ADEN: A Houthi missile attack Friday killed 26 members of pro-government forces in a camp east of the Yemeni capital Sanaa, hospital officials in the town of Al-Maarib said. The news agency of the internationally recognized government said the attack took place during Friday prayers in Al-Maarib province, eastern Yemen. The death toll is expected to rise, it said. A loyalist military source said the attack targeted […]
DUBAI Saudi Arabia’s King Salman, who was on an official tour in Asia, has left China to head back to his kingdom, the state news agency SPA reported on Friday. Saudi Arabia’s octogenarian monarch, who has overseen the launch of an ambitious economic reform plan since his accession two years ago, was on a month-long tour of Asia that took him to Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and China. […]
Beijing, China – 16 March 2017 On the sidelines of King Salman bin Abdulaziz visit to China and during the 2017 ‘Saudi-China Investment Forum’, Huawei Tech. Investment Saudi Arabia and Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu have signed a milestone agreement to establish a training academy and a smart city innovation center in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, accelerating smart city deployment in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. […]
UAE-based retailer Paris Gallery has announced plans to open 30 new stores across the Middle East over the next five years. The company said in a statement that its expansion would focus mainly on the Gulf region and would see its workforce grow to about 5,100 employees, up from 3,500. The total projected retail area in operation will reach 3.2 million square feet by 2021, it added. […]
By Priceonomics Data Studio Each year, the State Department issues dozens of advisories with the intent of keeping Americans safe as they travel abroad. What countries are targeted by these advisories, and what risks do Americans face by visiting them? Are State Department advisories effective in keeping American travelers safe? We decided to investigate what are the most dangerous countries for American to visit as measured by […]
Photo Muslim pilgrims circled the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in Mecca last year. Credit Nariman El-Mofty/Associated Press BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia said on Friday that Iranians would be able to participate in this year’s hajj pilgrimage to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, a rare bright spot in relations between the two regional rivals. No Iranian pilgrims attended the hajj last year because of […]
Photo Some of the Somali migrants who died, in the Red Sea port of Al Hudaydah, Yemen, on Friday. Credit Abduljabbar Zeyad/Reuters SANA, Yemen — More than 30 Somali migrants in a vessel off Yemen were killed on Friday in what Yemeni security officials said was an airstrike by a Saudi-led military coalition. Joel Millman, a spokesman for the International Organization for Migration in Geneva, said that […]
Composer Mohammed Fairouz is somewhat of a rarity. Not only is he an Emirati working in the western classical tradition, but he also moonlights as a foreign-policy commentator for the likes of The Independent and The National. It’s perhaps unsurprising, considering he’s the son of an Emirati diplomat and grew up living on several different continents. These days, the 31-year-old may be based in New York, but […]
Saudi Arabia’s push to boost political and trade ties with the Maldives faces growing resistance as activists in the archipelago oppose plans for an ambitious development project funded by the kingdom. King Salman bin Abdulaziz, who is on a month-long tour of Asia as Saudi Arabia seeks to deepen alliances with predominantly Muslim states in the region, is due to visit the Indian Ocean nation at the […]
ABU DHABI // Tobacco as well as fizzy and energy drinks are expected to be taxed this year, the Minister of State for Financial Affairs announced. Obaid Al Tayer was speaking on Wednesday as the Federal National Council approved a draft law that paves the way for value-added tax (VAT) and excise duties on selected items, by setting up a legal framework for taxation. While the GCC […]
ABU DHABI // The introduction of value-added tax in the UAE next year, in tandem with the other five GCC countries, will boost government revenues that took a hit with falling oil prices. VAT could generate Dh12 billion in its first year and Dh20bn in its second year, said Sultan Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy. The international monetary fund (IMF) said introducing VAT at a low rate […]
A Saudi soldier was killed by gunmen late on Tuesday in the Eastern city of Qatif, in an incident the interior ministry said was carried out by “terrorist elements”. The security patrol came under fire upon approaching a suspicious vehicle, the statement carried by state news agency SPA, adding that the gunmen fled the area. Eastern Province is home to much of Saudi Arabia’s oil production as […]
Abu Dhabi Festival kicked off its major concert program with a performance by Mohamed Abdo. newslide Popularly known as “Fanan Al Arab” or “Artist of the Arabs” (a title he was given in the 1980s during a concert in Tunis by then president Al Habib Bou Rakiba), the Saudi Arabian singer, composer and oud player’s sold out show at Emirates Palace served to only cement his status […]
With the oil market showing signs of losing faith in a price rebound, Opec is now asking itself: what more can it do? Production cuts agreed late last year between some of the world’s biggest producers inside and outside the cartel, are losing their sway given the near 10 per cent drop in the Brent benchmark over the past week. Brimming global storage tanks and a resurgent […]
It is fitting that just a few hours until the Fed’s second rate hike in two quarters, and one day after Goldman downgraded global stocks to Neutral for the next 3 months, not to mention with the results of the anticipated Dutch election due shortly, that global stocks as well as S&P futures are higher, while crude oil has finally managed to stage a rebound as the […]
Saudi Arabia’s Capital Market Authority (CMA) has received enquiries from companies from the Gulf Cooperation Council considering listing on its new parallel market, Nomu, a senior executive said on Tuesday. The companies were in the process of appointing advisers to support their potential listings, said Yarub Awadh Albadi, head of CMA’s initial public offering unit. The Nomu market, which launched on Feb. 26, is designed for small […]
The president was expected to urge Saudi Arabia to support safe zones in Syria, which the administration has argued would be an alternative to accepting thousands of refugees from a country that has been ripped apart by six years of civil war. Continue reading the main story Mr. Trump and members of his inner circle regard Saudi Arabia as a vital component of the White House strategy […]
By Yeganeh Torbati | OVER THE PACIFIC OCEAN OVER THE PACIFIC OCEAN U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is traveling to Asia this week accompanied by only one reporter, a White House correspondent from the Independent Journal Review (IJR), a digital news outlet founded in 2012 by former Republican political operatives. The IJR said in a statement late Tuesday the State Department last week offered one of […]
Wednesday 02:40 GMT Overview A rally in crude oil prices that erased the losses of the previous session failed to bolster energy stocks in Asia, as bond and currency traders also shunned major moves ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s interest rates decision later in the day. Hot topic Crude was climbing in Asia after a slide on Tuesday. Brent, the international benchmark, was up 1.3 per […]
Toyota Motor Corp signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Tuesday with a Saudi Arabian government agency to conduct a feasibility study into producing vehicles and parts in the Middle Eastern nation. The move, if firmed up, would be a big step for the Saudi economy as the government tries to diversify beyond oil exports and create jobs as part of the kingdom’s 2030 Vision. So far, […]
Oil prices have fallen almost 10 per cent in the past week to their lowest level since Opec agreed to cut output in November. Here are five factors contributing to the renewed bout of selling that could dictate whether Brent crude can hold above $50 a barrel. 1. Shale The US shale industry has come back with a bang, with oil prices back above $50 a barrel. […]
Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, moved to allay fears that the kingdom was backing away from its pledge to curb production, underlining its concern about a 10 per cent plunge in the crude price over the past week. The kingdom’s energy ministry rushed out a rare statement on Tuesday asserting its commitment to “stabilising the global oil market”, just as global benchmark Brent crude slipped […]
LONDON/PARIS An activist hedge fund has said it objects to plans by Walt Disney (DIS.N) to take full control of debt-laden Paris theme park operator Euro Disney (EDLP.PA), according to a letter seen by Reuters. Paris-based CIAM, which owns 1.4 percent of Euro Disney shares, has written to the board of the French company to object to what it believes are plans by Walt Disney to force […]
The head of the main film festival in Saudi Arabia, where cinemas are banned, wants the government to invest in the sector as part of its campaign to encourage entertainment. Ahmed AlMulla made the comments in an interview with AFP ahead of the fourth Saudi Film Festival, which runs from March 23-28 in the Gulf coastal city of Dhahran. This year’s festival is the first since the […]
