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National Bank of Kuwait

National Bank of Kuwait News

Opec's cut in predicted demand growth to 2.1 million bpd still keeps it above the historical average and the International Energy Agency's expected level

Opec cuts forecast for oil demand growth

Lacklustre growth in the Chinese economy has caused Opec to trim its bullish forecast for growth in international oil demand this year.  The oil producers’ group said on Tuesday that it was cutting its expectation for growth in demand by the world economy by 6 percent, or 135,000 barrels per day (bpd), to 2.1 million […]

Stricter housing regulations are pushing up construction costs in Kuwait

Housing regulations amplify costs for Kuwait real estate

Kuwait’s real estate industry is grappling with increased construction and labour costs as a result of stricter housing regulations. Authorities have clamped down on basements and ground floor areas being used for worker accommodation, leading to a shortage of affordable housing for low-paid expatriate construction workers in central areas. The change has led to an […]

Water, Waterfront, City

Kuwaiti lenders propose merger to create $50bn Islamic bank

Boubyan Bank and Gulf Bank, two of the largest Kuwait-listed shariah-compliant lenders, are set to commence an initial feasibility study for a potential merger. The merged entity will be among the largest Islamic banks with more than $50 billion in assets. In separate statements to Boursa Kuwait, the two lenders said they will conduct due […]

Qatar real estate

Large deals drive Qatar and Kuwait real estate in Q2 

Large one-off transactions masked an otherwise sluggish performance in the Qatari and Kuwaiti real estate markets in the second quarter of this year. The number of mortgage transactions in Qatar from April to June increased by more than 42 percent over the same period last year. Some 376 deals were signed for a total value […]

According to the US International Trade Administration, Kuwait holds about 7 percent of global oil reserves and has a current production capacity of about 3 million bpd

‘Huge’ oil discovery could change the game for Kuwait

Kuwait has announced a significant discovery of light oil and associated natural gas in its offshore Al-Nokhatha field. The state-owned Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) – a subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) – reported on Sunday that the field, located east of the Kuwaiti island of Failaka, holds approximately 2.1 billion barrels of light oil […]

People walk through the souk in Manama, Bahrain; FDI has been encouraged by the golden licence programme for investors

Bahrain attracts a record $6.8bn in foreign investment

Bahrain has set a new record by attracting $6.8 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2023. This is a 148 percent increase from the previous year’s $2.8 billion, according to the latest World Investment Report by the UN Conference on Trade and Development. Kuwait emerged as the top contributor, accounting for 36 percent of […]

Kuwait business orders. Companies in Kuwait have largely avoided passing increased costs on to their customers

Kuwaiti businesses struggling to meet demand as orders surge

Businesses in Kuwait have accumulated huge backlogs of work and will need to increase capacity and staff levels to meet customer demand, according to ratings agency S&P Global. The monthly purchasing managers’ index (PMI) report for Kuwait revealed companies strengthened employment levels in a bid to satisfy “sharp and accelerated increases in new business” throughout […]

Kuwait growth inflation bagpipe player PMI

Kuwait’s record performance tempered by costs

Rising inflation and increasing staffing costs are weighing heavily on Kuwait’s non-oil business sector despite growth, the latest business sentiment survey has revealed. The seasonally adjusted S&P Global Kuwait purchasing managers’ index (PMI) revealed strong growth, with competitive pricing by businesses helping to attract new customers. The index was up at 53.2 for March from […]

Dubai's Mashreq is among the GCC banks looking for growth in the US and Europe

GCC banks look to US and Europe

GCC banks may be forced to look overseas to fulfil growth ambitions as home markets become increasingly saturated, experts say. While some banks have already ventured abroad – mainly into Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan, which constitute nearly a half of their presence outside the Gulf – more developed markets such as the US and Europe […]