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Bahrain

Bahrain set for surge in visitors from Europe’s World Cup giants

Europeans are flocking to Bahrain this autumn, with flight bookings from Germany, France and the UK up significantly on pre-pandemic levels in what could be a World Cup windfall for the island’s tourism industry. As nearby Qatar prepares to host the tournament, which starts on November 20, an influx of tourists from defending champions France, […]

Interior Design, Indoors, Musical Instrument

Credit Suisse unveils details of $4bn capital raising plan

Credit Suisse on Monday unveiled details of its plan to raise 4 billion Swiss francs ($4.01bn) from investors to support the embattled bank’s bid to tackle the biggest crisis in its 166-year history. Switzerland’s second-biggest lender is raising new capital to fund an overhaul, which will see it cut thousands of jobs and shift its […]

Estonia’s exports to UAE double after Expo 2020 Dubai

Estonia’s participation in Expo 2020 Dubai helped the European country’s exports of goods and services to the UAE increase by more than 100 percent in the past year. The value of Estonian goods exported to the UAE was up 126 percent year-on-year to €80.8 million ($80.57 million) in the eight months from January to August […]

Global bankers fear of stalling economy if rates climb too fast

The world’s top central bankers are beginning to fear that an already weak global economy will stall if they keep pressing on the brakes, unnerved by plunging commodity prices, turmoil in emerging markets and potential flashpoints at home. Central bankers in the euro zone, United States, Canada and Australia have all been hinting that the […]

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 […]

Energy crisis inflates Gulf demand and strains Europe

The Opec+ oil production cuts announced in early October look set to ensure high energy prices continue for some time – a boon for Gulf producers but a headache for energy importers elsewhere. The situation is particularly acute in Europe, where countries have been scrambling to find alternatives to Russian gas.  The first instinct of […]

Turkey Sakarya gas

Ukraine war brings oil and gas underinvestment into sharp focus

Oil and gas companies have slashed capital expenditure since a 2014 price crash and underinvestment will likely persist, despite the sector’s record profits this year, industry experts have warned.  Saudi Aramco’s second-quarter net income of $48.4 billion was its largest since going public in 2019. ExxonMobil and Chevron and many other international oil companies also […]

Credit Suisse seeks billions from investors in make-or-break deal

Credit Suisse plans to raise 4 billion Swiss francs ($4 billion) from investors, cut thousands of jobs and shift its focus from investment banking towards rich clients as the bank attempts to put years of scandals behind it, sending its shares sliding. Chairman Axel Lehmann dubbed the plan a “blueprint for success”, but it fell […]

Giant new mural celebrates ‘warrior’ Maradona in Argentina

An Argentine artist has painted a giant mural of late soccer legend Diego Maradona in Buenos Aires to commemorate what would have been the World Cup winner’s 62nd birthday at the end of October. Muralist Martín Ron filled the 1,600-square-metre wall in the heart of the city with a depiction of Maradona, based on a […]

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 […]

Saudia to buy up to 100 German electric jets for domestic network

Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) has signed an agreement with German air taxi developer Lilium to buy up to 100 of its aircraft for use on Saudia’s domestic network, the state carrier’s chief executive said on Wednesday. Saudia CEO Ibrahim Koshy said the planes would be ‘a premium service’ that carry four to six passengers, adding […]

  • Analysis

PureGym eyes up to 130 branches as part of Mena expansion

UK-based fitness brand PureGym has revealed plans to open branches in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), beginning in the UAE but with Egypt, Kuwait and Oman also on the radar. The company has signed an agreement with its franchise partner, Ektimal, to open at least 130 gyms across the region over the next […]

Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman speaks at the Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh on October 25

Riyadh was more ‘mature’ in spat with Washington, minister tells FII

Saudi Arabia decided to be the “maturer guys” in a spat with the United States over oil supplies, the kingdom’s energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Tuesday. Prince Abdulaziz made the comment during his speech to the kingdom’s Future Investment Initiative (FII) event, which has drawn top executives from the US and elsewhere. […]

Qatar Airways

Qatar Airways wins UK court battle with aircraft seat maker

A British court has ruled in favour of Qatar Airways in a dispute between the Gulf carrier and an Italian aircraft seat manufacturer.  Sezze-based Optimares had sued Qatar Airways after the airline terminated a contract to buy made-to-order business and economy class seats for some of the Doha-based airline’s Boeing and Airbus aircraft.  But a […]

Rishi Sunak becomes the UK's next prime minister

Rishi Sunak to be UK prime minister: What you need to know

Rishi Sunak will be Britain’s next prime minister after his rivals quit the race, following one of the most turbulent periods in British political history. Politics Sunak, the 42-year-old former finance minister, will become Britain’s third prime minister in less than two months. His predecessor Liz Truss was brought down after just six weeks in […]

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 […]

Buying an apartment is now seen as a more attractive option than paying a landlord

Dubai tenants jump on property ladder as rents soar

Dubai has seen an increase in end-user homeowners as its property market matures and begins to move away from the speculators and flippers of the boom days before 2008. Surging rental rates and expats opting to live in the UAE longer have also made the jump from tenant to homeowner increasingly more attractive, industry experts […]

Person, Human, Home Decor

Sterling rallies as UK PM Liz Truss resigns over mini budget fiasco

Sterling pared gains following the announcement that Liz Truss was resigning as prime minister of the UK. The country’s mid caps jumped as much as one percent as Truss, speaking outside the door of her Number 10 Downing Street office, said a leadership election would be completed within the next week. Truss appointment as UK […]

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, […]