Construction Neom registers 33 new patents for projects Saudi Arabia’s futuristic city Neom has ramped up its applications for patents on names and logos, registering a total of 33 this year, including 27 within the last two months, indicating that at least two new major projects are still to come. Neom Company has made a total of 45 applications to the US patent […] November 24, 2023
Trade Raiven launches fund to strengthen UAE-Canada ties Raiven Capital, a venture capital company based in Toronto, has launched a new $125 million fund in Dubai with a focus on tech-based founders. The fund, set up in Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), will invest in entrepreneurs developing artificial intelligence to disrupt sectors including fintech and cybersecurity. “Raiven has ambitious plans for the region […] November 23, 2023
Aviation Mena’s use of green jet fuel ‘needs incentives’ to take off On Wednesday morning, an Emirates A380 took off from Dubai International Airport and headed down the coastline. It’s a familiar route, but this was something new: one of the Airbus’s four engines was 100 percent powered by sustainable aviation fuel. The 45-minute test flight came in a week of advances for sustainable fuels, known as […] November 23, 2023
Real Estate Investors favour Emaar for Dubai property returns Dubai’s residential property sector rebound has reaped huge profits for the emirate’s developers and landlords. Yet for equity traders, there is really only one investible conglomerate: Emaar Properties and its subsidiary, Emaar Development. There has been upheaval among second-tier developers listed on Dubai’s bourse, while the other major players, such as Nakheel, Dubai Properties and […] November 22, 2023
Business of Sport Tourism up, growth down: a year on from the Qatar World Cup A year ago, the Al Bayt stadium, 35 kilometres outside Doha, hosted the opening game of the first World Cup ever held in the Middle East. More than 67,000 supporters thronged the giant complex to watch Qatar’s first game against Ecuador. The stadium will come into its own again in January when it hosts the […] November 20, 2023
Industry Future is rosy for Mena phosphate producers With Morocco and Saudi Arabia now holding the bulk of the world’s high-quality, accessible phosphate rock reserves, the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is a major centre for the phosphate mining industry’s future growth, analysts say. Morocco alone holds around 70 percent of the world’s total reserves of phosphate rock, the raw material […] November 17, 2023
Banking & Finance ADIB expects profits to keep rising after stellar year Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank’s net profit margin will expand further, according to its group chief financial officer Mohamed Abdelbary. The sharia-compliant lender has enjoyed a bumper first nine months of 2023 in which its earnings increased by nearly half. “We’ve managed to capitalise on the increase in interest rates in the market because of the […] November 16, 2023
Economy Saudi Arabia’s new civil code aims to reassure investors Saudi Arabia hopes a new civil commercial code, due to go into effect by the end of the year, will finally provide foreign investors with clarity on doing business in the country as it tries to shake off a reputation for opaque and arbitrary justice. The code’s 721 articles, first published in June, could be […] November 16, 2023
Real Estate Dubai real estate faces price drop of up to 10%, says S&P Dubai’s real estate market is poised for a 5 to 10 percent slump in prices in the next 12 to 18 months, an analyst said on Wednesday. The shift in the market – an important driver of the emirate’s economy – will be driven by imbalances in supply and demand, according to Tatjana Lescova, associate […] November 15, 2023
Trade China shows faith in Egypt with deeper investment When President Xi Jinping welcomed the prime minister of Egypt, Mostafa Madbouly, to Beijing’s Great Hall of the People in October, it was a signal that China is stepping up bilateral co-operation with Cairo. Their meeting, on the sidelines of the Belt and Road forum, took place as Egypt grapples with mounting debt and delays […] November 15, 2023
Aviation Gulf’s thriving private jet industry uncowed by eco concerns The Gulf’s private aviation industry is buoyant as executives, ruling family members and other wealthy individuals use its services to travel across the region and beyond. In the first half of 2023, there were 7,300 private flights to or from Mohammed bin Rashid Aerospace Hub, which is part of Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC). […] November 14, 2023
Trade Zimbabwe sharpens focus on trade with UAE The UAE could soon rival South Africa as Zimbabwe’s largest trading partner as the southern African country competes to attract more foreign investment. Zimbabwe is working to develop a number of sectors with the UAE, including agriculture, mining and energy, to build on the $2 billion bilateral trade registered last year, Lovemore Mazemo, Ambassador of […] November 13, 2023
Energy War puts Israel’s big plans for gas exploration in jeopardy Oil markets may have shrugged off Israel’s war with Hamas, but a month into the Gaza conflict the intense violence is affecting Israel’s plans to become a regional hub for exporting natural gas, according to analysts. Last week the government awarded 12 new exploration and development licences to six operators. One group comprises Italian energy […] November 9, 2023
Sustainability What Big Oil says about climate change The role to be played by Big Oil in global efforts to tackle climate change will be central to the debate at the Cop28 summit that begins in Dubai in three weeks. Ending the world’s dependence on oil in its current form is seen as vital if the worst effects of rising temperatures are to […] November 9, 2023
Sustainability What went wrong with nature-based carbon credits Nature-based carbon credits were supposed to be a means whereby countries and companies, Middle Eastern entities among them, could offset their greenhouse gas emissions. Advocates of the credits have argued they help mitigate climate change and at the same time benefit rural communities. Yet the reality has disappointed. After Cop26 in Glasgow in late 2021, […] November 6, 2023
Finance UAE and UK sign agreement to boost fintech The UK and the UAE have signed an agreement to strengthen ties on financial services that its backers hope will provide a boost to fintech. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed in Dubai late last week by Andrew Griffith, UK City minister, and Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, UAE minister of economy, seeks to promote […] November 3, 2023
Trade Dubai-Dutch office digs into UAE and Netherlands trade Dubai International Chamber has inaugurated its fourth European representative office, in Amsterdam. The UAE is seeking to build on bilateral non-oil trade of AED11.2 billion ($3.1 billion) with the Netherlands in the first half of 2023. Officials said the new office, which opened last month, will play a key role in enabling Dubai-based companies to […] November 2, 2023
Finance Middle East varies tactics amid US treasury volatility As expected, the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold at its meeting this week. Always keenly watched in the Middle East because of its hefty reliance on the dollar, US interest rates are also important due to their influence on US state debt, known as treasuries. Yields on US medium-dated government debt have […] November 2, 2023
Finance Middle East bonds drop despite issuance surge Middle East bond indexes endured a tough October, extending the losses for 2023 despite a bumper year for regional debt issuance. The slump in the benchmarks mirrors a sustained surge in US treasury yields. Bond yields and prices are inversely correlated, while Gulf bonds are priced based on a spread over US treasury yields. As […] November 1, 2023
Banking & Finance Stronger GCC relations a boon to Turkey’s Islamic banks Improving relations between Turkey and the GCC could lead to more investment in the country’s Islamic banking system, which the government is keen to expand. The Turkish authorities have set a target for Islamic banks to reach 15 percent of total sector assets by 2025, up from 8.5 percent this year. Top-down support has been […] November 1, 2023
Renewable Energy Startup touts alternative EV batteries for Saudi industry A startup developing non-lithium batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) says they are better suited to Gulf climates where flammability is a risk. But industry experts say it will be difficult to penetrate the car industry where lithium options are baked into budgets. Mukesh Chatter, founder of Alsym Energy, argued his case to regional political and […] November 1, 2023
Sustainability UAE consumers eager to learn about sustainability Interest in sustainability is soaring in the UAE, with 90 percent of consumers eager to receive more information on sustainable living, according to the Sustainability Trends Report 2023. The report was commissioned by Alibaba Group, the Chinese multinational technology company based in Hangzhou. Consumers are demanding sustainable and eco-friendly business practices, making it imperative for […] October 31, 2023
