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ARABIAN POST SPECIAL

Why Indian rupee might fall to 19 versus dirham

At least two major global investment banks are maintaining that the beleaguered Indian rupee, which is already down about 15 per cent since the beginning of 2013, could see a further deterioration of about 10.5 per cent in the near future and slump to Rs70 against the US dollar. That would equate to a level of Rs19 against the UAE dirham, and if attained, this exchange rate [...]

Fear returns to Egypt as crackdown widens

A climate of fear that kept Egyptians compliant during the 30-year rule of Hosni Mubarak is creeping back into daily life, less than three years after the revolt that toppled him. Ordinary people like Mohamed, who runs a tiny Cairo shop selling mobile phone accessories, now lower their voices if they oppose the army's overthrow last month of their first freely-elected president, Mohamed Mursi. "It is about [...]

Asia mourns end of cheap dollars

Asian markets were under the cosh on Thursday as a spike in U.S. bond yields drove up borrowing costs globally, and even surprisingly strong data from China couldn't completely staunch the bleeding. Emerging markets again bore the brunt of the selling as many have come to rely on cheap dollars to underpin domestic demand and fund current account deficits. The currencies of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand all [...]

Dubai enters into partnership with Deloitte for economic development

The Dubai Economic Council (DEC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Deloitte Corporate Finance Limited for mutual cooperation. Hani Al Hamli, Secretary General DEC; and Humphry Hatton, Chief Executive Officer of Deloitte Corporate Finance, signed the MoU in the presence of the executive teams of both sides. Al Hamli stated, "We’re proud to have Deloitte Corporate Finance Limited as our partner, which comes in our [...]

Pak court indicts Musharraf for Benazir assassination

A Pakistani court indicted Pervez Musharraf in the 2007 assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, escalating legal challenges to the ex-military dictator since he ended his self-exile in March. A judge read out charges that Musharraf was complicit in Bhutto’s killing as he failed to provide adequate security at a political rally she was attending, state-run Pakistan Television reported, citing court proceedings. Six other people were [...]

Indian rupee cartwheels to historic low

(Reuters) - India's currency cartwheeled to historic lows on Monday while markets in Indonesia took a spill, evidence of how rising U.S. yields are making it harder for emerging nations to fund their current account deficits. The turbulence heightened investor caution ahead of Wednesday's minutes of the Federal Reserve's last policy meeting, with many fearing they might only add to the confusion about when it might scale [...]

Gold rises to highest level in two months

Gold rose to the highest in almost two months and silver capped the biggest weekly rally since 2008 on signs of higher physical demand for precious metals. Global bar and coin purchases reached a record last quarter and jewelry usage rose to the most since 2008, World Gold Council figures showed this week. Thirteen analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expect the metal to rise next week, four were [...]

Saudi banking assets show growth

The domestic banking system in Saudi Arabia relative to many of the global peers, developed or developing, had maintained its inherent strengths that emanate from greater reliance on core banking activities, lower non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio, little recourse to wholesale funding and ample liquidity. During the last two years, Saudi banks have returned to a higher growth trajectory after a lackluster performance in 2009 that saw total [...]

Commodity markets headed for mild recovery

The commodities sector looks set for a relatively benign near-term future according to Saxo Bank, the multi-asset trading and investment specialist. Gold and silver should see a mild recovery over the next quarter and oil looks set to remain at current levels, struggling to push past previous highs. Any expectation that WTI crude will re-establish its historical premium over Brent looks improbable. Saxo Bank believes that changing [...]

Global investors turn more confident on growth outlook

Global investors have become significantly more confident in the outlook for growth, according to the BofA Merrill Lynch Fund Manager Survey for August. A net 72 percent of respondents now expect the world’s economy to pick up over the next 12 months – the survey’s strongest reading on this measure in nearly four years and a striking rise from July’s net 52 percent. Investors remain concerned over [...]

Wave of interest in Dubai underwater hotels

The UAE executive spearheading efforts to develop a series of eye-catching 'underwater hotels' at locations around the world has revealed the project has attracted 'huge' interest, including an offer to develop several properties for the Chinese market. Khamis Juma Buamim, chairman of Dubai industrial giant Drydocks World and Maritime World, says the collaboration between his firm and European company Deep Ocean Technology on new properties dubbed ‘water [...]

India again hikes gold duty to plug deficit

NEW DELHI – India, the world's biggest buyer of gold, raised duties Tuesday on bullion imports for the third time this year as it battles to narrow a record trade gap and stabilize the rupee. The government increased the customs duty on gold to a record 10 percent from eight percent as it strives to break the country's love affair with the precious metal. The announcement boosted [...]

High bond yields push Gulf borrowers to alternatives

DUBAI, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Two Gulf Arab borrowers have attracted heavy investor demand for international bond sales in the past two weeks, but higher yield premiums are prompting many other potential issuers in the region to seek alternative funding sources. U.S. dollar bond issuance in the Gulf, conventional and sukuk, stands at about $17.3 billion year-to-date, up from $11.4 billion in the same period a year [...]