Dubai’s business community are more upbeat on the emirate’s economy than they were a year ago, according to the latest business confidence survey released by Department of Economic Development (DED). The department’s latest quarterly Business Confidence Index (BCI) reached 120.7 points for the second quarter of 2013 – up 14.6 per cent points on the same period last year. The index has also risen by 6.7 points […]
Aug 9 (Reuters) – North America’s shale boom is insulating the world from steep oil price spikes as several OPEC members struggle to maintain production due to unrest and infrastructure problems, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday. The agency, consulting developed nations on energy policies, said key among those disruptions were Libya and Iraq where violence has already steeply curtailed output. Upcoming work on key […]
Riyadh (Reuters): The Saudi Arabian government awarded $22.5 billion (Dh82.6 billion) in contracts to three foreign-led consortia on Sunday for the design and construction of the first metro rail system in the capital, Riyadh. The project, which will involve six rail lines extending 176 kilometres and carrying electric, driverless trains, is the world’s largest public transport system currently under development, Saudi officials said. US construction giant Bechtel […]
By Gerald Al Fil While the comeback of stock market rallies investment banking, the Shari’ah-compliant industry faces its toughest test since it entered its boom phase a decade ago. I got puzzled when I received a tweet from @Worldmuslimnews on May 11 saying “Islamic finance is out”. Are issuances of Islamic bonds (sukuk) not going through the roof as we can read day by day? Could first […]
NEW YORK (AP) — With new public stock offerings for guitar maker Fender and travel booking website Kayak on deck next week, there are signs demand is starting to grow for IPOs after a five-week freeze triggered by a steep decline in financial markets and exacerbated by Facebook’s rocky May 18 debut. Five companies are scheduled to go public next week alone, including Fender, Kayak and Palo […]
For today’s marketers, online channels present a vast array of new opportunity – as well as the potential for costly distraction. New and emerging platforms — such as social and mobile channels — continue to evolve the online landscape of consumer engagement. As a result, success metrics and economics can change quarterly depending upon customer adoption curves. Marketers can, and should, choose from a broad menu of […]
Another week, another warning from megabanker JPMorgan (JPM). Two months ago, as you probably recall, JP spooked stock market investors with news that it had managed to rack up $2 billion worth of losses, trading derivatives on European debt. Market capitalization was lost. CEOs were subpoenaed. Mea culpas were released … and life went on. Then last week we learned that the news from May was much […]
Even people who are relatively happy at work go through periods when they hate their jobs—for days, weeks or even months at a time. Just read between the lines of the recent obituaries of CBS newsman Mike Wallace, who died on April 7 at the age of 93. As The New York Times reported, Wallace suffered a nervous breakdown when his documentary on deception by the American […]
(Reuters) – India’s economy will grow at its slowest pace in a decade this fiscal year, with tight monetary policy, political gridlock and a weakening global economy prompting analysts to slash their forecasts, a Reuters poll showed. Even as growth falters, the rupee has been hitting all-time lows against the dollar, the government is struggling with bloated fiscal and current account deficits and inflation has remained stubbornly […]
MADRID (Reuters) – Hundreds of unemployed Spaniards who had walked hundreds of kilometers (miles) to Madrid joined protests on Saturday against Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s government and its handling of an economic crisis. Demonstrations have swollen across Spain since the center-right government announced 65 billion euros ($79 billion) in new spending cuts two weeks ago to cut its deficit and avert a full-blown bailout, with firefighters and […]
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A state judge on Friday temporarily blocked plans by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia to sell certain branded products at J.C. Penney stores. The preliminary injunction was a win for Macy’s , which has sued Martha Stewart Living claiming it has exclusive rights to sell certain Martha Stewart products including soft furnishings, dinnerware and cookware. In issuing the preliminary injunction, New York State Supreme […]
K. Raveendran, Special to Gulf News When Dubai Islamic Bank announced the launch of its first property development in Dubai Marina in January last year, there was only a hint that the world’s first Islamic bank might be looking at the emirate’s booming real estate sector somewhat more seriously than the rest of the banks. But in less than a couple of years, DIB has emerged as […]
