Banking & Finance Gulf central banks mirror US Fed by halting rate hike By Pramod Kumar June 15, 2023, 5:21 AM Wam The UAE's overnight deposit facility will remain unchanged at 5.40 percent as of September 21, 2023 The Central Bank of the UAE and Qatar Central Bank have decided to maintain interest rates after the US Federal Reserve board announced it will keep the key borrowing rates unchanged. The UAE’s central bank will hold the base rate applicable to the overnight deposit facility steady at 5.15 percent as of Thursday 15 June, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported. In addition it decided to maintain the rate applicable to borrowing short-term liquidity from the apex bank through all standing credit facilities at 50 basis points above the base rate. Qatar Central Bank announced that it will also continue with the current interest rates for deposits at 5.50 percent, with lending at 6 percent and repo at 5.75 percent. The Fed left key interest rates in a target range of 5-5.25 percent, describing the US growth and the job market as holding up better than expected in spite of aggressive monetary policy tightening. However, BofA Global Research expects two more quarter percentage point interest rate hikes from the Fed this year, taking its terminal rate forecast to 5.5 percent to 5.75 percent. The base rate, anchored to the Fed’s rates, provides an effective interest rate floor for overnight money market rates in the UAE. The other Gulf central banks have yet to announce whether they will be changing their rates.
Energy Sale of enriched uranium announced by Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia intends to export enriched uranium, the country’s energy minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, said on Monday. The announcement is the latest indication of Saudi nuclear ambitions. Saudi Arabia has long expressed an interest in developing a nuclear power sector and has engaged in talks with the United States over nuclear cooperation, which were […] 3 hours ago
Business of Sport Qatar Airways signs $97m deal to sponsor new rugby tournament Qatar Airways has agreed a $97 million deal to sponsor the new World Rugby Nations Championship. The eight-year deal will cover the qualifying matches and finals for the first four editions of the rugby union tournament from 2026 to 2034. The agreement is the biggest title sponsorship in international rugby, according to The Guardian. The […] 2 hours ago
Economy Oman issues $460m in grants to support citizens Oman has provided funding of OR178 million ($460 million) to support more than 100,000 citizens in housing and businesses. Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, in a royal decree marking the fifth anniversary of his accession to the throne, increased the allocation for this year’s housing assistance programme, which provides housing to lower income families. The grants […] 2 hours ago
Employment Saudi Arabia plans cash pay-offs to cut public sector jobs Saudi Arabia is to offer cash incentives to encourage unproductive employees in the public sector to resign in a bid to tackle inefficiency. Saudi newspapers have reported that the government has earmarked nearly 12.7 billion riyals ($3.38 billion) for the three-year plan, which it dubs the ‘Golden Handshake’. While Riyadh has not clarified why it […] 1 hour ago
