The property game: Help to Buy is also helping Londoners Photo: Justin Sutcliffe The Government is persistently defensive about its Help to Buy scheme, partly because the criticism has been so consistent. Two parts of the scheme have been rolled out by David Cameron in an attempt to improve the route to property ownership, or in his emotive words: “As prime minister I am not going to stand […]
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the former general who toppled Egypt’s first freely elected leader, is on course for a sweeping victory in the country’s presidential election, early provisional results suggested. But a lower-than-expected turnout figure has raised questions about the credibility of a man idolised by his supporters as a hero who can deliver political and economic stability. Sisi won 93.3 percent of votes cast, government sources said on Thursday, with most ballots counted […]
The idea for Sudamed came to doctor-turned-entrepreneur Mazin Khalil two years ago while standing in a hospital reception in Khartoum. He watched a father walk up to the reception with a newborn baby and ask for a particular doctor, only to be told that the doctor was not working until six hours later. Sudamed website Mr. Khalil, 25, saw a simple solution. He set out to create […]
The firm aims to redefine the art of ‘Corporate Storytelling’ in the Middle East Dubai, May 28th, 2014: White Water PR, a Dubai based Public Relations agency, has launched its new website in the region to redefine the art of ‘corporate storytelling’. The website, ‘whitewaterpr.com’ is more pictorial in nature and the initial thoughts were inspired by the globally renowned ‘Snowfall’ format which was made popular by […]
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the former Egyptian army chief, is on course for a sweeping victory in the country’s presidential election, early provisional results suggested. Sisi won 96.2 percent of about 21 million votes cast, state television reported early on Thursday, with the ballots from 312 of 352 counting stations tallied. Hamdeen Sabahi, the only other candidate, received 3.8 percent of the votes counted. Voter turnout was low, at 44.4 percent, despite the government […]
David Cameron could place himself at the head of a movement to halt the European Union steam-roller and turn it around Photo: EPA Earthquake or not, British politics has certainly undergone a seismic change over the past few weeks. Familiar landmarks have vanished, fresh features emerged, and the outlook has fundamentally changed. Let’s start with an intrusion into private grief, and take a long look at the […]
A deadly respiratory virus that originated in Saudi Arabia two years ago has reached Iran, infecting two sisters in the southeast province of Kerman, the health ministry reported. In a statement posted on the ministry’s website, it said two other members of the same family had the symptoms of the disease, known as Middle East Respiratory Syndome or MERS, but their cases had not been confirmed. According […]
Mashreqbank, the Dubai-based lender owned by the Al Ghurair family, plans to raise about $500 million from a three-year loan as it seeks funds to expand, three bankers familiar with the plan said. Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch unit and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) are helping coordinate the fundraising with five other banks also expected to participate, one of the people said, […]
The chief executive of Arabtec Holding has raised his stake in the Dubai-based contractor to 21.46 percent, the company said, in an investment worth about $1 billion which it described as a vote of confidence in the group’s prospects. Hasan Ismaik, who has been leading a growth strategy at the company since taking charge early last year, bought the shares because of “his strong belief in the […]
Google Inc is building cars that don’t have steering wheels, accelerator pedals or brake pedals, in an ambitious expansion of the Internet company’s efforts to develop self-driving cars. The small electric cars, which seat two passengers, are currently prototypes that Google has been building through partnerships with automotive suppliers and manufacturers, Google co-founder Sergey Brin said at the Code conference in Southern California on Tuesday. Google aims […]
Emaar Properties has secured a $1.5 billion sharia-compliant loan from five local lenders, two banking sources aware of the matter said on Wednesday, the latest Dubai-based borrower to take advantage of buoyant markets to reprice debt. A number of state-linked entities in the emirate have sought to refinance existing debts, even if the loans have years until maturity, as market sentiment towards Dubai improves after its debt […]
Expedition 40 Launches to the International Space Station | NASA Expedition 40 Launches to the International Space Station The Soyuz TMA-13M rocket is launched with Expedition 40 Soyuz Commander Maxim Suraev, of the Russian Federal Space Agency, Roscosmos, Flight Engineer Alexander Gerst, of the European Space Agency, ESA, and Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman of NASA in the early hours of Thursday, May 29, 2014 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in […]
Egypt’s apparent low voter turnout in presidential elections could be driven by millions boycotting the process because of objections to the two candidates or simply by apathy to yet another ballot during a tumultuous three years. But wedged in between the boycotters and enthusiastic voters is a group that is carrying on the tradition of spoiling their ballots, often with poignant or whimsical messages to the state. Here’s […]
Although the world’s largest democracy has been hobbled by inflation, a declining currency and difficult business environment, the pro-business Bharatiya Janata Party that just won an epic election in India has engendered optimism that the country can turn around its sagging economic scenario. It’s time to increase your exposure to India’s stock market. The timing is good with equities in India perking up of late, something that […]
In Dubai, a city known for some of the world’s most luxurious hotels and penthouses, developer Union Properties PJSC (UPP) is looking to tap demand from people who want to visit the emirate without breaking the bank. The company plans to build around 1,000 hotel rooms in the next five years to address a shortage in the middle- and lower-end of the market, managing director Ahmad Al […]
Etisalat expects to conclude a long-delayed deal to allow competition in UAE fixed-line telecommunications services by the end of 2014, a company document states, which could threaten its dominant position in the lucrative sector. Etisalat and rival du have been unable to reach an agreement over so-called bitstream access, or network-sharing, in the United Arab Emirates, despite beginning talks in 2009 and the government being the largest […]
Qatar raised the foreign ownership limit for shares listed on Doha’s stock exchange, less than a week before an MSCI Inc. upgrade to emerging market status. The benchmark index rose. Investors outside the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council will be able to hold as much as 49 percent of a company listed on the Qatar Stock Exchange after Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani gave instructions to […]
Expedition 40 Preflight: Soyuz Rocket Rolls Out | NASA Expedition 40 Preflight: Soyuz Rocket Rolls Out The Soyuz TMA-13M spacecraft is rolled out to the launch pad by train on Monday, May 26, 2014, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Launch of the Soyuz rocket is scheduled for May 29 and will send Expedition 40 Soyuz Commander Maxim Suraev, of the Russian Federal Space Agency, Roscosmos, Flight […]
At least 40 people, including two civilians, have been killed in the eastern Ukraine city of Donetsk following a day of heavy fighting, in which the government forces used combat jets and helicopter gunships to reclaim the regional airport. “The airport is under our full control. The enemy suffered heavy losses. We have none,” Ukraine Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said in a statement on Tuesday. He said […]
Low voter turnout has been reported on the second and final day of Egyptian presidential elections, as former army chief Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is expected to emerge as the country’s next president. While the Egyptian government declared a national holiday for Tuesday in an effort to get voters to cast their ballots, an official with international monitoring group Global Network for Rights and Development reported that voter turnout […]
‘No country demand anything like the same assurances as the USA immigration authorities’ Photo: GETTY Having recently returned from the US, I feel obliged to offer a few thoughts about American transport. Because – certainly at Los Angeles and New York – something has gone very badly wrong. A lot of people complain about Heathrow and Gatwick but the truth is that we British have quietly set about […]
FlyNas route map from Jeddah. FlyNas website Saudi Arabia’s FlyNas ended the domestic monopoly of the kingdom’s flag carrier Saudia in 2007, and it’s now aiming to break the stranglehold of the long-haul Gulf airlines too. The low-cost operator intends to launch flights from Riyadh to London Gatwick, continuing its plans to build a long-haul operation from the kingdom. The Saudi-based carrier has this year launched flights […]
Egypt’s election commission has extended the presidential poll by one day in an effort to increase voter turnout in an election that is widely expected to bring former army chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to power. The two-day vote was expected to end Tuesday, but polling Monday was reported to be moderate in a country with 54 million registers voters. The extension is widely seen as an effort to boost […]
Egyptians were urged to vote on Tuesday, the second and final day of the presidential election, amid signs of a lower-than-expected turnout on Monday. Election monitoring groups said the turnout on the first day of the vote was moderate and often thin or non-existent in towns and areas where Islamists dominate. Victory for former military chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, 59, is a foregone conclusion. However, el-Sissi and his supporters have been […]
