reached more than $4 trillion for the first time, marking a key milestone for the world’s fifth-biggest equity market as it rapidly narrows the gap with slumping Hong Kong.

The market capitalization of companies listed on India’s exchanges has risen by $1 trillion in less than three years, as the South Asian market emerges as one of the best performers in the region as well as the emerging world. https://bloom.bg/3TbTZCr

Bribery charges: Trafigura Group and a former executive have been charged by the Swiss attorney general over allegations of bribing public officials in Angola. https://bloom.bg/3TbRkbW

Currency depreciation: The Kenyan shilling’s depreciation of almost 20% against the dollar this year is 'overdone', the East African nation’s central bank governor said. https://bloom.bg/3t6rXhg

Powering Africa: The World Bank plans to allocate $5 billion to bring electricity to 100 million people in Africa by the end of the decade. https://bloom.bg/46QSa0V

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

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Weak Trade Data: China’s exports expanded in November from one year ago while imports surprisingly shrank, with headline figures lifted by a comparison with a Covid-hit period in 2022. https://trib.al/bfBfT94

Big Take: An Indonesian tycoon has a plan to save his city from sinking — with his company making billions of dollars in the process. https://trib.al/JpXXYFR

Free To Read: Businesses in India beware: the proposed new criminal laws tighten the screws on economic offences. https://trib.al/C6HmCdL

India Edition: Looking for insightful commentary and in-depth analyses on India? Sign up here [ https://bloom.bg/3qEX2rh ] for our weekly newsletter to stay updated with the latest reportage on billionaires and businesses behind its rise.

UK votes on Rwanda bill: Rishi Sunak won’t consider a crunch vote in Parliament on his anti-immigration bill as a vote of confidence in his government. https://bloom.bg/3RxNada

SocGen's Africa pull out: Societe Generale is selling two African units as the lender accelerates its pullout from the continent and streamlines its business under a new strategy by CEO Slawomir Krupa. https://bloom.bg/47KPMKF

Seychelles state of emergency: The country declared a state of emergency after a blast at an explosives depot owned by a local construction company, and following flooding caused by heavy rains. https://bloom.bg/3TjYyel

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

Tata Group plans to build one of India’s biggest iPhone assembly plants, tapping Apple’s ambitions to diversify its operations away from China.

Tata wants to construct the factory in the southern Tamil Nadu state and the facility will likely have about 20 assembly lines and employ 50,000 workers within two years, sources say. The goal is for the site to be operational in 12 to 18 months.

The plant would bolster Apple’s efforts to localize its supply chain and strengthen its partnership with Tata, which already has an iPhone factory it acquired from Wistron in the neighboring Karnataka state. Read more: https://bloom.bg/485r0V7

Criminals, landlords cash in: A cocoa market boom has been a mixed blessing for farmers in West Africa they're being targeted by criminals looking to cash in on the jump in prices. https://bloom.bg/3sZYbuJ

Universal health plan: South Africa's parliament has approved enabling legislation for the program, which will be phased in over several years. However, doubts remain about whether it will solve the country’s health-care woes. https://bloom.bg/3Rh0lOm

India fighter jets: India’s state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics is in talks with at least three countries, including Nigeria, to export its homemade multi-role fighter jets. https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/HNAL:IN

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

Monetary stimulus: Bank of Japan officials see little need to rush into scrapping the world’s last negative interest rate this month. https://trib.al/K5PmXcE

Inside story: Agnes Chow talks about the mental toll of working with Hong Kong's national security police to secure freedom overseas. https://trib.al/6hhDn0O

The Big Take: A little-known shopping app is outpacing Alibaba — and now coming for Amazon. https://trib.al/MyTJ92A

Debt defaulter: Ethiopia is set to join Zambia and Ghana as a sovereign defaulter, with an interest payment falling due to its bondholders on Monday that the state says it won’t meet. https://bloom.bg/3tm8xVA

Rwanda deportation: The UK Conservative Party’s euro-skeptic caucus will gather to discuss how to handle Rishi Sunak’s controversial legislation. https://bloom.bg/3GyS6sh

Farm blues: Sentiment among South Africa’s agricultural businesses slumped to its lowest level since the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. https://bloom.bg/3uMcq6E

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

Doritos Nacho Cheese chips partnerships have gone to countless places, from Call of Duty to virtual concerts with the Netflix series Stranger Things.

One place Doritos has never gone, at least in a way officially sanctioned by parent company PepsiCo, is into alcohol. But on December 12, the flaming orange chips will get sloshed with the launch of Empirical x Doritos Nacho Cheese. So, what does it taste like? https://trib.al/CoNjUSr

Bond surge: Ethiopia’s eurobond jumped the most in almost a year before an investor call later this week to discuss its proposals for restructuring the loan. https://bloom.bg/3Nqgct4

Civil war: Allegations that the United Arab Emirates provided arms to a paramilitary group in Sudan have triggered a spat with the army. https://bloom.bg/3Rg6avD

Education crisis: Private schools are thriving as state education system buckles in South Africa. https://bloom.bg/3RANKaa

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

Eskom Loss: South Africa’s Eskom faces its seventh consecutive full-year loss burdened by debt, operational inefficiencies and unpaid municipal bills. https://bloom.bg/3uYjtta

Gas wealth: Mozambique's Finance Minister plans to establish a sovereign wealth fund to manage an anticipated $91.7 billion in future natural-gas export revenue. https://bloom.bg/3uZd5lt

Economic tightrope: A sharp decline in fuel prices eased South Africa's inflation, but persistent pressure from other sectors prompts central bank caution. https://bloom.bg/4ag887T

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

Ghana inflation: The country's inflation rate fell in November to a 19 month low, helped by aggressive monetary policy tightening by the central bank. https://bloom.bg/3v0OtJ5

Logistics: Transnet withdrew a request for quotes for an operating lease on a freight-rail artery that connects its biggest port with its industrial hub. https://bloom.bg/47QWBu6

Eskom debt: South Africa’s indebted state power utility has asked the National Treasury to convert 16 billion rand ($840 million) of bailout funds into equity. https://bloom.bg/3t8izKd

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz

Patchy recovery: China's sustained economic growth remains uncertain as industrial output jumps but the property sector remains weak. https://trib.al/PiRds7S

Shifting trend: India's new millionaires are splurging on mansions in the "Beverly Hills of Dubai," marking a shift in global money flows. https://trib.al/yC9L6Ha

The Big Take: Four kids died in Colombia. More than a hundred fell ill. But the drug company keeps selling cancer medicine. Bloomberg investigates a tainted chemo medicine wound up in pediatric cancer wards. https://trib.al/uS5Eayu

India Edition: India doesn't have to choose between goods and services exports but priorities matter, say former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan and economist Rohit Lamba. Menaka Doshi writes about the 'Amritkaal' challenge. https://trib.al/29JAfYe

Looking for insightful commentary and in-depth analyses on India? Sign up here for our weekly newsletter to stay updated with the latest reportage on billionaires and businesses behind its rise.

Ship attacks: BP said it will pause all shipments through the Red Sea following an escalation of attacks on merchant shipping by Houthi militants. https://bloom.bg/48mq9j3

Unit sale: Standard Chartered is selling its consumer-banking business unit in the Ivory Coast to West African lender Coris Bank. https://bloom.bg/4aBd2N4

DRC ballot: Voters in Democratic Republic of Congo have 26 presidential candidates to choose from on Wednesday as the country holds elections. https://bloom.bg/482SxqD

Watch Africa Amplified for a deep dive into the region’s biggest stories: https://bloom.bg/3u0S3Cz