Agriculture Gulf’s many-layered reaction to India’s new onion export tax Omani farmers could be one of the few beneficiaries of India’s decision to impose a 40 percent export duty on onions, while UAE restaurateurs are bracing for another hike in food costs. India is the world’s biggest exporter of onions, but a lack of rain this summer has affected harvests and prices have already risen […] August 22, 2023
Tech US chipmaker AMD to invest $400m in India by 2028 US chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) said on Friday it will invest around $400 million in India over the next five years and will build its largest design centre in the tech hub of Bengaluru. AMD’s announcement was made by its chief technology officer Mark Papermaster at an annual semiconductor conference that started Friday in […] July 28, 2023
Renewable Energy India’s Acme secures funding for Oman hydrogen project Indian renewable energy company Acme Group has secured a loan of $490 million to finance a green hydrogen and ammonia project in Oman. The funding will come from Rec Limited, one of India’s largest green infrastructure financial institutions, and will be used for the first phase of the project. The facility will be established at […] July 27, 2023
Tech Taiwan’s Foxconn dumps $19.5bn chip venture in India Taiwan’s Foxconn has withdrawn from a $19.5 billion semiconductor joint venture with Indian metals-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta in a setback to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s chipmaking plans for India. The world’s largest contract electronics maker signed a pact with Vedanta last year to set up semiconductor and display production plants in Modi’s home state of Gujarat. […] July 11, 2023
Analysis Banking and Finance Middle East sovereign wealth funds see promise in India Sovereign wealth funds across the Middle East are eyeing up opportunities in India as higher interest rates push emerging markets to the forefront for investors. The latest Invesco Global Sovereign Asset Management Study said that, while Europe and the US continue to hold allure, 100 percent of funds in the region viewed India as an […] July 10, 2023
Opinion Aviation India’s airlines face fight for market gains from the Gulf The real winner should be the traveller July 6, 2023
Trade India expects EU carbon tax to hit steel and iron exports Already facing subdued demand from developed nations, India’s exports are likely to be hit by the European Union’s 20-to-35 percent tariffs on high-carbon goods such as steel, iron ore and cement, the finance ministry said in a report released on Thursday. In April, the EU approved the world’s first plan to impose a levy on […] July 6, 2023
Agriculture India’s 2023 wheat output 10% lower than estimates India’s wheat harvest in 2023 is at least 10 percent lower than the government’s estimate, a leading trade body told Reuters, amid a sharp rise in local prices during the past two months. Lower wheat production for a second straight year could complicate New Delhi’s efforts to keep a lid on prices of the staple […] June 22, 2023
Banking and Finance Tesla’s Musk plans ‘significant investment’ in India Tesla chief executive Elon Musk said India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was pushing the car maker to make a “significant investment” in the country, adding that such an announcement was expected soon. His comments came after a meeting with Modi during the Indian leader’s state visit to the United States. A source previously told Reuters […] June 21, 2023
Analysis Trade India predicted to be central to Saudi and UAE exports India is forecast to be one of the fastest growing export corridors for both Saudi Arabia and the UAE over the next decade. The Future of Trade report by Standard Chartered projects that global trade will reach $32.6 trillion with a growth rate of 5 percent by 2030. The combined value of exports from the […] June 16, 2023
Tech US firm says India’s Go First has no rights over engines Pratt & Whitney has no engines currently available for India’s Go First airline, which also has no rights over them, the counsel for the US firm told a Delaware court as the two companies engaged in a dispute over the supplies. The Indian airline has approached the Delaware court to enforce an arbitration order it […] May 26, 2023
Manufacturing Tesla proposes India factory after refusal to lower tax Tesla Inc has proposed setting up a factory in India to build electric cars for domestic sale and export, the carmaker told government officials on Wednesday, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter. The proposal comes after India refused to agree to Tesla’s request last year to lower the import tax on cars, which can reach as much […] May 18, 2023
India’s JioCinema in pricing fight with Netflix and Disney Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s streaming platform JioCinema announced premium pricing of INR999 ($12) a year, its first step to move away from a free content model to fight global rivals such as Netflix and Disney in the country. The move comes weeks after Reliance’s Viacom18 struck a content deal with Warner Bros, that will make […] May 14, 2023
Markets MSCI removes two Adani companies from indexes Index provider MSCI said two Adani-group companies will not be eligible for its global indexes, while 86 securities will be added to and 39 deleted from its widely followed MSCI ACWI stock index, as part of its quarterly index review. MSCI said earlier this week it would apply a “special treatment” to Egyptian securities listed […] May 12, 2023
Banking and Finance India’s Adani starts $130m buyback of debt securities India’s Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, a group company of the beleaguered Adani Group, has started a buyback programme of certain debt securities to partly prepay near-term loans due in 2024. Adani Ports said in an exchange filing that it has floated a tender of up to $130 million in outstanding debt, as it […] April 24, 2023
Banking and Finance No comment from Emirates NBD on bid for Indian bank Emirates NBD, Dubai’s largest bank, declined to comment to AGBI on Thursday following reports that it is one of at least five potential bidders for a majority stake in India’s state-owned IDBI Bank. Emirates NBD and its rival First Abu Dhabi are on the lookout for foreign acquisitions as the Gulf state’s domestic banking sector […] April 13, 2023
Tourism Tourists beginning to catch on to more than the wonder of Petra Given the Hashemite kingdom’s surfeit of historical sites – from the Nabataean city Petra through the natural beauty of Wadi Rum to the Roman towns of Jerash and Gadariyya – Jordan could be forgiven for being blasé about the need to market its tourism attractions more aggressively. But the authorities in capital Amman are determined […] March 23, 2023
Tech India’s TCS chief to exit amid slowing global tech spending Tata Consultancy Services CEO Rajesh Gopinathan is resigning in an unexpected move to pursue other interests, adding to worries for India’s largest IT services provider amid slowing tech spending and challenges in its key markets. The company named its president and head of global financial services business K Krithivasan as the CEO-designate, effective March 16, […] March 17, 2023
Economy G20 finance chiefs to discuss debt, crypto and inflation G20 finance ministers and central bank governors will discuss debt troubles in developing economies, cryptocurrencies and global inflationary pressures at a meeting later this week, Indian officials said on Tuesday. The February 22-25 meeting in the Nandi Hills summer retreat near Bengaluru is the first major event of India’s G20 presidency. The meeting straddles the […] February 22, 2023
Opinion Esports should be in your investment portfolio The global mobile gaming market is expected to grow to $209.12bn in 2026 February 16, 2023
Tourism How secret London talks led to Air India’s gigantic plane order Air India’s record aircraft deal has put the Tata Group-owned airline in the league of aspiring global carriers. On Tuesday it provisionally agreed to acquire almost 500 jets from Airbus and Boeing to take on domestic and international rivals. Striking the largest ever deal by one airline took months of secret talks carried out a […] February 15, 2023
Manufacturing Gulf fragrance market strikes the right note Some of the Middle East’s biggest perfume makers, including Chalhoub Group and Ajmal Perfumes, are ramping up global growth plans as traditional Arabic scents gain in popularity abroad. Luxury brands franchisee and distributor Chalhoub is close to striking deals to export its own fragrance brand, Ghawali, to countries including the UK and France. The first […] February 14, 2023
