Skyewise Group, a private firm, is exploring the possibility of establishing a vehicle assembly plant in Edo State, Nigeria. The company cites a conducive environment and potential state government support as factors for the investment.

Slovakia is embroiled in a dispute over the sale of two KUB air defense missile systems. Former Defense Minister Jaroslav Naď claims a private firm acquired and then sold them abroad for approximately 240 million crowns.

A Serbian activist from Kreni-Promeni, Banac, claims that citizens' money is being used to pay private firms millions to mistreat animals in shelters, failing to solve the problem of abandoned dogs.

Russian authorities have approved a mechanism permitting private companies to purchase heavy weaponry to defend industrial facilities against drone attacks, according to RBC news, citing sources close to the Ministry.

UAE mandates private firms to pay staff by the first of each Gregorian month from June 1, 2026. This stringent wage protection reform aims to bolster worker rights and labour compliance.

A top People's Liberation Army official urged increasing the private sector's role in research to counter Western sanctions and prevent them from hindering China's defense innovation efforts.

Dubai is launching a program to train private companies in 'Agentic AI,' enabling technology to make autonomous decisions and enhance business operations.

New and harsher anti-graft regulations in China are reportedly increasing risks for private companies operating in the country.

Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia signed an agreement for the Southern Interconnection gas pipeline project, aiming to enhance energy security. Croatian Prime Minister Plenković expressed satisfaction with the deal, which also involves US capital spearheading the project.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Region 4A has collaborated with private companies to rehabilitate two creeks located in Cavite and Batangas, Philippines.

The Center Party leader, Mihhail Kõlvart, accused the Reform-led government of transferring Estonia's 30-year oil shale reserves to VKG for unclear reasons, allegedly concealing the deal's value and undermining energy security.

Serbian flags displayed along the main street in Gračanica were removed by workers from an Albanian private firm, accompanied by Kosovo police, reportedly on the orders of Kosovo's Minister for Administration and Local Self-Government, Eljber Krasniqi.

In Slovakia, public sector wages are increasing faster than those in private companies, which is accelerating minimum wage growth and negatively affecting the competitiveness of firms.

The Czech town of Chodov and its company Teplo Chodov have taken over heating facilities from the private firm Marservis following a two-decade-long legal dispute, though the equipment is reportedly in poor condition.

Despite facing various challenges, private firms in China are demonstrating strong vitality, indicating resilience and continued growth in the country's economic landscape.

A private firm, reportedly linked to businessman close to Bratislav Gašić, has become a co-owner of jet fuel tanks located near the Belgrade airport, raising questions about the process.

Forbes Serbia reports that a private firm, linked to a businessman close to Gašić, has become a co-owner of jet fuel tanks previously held by the state, raising questions about the exploitation of the energy crisis.

Private firms – mainly shipyards, ports and industrial operators – must implement flood defences on their land as part of a nationwide coastal defence line.

A cashier and his friend have been arrested in Bengaluru for allegedly stealing 91.76 lakh rupees (approximately $110,000 USD) from a private firm.

Private companies were handed the lion’s share of Cyprus’s renewable energy capacity while consumers paid nearly €1 billion in carbon charges and saw no reduction in their electricity bills, the Audit Office has found. A special report on the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC), published Thursday, found that the Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority (CERA) gave […]

As the drama shows, private firms no longer able to pollute the coast of England of Wales just switched to rivers instead There is a moment in Channel 4’s drama Dirty Business when Julie Maughan hold

A report from the Budapest Business Journal indicates that the collective value of the top 100 private firms in Hungary experienced a 1% decrease.

The price of the land designated for the Doicești nuclear power plant in Romania has quadrupled in four years, initially bought by a private firm for six million euros before the Romanian state partnered with it.

Interim Deputy Prime Minister Oana Gheorghiu stated that only three small private firms handle the selection of state company leaders in Romania, warning of a structural problem and a €198 million sanction against the country.

Slovak Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák admitted that Kub air defense systems were sold to a private firm as scrap for tens of thousands of euros, only to be resold for 10 million euros. He stated the air force maintains the same number of operational Kub batteries.

Russia has introduced a new system permitting private companies to procure heavy weapons, including anti-aircraft artillery and electronic warfare systems, to defend their sites against drone attacks.

China has expanded its travel restrictions to include top artificial intelligence talent working at private firms like Alibaba and DeepSeek, according to Bloomberg News. This move limits their ability to travel overseas and impacts the country's tech sector.

A letter allegedly written by former National Service Scheme (NSS) Deputy Executive Director Gifty Oware-Mensah, directing the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) to transfer funds to her private company, has been admitted into evidence in her ongoing trial.

Private companies are submitting numerous proposals to local governments in Poland to build shelters, including under sports fields, sports halls, and underground garages. The Ministry of Interior and Administration considers many of these proposals worth considering.

OpenVC has launched a new index designed to track the performance and data of both public and private companies.

As Pakistanis increasingly seek employment in Gulf countries, private firms are stepping in to provide cultural and conduct training to prepare them for their new environments.

A representative testified in a dispute against a public pharmacy institution, concerning a ten-year contract signed by a former director, which allocated 85% of advertising revenue to a private firm.

Kenya's security sector is on edge as the National Youth Service (NYS) reportedly eyes Sh1.8 billion in state contracts and 1.5 million jobs. Private firms warn that this move could collapse a multi-billion-shilling industry.

India's Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested a deputy director from the aviation body DGCA and a senior executive from a private firm. The arrests were made in connection with a bribery case involving Rs 2.5 lakh.

Research has revealed that private firms providing services to the NHS in England, including healthcare and consultancy, generated £1.6 billion in profits over two years, prompting MPs to call the profit levels 'scandalous.'

Venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya has advised private companies to go public quickly, citing diminishing investor interest and increasing geopolitical risks. He metaphorically described the IPO market as a feast where latecomers will find limited opportunities.

Malacañang has stated that private sector companies are free to decide on implementing work-from-home arrangements to help reduce fuel costs and mitigate the impact of rising oil prices.

A controversial bill, described by critics as serving the interests of large companies like Hertz and Uber, is set to be debated in the Greek Parliament's plenary session, aiming to 'liberalize' the transport market in favor of private firms.

Following an accident in Karur, the Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) has instructed a private firm to strictly follow safety protocols for operating cargo trains.

A private firm, Euro KB Rent, linked to businessman Zoran Kostić, has become the sole owner of fuel tanks at Nikola Tesla Airport, previously owned by NIS and the state, which were used by state commodity reserves.

In his National Cybersecurity Strategy, President Trump sought an expanded role for private firms in cyberwarfare. He did not take on China or Russia in the document.

China’s private firms hail renewed push for sci-tech self-reliance in Government Work Report  Global Times

Court dismissed fresh attempts by squatters and private firms to claim the land.

• In his testimony, Danish Ali alleges lack of trained staff and equipment hampered timely response • One of six survivors tells judicial commission they escaped on their own as smoke spread inside building KARACHI: A man working as a fireman in a private firm narrated his heroic efforts before the Gul Plaza Judicial Commission on Wednesday, which led to the rescue of 11 persons from the burning building on the night of Jan 17. The man, Danish Ali, maintained that he had voluntarily participa...

A Channel 4 drama titled 'Dirty Business' has prompted renewed calls for the nationalization of the water industry, highlighting issues of pollution by private firms.

China's Debt Model Creates Danger Of Stagnation Authored by Daniel Lacalle, The latest social financing figures from China show an economy that is increasingly relying on government debt while private demand for credit remains weak. The strength of the Chinese technology sector and its exporting companies gives enough room for leverage. However, behind the weak private sector credit demand lies an evident economic slowdown that the Chinese government acknowledges, challenging consumption patterns, a significant overcapacity problem, and the depth of the housing crisis. The current economic model, focused on delivering 5% real economic growth, requires larger doses of debt to achieve smaller increments of growth, especially productive sector growth. The government has focused on reducing debt and overcapacity imbalances while reorienting its exports and financial system to lessen dependence on the US dollar; however, the main challenge for the Chinese economy remains boosting consumer demand, despite rate cuts and easing financial conditions. To understand the intensity of debt of the Chinese model, we must go to the year 2000 and see the acceleration in the flow of debt, not just the current stock. At that time, real GDP growth was around 8–9%, so each percentage point of growth came with roughly 13–16 points of debt‑to‑GDP. Government debt was very low, at around 25% of GDP, and most leverage sat in the state-owned corporate sector with modest household debt. China was able to deliver near‑double‑digit growth with a total non‑financial debt ratio barely above 120% of GDP. By 2023, non‑financial sector debt had risen to about 285% of GDP, more than doubling its level of 2000. Chinese think‑tanks and official commentators put the “macro leverage ratio” closer to 300% of GDP by 2025, according to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The macro leverage ratio rose by 11.8 percentage points to 302.3 percent in 2025, exceeding the 10.1-point increase reported in 2024. Over the same period, the trend of real GDP growth has slowed to roughly 4–5%, so each percentage point of growth now requires around 60–75 points of debt‑to‑GDP, more than three times the debt per point of growth required in 2000. Furthermore, it comes mostly from government debt. In January 2026, aggregate social financing jumped by 7.22 trillion yuan, significantly higher than in the same month of 2025 and above market expectations, consistent with 5% annual GDP growth and a larger composition of the public sector in the mix. Outstanding social financing reached 449.11 trillion yuan at the end of January, rising 8.2% year‑on‑year, while money supply (M2) rose by 9%.​ New yuan bank loans were 4.7 trillion yuan, about 420 billion less than a year earlier and significantly below consensus, showing the weak private‑sector credit demand and the prudent approach of Chinese customers and businesses to debt addition. RMB loans outstanding stood at 276.62 trillion yuan, up only 6.1% year‑on‑year, clearly below the pace of overall financing and money growth. The driver of credit growth in China is no longer households and private firms but the government and state-owned companies. The real estate problem has impacted Chinese families in numerous ways. Not only did most of them see the value of their homes decline, but many families invested in the attractive yields of real estate developers’ commercial paper, which led to large losses and even the wipe-out of savings for many. Additionally, despite the excess in supply of houses, prices have not fallen enough to warrant enough appetite for new mortgages, as affordability remains an issue and the traditional prudence of Chinese citizens when it comes to consuming and borrowing adds to the challenge. Beijing plans to issue 4.4 trillion yuan in local government special‑purpose bonds in 2025, 500 billion more than in 2024, looking to boost government investment and a “proactive fiscal policy,” knowing that raising taxes would be exceedingly negative for growth and consumption. Local governments are expected to issue more than 10 trillion yuan in bonds in 2025, including refinancing, general bonds, and new special bonds. The Chinese government knows that it can manage more debt but also sees the weak investment and household spending and acknowledges that large tax increases would be counterproductive.  However, to prevent future debt-driven stagnation, a focus on productivity is necessary. The official budget sets a deficit of 4% for 2025. However, once all budget items are consolidated, including government funds, special bonds, and off‑budget vehicles, this true fiscal deficit in 2025 is closer to 9%, up from 7.7% in 2024, according to Rhodium Group and JP Morgan. China increasingly relies on hidden or almost fiscal borrowing to support growth. With outstanding social financing now around 449 trillion yuan and real growth around 4–5%, each incremental point of GDP is increasingly linked with a much larger stock of debt than a decade ago. This rising credit intensity of growth may prevent a significant slowdown but may create a significant fiscal challenge in the future. The Chinese model demands high growth and low taxes; any change to the fiscal system will be negative. For years, local governments relied on the sale of land for property development to collect tax receipts. Thus, the drag from real estate is evident in the economy and in fiscal sustainability. Real estate development investment fell 13.9% year‑on‑year in the first three quarters of 2025, with residential investment down 12.9%, the steepest drop since 2021, according to official figures. Property investment and sales both posted double‑digit declines in 2024, and forecasters expect real estate investment to fall another 11% and sales to drop 7.5% in 2025, according to Reuters, with further declines in 2026 before stabilizing only in 2027… if it happens as fast as consensus estimates. The property sector, once a key engine for economic growth and tax receipts, absorbs new credit to stabilize its accounts without boosting growth or creating a multiplier effect. Additionally, China’s industrial capacity utilization remained at 74.9% at the end of 2025, well below the 78.4% peak reached in 2021. Overcapacity is clear in steel, autos, legacy chips, and parts of sectors like green tech, where expansion has surpassed domestic and external demand. Thus, the purchasing managers’ indices show weak new orders and foreign demand, while bankruptcies and insolvencies have risen, although not to levels that would indicate a financial crisis.​ The Chinese economy needs to reopen, improve investor and legal security and allow the housing slump to materialize fully to see the type of productive economic growth it needs to avoid much larger increases in debt. Otherwise, the risk of stagnation will likely be elevated as population growth stalls, overcapacity remains, and the stock of unsold property becomes a larger liability.   Tyler Durden Mon, 02/16/2026 - 22:25

Slovakia reportedly sold KUB anti-aircraft missile systems, potentially worth millions, for the price of scrap metal to a private firm named Robus. Defense Minister Kaliňák has not been able to prove that the sale was due to decisions made by his predecessors.

Several private companies have expressed interest in taking over the management of the Smiljevići landfill in Sarajevo, with the Sarajevo Canton Government considering concession as a potential solution.

Slovak Defense Minister Jaroslav Naď has released images suggesting that former minister Robert Kaliňák secretly sold KUB missile systems through a private firm, Robus, for ten million euros, with the equipment reportedly ending up in Uganda.

The NHS is spending a record £241 million outsourcing diagnostic scan analysis to private companies, a move radiologists attribute to staffing failures and an overreliance on lower-quality private reports.

Five Bangladeshi workers, employed by a private firm in Tetovo with regulated residency, reportedly left their jobs without informing their employers, according to a police report.

Employees of private companies in Poland have not massively applied to ZUS (Social Insurance Institution) for certificates confirming work seniority, which would grant them eligibility for longer vacation leave. Interest in the benefit remains low.

Al Jazeera reports that UK universities allegedly paid a private firm to monitor students involved in pro-Palestine activities.

Dr. Nsafoah stated that central banks, unlike private firms, are not profit-maximizing institutions and should not be evaluated solely on accounting losses, emphasizing their roles in inflation control and monetary stability.

A problematic 10-year contract signed by former director Goran Marinović for Montefarm is under scrutiny, as it allocated 85% of advertising revenue to a private firm, leaving only 15% for Montefarm.

Lagos State has entered into power purchase agreements with three private firms. These agreements aim to enhance electricity supply and infrastructure within the state.

Opposition politician Marinika Tepić has questioned why private firms, rather than state institutions, are responsible for checking the security of facilities and personnel at Prokop, specifically mentioning Dunav osiguranje. She raised concerns about the oversight of these arrangements.

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced an additional 631.5 billion yen in R&D funding for Rapidus, a company focused on advanced semiconductor mass production. The ministry also revealed financial support for private firms developing AI semiconductors, aiming to secure Rapidus's business partners.

A drone crashed in a village in Uttar Pradesh, India, prompting comments from former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, though police later clarified it belonged to a private firm.

Secondary school principals in Ireland are paying a private social media monitoring company to remove harmful content and tackle cyberbullying, with demand for the service nearly doubling recently.

The petition said the six distributors procure LPG from Confidence Petroleum India Limited and subsequently supply the same to its customers, including households, hotels, small industries, and…

UK Minister Darren Jones confirmed that the government will retain control over the digital ID project, which is a £1.8bn scheme, but also stated that it will have limited uses, such as vehicle tax payments and right-to-work checks, before the next election.

An Indian High Court has ordered a probe into a case involving forged life insurance policies and directed the arrest of a private firm official for failing to appear in court.

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced that the government and 32 private companies have collectively invested over 260 billion yen into Rapidus, a company focused on mass-producing advanced semiconductors. The investment aims to support Rapidus's technology development and customer acquisition efforts.

• Justice Agha Faisal rules commission’s ToRs do not permit intervention; advises Muttahida to submit their information via email • Leased in 1883, Gul Plaza plot was sold to a private firm in 1983, says municipal commissioner KARACHI: While turning down an application of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) seeking to become a party in the proceedings, the Gul Plaza Judicial Commission on Monday recorded the testimonies of the municipal commissioner and various other officials in th...

The Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria, ACPN, on Monday accused the Federal Ministry of Health of violating existing Acts of Parliament following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with Medipool, a private firm, to run a centralised drug purchasing system for Nigeria’s health sector. The post Pharmacists kick as FMoH signs Medipool drug procurement deal appeared first on Vanguard News.

CSIR–NIIST is set to transfer its innovative designer rice technology, enriched with protein and micronutrients while boasting a lower glycaemic impact. This initiative aims to transform polished white rice into a healthier staple, with licenses granted to Tata Consumer Products Ltd and SS Soul Foods. The event will also see the transfer of other advanced technologies.