SPECIAL REPORT Real Estate Turkish housing crisis persists despite construction surge Activity in the Turkish construction industry is picking up pace, fuelled by the need to rebuild after the February earthquakes — but economic woes mean the road could be long, experts tell AGBI. Even before the February earthquakes, which killed 50,000 people, injured 100,000 more, and made 3 million homeless overnight, the country of 83 […] December 5, 2023
Banking & Finance Bank of America ousts Goldman as top Mena M&A adviser Bank of America was the top M&A financial adviser in the Middle East and Africa during the first half of 2023, according to research from GlobalData. The US bank advised on two deals worth a combined $9.86 billion in H1. This was more than double the sum recorded by JP Morgan, which took second place […] July 31, 2023
Tourism Turks decide there is no place like home for a holiday A sharp decline in the lira has boosted domestic tourism in Turkey as a growing number of people opt to holiday at home. Turks are spending more money than ever on food and drink and helping to spread the country’s wealth to poorer, rural areas, analysts have observed. In the first quarter of 2023, Turks […] July 31, 2023
Retail Italian fashion label Zegna’s UAE revenue up 50% Italian fashion retailer Ermenegildo Zegna Group’s sales in the UAE soared by 50 percent in the first half of this year, more than double its global average. Sales of €31.9 million in the UAE surpassed those in the UK, which totalled €28.8 million. This is despite the UK’s population being nearly seven times as big […] July 28, 2023
Analysis Food & Drink North Africa to the rescue as Europe’s olive oil dries up A caesar salad may be the ideal light meal on a summer’s day, but you might have noticed it is weighing heavier on your wallet. That is because the price of olive oil is at an all-time high. Prices have jumped by nearly 80 percent in just one year, according to data from YCharts. European […] July 28, 2023
Exclusive Energy Acwa Power bids to turbocharge Saudi’s green targets When it comes to the green transition, Saudi Arabia has got some catching up to do. The country is targeting a 50-50 split in electricity generation between renewables and gas by 2030, but in 2021 just 0.2 percent of electricity came from renewable sources. To achieve this Vision 2030 goal, the country has tasked its […] July 28, 2023
Banking & Finance PIF seeks $5bn investments in Oman Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, PIF, has signed a memorandum of understanding with its Omani counterpart to seek out investments in Oman worth $5 billion. The agreement aims to support the expansion of investment and cooperation between PIF and its portfolio companies with the Oman Investment Authority (OIA), said a PIF announcement on Thursday. The […] July 27, 2023
Manufacturing Egypt fuels private sector investment in Saudi industrial zones Private sector investment in Saudi industrial zones has spiked by nearly 25 percent in the second quarter of 2023, with Egypt the primary source market for overseas investors. The Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) announced that SAR 2.77 billion ($735.5 million) was invested in Q2 2023 — up 23.5 percent year-on-year. […] July 24, 2023
Trade Dubai on track to seize record number of counterfeit goods Dubai is likely to seize millions more counterfeit items in 2023 than in 2022, according to the latest data from Dubai Customs. The emirate’s customs agency has seized 10.7 million counterfeit items — worth AED 53.277 million ($14.5 million) — so far in 2023, compared with 15 million for the whole of 2022. Dubai Customs […] July 24, 2023
Analysis Logistics Getting married? Your flowers probably flew Emirates With the global wedding season in full bloom and demand for fresh-cut flowers blossoming, Emirates’ advanced logistics capabilities and strategic location are helping it capitalise on this market. The Dubai airline’s commercial freight division Emirates SkyCargo transported 3,590 tonnes of time- and temperature-sensitive fresh-cut flowers in May this year alone – a 20 percent year-on-year […] July 23, 2023
Banking & Finance Saudi Arabia to give Tunisia $500m as soft loan and grant Saudi Arabia has agreed to provide Tunisia with a $500 million package of financial assistance as the country faces a mounting financial crisis. The Gulf state will give the North African country $400 million as a soft loan and $100 million as a grant, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday. The agreement was signed […] July 21, 2023
Banking & Finance Saudi regulator issues $319m in fines for share fraud Saudi Arabia’s financial regulator has convicted 17 people of manipulation and fraud for trading shares in the kingdom’s largest property developer. The group has been hit with fines amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars, when the value of gains they have been ordered to return are included. The Saudi Capital Markets Authority (CMA) on […] July 21, 2023
Tech US and UAE supercomputer venture advances AI training US artificial intelligence tech firm Cerebras signed a $100 million deal with UAE tech holding company G42 on Thursday to supply the first of three AI supercomputers. A planned network of nine interconnected supercomputers, Condor Galaxy (GC) will be the largest of its kind in the world, and will significantly reduce AI model training time. […] July 21, 2023
Banking & Finance Saudi behind increase in foreign currency sukuk deals Saudi Arabia is driving a surge in foreign currency denominated sukuk deals in the Gulf, with analysts revising up their predictions for 2023. S&P Global is forecasting total global sukuk issuances of between $160 billion and $170 billion for 2023, up from their initial estimate of $150 billion. This increase is due in large part […] July 20, 2023
Real Estate Turkish home sales drop by 44% after earthquakes Macroeconomic trends, a quirk of the calendar and the market fallout from February’s earthquakes have led to a 44 percent drop in Turkish home sales, experts have told AGBI. A total of 83,636 homes were sold in Turkey in June, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute, compared to 150,509 during the same month last year. […] July 19, 2023
Analysis Real Estate In cultural capital Sharjah, selling homes is an art form Sharjah is investing big in culture, building up its education and arts offerings to tempt Emiratis and others to buy into a lifestyle said to be “unmatched” elsewhere in the UAE. The emirate “is referred to as the cultural capital of the Middle East”, said Professor Peter Barlow, executive director of the Sharjah Performing Arts […] February 8, 2023
Economy Egyptian small businesses optimistic about 2023 The majority of Egyptian small business owners are optimistic about their growth prospects for 2023. YouGov and GoDaddy’s 2023 Small Business Survey found that 67 percent of Egyptian entrepreneurs are expecting growth this year, with the food and beverage, technology and e-commerce sectors perceived as having the most potential. Selina Bieber, commercial strategy senior director […] January 16, 2023
Analysis Banking & Finance Agtech startups and Egypt are hot prospects for Mena funding Startups across the Middle East and North Africa region raised $125 million in funding in December last year, with Egyptian companies leading the pack, ahead of regional powerhouses the UAE and Saudi Arabia. A joint report by Wamda and Digital Digest showed that Egyptian startups secured $45.7 million across 11 deals in December, more than […] January 13, 2023
Energy Texan energy firm expands Egyptian oil and gas footprint Apex International Energy has announced the acquisition of interests in four additional concessions in Egypt’s oil-producing Western Desert region. Purchased from IEOC Production, a unit of Italian energy firm Eni, the new concessions will increase Apex’s production capabilities by 65 percent — up to 11,500 barrels per day. Apex, who are based in Houston, Texas, […] January 10, 2023
Analysis Employment Hybrid working is the key, as UAE offices fill up again After years of coronavirus pandemic-induced remote and hybrid working, 2022 saw the UAE’s offices once again filling up. However workers have made it clear that they would prefer a hybrid model, according to a study by Cisco Middle East and Africa. Out of the 1,050 full-time UAE employees surveyed almost 90 percent said they wanted […] December 29, 2022
Analysis Banking & Finance Iraq: a hidden gem for bargain-hungry tech investors Flush with oil and boasting one of the Middle East’s largest and youngest populations, war-blighted Iraq could yet be the region’s next big investment destination. Many of the apparent disadvantages of Iraq, such as being a cash-based society and low startup valuations, present opportunities for the right investors looking to use their cash for maximum […] December 6, 2022
Banking & Finance Further slowdown before a rebound, says UAE VC firm Following years of rapid growth, the Gulf’s venture capital (VC) ecosystem has slowed down, in line with global trends. But the region’s underlying strengths and appetite for VC deals mean it will pick back up again late next year, experts from Apex Group have told AGBI. “Up until about three months ago, we were still […] December 1, 2022
