Follow on Twitter
Subscribe by RSS
The recently concluded Abu Dhabi Investment Forum in Paris, organized by Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, attracted global interest and successfully highlighted investment opportunities in Abu Dhabi. Over 200 businessmen and investors from across the world participated in the event. The six-panel discussion forum was used by government departments,...
Attempts to seek sustained economic growth, within Bahrain, can be made possible via productivity growth specifically in the trade sector. This is the put forth by Dr. Jarmo Kotilaine, Chief Economist at the Bahrain EDB. Speaking at a seminar hosted by the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) and the Centre for Research at Bahrain Institute for Banking...
According to the Institute of International Finance (IIF), the average growth projected to be registered by the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries, is expected to moderate to 3.8% in 2013, compared to the 2012 5.8% growth rate. The dip in the projected growth can be attributed to stagnating crude oil...
A new report by leading global property adviser CBRE shows that Dubai has retained its position as the 2nd most important retail destination in the world. Findings of the 2013 edition of How Global is the Business of Retail? were disclosed at the headquarters of Dubai Chamber of Commerce and...
Professionals from the light and sound industry are eagerly looking forward to showcase their products and services in the thriving UAE hospitality sector. PALME Middle East, the region’s only trade event dedicated to professional lighting, audio, music, entertainment, audio visual and systems integration solutions, is being held this year from the...
The spending on interiors and fit-outs in the GCC are expected to swell during 2013, by 28 percent overall to USD 7.2 billion. These figures were reported by INDEX International Design Exhibition and The Office Exhibition, the Middle East and North Africa’s largest and longest-running interior design and fit-out exhibition,...
Media reports suggest the UAE Central Bank is designing new legislation to tighten regulations for money exchange houses in the country. This, after the closure of two such companies for violating industry rules. The licenses of two exchanges, namely Al Hilal Exchange and Asia Exchange Centre, were revoked for “major...
The quarterly business confidence survey conducted by the Dubai Department of Economic Development (DED) reveals that businesses in Dubai are confident of achieving continued growth in the second quarter of 2013. The survey highlights that confidence runs particularly high among small and medium enterprises (SME) and export firms. These businesses...
A special report on Beautyworld Middle East 2013 “A Perfume is a message in a bottle. It’s not a smell. It’s an Impression, an idea.” ~Luca Turin, Perfume critic and Author~ Visiting the enigmatic Souks of the Middle East, always leaves one in a haze of de-ja-vu, the hazy mix of...
The results of the Family Business Survey 2012, conducted by PwC, were revealed this week by the Dubai Women Business Council (DBWC). According to the study, Middle East family businesses are thriving. An impressive 83 percent of Middle East family businesses have seen sales increase over the past year, compared with...
According to a recently released Oracle Survey, EMEA businesses are struggling to protect their value chains. The EMEA region includes Europe (UK, France, Germany, Russia, the Nordics, the Netherlands, Poland, Turkey) and the Middle East and Africa. The UAE was one of the countries included in the survey. The report titled Managing the Value...
The government of Brazil is keen to attract greater investment from the UAE and other GCC countries to boost the huge potential offered by it’s economy and it’s rapidly growing population. Brazil is currently seeking investments of up to USD 500 billion for projects in various sectors in the Brazilian...
Dubai will be competing against four candidate cities bidding to host the Expo 2020 – Sao Paulo in Brazil, Izmir in Turkey, Yekaterinburg in Russia and Ayutthaya in Thailand. The winner will be announced in November 2013 following a vote by the 163 member nations of the Bureau International des...
A new report from the International Labor Organization (ILO) has painted a bleak outlook of unemployment for youth of the MENA region, with about a third of the youths expected to be jobless in five years. However, global youth unemployment was also likely to increase over the same period, as...
The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is believed to be actively seeking new acquisition targets across the world to diversify its already growing portfolio of assets. A new report by the KPMG, revealing investment trends of sovereign wealth funds (SWF’s) in UAE, Qatar and Kuwait, highlights how QIA has developed a...
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Capital Market Authority is in the final stages of developing a regulatory framework to allow foreigners to own stocks directly. The move is being viewed as a way to promote greater foreign investment in the Kingdom, although the market does not need liquidity from...
“This City is what it is because our citizens are what they are.” ~Plato~ The Arab Spring of 2011 had a major impact on tourism in the Middle East, especially in countries like Egypt, Libya, Syria and Tunisia. But now, after the installation of a new government, Egypt’s historical Nile...
A top government official has revealed that Oman is considering the issuance of a U.S. dollar-denominated sovereign bond, which would mark the return of Sultanate to the international bond market. Speaking to Reuters, Omani finance minister Darwish al-Balushi stated that “this year we do not plan but maybe for next...
Official government information reveals that Qatar’s job market is still heavily dominated by foreign workers, while women are working much harder than men. The first quarter data shows that for each Qatari worker, there are as many as 16 expatriates in the workplace. The figures do not show encouraging results...
Dubai’s ruler, His Highness Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has approved Vision 2020 for tourism, which sets aggressive targets for an increase in number of tourists and overall contribution to overall economy. The Vision has been developed by the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) under direction from...
Abu Dhabi is fast joining the ranks of top global cities known for offering endless shopping options to tourists and other visitors. This was revealed in a new report via a study conducted by property advisory firm CBRE and covers major metropolitan cities of the world. With an estimated 0.8...
Latest findings of a survey suggest that consumers in Dubai are more confident about the economy, thanks to improved job prospects and personal finance position. Positive consumer sentiment has grown by 16 percentage points between the last quarter of 2012 and the first quarter of 2013, from 74 percent to 90 percent....
According to the latest edition of the Friends Provident International (FPI) Investor Attitudes report, conducted for Q4 in 2012, UAE investors have exhibited increased confidence in the local investment market when compared to those in Hong Kong and Singapore. The research has yielded the Friends Investor Attitudes Index of 28 for the...
Recognizing the rapid strides made by the UAE economy in recent years, a recently released annual report places it ahead of China as the third-strongest Asian economy. By achieving greater competitiveness in the economy, the UAE’s economy has surpassed China to become an Asian economic powerhouse. The results of...
It was announced on Sunday that the Kaloti Group, one of the world’s largest gold and precious metals refiners and trading houses, will be building one of the world’s largest gold and precious metal refineries in the Jumeirah Lakes Towers Free Zone in Dubai. The announcement was made as Kaloti celebrated its...
The Chinese government has committed itself to producing 16% of its primary (electrical) energy from renewable sources by 2020 (UNEP) Wind power surpassed nuclear power in 2012 to become China’s third-largest energy source. Back in 2007, due to the political leadership of then-President Hu Jintao and then-Premier Wen Jaibao of...
Japan and Bahrain have signaled their intention to forge closer ties and promote mutual cooperation, signing thirteen memorandums of understanding regarding their respective economies. These agreements will encourage economic cooperation and joint investment between the two countries in the fields of healthcare and pharmaceuticals, education and training, oil and gas,...
Saudi Arabia’s labor reforms appear to be working as more than 600,000 locals have landed jobs with private companies in the kingdom. While economists are wary of drawing conclusions regarding the kingdom’s job market and private sector hiring, these reforms appear to have recorded some early success stories. New data...
The Gulf state of Qatar retained its ranking as the world’s wealthiest nation in 2012, with it’s per capita income rising to USD 106,000. The Washington-based Institute for International Finance (IIF) reported that Qatar’s per capita GDP at purchasing power parity (PPP) has continued to increase steadily over the...
The latest MasterCard Index of Consumer Confidence highlights that consumers in the GCC countries are gaining confidence in their national economies and are optimistic about the future trends. The index measured consumer confidence in five indicators, namely regular income, employment, economy, stock market and quality of life. Consumer confidence...
As the world economy slows down to a halt and there is a lack of ideas on how to stimulate it, UAE still seems to be an investor’s playing ground. There is renewed belief that as the whole world economy succumbs to the pressures of the global financial crisis, UAE...
There is a clear divide between what Egypt wants in order to address its economic woes and the options it has in order to make it happen. On one hand, it wants to achieve economic stability and political certainties in order to kick start its economic growth and development To...
Last year was plagued by the talks of Eurozone crisis. The need to save and protect the Euro with the creditworthiness of many of its fellow states was required, and even though some form of aid was provided the crisis has still not been averted. On the other hand, a...
US secretary of state, John Kerry, has emphasised that in order to get any sort of aid from the IMF, Egypt needs to get its tattered economy back on track. Even though it seems like the first priority for Egypt would be to get its political house in order, there...
There seems to be an overheating going on in the Saudi economy as the country is primarily depending on a limited sources of income. The dependence on oil primarily does mean that the rising commodity prices can lead to unwanted and uncontrollable inflation. The spending plans underway is based on...
CFO optimism has rebounded from historic lows in many countries as several political and economic “uncertainties” have been resolved or eased, according to Deloitte’s Q4 Global CFO Signals survey. However, many chief financial officers (CFOs) worldwide remain cautious in resuming aggressive capital spending and are adopting a “wait-and-see” approach that...
The political implications of the Arab Spring of 2011 are well documented. The repercussions are still being felt with the prolonged effect of the Egyptian crisis on the markets. There has always been a certain amount of uncertainty in investing in the MENA region and even though the doors have...
Abu Dhabi’s Department of Economic Development yesterday announced the launch of the Abu Dhabi Business Center (ADBC), which according to Nasser Ahmed Al Sowaidi, Chairman of ADDED is “a major initiative adopted by the government of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi established to reshape the business environment aligned with International...
First came the announcement this week by Shell senior executives that oil extraction in the Arctic would be postponed for the second year in a row, and second is yesterday’s announcement foreshadowing the company’s plan for the future, Shell Sees Solar As The Biggest Energy Source After Exiting It in...
The Economic Insight, which provides an outlook on the economic performance of the GCC members as well as Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, has published a report which shows that the population in the region has grown 52% from 1990 levels and this is expected to reach 102%...
As U.S. disengages, dominos start to fall http://t.co/HIGorgCuv3 #worldpeace #security - posted on 25/05/2013 12:08:06The 7 Worst Human Rights Abuses Committed By The New Xbox http://t.co/NVGEe579SS - posted on 25/05/2013 09:35:14Yahoo joins growing list of bidders for Hulu http://t.co/K543ZYQJTX - posted on 25/05/2013 09:19:09Google to bankroll, build wireless networks across Africa http://t.co/ONXP4ojtEm - posted on 25/05/2013 09:03:05Visa, Mastercard ask U.S. court to declare card fees are lawful http://t.co/j6UHKRyPkn - posted on 25/05/2013 08:38:08Violence spreads outside Swedish capital http://t.co/Y2EwvnSMGH #stockholm - posted on 25/05/2013 08:18:028 Things Productive People Do At Work http://t.co/lWxiB54ezb - posted on 25/05/2013 08:13:58Winning is Fun, but it Teaches You Nothing http://t.co/JzGwN97eCl - posted on 25/05/2013 08:13:36Church of England unveils plan for #women bishops in 2015 http://t.co/YJrc50iEt8 - posted on 25/05/2013 08:10:49Expats in GCC at high risk of contracting HIV/AIDS http://t.co/Jhv4cYCP7o #aids #gcc #expats #middleeast - posted on 25/05/2013 08:01:21
