Tech Israeli fintech Vesttoo retains Dubai staff amid mass layoffs Financial services company Vesttoo said on Tuesday it was laying off about 75 percent of its staff and closing some offices in Asia, as it tries to recover from a scandal over a fraudulent letter of credit used as collateral in a transaction with an insurer. Israel-based Vesttoo, which uses artificial intelligence technology to connect […] August 2, 2023
Banking and Finance Egypt’s foreign assets deficit widens by $3bn in June Egypt’s net foreign assets (NFAs) fell further into deficit in June, with the gap widening by EGP82.1 billion ($2.66 billion) from the previous month to negative EGP837.3 billion, according to central bank data. Egypt’s finances have been squeezed by a persistent shortage of foreign currency accompanied by a sharp expansion in money supply over the […] August 2, 2023
Economy Turkey restricts use of credit cards for foreign travel Turkey’s banking watchdog has stopped allowing credit card payments by instalment for foreign travel, such as flights, travel agency fees and accommodation, in a step seen dealing a blow to foreign travel operators. The move hit airline shares and was seen as curbing foreign currency outflows. It was one of two measures announced by the […] August 2, 2023
Tech Amazon to invest $7.2bn in Israel by 2037 Amazon.com said on Tuesday it is planning to invest about $7.2 billion by 2037 in Israel, where it has also launched its Amazon Web Services (AWS) data centres. Amazon’s cloud services in the region will allow the country’s government to run applications and store data in data centres located in Israel. “The establishment of the […] August 2, 2023
Aviation Indonesia buys drones worth $300m from Turkey Indonesia has bought 12 new drones from Turkish Aerospace worth $300 million, its defence ministry said, the latest in a series of purchases aimed at modernising the country’s ageing military equipment. The deal comes after Indonesian President Joko Widodo in July warned his cabinet to maintain a “healthy” budget as he highlighted outsized spending by […] August 1, 2023
Manufacturing Foxconn EV venture targets India and Thailand Foxconn’s venture attempting to build a standardised electric vehicle (EV) platform is targeting India or Thailand for the production of a small battery-powered car under development, the unit’s chief executive said. The Taiwanese company’s EV platform unit Mobility in Harmony (MIH) would be willing to work with its parent or another company to build the […] August 1, 2023
Economy Asia’s factory activity shrinks as China’s economy weakens Asia’s factory activity shrank in July, private surveys showed on Tuesday, a sign slowing global growth and weakness in China’s economy were taking a toll on the region’s fragile recovery. The data underscores the challenge policymakers face in keeping inflation at bay with tight monetary policy, while forestalling headwinds from a potential recession in the […] August 1, 2023
Oil & Gas Opec output falls on Saudi cut and Nigerian outage Opec oil output fell in July after Saudi Arabia made an additional voluntary cut as part of the Opec+ producer group’s latest agreement to support the market and an outage curbed Nigerian supply, a Reuters survey found. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) pumped 27.34 million barrels per day (bpd) last month, the […] August 1, 2023
Oil & Gas Aramco base oil unit Q2 profit up despite low sales Saudi oil giant Aramco’s base oil subsidiary reported a small jump in second-quarter profit on Sunday, mainly on lower income tax expenses and zakat, or charitable deductions, it said in a bourse statement, despite a 22 percent drop in sales. Net profit at Saudi Aramco Base Oil Company (Luberef) rose 3.97 percent to SAR454.85 million […] July 31, 2023
Infrastructure Israel plans to link $27bn rail project to Saudi Arabia Israel will build a 100 billion shekel ($27 billion) rail expansion that will connect its outlying areas to metropolitan Tel Aviv and, in the future, could provide overland links to Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The announcement followed a trip by top US officials to Saudi Arabia last week to advance a possible […] July 31, 2023
Manufacturing Japan factory output rises on strong demand Japanese factory output improved in June for the first time in two months, government data showed on Monday, highlighting growing confidence among manufacturers buoyed by strong demand. Many countries, including Japan, are relying on domestic consumption to underpin growth while the risk of global recession persists. Factory output rose two percent in June from a […] July 31, 2023
Energy Oil on track for biggest monthly gains in over a year Oil prices hovered near three-month highs on Monday and are set to post their biggest monthly gains in over a year on expectations that Saudi Arabia will extend voluntary output cuts into September and tighten global supply. Brent crude futures dipped nine cents to $84.90 a barrel by 00:05 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate […] July 31, 2023
Banking and Finance Iraqi banks facing US curbs to challenge measures Fourteen Iraqi private banks hit with curbs by the United States over allegedly helping siphon US dollars to Iran said on Wednesday they were ready to challenge the measures and face audits and called on Iraqi authorities to provide assistance. US financial authorities last week barred 14 Iraqi banks from conducting dollar transactions as part […] July 30, 2023
Agriculture Philippines seeks rice supply deal with India Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Saturday the country must boost its rice stocks and that he may seek a supply deal with India, worried about the potential impact of El Nino dry weather on the local harvest and about other suppliers. “I’m thinking about the national supply for rice,” Marcos told officials in […] July 30, 2023
Banking and Finance Moroccan economic growth slows to 1.3% in 2022 The Moroccan economy registered growth of 1.3 percent in 2022, slowing down from the eight percent growth registered in 2021, the central bank said late on Saturday. Abdellatif Jouahri, governor of Bank Al Maghrib presented the figures to King Mohammed VI during a reception at the Royal Palace of Tetouan, according to a bank press […] July 30, 2023
Oil & Gas Saudi may extend voluntary oil cut into September Saudi Arabia is expected to extend a voluntary oil output cut of one million barrels per day for another month to include September, five analysts said, to provide additional support for the oil market. In June, Opec+ agreed on a broad deal to limit oil supply into 2024 and Saudi Arabia pledged an additional voluntary […] July 30, 2023
Energy Egypt rations electricity to tackle power shortages Egypt’s government will implement emergency moves, including rationing electricity and increasing fuel oil imports, as it bids to tackle a summer power shortage, the country’s prime minister said on Thursday. Egypt will import between $250 million and $300 million worth of mazut fuel oil to manage the power cuts, and will announce a plan to […] July 28, 2023
Tech US chipmaker AMD to invest $400m in India by 2028 US chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) said on Friday it will invest around $400 million in India over the next five years and will build its largest design centre in the tech hub of Bengaluru. AMD’s announcement was made by its chief technology officer Mark Papermaster at an annual semiconductor conference that started Friday in […] July 28, 2023
Economy Turkey’s central bank chief expects inflation to hit 58% Turkey’s new central bank chief pitched a comprehensive monetary policy in her first formal address to the media, while her acknowledgement of stark inflation pressures was welcomed by foreign investors. Laying out her philosophy in her debut news conference, Hafize Gaye Erkan pledged that her holistic approach would – in addition to interest rate hikes […] July 28, 2023
Banking and Finance UAE company backs out of German steel producer deal UAE-based Emirates Steel Arkan has walked away from a potential investment in Thyssenkrupp’s steel business, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The state-backed firm stopped actively pursuing a deal due to concerns over pension liabilities and other complexities of the business, the source said. Emirates Steel was considering buying a stake in the […] July 28, 2023
Banking and Finance Lebanon central bank chief denies alleged fund fraud Lebanon’s longtime central bank governor Riad Salameh defended his record on Wednesday in a televised interview just days before he is set to leave office, denying he embezzled public funds and saying his policies benefited the economy. Salameh, whose 30-year tenure as governor has been stained by a deepening financial crisis and charges at home […] July 27, 2023
Banking and Finance Iraq currency fall linked to black market dealings Iraq’s currency has fallen against the US dollar because some traders are sourcing hard currency in the black market instead of using the central bank’s official exchange platform, central bank governor Ali Al Allaq told Iraqi state media on Wednesday. Al Allaq said that some merchants were not using the platform because they were engaged […] July 27, 2023
