Oil & Gas Iran needles the West with its growing oil production goals Iran has said it intends to raise its oil output to 4 million barrels per day from about 3.5 million bpd currently. Industry experts are sceptical about Tehran’s ambitions and say the announcement may be motivated by forthcoming elections. Javad Owji, the Iranian minister of petroleum, said on Thursday that 23 oil industry projects – […] June 3, 2024
Real Estate Overseas real estate talent takes on Omani bureaucracy Oman’s bid to develop its expanse of beaches, mountains and deserts means it needs to attract overseas real-estate expertise, but recent government restrictions are hindering its ambitions. In May Club Med said it would build its first Middle Eastern resort in Musandam. Abu Dhabi developer Eagle Hills is nearing the opening of its Mandarin Oriental-flagged […] June 2, 2024
Markets Foreign traders’ Gulf stock sell-off good news for bargain hunters Foreign investors’ recent cutting of their holdings in Gulf stocks should prove fleeting, and the sell-off provides other traders with the chance to accumulate equities at lower prices, fund managers told AGBI. Non-Gulf investors were net sellers of $597 million of Gulf-listed stocks in April, a report by the Dubai-based consultancy company Iridium revealed. Of […] May 30, 2024
Banking and Finance Digital lenders eager to tap into Egypt’s unbanked masses Egyptian banking history was made this month when Misr Digital Innovation (MDI) became the first Egyptian company to receive preliminary approval for a digital banking licence. MDI, a subsidiary of Banque Misr, will open Onebank – Egypt’s first digital bank – by the first quarter of next year at the latest. Experts predict many more […] May 29, 2024
Video length: 06:12 Real Estate Dubai fractional ownership is promising, but untested Fractional ownership of property in Dubai promises to widen access to real estate investment in the emirate’s surging market. But the lack of a proven secondary market raises questions about just how much liquidity this asset class can count on in a potential crisis, experts say. Buying even small portions of one or more units […] May 29, 2024
Trade Diplomacy and trade to fore as China woos GCC leaders It’s quite a coup. Hu Jintao (still with us) must be feeling vindicated. The heads of four Arab states are in Beijing to attend the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum, which Hu founded in 2004 to bring together China and the Arab League. Xi Jinping, Hu’s successor as leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), will […] May 28, 2024
Real Estate Flexibility and amenities key to UAE office sector’s future As workers globally grow resistant to spending all week at their desks, even the UAE’s strong-performing office sector must rethink its offering to meet shifting demand, industry professionals have told AGBI. “Since the pandemic, people have realised that the workplace has changed for ever. We are not going back to working in the office 80 […] May 27, 2024
Markets Bahrain tops dividend yields in mixed quarter for bourses First-quarter company earnings in the UAE, Bahrain and Oman were mixed across major economic sectors, with the four bourses trading at markedly varied valuations. As of March 31, Dubai and Bahrain had price-to-earnings ratios of 8.3 and 7.9 respectively, while Abu Dhabi’s was 19.9 and Oman’s 12.9, according to Kuwait’s Kamco Invest. Bahrain (7.7 percent) […] May 27, 2024
Education Days of high returns numbered for investors in Dubai’s schools Dubai’s private school market, once a goldmine for investors, is no longer yielding the lucrative double-digit returns it used to, the chief executive of a leading school operator has said. Navin Valrani, CEO of The Arcadia School, told AGBI new investors considering the emirate must tackle significant entry barriers, escalating costs and an increasingly mature […] May 26, 2024
Real Estate UAE offices in demand – in contrast to the West Offices in the UAE are outperforming Western equivalents, with a steady influx of foreign businesses and local developers’ preference for residential projects. “The need for more Grade A office space is becoming increasingly urgent,” Behnam Bargh, managing director at real estate agency CRC, told AGBI. “Addressing this issue will be crucial for maintaining the country’s […] May 24, 2024
Tourism Pressure on Saudi tourism exposes mixed feelings about AI Saudi Arabia is trying to limit the use of artificial intelligence technology in its expanding tourism industry in an effort to boost job numbers, despite strides being made elsewhere in the sector to make the kingdom a leader in digitalisation. Speaking at an economic forum in Doha last week, tourism minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb expressed concerns […] May 22, 2024
Oil & Gas Oil keeps Russia and China close, but analysts warn it won’t last Russia was China’s biggest oil supplier once again in April, according to official figures, staying ahead of Saudi Arabia thanks to its cheaper crude. However, crude flows from Riyadh to Beijing are expected to increase as the kingdom strengthens its presence in the Chinese energy sector, analysts have told AGBI. Russia’s crude oil exports to […] May 21, 2024
Trade UAE and Australia deal in sight with trade almost $10bn The Aussie accent is a familiar one in Dubai, with about 16,000 Australians calling the emirate their home and trade links between Australia and the UAE creeping back to pre-Covid levels. Bilateral non-oil trade between Australia and the UAE was worth $4.5 billion in 2022, up 28 percent compared with 2021 and almost double the […] May 21, 2024
Real Estate From buyers to sellers: Russians cool on Dubai real estate Russian property owners in Dubai are cashing in and moving to alternative foreign enclaves, pushed out by currency issues and the rising cost of living in the emirate. Emigrants from Russia flocked to Dubai in 2022 at the start of the country’s war with Ukraine. The UAE, although condemning the invasion, proved a safe haven […] May 21, 2024
Energy Saudi Arabia’s nuclear plans stall while UAE pushes on The UAE is moving ahead with its second nuclear power plant, but plans for Saudi Arabia’s first facility remain bogged down in controversy and delay. The kingdom is attempting to win US approval to enrich its own uranium and use US technology. Saudi Arabia said last year it would allow inspections of future nuclear facilities, […] May 19, 2024
Real Estate Marbella beckons for Abu Dhabi real estate developers A joint venture with a high-end Spanish residential developer has been launched by two Abu Dhabi real estate companies to build ten hectares of luxury homes in the Golden Mile, a premier area in Marbella. The deal with Mabel Real Estate to co-build Mabel Marbella Residences is the first luxury project in Europe for Bloom […] May 16, 2024
Aviation Airport chiefs size up ways to meet GCC airspace demand The annual number of air travellers to and from the Middle East is projected to pass the half-billion mark next year, meaning aviation authorities need to both expand and streamline use of available airspace, senior GCC airport chiefs have told AGBI. Oman is in talks with a neighbouring Gulf state to unlock a new air […] May 16, 2024
Real Estate Investor interest wanes as Saudi real estate trusts underperform Saudi Arabia’s publicly listed real estate investment trusts lag the kingdom’s main stock index as investor enthusiasm for the REIT asset class wanes. This is despite steady returns and an upbeat outlook in the property sector. REITs are often listed on bourses and invest in various property types such as offices, residential, education facilities and […] May 16, 2024
Finance Gulf asset managers remain wary of resurgent bitcoin Gulf asset managers and institutional investors remain reluctant to invest in bitcoin, despite the cryptocurrency’s resurgence over the past year. The Middle East and North Africa accounted for 7 percent – or $390 million – of global crypto volumes in the 12 months to June 30, 2023, according to Chainalysis. Turkey made up nearly half, […] May 16, 2024
Tourism Club Med resort tipped to help Oman hit tourism targets Tourist arrivals in Oman are forecast to nearly double over the next four years, boosted by developments such as the region’s first Club Med resort. Analysts at BMI expect visitor numbers to rise by a quarter to 5.3 million this year – and reach nearly 11 million by 2028. The sultanate’s tourism sector is likely […] May 15, 2024
Banking and Finance GCC debt market on way to trillion-dollar milestone The total debt capital market in the GCC is likely to cross $1 trillion this year, after reaching $940 billion in the first quarter of 2024. New research from Fitch Ratings shows that more than a third of GCC debt issued last year was in the form of sukuk, also known as an Islamic bond. […] May 14, 2024
Trade GCC-EU trade drops by $8bn as talks pause Trade between the GCC and the European Union fell by 4 percent last year to $180 billion, as the two trading blocs struggled to agree terms for a free trade agreement. Figures shared exclusively with AGBI by Eurostat, the EU’s statistics authority, show Saudi Arabia was the bloc’s biggest trade partner from the GCC, with […] May 14, 2024
