Oil & Gas Adnoc Drilling 2023 profit jumps 29% to $1bn Abu Dhabi-listed Adnoc Drilling reported a 29 percent increase in net profit to $1 billion from $802 million a year ago, supported by its fleet expansion strategy and accelerated growth of oilfield services. Revenue rose 14 percent annually to $3 billion, driven by offshore jack-up and oilfield services segments, which increased 31 percent and 37 […] February 13, 2024
Banking and Finance UAE remittance fee to rise 15% for first time in five years UAE foreign exchange and remittance houses have received permission for a minimum increase of 15 percent, or AED2.50, for the first time in five years. This is the first “optional” fee increase due to the evolving regulatory landscape and related cost increases, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported, citing the Foreign Exchange and Remittance […] February 13, 2024
Construction Empower’s profit falls 5% despite record revenue Empower, Dubai’s, and the world’s, largest district cooling company, reported a net profit of AED960 million ($261.37 million) for 2023, down five percent from AED1 billion in 2022. Revenue was at a record high of AED3 billion, rising 8.7 percent year on year, the company said in a statement to the Dubai bourse on Monday. […] February 13, 2024
Analysis Trade $112bn of trade with India ‘ready to be tapped’ Untapped trade opportunities between India and the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey could be worth more than $112 billion, research has found. An HSBC report, which analyses data from the UN/WTO International Trade Centre, estimates that there is a $61 billion export gap for Indian companies in the key markets of the UAE, Saudi […] February 12, 2024
Opinion Aviation Africa, the next frontier for Gulf airlines The Middle East is the natural gateway between Africa and Asia February 12, 2024
Energy Adnoc Gas Q4 2023 profit rises 24% Adnoc Gas, a division of state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), said net profit increased 24 percent year on year to $1.3 billion for the fourth quarter of 2023. Revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2023, rose seven percent to $6.3 billion, as processed volumes grew to 912 trillion British thermal units, […] February 12, 2024
Transport Dubai to have flying taxi services by early 2025 New York Stock Exchange-listed Joby Aviation plans to soft launch air taxi services in Dubai by early 2025. The vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft maker signed an agreement with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA), which gives it the exclusive right to operate air taxis in the emirate for six years The operation of […] February 12, 2024
Finance OECD rates UAE’s free zone corporate tax ‘non-harmful’ The UAE free zone corporate tax (CT) regime has been recognised as ‘non-harmful’ by the Paris-based policy forum Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Gulf state’s finance ministry said. The findings were disclosed in the results from an October 2023 meeting on harmful tax practices, the UAE state-owned Wam news agency reported. The […] February 11, 2024
Real Estate Abu Dhabi’s Aldar has big plans for projects in Dubai Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi’s largest developer, plans to launch more projects in neighbouring Dubai this year. Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Aldar’s chief finance and sustainability officer Faisal Falaknaz said the Abu Dhabi-listed developer is on track to launch its second master plan in Dubai in the second quarter of this year. The […] February 9, 2024
Opinion Leisure & Hospitality A pleasant stroll through The Village, Dubai-style If you were to stop at each restaurant, bar or hotel along the way, a week would not be enough February 9, 2024
Markets Emirates NBD tops Gulf dividend yield rankings Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank, has so far topped the Gulf list of dividend yield pay-outs awarded to shareholders in 2023, Refinitiv data shows. The government-controlled lender, whose shares are up 27 percent in the past 12 months, provides a dividend yield of 6.9 percent based on its closing stock price of February 8. The […] February 9, 2024
Retail Free delivery is decisive for UAE and Saudi shoppers Among the myriad discounts and perks offered by the Gulf’s retail sector, one factor that stands as a vital consideration for UAE and Saudi shoppers is free delivery, a report has found. A survey by the buy-now-pay-later platform Tabby found that free shipping outweighs the allure of customer loyalty schemes. In all, 29 percent of […] February 9, 2024
Logistics Aramex Q4 2023 profit more than doubles to $21m Dubai-listed logistics company Aramex said net profit more than doubled to AED 76.78 million ($20.90 million) in the fourth quarter of 2023 from AED33.86 million a year ago. The company reported a marginal one percent year-on-year decline in Q4 2023 revenue to AED1.52 billion, despite challenging market conditions and currency fluctuations. “Q4 2023 has proven to be exceptional, marked by record […] February 9, 2024
Construction Aldar profit climbs 40% as sales hit $7.6bn in 2023 Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi’s largest developer, said net profit rose 40 percent year on year to AED4.4 billion ($1.2 billion) in 2023 as annual revenue jumped 26 percent to AED14.2 billion. Full-year property sales hit a record AED27.9 billion ($7.60 billion), with Q4 2023 reaching an all-time of AED8.5 billion, the developer said in a […] February 9, 2024
Real Estate Hope at last for Dubai expats seeking a shared rental home Shared rental accommodation for expats in Dubai, something previously difficult to offer because of rules against subletting, is being developed by a company called Co-Living Legends, working with developers and landlords. Co-Living Legends was set up in 2021 to help female expats find house-share rental options in Dubai. House sharing is well established in markets […] February 9, 2024
Giga-projects Abu Dhabi close to $22bn development project in Egypt Abu Dhabi is in advanced talks with the Egyptian government to buy and develop premium land on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast in a potential multi-billion-dollar deal, according to a media report. A UAE consortium has been selected to work with local partners to develop Ras El-Hekma, an area 350 km northwest of Cairo, Bloomberg reported, citing […] February 9, 2024
Real Estate Emaar Development profit rises 74% to $1.8bn in 2023 Emaar Development, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dubai’s Emaar Properties, reported that net profit surged 74 percent year on year to AED6.6 billion ($1.8 billion) last year, propelled by 27 new project launches across Dubai. Property sales increased 22 percent year on year to AED37.4 billion. The developer’s sales backlog stands at AED57.1 billion, which […] February 9, 2024
Opinion People & Lifestyle Dubai authors must help balance the books A grant system could be the way to nurture homegrown literary talent February 8, 2024
Business of Sport Emirates airline signs big US basketball sponsorship deal Emirates, the Dubai airline, has signed a sponsorship deal with the National Basketball Association in the United States that will see the NBA’s in-season tournament renamed the Emirates NBA Cup. Emirates will become the association’s official airline partner and referees’ kits will feature the airline’s logo. The airline’s patch will also be featured on the […] February 8, 2024
Banking and Finance UAE froze $123m in assets linked to crime in 2022 The UAE froze assets valued at AED 452.5 million ($123 million) in 2022 related to crimes such as money laundering and financing of terrorism, new data shows. The UAE’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), a special unit of the UAE Central Bank, released its annual report this week and revealed that it conducted “freeze orders” targeting […] February 8, 2024
