Fast-growing Gulf Arab banks plan to bolster their reserves by issuing capital-boosting bonds, but uncertainty over regulation and ultra-tight pricing increase the risks for issuers and investors. Basel III standards, now being phased in around the world, will require banks to hold more capital. While Gulf banks have very high capital adequacy ratios, their rapid expansion, and the fact they operate in emerging markets with lower sovereign […]
Dubai Investments PJSC, the company with interests in real estate and manufacturing, will buy a 60 percent stake in investment bank Al Mal Capital PSC as part of a plan to boost financial services assets. The company will pay about 150 million dirhams ($41 million) for the stake and expects to complete the purchase by March 15, Chief Executive Officer Khalid Jassim Kalban said in a phone […]
David and Charles Koch If you doubt whether Republicans are serious about defeating Hillary Clinton, consider this: At a California meeting last week headed by billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch, an $889 million budget was unveiled before the network of conservative donors they assembled. Some have gone so far as to suggest this essentially makes the Koch network America’s “third” political party. After all, their warchest […]
|By Florence Tan and Henning Gloystein|Even as Saudi Arabia and its Gulf OPEC allies appear united in their refusal to cut output to boost global oil prices, they are becoming locked in an increasingly fierce battle to secure market share in Asia. Oil prices have slumped below $50 a barrel, the weakest since 2009, triggering a price war between producers to secure customers in Asia. And the […]
By Aditi Shah NEW DELHI Mon Jan 12, 2015 1:38pm IST Labourers work at a construction site of a high-rise residential building in central Mumbai August 25, 2014. Credit: Reuters/Danish Siddiqui/Files NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Indian businessman Navin Bhartia’s Internet habits make him a dream customer for billionaire foreign media moguls like Rupert Murdoch. The 45-year-old from Kolkata likes to buy homes online, sometimes without visiting them. […]
|By Andrew Torchia| It’s a weekend morning at the Dubai Mall, a glitzy complex with 1,200 stores, and the shoppers are pouring in. A traffic jam has formed in the basement parking area. With passenger arrivals at Dubai’s airport at record highs, retailers expect a good month. The 55 percent plunge of oil prices since last June might be expected to usher in an age of austerity […]
Limitless, a Dubai government-related real estate developer, has asked for a three-month extension to talks with creditors after failing to secure a new restructuring on its $1.2 billion debt pile, four banking sources told Reuters on Thursday. The company, which has already restructured the debt once before after falling victim to the emirate’s property crash at the end of the past decade, is aiming to secure another […]
Dubai International Capital (DIC) is launching the sale of German alumina products maker Almatis as the fund seeks to reduce its liabilities in the wake of a debt restructuring, three people familiar with the deal said. DIC has mandated Barclays to explore the options of the possible divestment, the people said on Thursday. Almatis is around 80 percent owned by DIC with a stake also held by […]
Dubai Islamic Bank will reopen the Gulf bond market next week with a capital-boosting sukuk, the region’s first debt offering in two months as financial markets there wobbled under the impact of falling oil prices. A successful offering would not just bolster reserves at DIB, the largest Islamic bank in the United Arab Emirates, but also pave the way for others who may have been waiting to […]
UAE. Dubai announced Saturday adoption of a balanced budget for 2015, the first time there has been no shortfall since the global financial crisis. Spending and revenues are both projected at 41 billion dirhams ($11.2 billion), according to an official statement cited by the official WAM news agency. Spending is set at 9.0 percent higher, while revenues are projected to be up 11 percent. Dubai is one […]
INTERNATIONA. Oil fell in 2014 by the most since the 2008 global financial crisis as U.S. producers and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries ceded no ground in their battle for market share amid a supply glut. The U.S. benchmark ended at a five-year low yesterday, capping a 46 percent drop in 2014, as stockpiles of crude oil and gasoline reached seasonal record highs and as OPEC […]
By Malathi Nayak LAS VEGAS Mon Jan 5, 2015 11:36am IST Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks about the Apple Watch during an Apple event at the Flint Center in Cupertino, California, September 9, 2014. Credit: Reuters/Stephen Lam/Files LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – Apple’s forthcoming smartwatch poses a conundrum for advertisers: How to tap the enticing possibilities of the tiny gadget without overwhelming consumers with messages. At this week’s […]
Wanted: Ched Evans is set to join League One side Oldham Photo: PA By Rowan Pelling 6:01AM GMT 05 Jan 2015 It’s been 13 years since John Leslie waved goodbye to his TV career. Some readers may be scratching their heads, as they try to remember his original claim to fame and what led to his downfall. Then they might gradually recall how the former Blue Peter and […]
World Briefing By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS January 4, 2015 Al Qaeda bombed an office of the Shiite Houthi rebels south of the capital on Sunday, killing six Houthis and wounding 31, officials said. The police said the bombing in Dhamar Province, about 60 miles south of the capital, Sana, hit a local headquarters of the Houthi movement, which has seized a string of Yemeni cities, including the capital. Al Qaeda’s […]
Op-Ed Contributor By DENNIS B. ROSS January 4, 2015 WASHINGTON — THE president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, insists on using international institutions to pressure Israel, even after he was rebuffed in the United Nations Security Council, where he sought a resolution mandating Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Mr. Abbas has now announced that he will turn to the International Criminal Court — a move […]
SHANGHAI Sun Jan 4, 2015 7:47pm IST Lei Jun, founder and chief executive officer of China’s mobile company Xiaomi Inc, introduces the new features of Xiaomi Phone 4 at its launching ceremony, in Beijing, July 22, 2014. Credit: Reuters/Jason Lee/Files Related Topics Stocks Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone turns 29. Pics SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Fast-growing Chinese tech firm Xiaomi Technology Ltd Co booked 74.3 billion yuan […]
MUMBAI Sat Jan 3, 2015 7:26pm IST A worker displays a Micromax mobile phone inside a store in Kolkata December 4, 2013. Credit: Reuters/Rupak De Chowdhuri/Files Related Topics Stocks Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone turns 29. Pics MUMBAI (Reuters) – Micromax Informatics, India’s second-largest smartphone maker, plans to raise as much as $500 million through a stock market listing in its financial year beginning in April, […]
Gulf stock markets rose on Sunday despite oil’s weakness as Saudi Arabia’s plan to maintain government spending at a high level boosted investor confidence. The Saudi government released a 2015 state budget last Thursday that provides for a 0.6 percent increase in spending from this year’s plan. That cheered the retail investors who dominate Gulf stock markets; they had feared falling oil revenues would trigger spending cuts […]
Gulf stock markets rose on Thursday as Saudi Arabia released a 2015 state budget that will keep spending high, reassuring the region that economic growth is unlikely to be hurt much by the plunge of oil prices. The Saudi budget envisions state spending at a record 860 billion riyals ($230 billion) next year, up 0.6 percent from the 2014 budget plan. That would be the smallest rise […]
Saudi authorities pledged to curb wages and push ahead with investments next year as the world’s largest oil exporter seeks to counter the effect of tumbling crude prices on the economy. The government said it expects the budget deficit in 2015 to widen to 145 billion riyals ($39 billion), from 54 billion riyals this year, the Finance Ministry said today. That amounts to about 5 percent of […]
Gulf governments seek to improve the livesof citizens and create jobs. Oil slump won’t derail $500bn Gulf infrastructure plan DUBAI, 2 days ago Slumping oil prices will not halt a massive ramp-up in Gulf infrastructure spending, as rich nations deploy huge reserves to maintain a breakneck development pace and the rest turn to buoyant funding markets. However, states are being urged to consider the most effective funding […]
Globally, banks will continue to make progressin restoring their financial fundamentals. Financial profiles of banks to strengthen in 2015 NEW YORK, 1 days ago The standalone creditworthiness of banks across the globe will continue to stabilise in 2015, a report said. At the same time, the number of negative banking system outlooks has risen, primarily reflecting the potential for a decline in systemic support, particularly in Europe, […]
Family firms… ouperforming non-family companies Family firms ‘key driver of GCC growth’ DUBAI, 1 days ago Family firms, which represent around 75 per cent of the private sector economy in GCC, outperform non-family firms by 15 per cent, and their continued success is a vital contributor to overall GCC growth, a report said. Family firms, which represent around 75 per cent of the private sector economy in […]
Microsoft on Monday made available the first public preview of Skype Translator, its service for real-time language translation. The preview program will kick off with two spoken languages, Spanish and English, according to Skype. Additionally, more than 40 instant messaging languages will be available to Skype customers who have signed-up via the Skype Translator sign-up page and are using Windows 8.1 on their desktops or mobile devices. […]
