Economy Egypt will still feel the heat despite US rate cuts Likely US interest rate cuts will lower Egypt’s interest repayment costs on its vast public debts. But this will do little to ease pressure on the country to sell national assets in order to reduce its overall borrowings. Egypt’s public external debt – money borrowed in foreign currencies – was $110 billion in 2022, having […] April 5, 2024
Finance China and US vie for FDI supremacy in Gulf’s biggest economies China and the United States invested more than $23 billion in projects in the Gulf’s two biggest economies last year. The US more than doubled its “greenfield” foreign direct investment in the UAE to nearly $4 billion, while China’s commitment to Saudi Arabia rose 10-fold to almost $17 billion. Greenfield FDI involves a foreign entity […] April 5, 2024
Oil & Gas Iran’s gas ambitions under pressure Iran has trebled its natural gas production in 10 years, becoming the largest producer in the Middle East. But Qatar’s expansion of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) production in the world’s largest natural gas field, shared by the two nations, is likely to undermine Tehran’s output ambitions, analysts say. Iran holds the world’s second-largest gas […] April 1, 2024
Real Estate Dubai land shortages push property prices even higher A shortage of undeveloped land in Dubai has caused an unprecedented rise in the cost of plots, setting the stage for further increases in the city’s already high property prices. Experts note that in some areas land prices have nearly quadrupled over the past year, compelling developers to rethink their strategies to capitalise on this […] March 29, 2024
Banking and Finance Reasons to be cheerful for UAE banks with Egyptian subsidiaries Despite the plunge in the value of the Egyptian pound, UAE banks’ subsidiaries in the country remain a strong long-term asset, analysts have told AGBI. Three Emirati banks – Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank and Dubai’s Emirates NBD – have acquired Egyptian lenders. The pound-to-dollar exchange rate stood at about EGP31 at […] March 28, 2024
Banking and Finance DIFC’s law tipped to help digital assets go mainstream The Dubai International Financial Centre has introduced a law to define and regulate digital assets – a move that should herald their integration into more parts of the economy, lawyers have told AGBI. The DIFC legislation came into effect on March 8 and classifies the assets as property. Digitally tracked items such as cryptocurrencies, non-fungible […] March 27, 2024
Markets Emerging market ETFs look light on Saudi engagement Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the MSCI Emerging Markets Index are underexposed to Saudi Arabia but are more closely aligned to weightings of the other three Gulf countries included in the benchmark, an AGBI analysis shows. The inclusion of four Gulf countries in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index over the past decade has led to […] March 26, 2024
Real Estate What Dubai’s united nations of property buyers want When purchasing a property in Dubai amenities are important to Brits, while Indian buyers are all about the return on investment, according to real estate experts. Last year Dubai recorded 1.6 million real estate transactions, a record 17 percent year-on-year increase, according to data from the Dubai Land Department. The demand comes from a largely […] March 25, 2024
Economy What Egypt needs to do to please its $60bn backers A fast-paced four weeks may have transformed Egypt’s short-term economic prospects – but only if the country abides by the programme agreed with the International Monetary Fund, observers say. Egypt’s international partners have pledged almost $60 billion in loans, grants and investment. The central bank has allowed the pound to slide for the first time […] March 24, 2024
Cybersecurity Saudi Arabia steps up battle against AI cyberattacks Twelve years after hackers brought oil production at Saudi Aramco to a halt for more than a week, Saudi Arabia is still susceptible to cyberattacks, a study had found. A survey of 8,000 private sector companies in 30 countries by Cisco AI Readiness Index revealed that the number and impact of attacks was rising and […] March 22, 2024
Tourism Abu Dhabi’s futuristic vision of an Egyptian metropolis By 2052, Egypt’s Ras El Hekma will be “competing with the most important cities of the world,” according to the new project’s promotional video. Published on February 23, the day the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ bought development rights to this stretch of coastline as part of a $35 billion deal, the video shows […] March 22, 2024
Markets Gulf weightings increase on MSCI Emerging Markets The MSCI Emerging Markets Index has increased the weightings of Gulf countries since their inclusion on the benchmark, as regulators loosened rules and companies ease foreign ownership restrictions to make it easier to invest. According to MSCI, more than $1.3 trillion in assets under management (AuM) was benchmarked against its emerging markets indexes as of […] March 21, 2024
Finance Green finance focus of UAE-Rwanda trade ambitions With trade between the UAE and Rwanda topping $1 billion last year, Kigali International Financial Centre and Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) are to work together on developing green and Islamic finance options. The two markets have signed an agreement to establish a framework for collaboration, with sustainable finance highlighted as a “major focus” for […] March 21, 2024
Renewable Energy Kuwait playing catch-up with latest renewables strategy Kuwait still has a way to go on its energy transition, industry experts say, despite the announcement of a 20-year renewables strategy. Salem Al-Hajraf, minister of electricity, water and renewable energy, said on March 7 that the country is targeting carbon neutrality by 2050. “We … need an increase in solar energy, which is considered […] March 20, 2024
Banking and Finance Liquidity strain set to push Saudi banks to seek more funds Saudi Arabian banks’ loan books are set to expand faster than their deposits again in 2024, raising costs and pushing lenders to seek additional funding sources. However, the kingdom’s banks are expected to increase their annual profits this year as government-led infrastructure projects and likely cuts to benchmark interest rates boost margins for its two […] March 20, 2024
Trade Weakening dollar should strengthen Gulf exports The US dollar will fall against the euro and Chinese yuan, economists are forecasting, reducing the purchasing power of Gulf currencies but making the bloc’s exports more competitive. A weaker dollar will raise the relative cost of imports from China and much of the European Union, but other factors are more likely to affect inflation […] March 19, 2024
Banking and Finance UAE banks struggling to match 2023’s record profits Banks in the UAE will struggle to repeat last year’s record annual profits in 2024, after the introduction of corporate tax, expected US interest rate cuts and the likely absence of the bumper one-off gains that bolstered their bottom line in 2023. However, a slight decline in profitability would still represent a strong performance by […] March 15, 2024
Video length: 09:01 Economy Currency bond traders flow into Egypt after bailout deals JPMorgan Chase & Co has issued a circular urging its clients to buy up Egyptian sovereign debt, less than two months after it removed Egypt from local-currency bond indexes. “The Egypt carry trade is back in focus, and this time should be different,” the New York bank’s Gbolahan Taiwao wrote in a note on March […] March 14, 2024
Trade Saudi Arabia courts China’s Shandong province Saudi Arabia is targeting more investment from the Chinese province of Shandong after hosting a delegation of more than 200 private sector and government officials. The Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority (ECZA), in collaboration with Invest Saudi, entertained the visitors last week with the aim of cultivating investment prospects for Chinese enterprises considering expansion […] March 14, 2024
Tech Saudi Arabia ‘leads GCC’ in adoption of robotics The rising number of robotics companies in Saudi Arabia has helped the kingdom become a regional leader in the adoption and development of the technology, experts have told AGBI. The number of robotics companies registered in the country surged to 2,344 in the second quarter of 2023, up from 1,537 a year earlier, according to […] March 14, 2024
Trade Boats, baubles and balsamic lift Italian exports to UAE Italian boat manufacturers were out in force at the Dubai International Boat Show earlier this month, doubtless buoyed by the news that nautical exports to the UAE totalled nearly $120 million in the first 11 months of 2023. More than 20 Italian companies attended the event at Dubai Harbour, part of a strengthening Italy-UAE trade […] March 14, 2024
Trade Digital economy focus of UAE-Malaysia trade talks The UAE is expected to sign a free trade deal with Malaysia by the end of June as the latter courts more investment to develop its digital economy. Talks on establishing a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) began last year and Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz, Malaysia’s minister of investment, trade and industry, said the two […] March 13, 2024
