The domestic banking system in Saudi Arabia relative to many of the global peers, developed or developing, had maintained its inherent strengths that emanate from greater reliance on core banking activities, lower non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio, little recourse to wholesale funding and ample liquidity. During the last two years, Saudi banks have returned to a higher growth trajectory after a lackluster performance in 2009 that saw total […]
The commodities sector looks set for a relatively benign near-term future according to Saxo Bank, the multi-asset trading and investment specialist. Gold and silver should see a mild recovery over the next quarter and oil looks set to remain at current levels, struggling to push past previous highs. Any expectation that WTI crude will re-establish its historical premium over Brent looks improbable. Saxo Bank believes that changing […]
Small businesses are more prone to be attacked by cyber attacks, according to a study. Many small businesses b server from inside their own networks, without much awareness about how to secure them properly. Their primary concerned is the daily running of their business, which makes insecure servers a prime target for cyber attacks. A recent case is a good example of how these attacks work. On […]
Global investors have become significantly more confident in the outlook for growth, according to the BofA Merrill Lynch Fund Manager Survey for August. A net 72 percent of respondents now expect the world’s economy to pick up over the next 12 months – the survey’s strongest reading on this measure in nearly four years and a striking rise from July’s net 52 percent. Investors remain concerned over […]
Aug 13 (Reuters) – Barclays Plc is conducting a strategic review of its retail banking operations in the United Arab Emirates which could lead to a sale of the business, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Britain’s fourth-largest bank by market value confirmed on Tuesday it was holding the review of the UAE retail business but did not provide any further comment. The sources spoke […]
DUBAI, Aug 12 (Reuters) – Lenders including Deutsche Bank, HSBC and China Development Bank are resisting calls by Saudi Telecom (STC) to restructure a loan that could potentially leave them with losses of up to $600 million, banking and industry sources said. The tussle over the $1.2 billion loan highlights the risks banks face extending loans to state-owned companies in the Middle East, where billions of dollars […]
Two Gulf Arab borrowers have attracted heavy investor demand for international bond sales in the past two weeks, but higher yield premiums are prompting many other potential issuers in the region to seek alternative funding sources. In the case of Saudi Arabia, companies that might have issued bonds in the international market may now choose to issue in the country’s liquid riyal-denominated bond market. In May, a […]
By Peter Schiff I’ve been emphasizing for months that the current correction in the gold price is a result of speculative money fleeing the market and not any reflection of gold’s long-term fundamentals. Unfortunately, there is so much money to be made (and lost) by day trading that my cautions have once again fallen on deaf ears. Well, it looks like the so-called “technicals” are starting to […]
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 […]
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 […]
CHICAGO (Reuters) – Russell Wasendorf Sr was arrested on Friday after allegedly stealing more than $100 million from clients of his now-bankrupt brokerage PFGBest, using little more than a rented P.O. Box, Photoshop and inkjet printers to dupe regulators for decades. In the dramatic conclusion to a week-long drama that has shaken trader confidence in the trillion-dollar U.S. futures markets, FBI agents arrested Wasendorf, 64, at the […]
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 […]
Europe’s debt crisis has many American investors closely watching the euro. Since the euro can impact U.S. investors, Americans should be aware of the euro’s worth. Chuck Butler, president of EverBank World Markets and author of The Daily Pfennig, explained that if the euro is trading around $1.2950 (as it was on May 9, 2012), 100 euros would be worth $129.50. If the euro falls 1 percent, […]
“This has shaken our company to the core,” CEO Jamie Dimon said. The bank said managers tied to the bad trade had been dismissed without severance pay and that it planned to revoke two years’ worth of pay from each of those executives. JPMorgan said it had lost $US4.4 billion because of the trade from April through June, and its chief financial officer said the bank had […]
