An Apple logo hangs above the entrance to the Apple store on 5th Avenue in the Manhattan borough of New York City, July 21, 2015. Reuters/Mike Segar/Files NEW YORK Apple Inc’s antitrust compliance program has improved, but the company continues to impede a court-appointed monitor overseeing the program, acting as “its own worst enemy,” the monitor told a federal judge in a report made public on Tuesday. […]
UAE. Across the GCC, public pension funds amount to US$397 billion, representing nearly a quarter of GDP and US$15,000 per national. This is according to EY’s GCC Wealth and Asset Management 2015 report – “Fast growth, divergent paths”, launched at the FundForum Middle East 2015. GCC Governments are relooking at existing models of both public and international pension funds to ensure they are sustainable. George Triplow, MENA […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Another landmark structure in Syria’s ancient city of Palmyra has been deliberately destroyed by Islamic State militants, according to local antigovernment activists and Syrian officials. The building involved this time was a set of triumphal arches, erected in the second century. Since seizing Palmyra from government forces in May, Islamic State fighters have destroyed some of the most beautiful and historically significant monuments in […]
TEHRAN — As the music ended and the crowd rose in a standing ovation, several women in the audience could be seen with heads bared, the obligatory head scarves draped around their necks. This was no underground concert by an indie band in North Tehran, though. Rather, it was a recital by a classical lute player in Vahdat Hall. As the opera house emptied, the women casually […]
SAUDI ARABIA. Saudi Arabia is leveraging low oil prices to accelerate development of its downstream petrochemical derivatives sector, and will add over 30 million tonnes of production capacity by 2020, raising production to 126 million tonnes from 2014 levels of 94.6 million tonnes, the latest edition of The Oil & Gas Year (TOGY) revealed. Capital expenditure in the petrochemical sector as well is set to further […]
UAE. In times of economic uncertainty, cold-hearted international investors seek more diversification of their property portfolios; as London provides opportunity for property capital appreciation with prices continuously on the rise in the last five years, reasonable prices and growing yields in Dubai market make an equally attractive income generating opportunity. Mutual InterestFor Middle Eastern investors, London has always been regarded as a strong investment complementary to their […]
|By TAP Staff| Dubai Holding Commercial Operations Group (DHCOG) announced a net profit of AED 2.6 billion for the first half of this year ending 30th June 2015, an increase of 24 percent. Full year profits are expected to exceed AED 5.5 billion, the company said. Ahmad Bin Byat, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Dubai Holding, said Dubai Holding will continue to reinforce its successful strategy […]
Saudi Arabia is expected to cut the prices of crude it sells to Asia in November after the Dubai benchmark weakened last month, in a move that will help the OPEC kingpin retain its market share in the region amid a global oversupply, traders said. Prices, however, are likely to be lowered less than what is indicated by a formula, given the top oil exporter tempered gains […]
Discount broker Scottrade said on Friday that it was the victim of a cyber attack from late 2013 to early 2014 that compromised client names and addresses in a database with information on some 4.6 million customers. The firm said it learned about the attack from federal law enforcement officials who were investigating the theft of data from Scottrade and other financial services firms. The company did […]
MOSCOW — Russia widened its bombings in Syria on Friday, striking Islamic State territory for the first time, but showed no hint of heeding Western demands to avoid attacks on fighters pushing to oust Syria’s weakened, Kremlin-backed president. The Defense Ministry said its warplanes had bombed seven targets in overnight raids including a command post and training camp near Raqqa, the northeast Syrian city that the Islamic […]
ABU DHABI // The artist who designed the intricate flowers and vines that adorn Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque said the project had transformed his life. Before his work on the mosque, Englishman Kevin Dean was an acclaimed creator of botanic designs and illustrations, but had not worked on such a vast scale. After sending in his portfolio, he was appointed by Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed, the former […]
UAE. Banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) reported a good set of earnings in the first half of 2015 thanks in part to declining credit losses–and despite the continued squeeze on interest margins. But, owing to the knock-on effects of lower oil prices on growth and asset quality, earnings could weaken over the next several quarters. That’s according to Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services’ report, “Gulf […]
Middle East A vehicle at a base controlled by rebel fighters from the Ahrar al-Sham insurgent group that activists said was targeted by Russian airstrikes near Idlib, Syria, on Thursday. By ANNE BARNARD and ANDREW E. KRAMER October 1, 2015 BEIRUT, Lebanon — In a second day of raids in Syria, Russian warplanes carried out a new round of airstrikes on Thursday that once again — contrary to Moscow’s assertions — appeared […]
People wait in line as the Apple iPhone 6s and 6s Plus go on sale at an Apple Store in Los Angeles, California September 25, 2015. Reuters/Jonathan Alcorn REUTERS – Apple Inc said on Thursday it appointed James Bell, Boeing Co’s former chief financial officer, to its board. Bell, who was Boeing’s CFO from 2003 to 2012, is on the board of several other companies, including JPMorgan […]
ADEN // The smiling, triumphant fighters waving the flags of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Yemen at the Marib Dam were not just celebrating a strategically important victory in the battle to restore stability to Yemen. They were also fulfilling a vow by Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. While visiting families of the Emirati […]
The scales do not lie, or so we are told. But in the case of what constitutes being too fat, they just might be telling a few fibs, according to UAE health experts. A new report by the World Health Organisation, says almost half of all women in the UAE are obese, as are one in three men. Insurance provider Zurich International Life, based on a sample […]
When President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority told the United Nations on Wednesday that the Palestinian people “cannot continue to be bound by” agreements with Israel, what was he repudiating? Mainly, he was talking about the Oslo peace accords, which Mr. Abbas’s predecessor, Yasir Arafat, signed in 1993 and 1995 with Yitzhak Rabin, the Israeli leader who was later assassinated by an extremist Jew. Those accords […]
Jack Dorsey, interim CEO of Twitter and CEO of Square, goes for a walk on the first day of the annual Allen and Co. media conference in Sun Valley, Idaho July 8, 2015. Reuters/Mike Blake SAN FRANCISCO Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) co-founder and interim Chief Executive Jack Dorsey is expected to be named permanent CEO as early as Thursday, while keeping his job as the head of online […]
The Syrian civil war, now in its fifth year, involves multiple countries with overlapping and at times conflicting agendas. Competing visions of how to manage the conflict, which has led to a major global refugee crisis as well as the rise of the Islamic State, dominated discussions at the United Nations General Assembly this week. But despite days of meetings and diplomatic maneuvering, the crisis has only […]
UAE The next six months may prove a pivotal turning point in the recovery of global commodities markets according to Ole Sloth Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategy at Saxo Bank, the online trading and multi-asset investment specialist. Following nine months of geo-political incidents in Europe and the Middle East, and widespread uncertainty catalysed by major economic crises in Greece, Russia and China, Hansen is optimistic the next […]
QATAR. Broadband Internet is failing to reach those who could benefit most, with Internet access reaching near-saturation in the world’s rich nations but not advancing fast enough to benefit the billions of people living in the developing world, according to the 2015 edition of the “State of Broadband” report. The report reveals that 57% of the world’s people remain offline and unable to take advantage of the […]
A Microsoft logo is seen on an office building in New York City, July 28, 2015. The global launch of the Microsoft Windows 10 operating system will take place on July 29. Reuters/Mike Segar Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) joined Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Intel Corp (INTC.O) in tweaking the way it reports results, a move that will help the software giant show off its growing cloud and mobile […]
|By TAP Staff| Strong signs of recovery in Dubai’s tourism and hospitality sector are already visible and there are strong bookings from the Russian travel agents and tourists, Marc Bennett, Senior Vice President for International Operations at Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said. Russian tourists, who dominated the Dubai tourism industry landscape over the years, had stopped coming in view of the challenging’ economic times […]
|By Matein Khalid| Even as China’s President meets the capo di tutti capi in Seattle, its manufacturing PMI falls to 47, a post Lehman low, with new export orders in a slump. I found it significant that the offshore yuan fell 200 pips to 6.4346 after the PMI. This proves my core argument, outlined a month ago. The Middle Kingdom will respond to its economic decline and […]
