UAE. July data suggested that the UAE’s non-oil private sector regained some of the growth momentum that was lost at the end of the second quarter. Output and new orders both rose at sharper rates, contributing to a robust overall improvement in business conditions. Job creation was also sustained at a solid pace. On the price front, data highlighted divergent trends in July. The rate of cost […]
SAUDI ARABIA. Saudi Arabia’s non-oil private sector began the third quarter of 2015 on a positive note, with business conditions improving at the fastest pace in three months during July. Stronger growth of the sector as a whole was mainly driven by sharper expansions in both output and new orders, while purchasing activity also rose more quickly. However, data for employment bucked the general trend, as the […]
RAS LAFFAN, Qatar — The temperature hovered around 100 degrees on the jetty here, where a set of pipes were connected to a giant red-hulled ship. But the moisture in the air froze on the pipes and flaked off, creating snowlike flurries on the early summer evening. The incongruous sight is common on the Qatari ship, the Al Rekayyat, which carries a frigid fuel known as liquefied […]
|By Matein Khalid| Every global recession since the OPEC oil shocks of 1973-74 was triggered by a contraction in the $17 trillion US economic colossus. The failure of Lehman Brothers, the meltdown in US subprime mortgages, the impotence of the implicit “Fed/Uncle Sam” put, the ice age in the commercial paper and interbank money markets all tipped the US economy into recession in late 2008 and triggered […]
AMMAN, Jordan — The young visitor from America rode his skateboard, jogged near his house or strolled to the market, barely acknowledging his neighbors. He was a regular at the mosque, but never bothered to introduce himself to fellow worshipers, appearing as indifferent to them as he seemed to his surroundings. “He made no effort,” said the mosque’s imam. After Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, 24, was identified by […]
SAUDI ARABIA. JLL, the world’s leading real estate investment and advisory firm, today released its second quarter (Q2 2015) Riyadh Real Estate Market Overview that asses the latest trends in the office, residential, retail and hotel sectors in Saudi Arabia’s largest city. Mr Jamil Ghaznawi, National Director and Country Head of JLL KSA, commented: “there has been relatively little change in the real estate market in Riyadh […]
Oil has fallen to a six-month low, and hopes of a quick rebound are fading as demand heads into an autumn swoon. Brent crude tumbled below $50 on Monday for the first time since January. Gasoline fell the most in almost three years. The slump may have further to go. U.S. refineries, which turned a record amount of crude into gasoline during July, typically slow down from […]
DOHA, Qatar — Persian Gulf monarchies issued a cautious endorsement on Monday of the accord Secretary of State John Kerry negotiated last month to constrain Iran’s nuclear program. “This was the best option among other options,” said Khalid al-Attiyah, the foreign minister of Qatar, who hosted a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council that Mr. Kerry attended. In a news conference with Mr. Kerry, Mr. Attiyah said […]
Billions of dollars of investment emanating from the GCC and Muslim jurisdictions are increasingly seeking Shariah compliant investment opportunities in key global real estate markets, said organisers of an upcoming real estate event in London. The International Real Estate Finance (IREF) Summit, a premier real estate event in the UK is scheduled to take place on December and 2 at The Jumeirah Carlton Tower in London. The […]
TEHRAN — Despite the smiling clown, a symbol of the Great Satan’s love for meat, buns and fries, there were no angry mobs punching fists in the air, shouting “Death to America”; nor did the smell of burnt American flags permeate this Tehran neighborhood. It smelled of juicy burgers, flipped by a cheerful Iranian teenager named Jahan. His kitchen was crowned with a flashing logo that looked […]
INTERNATIONAL. New research from PwC projects that traditional assets under management (AuM) in 12 markets across Africa will rise to around $1,098 billion by 2020, from a 2008 total of $293 billion. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 9.6%. Traditional asset management, in particular the mutual fund industry, is expanding aggressively across Africa. This will largely be driven by a number of factors: […]
A French order to apply the “right to be forgotten” to Google searches not just across European domains but globally would risk “serious chilling effects on the Web,” according to the Internet search giant. Rather than comply, Google is asking the French agency that issued the order to withdraw it. France’s Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés, or CNIL, issued the global delisting order to Google […]
Mark Karpeles, chief executive of Mt. Gox, attends a news conference at the Tokyo District Court in Tokyo February 28, 2014. Reuters/Yuya Shino/Files TOKYO Mark Karpeles, the former head of defunct bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox, was arrested on Saturday in connection with the disappearance of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of the virtual currency, Japanese media reports said. The French-born Karpeles, 30, is suspected of falsifying […]
An employee works inside the office of U.S. online cab-hailing company Uber, on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, April 24, 2015. Reuters/Anindito Mukherjee REUTERS – Uber Technologies Inc will invest $1 billion in India in the next nine months, as the online taxi-hailing company looks to expand its services in its biggest market outside the United States. Uber said it would use the additional investment to […]
UAE. The MENA Private Equity Association, a non-profit organisation supporting the development of the private equity and venture capital industry in the Middle East and North Africa, launched today its ninth “MENA Private Equity & Venture Capital” Annual Report. According to the Report, which was compiled in collaboration with Deloitte and Zawya – Thomson Reuters, 2014 was a significant year for the industry and has demonstrated the […]
The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) is considering introducing with the Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME) futures and options contracts for specific Abu Dhabi stocks as well as market index futures, a top DME official said. The exchanges have established a joint committee which will examine the issue over the next few months, DME Managing Director Owain Johnson told Reuters. “You have to go to the market and […]
DUBAI // A model to help promising young leaders achieve their potential has been launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai. Called “The Leader of the 21st Century Model”, it has been launched for the UAE Government Leaders Programme and is created by the UAE Government. Inspired by the leadership of Sheikh Mohammed, it aims to strengthen the competencies and leadership skills […]
Dubai realtor S&K blames weak market for bankruptcy DUBAI, 1 days ago Dubai-based real estate agency S&K Estate Agents said a deteriorating property market in the emirate contributed to its decision to file for bankruptcy and be liquidated. “Simply put, the revenue being generated by the business drastically reduced over the first half of 2015, without enough income to cover operational costs,” S&K said in an emailed […]
Western Union….aiding Greece during financial crisis Western Union activates money transfer into Greece ATHENS, 1 days ago The Western Union Company, a leading global payment services, has activated international remittances into Greece, allowing customers to receive cash payouts in minutes from almost anywhere around the world at select walk-in retail agent locations. International and domestic Western Union Money Transfer transactions are available for payout at up to […]
Sophos launches cloud-based secure web gateway DUBAI, 1 days ago Sophos, a leading security solutions provider, has launched the Sophos Cloud Web Gateway, a cloud-based secure web gateway that delivers advanced protection for users, devices and data across multiple operating systems, regardless of their location. The addition of secure web gateway to Sophos Cloud integrates technology from Mojave Networks, which Sophos acquired in October last year, said […]
Hogan…focused on creating new experiences Consumer choice, innovation ‘key drivers of aviation sector’ ORLANDO, 1 days ago Consumer choice and innovation are the fundamental drivers of competition in the international airline industry, said Etihad Airways president and CEO James Hogan at the 2015 Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) Convention in Orlando, Florida (US). In a discussion, which focused on emerging opportunities and challenges in the global aviation industry, […]
|By Matein Khalid|So Pearson PLC has sold the FT Group (with its flagship Financial Times newspaper) to Japan’s Nikkei Inc for $1.32 billion. Pearson will use the cash proceeds to increase its investment in education publishing businesses in the US and Canada, now 75% of revenues. This deal is a milestone in the history of newspaper publishing and my own life as an investor/financial journalist. I discovered […]
|By TAP Staff| Some 5,200 rooms are expected to be added to the Abu Dhabi hotel sector by 2017. Of this, 2,300 rooms are set to enter the market by the end of 2015 alone, according to a report by JLL. The Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (ADTCA) also report a 20% increase in hotel guests in the first quarter of 2015 compared to Q1 figures […]
INTERNATIONAL. The undisputed king of oil and gas is making some moves that could change the face of the global refining sector. In June 2015, Saudi Arabia pumped a record 10.564 million barrels a day, a record level. As if being the world’s biggest exporter of oil was not enough, the desert kingdom is now looking to conquer the refining sector as it has quickly become the […]
