The deal, which had been backed by Canadian authorities yet still required US approval, is worth $15.1 billion and represents China’s largest ever foreign takeover.

Joshua Zive of Bracewell & Guiliani, a Washington-based lobbying firm said the approval for CNOOC's latest deal "is likely to be viewed as a positive development. That, in the current climate, is a moment of significance.”

As the mining sector in South Africa has evolved, so too have the mechanisms, tools, items of equipment and software needed to service what is a dynamic, complex and challenging industry. It was in the 1980s that MineWare’s managing director, Paul Saker, first identified the fact that this rapidly growing industry required access to much more detailed financial analysis when it comes to fixed and variable cost modelling.

How can it be that a significant copper deposit, known for over 100 years, owned and operated by a progression of operators – including two leading international names – can struggle along for 93 years and then become an overnight success in 2005?

The service sees credit-card holders post a specific hashtag on Twitter to trigger payments from their accounts. In order to use its purchase-by-tweet facility, Amex members must first link their card to their Twitter account via the financial services firm's app. They then need to go to the firm's Twitter page and select the Favourites section to view which items are on sale and the associated hashtags.

The cash and stock deal worth $23.3 billion will put Liberty Global’s owner John Malone in direct competition with Rupert Murdoch, whose media empire owns 39 percent of Virgin Media’s pay-TV rival BSkyB.

The move comes at a time when SAB is actively trying to boost its market share in what is the world’s largest beet market. Just last year the company said that consolidation in China was a long-term trend that would lead to greater industry profitability. According to SAB, China accounted for 43 percent of the total growth in beer volumes in 2011.

To say that a company is responsible for revolutionising a specific industry sector is certainly a bold claim to make. Yet it is an utterly true statement to make when it comes to VingCard Elsafe. Since transforming the hospitality industry in 1979 with the introduction of the world’s first recordable lock, the company has continued to lead the market by continuously introducing new innovations.