|By Matein Khalid|The GCC currency pegs to the US dollar have been prominent in international finance in place since the early 1980’s, in times of war and revolution, in times of economic boom and bust, in times of crude oil price surges and crashes. Yet the oil crash of 2014-16 was an inflection point in the economic history of the Arabian Gulf. Crude oil prices were $115 […]
|By Matein Khalid|If Asia is a growth warrant on the global economy, the omens look awful as the IMF just warned the financial glitterati at Davos. Asian equities were the victims of the grim macro investment themes in 2018. Four Federal Reserve interest rate hikes forced Asian central banks to raise borrowing costs to protect embattled local currencies. The Trump White House’s game of chicken on trade […]
|By Matein Khalid| I confess, I fell in love with South Africa’s Cape Town, though not its Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). 2018 has been an annus horribilis for both the rand and South African equities, with 30% losses for a US dollar investor, the fifth worse in the emerging markets. The euphoria after President Cyril Ramaphosa replaced Jacob Zuma early this year did not last as South Africa […]
By James M. Dorsey The Pakistani government’s removal of a virulently anti-Shiite militant from its terrorism list at the very moment that an international money laundering and terrorism finance watchdog was deciding to put the country on a watchlist highlights Pakistan’s struggle to come to grips with militancy. The decision by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) that was reported by Pakistani media but has yet to be announced […]
By James M. Dorsey A recent upsurge in insurgent activity in Kashmir likely explains Pakistani and Chinese reluctance to crackdown on internationally designated militant Hafez Saeed and the network of groups that he heads. So does the fact that Mr. Saeed and Lashkar-e-Taiba, an outlawed, India-focused ultra-conservative Sunni Muslim group widely seen as one of South Asia’s deadliest, have assisted Pakistani intelligence and the military in countering […]
By James M. Dorsey Ousted Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif kicked up a storm when he earlier this month seemingly admitted that Pakistan had supported militants who attacked multiple targets in Mumbai in 2008, killing 166 people. Mr. Sharif’s admission, which he has since tried to walk back, put a finger on Pakistan’s controversial policy of selective support of militant groups at a sensitive time. Pakistan is gearing up for elections that […]
|By Saifur Rahman, Associate Editor| The historic first cargo of two million barrels of crude oil from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), destined for the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL) has been loaded and is en-route to India, in the presence of Dharmendra Pradhan, Indian Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and ADNOC Group CEO at a ceremony in Abu […]
By Matein Khalid A dismal legacy of civil war, sanctions, insurgency, foreign invasion and terrorism has had a catastrophic impact on the Iraqi economy. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi told the assembled global elite at Davos 2018 that Iraq needed $100 billion in postwar construction. Yet money alone will not solve Iraq’s problems of systemic corruption, a society divided by sectarian cleavages, poverty, the displacement of 2 million […]
A new partnership between the UAE and India will enable the UAE to communicate with India the requirements of skills and their certification for Indian workers coming to the UAE. Accordingly India can align its ambitious skill development programmes and certification procedures with the requirements of the UAE’s job market. The UAE and India announced on Monday the launch of a new strategic partnership focused on skill […]
|By Arabian Post Staff| DP World Ltd., the Dubai-based port operator that manages terminals from Hong Kong to Peru, and India’s National Investment & Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) plan to jointly invest up to US$3 billion in the South Asian nation, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World, disclosed at the sixth World Government Summit (WGS 2018) in Dubai. During a panel discussion titled […]
|By Arabian Post Staff| Following objections raised by its national airline, India has rejected Dubai’s request for more landing rights to fly directly to under-served airports in the country, such as those in India’s North East. “We have decided against allowing any such access to Dubai. The request has been rejected,” Indian media reported quoting a senior aviation ministry official. Dubai’s DGCA has been seeking an increase […]
|By Matein Khalid|I am often asked by investors to articulate my “philosophy” of real estate investing. Tough question. My ideal deal is one where it is possible to buy brick and mortar assets at 60 – 70% of replacement cost. This usually occurs in the aftermath of a banking crisis or economic shock. This was the case in Florida homes in 2009 or Spanish office space in […]
Lubna Qassim is no career diplomat, but in her varied legal and political career, she has had the privilege of walking the corridors of power in London and Dubai. These days, as well as being executive vice president and group general counsel for Emirates NBD, Qassim is a member of several corporate boards. Qassim, the eldest of four daughters, credits her business acumen to the fact that […]
Indian agents have raided the home of the country’s former finance minister as part of an investigation into alleged violations of strict foreign investment rules. India’s Central Bureau of Investigation said it had visited locations in the southern city of Chennai on Tuesday morning, including the home of Karti Chidambaram, which he shares with his father P Chidambaram, a Congress party politician whose most recent cabinet post […]
Vodafone redials its Indian impairment numbers. FT Opening Quote, with commentary by Matthew Vincent, is your early Square Mile briefing. You can sign up for the full newsletter here. Hailing from the country that gave India cricket, Victorian railway architecture and a penchant for bureaucracy, Vodafone might have expected a little goodwill on the subcontinent. Instead, India has given the British mobile phone operator a price war, […]
India’s $1.6tn stock market broke new ground last week, with the benchmark index hitting an all-time high as confidence builds that the government’s reform agenda will strengthen growth and corporate earnings. But the stock market’s 14.9 per cent rally since January 1 has divided opinion among fund managers who disagree over whether Indian equities can make further gains. “The most common question that I am asked by […]
Dubai on Monday unveiled a new website to enhance awareness of the city as a top global destination for golf tourism. Launched at the Asia Golf Tourism Convention (AGTC) in Danang, Vietnam, golfindubai.com provides information on courses designed by legends including Ernie Els, Sir Nick Faldo, Colin Montgomerie and Greg Norman, as well as details on leisure and practice facilities and wider hospitality offers. A video of […]
May 12, 2017 IMPHAL, India – Fifteen seconds into the opening match of the 10th Manipur International Polo Tournament, after a long and feverish drumming performance, after the Manipur state chief minister had been properly honored with gifts and praise, after mounted players had paraded around the Mapal Kangjeibung polo ground with country flags held high, the home team scored on the Australians. It was a bright […]
The Indian government issued an ordinance at the end of last week laying out some new powers for the Reserve Bank of India, powers which are aimed at chipping away at the country’s mammoth and thoroughly discussed bad loan problem. Here’s CreditSights with a brief explanation: In essence, two additional sections 35AA and 35AB were introduced into the Banking Regulation Act. 35AA will allow the government […]
ABU DHABI // Bollywood spectaculars, live stage shows featuring popular children’s cartoon characters and crowd-pleasing stand-up comedians are all part of the line-up for Abu Dhabi Summer Season 2017. Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority has teamed up with UAE event organisers to bring international ticketed and free events and activities to multiple venues across the emirate from July 20 to August 20, said Mubarak Hamad Al […]
Etihad Airways has expanded its services to the southern Indian state of Kerala as it celebrates 10 years of flying to the popular destination. The airline said it has launched a fourth daily non-stop service between Kozhikode and its Abu Dhabi hub, taking to 63 the total number of weekly services between the UAE capital and its three Kerala gateways of Kochi, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram. This represents […]
China has rapidly emerged as the leading issuer of green bonds, spurring excitement among the green finance community that they will help the world’s largest emitter reduce its choking pollution. But although the amount raised is carefully tracked, how the money is being spent is less clear. China issued $36bn of green bonds in 2016, up from almost none the year before, and analysts expect it to […]
Elsewhere on Wednesday, – TFW you have become verb used to specify there should be no lying in this particular bond quoting: Shortly after his indictment in 2013, Mr. Peters engaged in a chat session with a potential buyer about the price that would be offered for mortgage securities. The customer wrote, “Ok don’t litvak me! Go ahead with that bid.” – Guardian longread on where oil […]
Emerging market equities have been the darling asset class de jour in 2017, mainly in Asia and Latin America, despite the March FOMC rate hike, a US Dollar Index at or above 100 and a mini-swoon in crude oil after a Saudi-Russian output cut spat. Earnings growth (India/Thailand) a stabilized currency (China), policy reforms (India, Brazil, Indonesia) local interest rate cuts (Brazil) and lower US protectionist policies […]
