Suarez, Alexis, Costa? Who has been your signing of the summer so far?

Goal casts an eye over the transfer activity so far in the current window - who do you think has been the shrewdest bit of business?

Clubs across the world are hard at work strengthening their squads as the new season draws ever closer, but which transfer has been the best of the summer so far?

As ever, the Premier League's finest have been in the thick of the action. Arsenal have shown their new-found willingness to spend over the last 12 months and made headlines by bringing Barcelona forwardAlexis Sanchez to the club alongside Newcastle's Mathieu Debuchy, who will replace Bacary Sagna at right-back.

Arsene Wenger turned down the chance to raid Barca for Cesc Fabregas, who joined Chelsea instead. Jose Mourinho also brought in two of Atletico Madrid's Liga winners - star striker Diego Costa and left-back Filipe Luis - as he looks to launch an assault on the Premier League title.

Liverpool narrowly missed out on the crown last term but signalled their intent to remain at the top end of the table by signing Southampton's England duo Adam Lallana and Rickie Lambert alongside Bayer Leverkusen starlet Emre Can.

Their arch rivals Manchester United fared all together worse last season, finishing seventh, but have shown that they mean business under new coach Louis van Gaal by bringing Luke Shaw and Ander Herrera to the club.

Manchester City won the title last time out and have long dominated the transfer market but have had a decidedly more quiet summer this year, sealing a bosman deal for Sagna, completing a long-awaited move for Porto's Fernando and signing Willy Caballero to strengthen their goalkeeping options.

Real Madrid and Barcelona have long been locked in battle both on and off the pitch and have both been big spenders in recent years. This summer, Barca have brought in Ivan Rakitic, Claudio Bravo, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and, most notably, Luis Suarez as they look to wrestle back the Liga title.

In contrast, Madrid have been slightly quieter, only signing Toni Kroos from Bayern Munich, but are expected to do more business in the coming months.

They were both beaten to the punch domestically by Atletico Madrid last term and Diego Simeone's most notable bit of business so far has been the acquisition of Mario Mandzukic to replace the outgoing Costa.

Mandzukic left Bayern Munich primarily because of the signing of Robert Lewandowski and the Pole is one of three arrivals at the Allianz Arena this summer, alongside Sebastian Rode and Juan Bernat.

Their main rivals for the Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund, have also been busy, signing Ciro Immobileand Adrian Ramos to fill the Lewandowski void, while Matthias Ginter has also arrived to strengthen their defence.

Immobile was partially owned by Juventus, who have had a frustrating transfer market, but the signing of Alvaro Morata has lifted the spirits of the Turin side.

AC Milan, meanwhile, have brought in Jeremy Menez and Alex from Paris Saint-Germain as they look to regain a top-four place under Pippo Inzaghi next time out.

PSG themselves have also had a quiet summer by their big-spending standards, with their only major signing coming in the form of David Luiz from Chelsea.

Manchester United can win things under Van Gaal - Mata

The Spanish attacking midfielder is "really happy" with the chance to play for the respected Dutch manager and is hopeful to restore glory to the club this season

Manchester United star Juan Mata is optimistic that his side can win silverware this season under Louis van Gaal.

The Dutchman has been tasked with returning the Red Devils to glory after a seventh-placed Premier League finish in 2013-14 and brings with him title-winning experience from the Eredivisie, La Liga and the Bundesliga.

The 62-year-old also led Netherlands to third place at the World Cup this summer and Mata is excited to play his style of football.

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"It's the start of a new era for the club, with a new manager and players coming in," the Spaniard toldMUTV.

"I'm really happy with the manager's style of football and hopefully at the end of the season we can celebrate something, which would be amazing for him and for us."

United are preparing for pre-season matches against LA Galaxy, Roma, Inter and Real Madrid in the United States and Mata is keen to prepare well for a big campaign.

"The most important thing is to get ready step by step and not too hard because injuries can happen," he added.

"It's important for us to prepare physically and mentally for the long season.

"We're focused on improving and trying to learn from the manager, to play at our best level during the season. The main idea is to play as a team and compete for titles

BMW driving Centre in South Korea

 A new $75.5 million track, the BMW Driving Centre in Incheon, South Korea, will offer the ultimate in driving tests. Visitors are able to try out the performance cars and motorcycles of BMW on a closed circuit racetrack of 2.6 kilometres, or even try out an SUV in the off—road area. Unlike the recent BMW racetrack we reported on, this one is definitely a reality.

[Image Courtesy of BMW]

The site that is to house the centre is 240, 000 square meters and will be home to a huge BMW and Mini showroom, along with a service centre, restaurants and bars, training academy, children’s area and HISTORICAL exhibits.

[Image Courtesy of BMW]

This has to be the ultimate way to test out a motorcycle or sports car. As most of BMW’s cars are designed and built to go way beyond normal speed limits, the closed racetrack is the perfect place to try out the full acceleration of any vehicle that you are considering purchasing.

[Image Courtesy of BMW]

The driving centre is great when it comes to testing out the suspension of the sports cars, along with stability of them as they fly around the corners of the track. South Korea is one of the key developing markers for BMW and this is why the centre has been located very close to the largest international airport in the country, at Incheon. The state of the art facility allows potential customers of BMW to really push the cars to their limit.

[Image Courtesy of BMW]

There is a 2.6 kilometre race track at the driving centre which can be altered and changed into six different configurations. Some of the vehicles visitors can take on a test drive have top speeds of as much as 300+ km/h, however this isn’t going to be an issue on the race track at the new driving centre. The track also allows would be owners of motorcycles to test out the bikes to their maximum, given that in Korea motorcycles cannot go on the freeways and as such are limited to a maximum of no MORE than 80km/h. The track offers the only way of would be owners to get the true feel of what the motorcycle can actually offer, something which could never be achieved when taking it out for a regular test drive.

[Image Courtesy of BMW]

The off-road course has been specifically designed to offer a rugged test thanks to the skid pan area. This allows would be owners to test out 4WD along with stability control features in an environment that is controlled and safe. BMW are also considering offering educational courses associated with performance driving, safety on the roads and getting the maximum when it comes to fuel economy.

[Image Courtesy of BMW]

Visitors to the centre will also be able to take advantage of the close proximity to the airport courtesy of an airport service offered by the BMW driving centre. While the customer is away, they can even get their cars serviced by BMW. The BMW Driving Centre is set to open its doors on 1 August 2014.

[Images Courtesy of BMW]

Via [BMW]

The striker has signed a five-year deal with the Italian champions, though los Blancos retain a buyback option of up to €30m, and he says he is "itching" to begin Serie A life

Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata has completed his transfer to Juventus, who have signed the promising Spaniard for €20 million.

Morata arrived in Turin on Friday ahead of a medical with the Italian champions after weeks of speculation over a possible summer switch.

Juve have now confirmed the 21-year-old has agreed a five-year deal, and have also revealed that Madrid will retain a buy-back option in the player's contract which could rise to €30m.

"Juventus announce that it has reached an agreement with Real Madrid for the definitive purchase of the rights to the player Alvaro Borja Morata Martin for a fee of €20m, payable over three years," a statement on their official website read.

"The agreement also provides an option for Real Madrid, exercisable at the end of the 2015-16 season or 2016-17 season, for the outright repurchase of Morata, up to a maximum of €30m depending on the number of games the player has played for Juventus.

"Juventus have signed a five-year contract of employment with the same player."

Morata, who scored eight goals in 23 Liga appearances for Madrid last season, admitted in his press conference he has been itching to make the move for some time and is relishing the prospect of life under new boss Massimiliano Allegri.

"Juve are one of the best clubs in the world and Italy's finest. I'll try to contribute to new successes," he said.
 
"I've spoken to Allegri and I'm itching to get down to work. I've wanted to come to Juventus for a long time. The club's always shown a strong interest in me.

"I feel prepared for the new season ahead, I know it's a challenging league but I'm ready to tackle Serie A."

Morata becomes the second player involved in a transfer away from Madrid on the same day, with midfielder Casemiro's loan move to Porto also confirmed on Saturday

What happened when Palestinian children were killed in front of a hotel full of journalists

The mother of one of the four Palestinian children from the Baker family, who medics said were killed by a shell fired by an Israeli naval gunboat, grieves outside the morgue in Gaza City July 16, 2014.  REUTERS/Finbarr O'Reilly

Al Deira Hotel is regularly used by Western journalists when they travel to the Gaza Strip. Correspondents say that they are attracted by its good food, consistent wi-fi connections, and, most importantly, the fact that it is open (many other hotels in Gaza have closed in recent years).

One more selling point, however, is its location. The hotel has a terrace that allows views of the beach and the Mediterranean Sea. Wednesday afternoon, unfortunately, it offered something different: A chance to witness the death of  four children.

Mohammed Bakr (aged 9), Ahed Bakr (aged 10), Zakaria Bakr (aged 10), and Mohammed Bakr (aged 11) were playing on the beach when an Israeli missile or shell landed near them and they were killed. Israel has targeted dozens of locations in the Gaza Strip since the latest round of hostilities broke out. However, thanks to Al Deira, this attack was different: Not only was an attack on the beach hard to justify militarily, it was also witnessed by a large number of foreign journalists.

The Post's own William Booth was there. The victims were "scrawny fishermen’s kids," he writes, "whom we saw every day, running around on the beach, playing in the waves."

This video, posted by Palestinian journalist Bashar Taleb, shows the press at the scene:

Right now, it's not clear why the beach was being targeted – the Gaza health ministry told Reuters that the attack seemed to come from a Israeli gunship. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told Haaretz's Anshell Pfefferthat the children were misidentified as "fleeing fighters."

Killing children on a beach in front of journalists is obviously terrible and illogical. But children have of course died already in this current conflict – on Wednesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said that 39 of the 209 Palestinians killed so far by Israeli strikes were children. These deaths did not take place in front of the Al Deira hotel.

Correction: This post originally misspelled the family name of those who died. It has been corrected.

CDWP clears 6,600 MW Pakistan Park Project costing Rs144.6b

China will provide debt to cover 85% of the project cost, while the rest of the finances would be arranged by the government of Pakistan, according to a handout issued by the Ministry of Planning. PHOTO: EXPRESS/ FILE

ISLAMABAD: The government on Thursday cleared the construction of infrastructure for a 6,600 megawatt (MW) Pakistan Power Park Project at Gadani which will cost approximately Rs144.6 billion, paving the way for signing power purchase agreements with Chinese investors next month.

The project was cleared by the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) –the body that has the mandate to approve projects costing up to Rs3 billion. It also has the mandate to recommend projects which cost over Rs3 billion to the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC).

The sanction was given ahead of the Energy Working Group of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) meetings, which are scheduled for August. During the upcoming working group meetings, Pakistan and China are expected to sign power purchase agreements.

China will provide debt to cover 85% of the project cost, while the rest of the finances would be arranged by the government of Pakistan, according to a handout issued by the Ministry of Planning.

The project is aimed at developing infrastructure facilities at the Pakistan Power Park at Gadani for establishing 10,660 MW of imported coal-fired power generation plants.

The project will help in developing the infrastructure of the Pakistan Power Park at Gadani by installing a coal supply system, jetty head, cooling water facilities and several other installations. The project was recommended for consideration of the ECNEC.

The CDWP, headed by Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, cleared six projects costing Rs177.4 billion in total, including a foreign exchange component of Rs126.6 billion.

It also sanctioned Greater Karachi Water Supply Scheme K-IV (Sindh), Kala Dhaka Area Development Project (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Khyber Area Development Project (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa),construction of 50-bedded hospital – including hostels and other equipment at Pasni (Balochistan) and Red Chilies Processing Centre (Sindh).

While discussing the Greater Karachi Water Supply Scheme (K-IV) (Phase-I), the planning minister said that the financial share of the federal government in the project has been raised from one-third to half, in compliance of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s commitment during his recent visit to Karachi.

The minister said that some people blamed the federal government of interfering in provincial matters. He added that federal government interference in a such a project was done so in a positive manner.

Iqbal was referring to a recent statement by former President Asif Ali Zardari, who had accused Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of behaving like an emperor.

The CDWP sought assurance from provincial authorities regarding the availability of water in the project, and directed authorities to provide clean drinking water to the people of Karachi on an urgent basis.

The minister expressed his reservations over the waste management system in Karachi, saying that the solid waste of Karachi was dumped into the sea which was creating many environmental and health hazards for people.

The forum approved the project — subject to the condition that the cost escalation in the project in any case will be borne by the provincial government.

Iqbal also stressed upon the use of funds in an efficient manner and to ensure transparency at all stages from the authorities.

The conditionally approved Kala Dhaka Area Development Project would cost Rs1.7 billion, and Khyber Area Development Project has been estimated to be completed at Rs1.3 billion.

The project is aimed at supporting rural transformation as well as promoting legitimate agricultural activities and enhancing the mobility through the construction of roads in select areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The CDWP also approved the construction of 50-bedded hospital in the Pasni area of Balochistan at a cost of Rs441 million.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government also approved the Red Chilies Processing Centre (RCPC) project of the Industries and Production Division – costing Rs244.7 million. The project had been deferred during the Pakistan Peoples Party government after getting criticism for using sacred resources for the processing centre.

The CDWP also approved the Balochistan Nutrition Program for Mothers and Children costing Rs1.5 billion.

BRICS establish $100bn bank and currency pool to cut out Western dominance

The group of emerging economies signed the long-anticipated document to create the $100 bn BRICS Development Bank and a reserve currency pool worth over another $100 bn. Both will counter the influence of Western-based lending institutions and the dollar.

The new bank will provide money for infrastructure and development projects in BRICS countries, and unlike the IMF or World Bank, each nation has equal say, regardless of GDP size.

Each BRICS member is expected to put an equal share into establishing the startup capital of $50 billion with a goal to reach $100 billion. The BRICS bank will be headquartered in Shanghai, India will preside as president the first year, and Russia will be the chairman of the representatives.

“BRICS Bank will be one of the major multilateral development finance institutions in this world,”Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday at the 6th BRICS summit in Fortaleza, Brazil.

The big launch of the BRICS bank is seen as a first step to break the dominance of the US dollar in global trade, as well as dollar-backed institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, both US-based institutions BRICS countries have little influence within.

“In terms of escalating international competition the task of activating the trade and investment cooperation between BRICS member states becomes important,” Putin said.

Russia, Brazil, India, China and South Africa account for 11 percent of global capital investment, and trade turnover almost doubled in the last 5 years, the president reminded.

Each country will send either their finance minister or Central Bank chair to the bank’s representative board.

Membership may not just be limited to just BRICS nations, either. Future members could include countries in other emerging markets blocs, such as Mexico, Indonesia, or Argentina, once it sorts out its debt burden.

BRICS represents 42 percent of the world’s population and roughly 20 percent of the world’s economy based on GDP, and 30 percent of the world’s GDP based on PPP, a more accurate reading of the real economy. Total trade between the countries is $6.14 trillion, or nearly 17 percent of the world’s total.

The $100 billion crisis lending fund, called the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA), was also established. China will contribute the lion’s share, about $41 billion, Russia, Brazil and India will chip in $18 billion, and South Africa, the newest member of the economic bloc, will contribute $5 billion.

The idea is that the creation of the bank will lessen dependence on the West and create a more multi-polar world, at least financially.

“This mechanism creates the foundation for an effective protection of our national economies from a crisis in financial markets," Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

The group has already created the BRICS Stock Alliance an initiative to cross list derivatives to smooth the path for international investors interested in emerging markets.

Russia has also proposed the countries come together under an energy alliance that will include a fuel reserve, as well as an institute for energy policy

"We propose the establishment of the Energy Association of BRICS. Under this ‘umbrella’, a Fuel Reserve Bank and BRICS Energy Policy Institute could be set up,” Putin said

.

Documents on cooperation between BRICS export credit agencies and an agreement of cooperation on innovation were also inked.

Bringing emerging economies closer has become vital at a time when the world is guttered by the financial crisis and BRICS countries can’t remain above international problems, said Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff.

She cautioned the world not to see BRICS deals as a desire to dominate.

“We want justice and equal rights,” she said.

“The IMF should urgently revise distribution of voting rights to reflect the importance of emerging economies globally,” Rousseff said.