Economy RAK outlook upgraded as hotel building steps up Ras Al Khaimah’s tourism and infrastructure projects, including the $3.9 billion Wynn Al Marjan Island resort, could strengthen the emirate’s growth prospects over the next two to three years, S&P Global Ratings said on Monday. S&P now rates RAK’s long-term outlook as “positive”, upgrading it from “stable”. The ratings agency is also forecasting that RAK’s […] October 16, 2023
Economy Saudi inflation eases but real estate buoys the index Saudi inflation eased to 1.7 percent in September, from 2 percent the previous month, but the booming real estate sector continued to push up prices. Housing rents rose 9.8 percent, including a 19.8 percent increase in apartment rents, forming “the main driver of the inflation rate in September 2023”, the General Authority for Statistics said. […] October 16, 2023
Opinion Sustainability Middle East banks must prove net zero commitment New standards will hold to account banks proffering their climate change credentials October 16, 2023
Finance IMF closes Morocco meetings without consensus International Monetary Fund (IMF) countries on Saturday failed to agree on a US-backed plan to boost IMF funding without giving more shares to China and other big emerging markets, but pledged a “meaningful increase” in lending resources by year-end. As IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Morocco closed, a statement from IMF’s steering committee […] October 16, 2023
Finance Turkey’s regulator approves largest IPO since 2018 Turkey’s market regulator has given the nod to launch food services company TAB Gıda’s floatation on the Borsa Istanbul bourse. The initial public offering (IPO) will be the “largest in dollar terms since 2018”, Daily Sabah newspaper said. The company will float about 20 percent, or 52.5 million, of its shares at 130 lira each, […] October 16, 2023
Finance Dubai’s economy expands 3.2% on buoyant Q2 growth Dubai’s economy grew 3.2 percent year on year in the first half of 2023 to AED223.8 billion ($60.93 billion), supported by a 3.6 percent expansion in real GDP in the second quarter. The positive economic performance was driven by growth in sectors such as transportation, wholesale and retail trade, financial and insurance, and real estate, […] October 16, 2023
Finance Oman’s OQ says over $10bn invested in Duqm projects Oman’s integrated energy group OQ and its partners have invested over $10 billion across several projects in the Duqm economic zone. The investments are part of the government’s plans to improve its economic diversification strategies in line with Oman Vision 2040, state-run Oman News Agency reported, citing Hilal Ali Al Kharusi, CEO for commercial and […] October 15, 2023
Economy Tunisia yet to propose new terms for $1.9bn IMF loan Tunisia has not yet proposed new terms for a long-pending $1.9 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan, according to the fund’s Middle East and Central Asia director Jihad Azour. Speaking at IMF-World Bank annual meetings in Morocco this week, Azour called for the elimination of “wasteful and socially unfair subsidies” before the fund’s board could […] October 13, 2023
Renewable Energy Egypt offers tax rebates to boost green hydrogen output Egypt is offering incentives to boost local green hydrogen production as it aims to transition to a sustainable economy, finance minister Mohamed Maait said. The incentives include tax rebates of 33 percent to 55 percent for green hydrogen production and local production of electric vehicles, Egypt Today reported. “The total green investments in Egypt have […] October 13, 2023
Finance Oman’s OQ Gas IPO order book hits ‘record-high’ $10bn Oman’s OQ Gas Networks (OQGN), the pipeline business of state energy giant OQ, said that the order book reached for its initial public offering was oversubscribed 14 times, reaching OMR4 billion ($10 billion) A total of 2.1 billion shares, representing 49 percent of OQGN’s issued share capital, were offered, generating OMR288 million, making the OQGN […] October 13, 2023
Finance Turkey looking at eurobond issuance by year-end Finance minister Mehmet Simsek said that Turkey is “looking closely at market conditions” for issuing eurobonds and that it was likely to happen before year-end. Simsek was speaking to reporters after an Institute of International Finance event on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank meetings in Morocco. Investors have said they expect Turkey […] October 13, 2023
Analysis Finance Kuwaiti stocks toil but analysts foresee 2024 rebound Overpriced valuations, high interest rates and oil production cuts have sapped investor confidence in Kuwait, and the country’s stock market is among the Mena region’s worst performers this year. Despite this, analysts predict a sustained rebound in crude prices, steady corporate earnings and renewed government infrastructure spending. This could boost ebbing sentiment and spark a […] October 13, 2023
Analysis Tech Investors turn to data centres in Gulf and Mena tech push Investor appetite for data centres in the Middle East is soaring as the region, particularly the Gulf, accelerates its digital transformation. Experts say they are seeing increased levels of investment and interest from international operators, who are looking to capitalise on the region’s growing need for data processing and storage. Earlier this year the Saudi […] October 12, 2023
Analysis Banking and Finance Turkey and Egypt can trip up Gulf lenders says analyst Gulf banks are in a resilient position as oil production cuts crimp economic growth, but lenders could face headwinds from macroeconomic volatility in Egypt and Turkey, an S&P Global analyst said this week. In Turkey, Dubai’s Emirates NBD owns Denizbank and Qatar National Bank owns QNB Finansbank, the country’s eighth and ninth largest banks by […] October 12, 2023
Analysis Finance Qatar makes belated entry into crypto tokens market Qatar’s financial regulators have proposed a new digital assets framework which seeks to regulate investment tokens. In contrast to its Gulf neighbours like the UAE and Bahrain, which have opened their doors to global cryptocurrency exchanges, Qatar has maintained a ban on trading. But legal insiders say Qatar’s delayed entry into the virtual assets arena […] October 12, 2023
Finance Moody’s downgrades ratings of five Egyptian banks Moody’s Investors Agency has downgraded five Egyptian banks by one notch, including the largest private bank, after downgrading the country’s credit rating on high inflation and rising borrowing costs. The long-term bank deposit ratings of the National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr and Banque Du Caire, and privately-owned Commercial International Bank were lowered to “CAA1” […] October 12, 2023
Finance More IMF nations support funding boost Support increased on Wednesday for the US-backed call to boost the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) quota lending resources without shareholding changes, according to statements from various countries issued at the IMF’s annual meeting in Morocco. France, Britain, Ghana, Switzerland, Finland and Belgium said in statements to the IMF’s steering committee that they supported an equi-proportional […] October 12, 2023
Exclusive Sustainability Saudi carbon credit firm to invest in Middle East and Africa Saudi Arabia’s Regional Voluntary Carbon Market Co plans to invest in carbon abatement projects in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia, the CEO of the government-backed startup has told AGBI. Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Saudi Tadawul Group, owner of the kingdom’s stock market, last October launched RVCMC. PIF holds an 80 percent […] October 12, 2023
Real Estate Super-rich choosing Dubai for second homes Dubai has become a second-home paradise for the super-rich as the number of wealthy residents in the emirate continues to soar. The city boasts more than 500 centi-millionaire second-home owners. It features ahead of locations such as Palm Beach and West Palm Beach in the US, Sydney, Nice and Napa, according to the latest wealth […] October 11, 2023
Trade UAE-Georgia deal to treble non-oil trade by 2028 The UAE and Georgia have signed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) which aims to more than treble non-oil bilateral trade to $1.5 billion within five years. The deal builds on growing economic relations that resulted in non-oil trade exceeding $225 million in the first half of 2023, up 28 percent on the year-earlier period. […] October 11, 2023
Finance Saudi grant programme to develop local defence sector Two Saudi government entities have launched a four-year programme of grants worth 664 million riyals ($177 million) to support the development of a local defence sector, part of plans to diversify its arms industry sources by 2030. The General Authority for Defense Development and Public Investment Fund-owned Saudi Arabian Military Industries (Sami) launched the initiative […] October 11, 2023
Finance IMF trims Saudi 2023 GDP forecast but upbeat on 2024 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has trimmed Saudi Arabia’s GDP growth forecast for 2023 to 0.8 percent from its July estimates of 1.9 percent. The downgrade reflects the kingdom’s ongoing oil policy of maintaining production cuts, including unilateral cuts and those in line with an agreement through Opec+. The IMF has been gradually lowering growth […] October 11, 2023
