Visitors at the exhibit “A Brief History of Humankind” at the Israel Museum. The museum is Israel’s largest cultural institution, presiding over Jerusalem from a hilltop site alongside the Knesset and the Supreme Court. By ISABEL KERSHNER June 17, 2015 JERUSALEM — A softly lit case displays a small, gnarled implement that is said to be the world’s oldest known complete sickle, dating back 9,000 years. On a wall […]
By KAREEM FAHIM June 16, 2015 BAGHDAD — Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Yemen released a video statement on Tuesday confirming the death of its leader, Nasser al-Wuhayshi, in an American missile strike last week. His death was also confirmed by the Obama administration on Tuesday. Mr. Wuhayshi, 38, who had led Qaeda operations in Yemen since 2002 and was also the global extremist network’s second-ranking leader, was killed along […]
Saudi opening may be non-event with no licences awarded RIYADH, 11 hours, 30 minutes ago The opening of Saudi Arabia’s stock market to direct foreign investment on Monday may disappoint traders who have been hoping for large and immediate fund inflows, as the kingdom has yet to announce the award of any licences. Saudi Arabia’s Capital Market Authority announced plans to open the market last July, and […]
Phoenix Power $146m IPO heavily oversubscribed MUSCAT, 10 hours, 58 minutes ago The flotation of Phoenix Power Co, owner of Oman’s largest power plant, has been heavily oversubscribed, attracting over RO1 billion ($2.6 billion) of bids from investors, the state-run Oman News Agency (ONA) reported on Sunday. The company sought to raise RO56.3 million ($146.3 million) by offering a 35 per cent stake in an offer open […]
Some things can’t be summed up in 140 characters. Twitter Inc’s (TWTR.N) announcement that Dick Costolo would exit as CEO on July 1 was long on plaudits but offered few clues on how the company will tackle its biggest problem: user growth. Twitter’ shares were down 0.6 percent in early afternoon trading on Friday, after rising much as 3.9 percent just after the opening, as investors assessed […]
Dick Costolo, CEO of Twitter (pictured on left), announced on Thursday that he would be stepping down as head of the social media company, effective July 1. Jack Dorsey (pictured on right), the company’s chairman and co-founder, has been named interim CEO while the board of directors begins looking for a permanent replacement. Costolo said he would continue to serve on Twitter’s board of directors, while Dorsey […]
NEW YORK Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) CEO Dick Costolo is stepping down, under pressure from investors frustrated by the Internet company’s slow growth and seemingly constant shake-ups in its upper ranks. Costolo will be replaced by co-founder Jack Dorsey on an interim basis. The company’s shares rose 7.7 percent to $38.60 in after-market trading. “Unfortunately this news isn’t surprising,” said Nate Elliott of management consultant Forrester Research. “The […]
UAE. Dubai private sector companies indicated a modest rebound in output growth from the 18-month low recorded during April, according to the latest Emirates NBD Dubai Economy Tracker™ report. The latest survey also pointed to a slightly faster expansion of incoming new work, while modest job creation and positive sentiment regarding the business outlook was sustained. Of the three key sub-sectors monitored by the survey, construction was […]
The logo of Alibaba Group is seen inside the company’s headquarters in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province early November 11, 2014. Reuters/Aly Song/Files BEIJING/SHANGHAI Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd will invest in financial media outlet China Business Network in a deal set to be announced on Thursday, Chinese media reported on Wednesday. The investment in China Business Network, part of Shanghai Media Group (SMG), will be worth […]
Shares in Dubai Islamic mortgage provider Amlak Finance fell sharply as they resumed trading on Tuesday after being suspended for nearly six years. The stock tumbled as much as 23.5 percent shortly after opening but then pared losses to 14.7 percent. It topped trading volumes on the emirate’s bourse, whose main index slipped 0.2 percent. Trading in Amlak, part-owned by Dubai’s biggest developer Emaar Properties, was halted […]
Men stood on a building damaged during Hamas’s last war with Israel. Gaza’s unemployment rate has risen to 44 percent, the highest in the world. By DIAA HADID and MAJD AL WAHEIDI June 1, 2015 GAZA CITY — On a street here crammed with glittery clothing and electronic shops, Mahmoud Matar flipped through the receipt book for his appliance store, much of it blank: His lone sale that day was a $7 […]
Intel Corp (INTC.O) agreed to buy Altera Corp (ALTR.O) for $16.7 billion as the world’s biggest chipmaker seeks to make up for slowing demand from the PC industry by expanding its line-up of higher-margin chips used in data centres. By combining with Altera, Intel will be able to bundle its processing chips with the smaller company’s programmable chips, which are used, among other things, to speed up […]
UAE. Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, achieved its strongest financial results to date in 2014, posting a net profit of US$ 73 million on total revenues of US$ 7.6 billion, up 52.1 per cent and 26.7 per cent respectively over the previous year. 2014 PEFORMANCE SUMMARY OF ETIHAD AIRWAYS *The above results represent the standalone airline business within the newly formed Etihad […]
Intel Corp (INTC.O) has resumed talks to buy programmable-chip maker Altera Corp (ALTR.O) and is close to a $16 billion deal, people familiar with the matter said on Friday, paving way for the third mega semiconductor-chip deal this year. The price for Altera could be as much as $54 per share, according to one of the people. This would be a 15 percent premium over the stock’s […]
Tech giant Apple has acquired Metaio, a company that creates tools for authoring, rendering and managing augmented-reality applications, for an undisclosed sum, according to legal documents filed in Germany. A notarized registration form filed in a Munich court indicates that 29,121 Euros (around $32,000) in shares held by Metaio were transferred to Apple last week. Based in Munich, Metaio was founded in 2003. The company grew out […]
Avago Technologies Ltd (AVGO.O) agreed on Thursday to buy Broadcom Corp (BRCM.O) for $37 billion in the largest merger of chipmakers ever, turning a lesser known company run by a ferocious dealmaker into one of the biggest industry players. Avago, which serves the wireless and industrial markets, is offering Broadcom shareholders $17 billion in cash and Avago shares valued at $20 billion. Broadcom is best known for […]
Foreigners can buy into Saudi IPOs on case-by-case basis RIYADH, 22 days ago Foreigners will be allowed to buy directly into initial public offers (IPO) of shares in Saudi Arabian companies on a case-by-case basis, the chairman of the Saudi Capital Market Authority said on Tuesday. The CMA announced on Monday rules allowing foreign institutions to begin investing directly in the stock market, subject to restrictions such […]
An attendee at the Microsoft Ignite technology conference is seen next to the Microsoft logo in Chicago, Illinois, May 4, 2015. Reuters/Jim Young Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Salesforce.com Inc (CRM.N) held “significant talks” this spring but failed to agree on a price, CNBC reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Microsoft was willing to offer about $55 billion for the world’s biggest maker of online sales software. […]
NEW YORK Billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn said Thursday that mutual funds will increasingly realise that being underweight shares of Apple (AAPL.O) will hurt their performance as the technology giant continues to innovate. “They are underweight Apple in relation to the index funds, and I think more and more of these funds will realise that’s going to hurt their performance in the future as Apple continues to […]
The two main stock exchanges in the United Arab Emirates are trying to attract market makers but some industry professionals say Abu Dhabi is offering more generous financial terms and more liberal rules than Dubai, suggesting it may have more success. Market makers stand ready to buy and sell stocks at all times, improving liquidity on an exchange – something which may be increasingly important as Abu […]
Plunging iron ore prices are providing a lifeline for some of China’s biggest steel mills, but raising the prospect of a rising tide of exports and increased friction with the European Union and countries such as India. Even as China’s domestic steel demand shrinks and the industry battles chronic overcapacity, lower iron ore prices have helped many large mills post better earnings in 2014 than a year […]
