Markets Indonesian copper miner plans $880m IPO by July Indonesian copper miner Amman Mineral Internasional aims to raise up to 12.94 trillion rupiah ($880.6 million) in an initial public offering scheduled for June 28 to July 3, according to the company’s prospectus published on Wednesday. Book building is set to start on Wednesday with an offering price in the range of 1,650 rupiah to […] May 31, 2023
Banking and Finance First Abu Dhabi Bank set to raise $600m via green bonds First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) is set to raise $600 million from an offering of five-year green bonds. The UAE’s biggest lender sold the bonds at 95 basis points (bps) over US treasuries, tightened 25 bps from initial guidance after demand topped $1.4 billion, a bank document showed. Proceeds will be used to fund environmental […] May 31, 2023
Oil & Gas Why is Opec+ cutting oil output? Opec and its allies, including Russia, meet in Vienna on June 4 to decide on their output policy. The group, known as Opec+, agreed on April 2 to increase crude oil production cuts to 3.66 million barrels per day (bpd) or 3.7 percent of global demand, after several members pledged unilateral cuts. The surprise announcement […] May 31, 2023
Energy QatarEnergy to sign LNG supply deal with Bangladesh QatarEnergy will sign a long-term liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply deal with Bangladesh’s state-owned gas company Petrobangla on Thursday, the second Asian sales deal to be sealed for Qatar’s North Field expansion project. The 15-year agreement is for the supply of two million tonnes annually, Petrobangla’s chairman Zanendra Nath Sarker told Reuters. Supplies are set […] May 31, 2023
Banking and Finance Brics bank issues $1.2bn of panda bonds The New Development Bank (NDB) issued 8.5 billion yuan ($1.23 billion) worth of panda bonds in China’s interbank bond market on Monday to mobilise resources for financing sustainable development projects, the bank said in a statement. Proceeds will be used for general corporate resources and to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects, the bank said. […] May 30, 2023
Markets Olam unit’s dual IPO awaits nod from Saudi regulators Singapore’s Olam Group does not expect the $1 billion initial public offering of its agricultural unit, Olam Agri Holdings, to be completed in the first half of 2023. The company, which planned to launch a dual IPO of the unit in Singapore and Saudi Arabia, said that it is yet to receive regulatory approvals from […] May 30, 2023
Energy Opec ‘would welcome’ Iran once sanctions lifted Iran has the capacity to add “significant production volumes within a short period of time” and would be welcomed back to Opec when sanctions are lifted, its secretary general said on Monday. Iran is a member of Opec – the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries – but its oil exports are subject to US […] May 30, 2023
Banking and Finance Barclays sees Turkey policy rate at 36% by year-end Barclays has reiterated its forecast that Turkey’s central bank would raise its interest rates to 36 percent by the end of the year after President Tayyip Erdoğan won the presidential elections on Sunday. “There is a need for adjustments to both rates and FX,” Barclays analyst Ercan Erguzel said in a note to clients, adding […] May 30, 2023
Tech Nvidia to build Israel’s most powerful AI supercomputer Nvidia Corp is building Israel’s most powerful artificial intelligence (AI) supercomputer to meet soaring customer demand for AI applications. Nvidia, the world’s most valuable listed chip company, said the cloud-based system would cost hundreds of millions of dollars and be partly operational by the end of 2023. Gilad Shainer, a senior vice president at Nvidia, […] May 30, 2023
Economy Saudi imports Russian diesel to maximise refining profits Leading crude exporter Saudi Arabia is maximising refining profits by importing unprecedented amounts of cheap Russian diesel and in turn shipping record volumes to Singapore, where the fuel can achieve higher margins, shiptracking data shows. Russia has had to divert the volumes it sold to Europe, previously its dominant product market, after the European Union […] May 30, 2023
Economy Investors await Turkey’s move on economic policies The top policymaker picks of Turkey’s re-elected president Tayyip Erdogan are taking centre stage as markets try to gauge whether he will change course towards economic orthodoxy or double down on policies widely viewed as unsustainable. Erdogan is expected to use his victory in Sunday’s election to embark on a wide cabinet reshuffle, potentially changing […] May 30, 2023
Retail Saudi’s eXtra plans IPO of consumer finance unit Saudi retailer United Electronics Company is planning an initial public offering of its Islamic consumer finance business, Tasheel Finance, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. United Electronics, known as eXtra, has appointed HSBC to arrange the public share sale, said the sources, who declined to be named as the matter is not public. […] May 29, 2023
Banking and Finance JPMorgan Chase to cut 500 jobs across main businesses JPMorgan Chase & Co. is cutting about 500 employees this week across its various departments, according to a person familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified discussing personnel matters. The layoffs will affect employees across the bank’s main businesses — consumer, commercial banking, asset and wealth management — as well as technology […] May 29, 2023
Banking and Finance Israel watchdog seeks data from banks in rate probe Israel’s competition watchdog is seeking more data from the country’s banks relating to an investigation, saying they were enjoying huge profits from higher interest rates on loans but weren’t adequately sharing the benefits with customers. The investigation, which began in 2022, wasn’t made public prior to Sunday. In a bid to rein in inflation, the […] May 29, 2023
Economy Erdogan says tackling inflation is most urgent issue Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said in his victory speech that inflation was the most urgent issue for the country, but said it would also fall, following the policy rate that was cut to 8.5 percent from 19 percent two years ago. “We are designing an economy focused on investment and employment, with a finance management […] May 29, 2023
Banking and Finance US leaders reach tentative debt ceiling deal US President Joe Biden and top congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy have reached a tentative deal to suspend the federal government’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, ending a months-long stalemate. However, the deal was announced without any celebration, in terms that reflected the bitter tenor of the negotiations and the difficult path it has to pass through […] May 28, 2023
Banking and Finance UAE’s Aster investors seek $300m India stake sale Investors in Aster DM Healthcare are in talks to sell a 30 percent stake in the company’s India business for about $300 million, two sources with direct knowledge said, the latest potential deal in India’s booming healthcare sector. UAE-based and Mumbai-listed Aster runs 32 hospitals, 127 clinics and 521 pharmacies in India and the UAE. […] May 28, 2023
Retail Dubai’s Landmark Group founder Micky Jagtiani dies Prominent Dubai-based businessman Micky Jagtiani, who founded retail giant Landmark Group, has died. “The Landmark Group today announced that its eminent Founder and Chairman, Mukesh ‘Micky’ Jagtiani, has passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family,” the company said in an emailed statement on Friday. Jagtiani, originally from India, started the business in 1973 with […] May 28, 2023
Development Iraq launches $17bn ‘development road’ project Iraq has launched a $17 billion project to link a major commodities port on its southern coast by rail and roads to the border with Turkey, in a move designed to transform the country’s economy after decades of war and crisis. The development road aims to tie the Grand Faw Port in Iraq’s oil-rich south […] May 28, 2023
Energy Clean energy funding to beat oil for first time, says IEA Investment in clean energy will extend its lead over spending on fossil fuels in 2023, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said, with solar projects expected to outpace outlays on oil production for the first time. Annual investment in renewable energy is up by nearly a quarter since 2021 compared to a 15 percent rise for […] May 26, 2023
Tech US firm says India’s Go First has no rights over engines Pratt & Whitney has no engines currently available for India’s Go First airline, which also has no rights over them, the counsel for the US firm told a Delaware court as the two companies engaged in a dispute over the supplies. The Indian airline has approached the Delaware court to enforce an arbitration order it […] May 26, 2023
Banking and Finance UAE’s Brands For Less plans minority stake sale The owners of UAE-based budget retailer Brands For Less Group (BFL Group) are considering selling a minority stake in the business to investors, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said. BFL Group is working with deNovo Corporate Advisors, the sources said, a Dubai-based boutique led by ex-Morgan Stanley banker May Nasrallah. BFL Group […] May 26, 2023