Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

Asia

Venturesouq climate investment fund

Mena VC firm VentureSouq to set up climate-focused fund

Middle East and North Africa-based Venture capital firm VentureSouq is to launch a new climate-focused fund to support companies developing solutions for the green economy. Achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 globally will require as much as $173 trillion in investments in the energy transition, according to BloombergNEF’s (BNEF) New Energy Outlook 2021 (NEO), […]

Japan calls off Tokyo business forum after Saudis cancel trip

A business forum of Japanese and Saudi government and business leaders set to take place in Tokyo next Monday has been called off after the Saudi delegation cancelled its trip, event organiser Japan External Trade Organisation (Jetro) said. Saudi minister of investment Khalid Al-Falih was among the delegation that had been expected to attend the […]

People, Person, Tie

Asia must not become arena for ‘big power contest’: China’s Xi

The Asia-Pacific is no one’s backyard and should not become an arena of big power rivalry, China’s president Xi Jinping said on Thursday, warning against Cold War tensions in a region that is a flashpoint of competition between Beijing and Washington. Xi’s remarks ahead of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok were an […]

Cop27 sign in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt

Sticking points slow crunch talks to agree final deal at Cop27

Government ministers and negotiators from nearly 200 countries began working towards a Cop27 final deal on Tuesday, with the summit host Egypt issuing assurances that the slow-moving talks remain on track. On the conference floor in Sharm El Sheikh, however, some delegates have begun to speculate that the UN talks could run over time into […]

TASC Towers will continue to operate independently with a board of non-Zain majority members

Ooredoo’s PIF deal is the latest in the ‘big telco tower sell-off’

State-owned Qatari telecoms firm Ooredoo’s planned sale of nearly 20,000 towers has attracted bids from some of the biggest names in the business. American Tower Corp, IHS Holding, Helios Towers and Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), are all competing for the acquisition, according to reports by Bloomberg.  The newswire cited […]

Table Lamp, Lamp, Woman

Cherie Blair ‘optimistic’ for Middle East entrepreneurial equality

Nearly 20 years ago, Cherie Blair CBE, leading King’s Counsel and committed campaigner for women’s rights, predicted that the UAE would lead the Middle East’s drive on gender equality. Her first visit to the GCC region – during her husband Tony’s 10-year stint as British Prime Minister – was promptly followed by the appointment of […]

People, Person, Press Conference

Biden: US-Asean pact to address ‘biggest issues of our time’

Southeast Asian heads of government held talks on Saturday with visiting global leaders including US president Joe Biden, who hailed the launch of a new US-Asean pact as a critical step towards tackling “the biggest issues of our time”. In his first visit to Southeast Asia as president, Biden said the region was at the […]

Higher wages in Emirates entice Filipino expats to invest

Four-fifths of Filipino expats in the UAE plan to make investments in the next 12 months as rising wages and a strong dollar give them greater purchasing power back home.  The UAE’s official population statistics do not provide a breakdown by nationality, although by unofficial estimates there are around 560,000 Filipinos living in the UAE, […]

As yen tumbles, Japan turns to secondhand iPhones

For years Japanese shoppers eagerly shelled out for the latest gadgets, but now a tumbling yen has put new iPhones out of reach for some and sparked a growing secondhand trade in a major market for Apple Inc. The Japanese currency’s fall to a 32-year low against the dollar has squeezed consumers and accelerated a […]

The Entertainer app offers deals in many sectors including attractions, such as the Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo

Saudi and Egypt offer ideal stage for UAE’s The Entertainer

The Entertainer, a Dubai-based tech company that offers thousands of lifestyle product discounts, is focusing on Saudi Arabia and Egypt for expansion as demand rises amid the current cost of living crunch. New CEO Ahmed Gaber, who was previously general manager of Visa’s operations in North Africa where he was responsible for developing the digital […]

China-GCC free trade agreement in ‘final and critical’ stage

The China-GCC free trade agreement negotiations have entered the “final and critical stage”. The two sides have agreed on most issues and are putting the final touches on the agreement, according to WAM, the UAE state-owned news agency, citing a top Chinese diplomat. 200 billion reasons why the Gulf is China’s hottest trading partner UAE […]

Musk’s Twitter ownership starts with firing of top executives

Elon Musk became Twitter Inc’s owner on Thursday, firing top executives and providing little clarity over how he will achieve the lofty ambitions he has outlined for the influential social media platform. “The bird is freed,” he tweeted, referencing Twitter’s bird logo in an apparent nod to his desire to see the company have fewer […]

Mercedes-Benz lifts profit forecast as luxury cars boom

Mercedes-Benz raised its full-year profit forecast on Wednesday as strong demand for luxury cars and cost savings offset the supply chain bottlenecks that have hampered industry output this year. The German automaker said it now expected group earnings to rise at least 15% this year, compared with a previous forecast of 5%-15% growth, after profits […]

Korea's chief negotiator, Kwon Hye-jin, greets GCC delegates in Seoul on October 24
  • Analysis

GCC and South Korea kick off fresh round of trade talks

The sixth round of trade talks between the GCC and South Korea has started in Seoul. The negotiations began on Monday and are scheduled to run until Friday. The two sides resumed talks on a free trade agreement earlier this year, following a 13-year hiatus. The agenda for the sixth round includes goods and services, […]

Building, Water, Vacation

Six Senses sells 75% of branded Dubai units ahead of 2024 debut

The first Six Senses Residences in Dubai is planned for 2024 as the CEO of the global luxury hospitality brand reports demand from affluent and existing UAE residents. Neil Jacobs said the progressing construction of Six Senses Residences The Palm, alongside a 61-room hotel, represents a “new milestone for the brand”.  “The property price growth […]

COP27

Egypt’s Cop27 will see developing nations call for ‘climate justice’

Drought and famine haunt the Middle East. The Dead Sea has fallen to its lowest level in centuries. Starved of food and fresh water, desperate migrants criss-cross the Mediterranean, fomenting social unrest and violence. Within a few decades, a healthy global trade network has collapsed. Every major settlement has been abandoned or razed to the […]

Pensions in demand as expats stay longer in the Gulf

Expats are staying in the Gulf longer than the global average, leading to greater demand for pension services in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. “We have observed an increase in interest and discussion in the Middle East around offering pension type savings for expatriate employees,” said Robert Ansari, head of investment and retirement for India, […]

BTS reunite to back South Korea’s bid to host World Expo 2030

K-pop superstars BTS reunited on Saturday for a concert to support South Korea’s bid to host the World Expo 2030 in Busan. The free concert – dubbed “BTS in BUSAN” – drew an audience of about 52,000 people to a stadium in the southern port city, according to the Yonhap News Agency. In total, 100,000 fans […]