A 2017 state budget plan released by Oman’s government on Sunday projected a smaller deficit but maintained tight curbs on spending because of low oil prices, which are hurting state revenues. Government spending this year is projected to total 11.7 billion rials ($30.4 billion) and revenues 8.7 billion rials, which would result in a deficit of 3 billion rials. That compares with the government’s original 2016 budget […]
ISTANBUL: Thirty-nine people, including many foreigners, were killed when a gunman reportedly dressed as Santa Claus stormed an Istanbul nightclub as revellers were celebrating the New Year, the latest carnage to rock Turkey after a bloody 2016.The assailant shot dead a policeman and a civilian at the entrance to the Reina club, one of the city’s most exclusive nightspots, and then went on a shooting rampage inside, […]
The Central Bank of Oman will be forced to follow the US Fed’s tightening cycle over the coming months, despite low inflation and rising liquidity pressures at home, according to BMI Research. It said in a research noted that combined with low commodity prices, the strength of the US dollar, and weaker economic activity, Oman will adopt a more hawkish monetary policy to lead to average consumer […]
ABUJA Nigeria’s government will seek a lasting peace settlement with militants in the oil-producing southern Niger Delta region in 2017, President Muhammadu Buhari said in a New Year’s message on Saturday. Attacks on oil facilities in Nigeria’s energy hub, coupled with low oil prices, helped push Africa’s biggest economy into recession – the first in 25 years – in the second quarter. Crude oil sales account for […]
A new year is upon us and with it, a new season of art events and exhibitions is about to start. This month marks the opening of a host of exhibitions at Alserkal Avenue and across Dubai. Highlights include Asad Faulwell at Lawrie Shabibi from January 9, who continues his series on Algerian women who fought during the war for independence from French occupation, and their largely […]
By Lewis Krauskopf and Chuck Mikolajczak | NEW YORK NEW YORK After a late-year rally fueled by the U.S. election pushed stocks to surprising new peaks, investors are wary that the market could be primed for a spill to start 2017. The benchmark S&P 500 .SPX is set to post a roughly 10 percent price gain for 2016 and around 12 percent on a total return basis, […]
Microsoft’s ongoing move to reposition itself as a cloud-first/mobile-first vendor continued in 2016. But readers of “All About Microsoft” here on ZDNet remained most interested in Windows 10’s rollout and futures this past year. Credit: ZDNet While it’s Microsoft’s commercial cloud story that many investors and analysts are watching most closely, Microsoft’s moves as the Windows company are what had — and will likely continue to have […]
Submitted by Michael Shedlock via MishTalk.com, Yesterday, President Obama expelled 35 Russian “Operatives” from the Russian Embassy. Is there any evidence those expelled are “intelligence operatives”? Any hard evidence Russia was behind the Hillary hacks? Any credible evidence that Putin himself is to blame? The answers are No, No, and No. Yet, once again the American press is again asked to co-sign a dubious intelligence assessment. Rush […]
Damac Properties has unveiled Akoya Play, a collection of 3-bedroom villas in an international golf community set around a one-of-a-kind water park in Dubai. Located at Akoya Oxygen master development, Akoya Play went on sale in Dubai on Wednesday, the developer said. The new homes are priced at AED1,050,000 with a payment plan spanning three and a half years, Damac added in a statement. Niall McLoughlin, senior […]
Globalization, the path that the world economy has largely followed for decades, took some hefty blows in 2016. The election of Donald Trump as U.S. president and Britain’s decision to leave the European Union have raised questions over the future of tariff-free trade and companies’ freedom to move production to lower-cost countries. Borders are back in vogue. Economic nationalism is paying political dividends. “We […]
Alison Shan Price, the CEO and founder of the One World Actors Centre (OWAC) in Kuwait has been awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours list. Having been involved in theatre since she was five, Price has been in Kuwait for years, running OWAC with her daughter Eleni Rebecca, the managing director and chief choreographer, alongside a large team of artists. The British Government said Price […]
BEIJING China’s economy is on a steady growth path as 2016 ends, supported by a housing boom and billions in government investment, but the mood of policymakers is more cautious than celebratory as they face “complexity” in the new year. Controlling risks has been a constant refrain in recent months as the focus of policymakers switches to taming asset bubbles and checking unbalanced growth stemming from efforts […]
Social media firm Snap Inc may be the highest profile tech IPO planned for 2017, with the potential to raise billions. But more than a dozen expected stock offerings of relatively obscure software firms targeting business customers – little-known names such as Apttus, Tintri and Okta – could be just as important in thawing a long-frozen IPO market, according to investment bankers and advisers who work on […]
While you were doing your Christmas shopping, an old-fashioned takeover contest was being fought out in an obscure corner of the stock market. The target was MP Evans Group, one of the very few plantation companies left listed in London. The outcome shows that there are bargains to be found and that some institutional shareholders, at least, will take the long view over the quick buck. Evans […]
UAE-based Azizi Developments on Thursday said it was to press on with plans to launch 50 new developments in 2017, which will comprise residential, commercial and retail space, following talks with Dubai Land Department. The developer said in a statement that it discussed Dubai’s economic situation, the current market conditions and predictions for the upcoming year as well as regulatory changes. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Khalifa Bin Saeed […]
Getty Images/iStockphoto With 2016 drawing to a close, here is a look at some of the things — tech, as well as a number of industry metrics — that you should be keeping an eye on over the coming year. CES thoughts Before I begin, I want to mention the first big tech shindig of 2017, which will be CES. I pay very little attention to CES […]
Oil prices were on track for their biggest annual gain since 2009 after the OPEC grouping and other major producers agreed to cut crude output to reduce a global supply overhang that has depressed prices for two years. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures slipped 12 cents to $53.62 a barrel by 1400 GMT on Friday, while Brent front-month March crude futures were down 19 […]
Hindsight Capital beats the market, and all competition, every year. But how would it do over a decade? For the uninitiated, Hindsight Capital is an imaginary hedge fund that is blessed with perfect foresight, which features at this time of year in the Long View column. As real fund managers deploying real money have to hedge their bets, it always does far better than any of them […]
By Yashaswini Swamynathan Wall Street aimed to end 2016 on a positive note, setting up the Dow for its best annual performance since 2013 amid increasing optimism about the outlook for the economy. The markets have shown surprising resilience to major political events, such as Britain’s vote in June to leave the European Union and the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president in November. U.S. stocks, […]
Financial markets in 2016 endured an escalation of negative interest rates, the collapse and subsequent rebound in commodity prices and fluctuating stock market valuations. The test for investors began in week one, as fears of a China slowdown roiled stock indices weeks after the Federal Reserve began to normalise policy. Over the ensuing months, the Brexit vote and US election would prove significant mile markers, shift thinking […]
Microsoft’s Surface Studio offers a new angle on the desktop PC Image: Microsoft Microsoft’s high-priced Surface Studio may be selling better than expected, if we can believe a recent report from Digitimes. The Taiwanese company – which publishes a Chinese daily newspaper on IT and high-tech supply chains – reports that “Microsoft has ordered 30,000 units to be shipped in the first quarter of 2017, according to […]
BEIJING China’s Ministry of Agriculture said on Friday the recent outbreaks of bird flu have been handled in a “timely and effective” manner without spreading and have not affected chicken products or prices. In an emailed statement to Reuters, the government department said the situation in the world’s second-largest poultry consumer was “stable”. The comments come as South Korea and neighbouring countries battle outbreaks of various strains […]
In August, US group ValueAct announced a $1.1bn stake in Morgan Stanley. Yet the notorious boardroom activist had no plans to shake up management, no beef with strategy at the investment bank. The stock, it said, was simply cheap. Mere months later an investment that had seemed brave at the time is worth $1.8bn. ValueAct’s gain is just one of the more striking examples of an extreme […]
Saudi Arabian commercial bank deposits rose to their highest level this year in November, a sign that a liquidity crunch due to low oil prices is easing as the government liquidates foreign assets to pay its bills, official data showed on Wednesday. Bank deposits climbed to 1.624 trillion riyals ($433 billion) from 1.610 trillion riyals in October, the fourth straight month-on-month gain, the central bank figures showed. […]
