DUBAI is poised to roll over a vital $10 billion debt facility with the central bank of the United Arab Emirates at a lower rate of interest, UK’s Telegraph newspaper revealed. Rolling over the debt, which is due at the end of this week, will soothe lingering concerns over the emirate’s ability to service its immediate debts as it prepares to embark on another burst of infrastructure […]
Abu Dhabi’s new financial free zone has hired a former executive from neighbouring Dubai’s financial centre to spearhead its growth. Jan Bladen will be executive adviser and programme leader at Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), a full-service financial zone which the wealthy emirate is building on an island near its downtown area, the ADGM said in a statement on Tuesday. From 2005 until late last year, Bladen […]
Global stocks erased their losses for the year as growing confidence in the U.S. economy and a rally in emerging markets restored $3 trillion of value. The MSCI All-Country World Index advanced for a ninth straight day yesterday, lifting the value of world equities to $62.1 trillion from this year’s low of about $59 trillion on Feb. 4, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The gauge of developed […]
The two most-accurate gold forecasters are holding to their bearish forecasts for 2014 even after the metal posted its best start to a year since 1983. Futures rose 9.7 percent in 2014 through Feb. 14, rebounding from the biggest annual drop in three decades, and reached a three-month high. Holdings in exchange-traded products backed by bullion increased by 3.2 metric tons last week, the most since December […]
A widening probe of the foreign-exchange market is roiling an industry already under pressure to reduce costs as computer platforms displace human traders. Electronic dealing, which accounted for 66 percent of all currency transactions in 2013 and 20 percent in 2001, will increase to 76 percent within five years, according to Aite Group LLC, a Boston-based consulting firm that reviewed Bank for International Settlements data. About 81 […]
Dubai’s Mashreq has increased the limit on foreign ownership of its shares to 49 percent, its chief executive said on Monday, in line with a wider move by companies in the United Arab Emirates to open up to international investors. Companies and banks in the UAE and Qatar are reviewing their foreign ownership caps ahead of a planned upgrade by international index compiler MSCI to emerging market […]
Iran’s largest private bank is suing the British government for almost $4 billion in damages after the Supreme Court quashed sanctions imposed against it over alleged links to Tehran’s nuclear program. Bank Mellat wants compensation for the “significant pecuniary loss” and substantial reputational damage it sustained as a result of sanctions imposed in 2009, according to a claim filed in London’s High Court and seen by Reuters […]
|By Steen Jakobsen|The negative start to this year came as a surprise to most investors as we came into the new year with the usual euphoria and expectations of a stock market ending 2014 up 10-15% and a Europe and US in continued recovery but January soon became all about a potential EM crisis which ended up hurting even developed markets return in this year first month. […]
Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., the world’s most profitable lender, said it will consider acquisitions in the Middle East as part of plans to boost earnings from the region by 50 percent this year. “We’re looking to see if there are acquisition opportunities,” Zhou Xiaodong, chief executive officer for the Middle East, said in an interview from the lender’s Dubai offices. “It’s a good strategy. […]
Former Delhi leader Arvind Kejriwal attacked India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani over gas pricing as he turned his attention full time to a nationwide election due by May after his 49-day rule of the capital came to an end. Kejriwal, who resigned as Delhi chief minister on Feb. 14 after lawmakers rejected an anti-corruption bill, targeted the ruling Congress party, main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and Ambani, […]
UAE telecom firm du has agreed terms on a $720 million loan which will be used to replace two existing debt facilities and lower the company’s funding costs, two banking sources said on Sunday. The five-year loan will be provided by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia’s Samba Financial Group, the sources who both have knowledge of the matter said. They […]
Bank of America Corp. and HSBC Holdings Plc (HSBA) agreed to settle lawsuits brought over property insurance that borrowers were forced to accept, lawyers for the homeowners said at a federal court hearing in Miami. The lawyers told U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno today about the settlements without disclosing more details. The deals follow an earlier $300 million agreement with JPMorgan Chase & Co. and a $110 […]
A well-timed launch saw Dubai Investments Park achieve favourable terms on its debut $300 million, 4.296 percent five-year Reg S sukuk issue, a deal that may serve to accelerate the plans of other regional potential issuers. The real estate firm, rated BB by Standard & Poor’s, kicked off the deal in a strong week for emerging markets and to a market starved of Middle East paper: it […]
Arvind-Kejriwal who pledged to root out corruption after steering to power in Delhi, was a man in a hurry and set a scorching pace to try to fulfil his anti-graft legislative agenda but his tumultous journey as Chief Minister ended in seven weeks. As the controversy over the Jan-Lokpal-Bill deepened with Lt Governor Najeeb advising the Delhi-Assembly Speaker against allowing its tabling and Congress and BJP opposing […]
Risk appetite is in full flow, led by Turkey’s remarkable return to the international bond markets on Wednesday, just weeks after a currency crisis had thrown the country, and through it the emerging markets asset class, into a tailspin. Not only did the sovereign raise US$1.5bn, it did so through a 31-year bond as investors cast aside doubts about Turkey’s vulnerable political and financial situation – on […]
Oman may have to start selling foreign assets or borrow on international markets in coming years if government spending rises during a period of lower oil prices and economic growth, a report in a magazine published by its central bank said. “The sultanate has to tolerate one of the options in the coming years if there is any prediction of decrease in GDP (gross domestic product) growth […]
The $600 million loan which Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corp (Empower) is using to back its acquisition of Palm Utilities is being syndicated to other lenders, three banking sources said on Thursday. Dubai district cooling firm Empower announced last month that it was buying Palm Utilities from a unit of Dubai World for $500 million, the latest in a series of acquisitions which have seen assets shuffled […]
|By Arjuna Mahendran|The GCC stock and bond markets remain a safe haven to investors, underpinned by solid fundamentals. The Expo 2020, MSCI inclusion of the UAE and Qatari markets in the emerging market (EM) category, infrastructure spending across countries – the GCC Railway project to mention one – the revival of trade, tourism and real estate – as tensions in Egypt, Syria and Iran subside somewhat – […]
A massive cyber attack from unknown sources that has been spamming bitcoin exchanges is highlighting some of the dangers people can encounter when they exchange cash for digital currencies like the bitcoin, experts said on Wednesday. The attack, which is technically known as a distributed denial of service attack, involved thousands of phantom transactions, forcing at least three of the online platforms that store bitcoins and trade […]
Deutsche Bank AG agreed to hand over documents related to a probe into the operations of its Dubai-based wealth management division after being taken to court by the emirate’s financial free zone regulator. The Dubai Financial Services Authority began proceedings against the Frankfurt-based lender at the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts on Oct. 31 in an attempt to force the bank to comply with its investigation. Deutsche […]
Gold retreated from the highest level since November as a five-day advance damped physical demand and U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen pledged to continue with a gradual tapering of stimulus. Bullion for immediate delivery lost as much as 0.6 percent to $1,284.15 an ounce, and was at $1,286.78 at 3:12 p.m. in Singapore. Prices climbed to $1,293.93 yesterday, the highest level since Nov. 14, capping a […]
Asian stocks climbed, Australia’s dollar strengthened to its highest in a month and commodities rallied after Chinese trade data exceeded estimates. European equity futures increased while the U.S. currency weakened and gold halted a five-day gain. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 1.1 percent as of 4:12 p.m. in Tokyo as a measure of Chinese shares in Hong Kong headed toward the biggest two-day gain since November. […]
Research from PwC predicts that global assets under management (AuM) will rise to around $101.7 trillion by 2020, from a 2012 total of $63.9 trillion. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 6%. The report, Asset Management 2020: A brave new world, also finds that assets under management in the SAAAME (South America, Asia, Africa, Middle East) economies are set to grow faster than […]
Aldar Properties will look to refinance 7.9 billion dirhams ($2.2 billion) worth of debt this year, and is open to bank loans as well as bonds, the chief financial officer of the Abu Dhabi property firm said on Wednesday. “You could see us (doing) normal refinancing – banks or bonds – because of our strong credit ratings. We will also manage debts with government receivables, existing cash […]
