Category: Economy

Exclusive talks for Etisalat to buy Vivendi's 53 percent stake in Maroc Telecom have been extended to October 31, the United Arab Emirates' former telecom monopoly said on Sunday.Vivendi in July entered into exclusive negotiations with Etisalat - the UAE's No.1 telecom operator - to sell its majority holding stake in Maroc Telecom for 3.9 billion euros ($5.28 billion) in cash.The previous deadline for these exclusive talks to end was September 25, but have now been extended to October 31,

Dubai's Majid Al Futtaim Holding (MAF), the sole franchisee of hypermarket chain Carrefour in the Middle East, will not pursue investments in Egypt and Syria until stability returns to the two countries, a senior company official said on Saturday.MAF, also the only Carrefour franchisee in North Africa and Central Asia, had been in advanced talks to buy Egypt's largest supermarket chain Metro from the family-owned Mansour Group, sources told Reuters in April."Egypt is still unstable, we are waiting for it

 Using public transport in Dubai is about to get a whole lot easier.With a simple swipe of a phone, riders can board whatever service they desire thanks to a new deal inked between Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and telecommunications providers Etisalat and du to launch the ‘Smart Nol’ Service for Dubai commuters using public transport.The service aims to ease the transportation process for commuters through the use of Near Field Communication (NFC) phones.Phones using the NFC technology allow users

A flight by foreign companies from violent unrest in Egypt threatens to drive up vacancy rates at offices and malls and prompt international investors to shift funds to sub-Saharan real estate.The army overthrew and imprisoned President Mohamed Mursi in July and the ensuing crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood movement has killed about 900 people. This has prompted many multinational companies to scale down their operations or pull out staff, particularly from central areas of the capital Cairo.Weaker demand means property

The United Arab Emirates' first real estate investment trust plans to sell shares in an initial public offer on the Nasdaq Dubai bourse before the end of this year, three people aware of the plan said.Emirates REIT, which was formed in 2010 and complies with Islamic investment principles, has income-generating assets worth 770 million dirhams ($210 million). REITs directly invest in properties and distribute profits as dividends.Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) owns 35.3 percent of the company, while state-owned conglomerate Dubai

Dubai developer Union Properties is to seek board approval to increase the percentage of shares which foreign investors are allowed to hold in the company, its chairman said on Wednesday.The move is part of a wider trend by companies in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar to review their often-low foreign ownership caps ahead of their admittance into the MSCI Emerging Markets Index in May."We are studying how much we could increase (the foreign ownership limit) to and will recommend

The Gulf's bond market is set to emerge from five months of near-inactivity after last week's decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve to maintain its monetary stimulus created a window for banks and corporations to raise cash.A total of $16.6 billion was raised on global bond markets last Thursday, a four-fold rise from the day before. The Gulf market's reaction to the Fed will not be as dramatic, partly because - thanks to strong economic growth - most potential issuers

Arabtec Holding and Samsung Engineering announced the launch of Arabtec-Samsung Engineering in the Middle East and North Africa’s oil and gas, power and related infrastructure sectors.Arabtec-Samsung Engineering is incorporated and headquartered in Abu Dhabi and is owned 40% by Arabtec, 40% by Samsung Engineering and the remaining 20% is owned by Tasameem Property Investment.The shareholder agreement was formalised on September 24th at a special signing ceremony at Samsung Engineering’s headquarters in Seoul, South Korea.  The signing ceremony was attended by

Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME) today announced a new record by reaching the 5 billion barrel mark, with a total of 5 million contracts (eqv. 5 billion barrels) traded on the exchange. This milestone comes 7 months after the DME passed the 4 billion barrels mark and continues the strong growth trajectory in trading volumes across the last 12 months.The 5 millionth trade on the Exchange took place on Friday 20 September between Mercuria Energy Trading Pte Ltd and Standard Chartered

Dubai-based oil services firm NPS Energy has put itself back up for sale, hoping to fetch up to $700 million after a deal to be bought by Norway's Aker Solutions fell apart last year, sources familiar with the matter said.Oil services company Aker agreed to buy NPS Energy for about $460 million in May 2012, including $110 million in debt, but the deal collapsed in November after the two parties failed to reach a final agreement.A formal sale process for

Jebel Ali Free Zone FZE  cut the price on a 4.4 billion dirham ($1.2 billion) Islamic loan by 1.25 percentage points, reducing rates after the emirate’s default risk fell.Jebel Ali Free Zone and Dubai Duty Free, the world’s biggest’ airport retailer, are among companies in the emirate that have lowered rates on their loans. Dubai’s five-year credit default swaps, contract insuring the sheikhdom’s debt against default, plunged 212 basis points to 188, since the beginning of June 2012 as three

Payment defaults by grounded Indian carrier Kingfisher (KAIR) Airlines Ltd. are prompting aircraft lessors to demand a premium to cover risks in the South Asian country.Companies leasing out planes are insisting on a one-year security deposit instead of the usual three-month cover in addition to a commitment to hire the aircraft for as long as nine years, said two officials of Air India Ltd. The state-owned firm is negotiating to lease 19 Airbus SAS A320s for six years, they said,

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) has mandated Citigroup, HSBC, Mizuho and RBS to arrange a series of fixed income meetings ahead of a potential US dollar denominated senior bond.The state-owned company, rated A1/A+/A+, will hold meetings in Europe, Middle East and Asia between September 22 and September 25.A Reg S only senior guaranteed note may follow subject to market conditions via a special purpose vehicle called SABIC Capital II B.V.The roadshow schedule will see two management teams meet investors in

Spot gold price tumbled below the psychological $1,300-mark on Wednesday for the first time in more than a month after the gold's biggest consumer, India, hiked import duty on gold and silver jewellery by another 5 per cent on Tuesday in a bid to safeguard local jewellery-makers.Also impacting investor sentiment is the looming decision of an ongoing US Federal Reserve meeting, which analysts agree will announce a $10 billion tapering off in America's $85bn/month quantitative easing programme.India yesterday hiked the

Two developers based in the United Arab Emirates say they have signed a deal for a $4.5 billion residential and commercial project in Baghdad that would be one of the county's biggest non-oil investments.Plans calls for 30,000 housing units, five shopping centers and schools and stores to be built over a seven-year period in the Iraqi capital.Foreign investment has flowed into the relative stable Kurdish region of northern Iraq, but other areas such as Baghdad have lagged far behind because

Dubai's Mashreq will allow foreigners to own up to 20 percent of the bank's shares, it said in a bourse statement on Wednesday.Foreign investors currently own only 1.9 percent of the bank's shares, data from the Dubai Financial Market shows. The change in foreign ownership is effective from Thursday, Mashreq said.About 20 percent of Mashreq's shares are free float, while the Al-Ghurair family holds a 70 percent stake, according to Reuters data.Mashreq is Dubai's third-largest bank by market value.-Reuters

GEMS Education, a Dubai-based schools operator, is seeking to raise about $500 million to fund growth by selling a stake of up to 20 percent in the privately owned company, Chairman Sunny Varkey said.GEMS, which employs about 11,000 staff, operates around 100 private schools across the Gulf region, home to many prosperous expatriates. Private schools in countries such as the United Arab Emirates are expanding rapidly as demand surges along with economic growth."We are a company that is growing. We

By Nelson Ireson, Guest bloggerWhen you have, quite literally, everything--or at least the capacity to buy everything--what do you want? Solid gold models of $400,000 cars, apparently.That's our take-away from this $7.5 million solid gold Lamborghini Aventador model, anyway.Carved from an 1,100-pound block of solid gold, the model will weigh 55 pounds. In solid gold.Fortunately for the automotive world's collective soul, the model is being put up for auction, with $650,000 intended for charity. Fortunately for the security of the

DAMAC Properties, a privately held Dubai property developer, has hired two international investment banks to help arrange an initial public offering of shares in London and join a growing list of Gulf companies seeking overseas listings.Deutsche Bank and Citigroup Inc will advise on the planned flotation, two banking sources aware of the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity as the matter is not public.The company, which develops luxury villas and apartments, said in April an IPO was one way

Shares in Oman Telecommunications Co OTL.OM (Omantel) plunged to a 10-week low on Tuesday after the government rekindled plans to reduce its stake in the former monopoly.Omantel was down 5.6 percent at 1.51 rials at 0624 GMT, its lowest level since July 11 and nearly wiping out its 2013 gains as investors gave the thumbs-down to a state move to offload a 19 percent stake in the operator via a public subscription that will be open to individual and institutional

Shares dipped and the dollar lost ground on Tuesday as investors consolidated positions before a U.S. Federal policy meeting at which the central bank is set to start scaling back stimulus.German Bunds also edged lower, with the 10-year yields rising 1 basis point to 1.888 percent.The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.3 percent in early trade, retreating from a five-year high hit in the previous session.In Asia, the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost

Commercial banks in the United Arab Emirates are expected to post net profit growth of about 20 percent in 2013, the chairman of the Gulf state's banking federation said on Wednesday.UAE banks such as Dubai lender Emirates NBD and National Bank of Abu Dhabi posted strong second-quarter earnings thanks to an economic recovery in key sectors, primarily real estate, and lower provisions as the Gulf state recovers from debt troubles at Dubai's state-linked entities."Banks here (the UAE) managed to overcome

Asian shares surrendered earlier gains while the dollar remained under pressure on Thursday, facing growing expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve's impending stimulus reduction might be smaller than some had believed.The waning likelihood of an immediate U.S. military strike on Syria also continued to undermine the dollar as diplomatic efforts to place Syria's chemical weapons under international control intensified.European stocks are seen edging up, as investors bet euro zone industrial production data due during the session will confirm the region's

Gold will extend a drop into 2014 as the U.S. Federal Reserve tapers stimulus, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said, forecasting that a decision by the central bank to start reducing bond-buying next week may spur renewed selling.The reduction of asset purchases may be the catalyst that pushes gold prices lower, analysts including Jeffrey Currie and Damien Courvalin wrote in a report today. Goldman’s economists expect that policy makers will curb quantitative easing at the Sept. 17-18 meeting as the economy

Dubai could soon enforce ammendments to its real estate law intended to hasten procedures for the settlement of property disputes between landlords and tenants and allow for an appeal within three days, it has been reported.The committee for the settlement of rent disputes has presented a draft of the amendments to the government with the aim of slashing time needed to resolve rent rifts and stimulate the market in the region's business and trade hub."The committee has drafted a new

The Dubai Commodities Clearing Corporation (DCCC) has become the first central counterparty (CCP) in the Middle East to join Euroclear’s global Collateral Highway. The DCCC guarantees settlement for all trades executed on the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX), which is supported by a system of initial and variation margins.Scheduled for full operation in early 2014, this exclusive agreement with Euroclear will enable clients of DCCC and DGCX to use CCP-eligible securities held in Euroclear Bank - and in all

Fitch Ratings has upgraded UAE-based Tamweel PJSC's Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'A' from 'BBB+', Short-Term IDR to 'F1' from 'F2' and Support Rating to '1' from '2'. Fitch has simultaneously withdrawn Tamweel's ratings. At the same time, the senior unsecured programme rating of Tamweel Funding III Limited (TFIII) has been upgraded to 'A' from 'BBB+' and withdrawn, and the senior unsecured Long-Term rating of the guaranteed sukuk issued by TF III has been affirmed at 'A'. A full

First Gulf Bank (FGB), the United Arab Emirates' third largest bank, is cutting about 300 jobs, equivalent to nearly 10 percent of its workforce, as part of a restructuring, sources familiar with the matter said.FGB, controlled by Abu Dhabi's ruling family, informed employees about the plan last week and the cuts will mainly affect its consumer banking business, the sources said. They were speaking on condition of anonymity as the matter has not been made public.Abu Dhabi-based FGB is among

Dubai's iconic island resort, Atlantis, The Palm, has closed an $880 million syndicated loan, a $30 million increase from its original $850 million target, according to banking sources.The loan was provided by a group of seven local and international banks comprising Barclays, HSBC, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Commercial Bank of Dubai, Union National Bank and Emirates NBD, the bankers said.company Istithmar.Luxury hotel chain Jumeirah Group, part of Dubai Holding, is also in the market for

GOLD Coast property developer Sunland has failed to persuade the Victorian Court of Appeal that it was duped into paying a $14 million walk-away fee for a block of land in Dubai to two Melbourne men later convicted of receiving a bribe over the deal.Matthew Joyce, the former general manager of the state-owned Dubai Waterfront, received a 10-year jail sentence and a $25m fine over charges that in 2007 he conspired with Angus Reed to share a secret commission on

China will need 5,580 commercial aircraft worth some $780 billion over the next 20 years, according to a statement released by Boeing Co on Thursday.Tourism in China and within Asia travel will drive the need for single-aisle airplanes, Randy Tinseth, vice president of marketing for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, is quoted as saying in the statement, released at a company event in Beijing.Deliveries in that segment will total 3,900 by 2032, Boeing said.

Asian stocks rose to three-week highs on Thursday as Indian shares and the rupee rallied a day after the country's new central bank chief unveiled measures to support the currency and the banking sector.But worries the U.S. Federal Reserve will soon scale back stimulus kept markets in check. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS advanced 0.6 percent, having earlier hit a high last seen on August 19.Financial spreadbetters expect modest opening gains for key European markets, mirroring

India’s newly installed central bank Governor Raghuram Rajan burnished his international credentials at a 2005 U.S. conference warning about the danger of a potential crisis. Now he has one of his own to contend with.Rajan, 50, joined the front lines of a battle to forestall a record slump in the rupee yesterday with a package of measures that may lure $10 billion in foreign-exchange inflows over three months, according to Barclays Plc estimates. The currency and stocks rose. Beyond the

Dubai International Airport is working to increase capacity to help accommodate more of the Airbus SAS A380 super-jumbo for Emirates, the largest operator of the double-decker jet, the airline’s chairman said.The expansion may help the Middle Eastern hub become the word’s busiest airport by next year, Emirates Chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum told reporters today at the airport. “We are going according to plan to accommodate all A380s,” he said in Dubai. “Hopefully within one year from now we