Thursday 25 October 2012

UAE’s Sheikh Khalifa clears Emiratis over defaulted check cases

United Arab Emirates nationals who have been detained and convicted over their issuance of defaulted check have been released as per orders of UAE President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Gulf News reported on Thursday.

According to article No. 401 of the Penal Code of the Federal Law No. 3 of 1987, the criminal protection on security checks cases are void if it involves Emiratis, reported the UAE daily.

The Justice Minister, the Head of Dubai Courts along with other key head departments have yet to verify if the defaulted checks on issue are security checks or not. Emiratis with cases will be released temporarily until investigations push through.

Turquoise Newsletter - September 2012 Edition



Abu Dhabi taking steps to avoid a repeat of the 2008 Dubai crisis | Al Bawaba

To protect itself from the kind of debt crisis that shook Dubai in 2008, Abu Dhabi has issued an official document clarifying ultimate responsibility for new debt issuance by its government-related entities

The document, revealed by the Financial Times, introduces centralised mechanisms to manage debt and restraints on borrowing by quasi-sovereign bodies. However, it does not change the level of state support available to Abu Dhabi's key development vehicles, according to bankers and analysts cited by Reuters.

The document is reportedly dated 7 August 2012 and was delivered to state-owned entities by the Executive Council. It stated that the Government will only be responsible for debt formally guaranteed by the council or Abu Dhabi law if the borrower is unable to meet its obligations.

Economic woes cast shadow over Eid in Egypt Asharq Alawsat Newspaper (English)

Tamer Shamy's butcher shop is all set for one of Islam's most important holidays — colorful blinking lights have been festooned around hanging slabs of meat, Egyptian pop music is blaring and a cluster of chairs and benches have been placed out front. The only thing missing is the customers.
Egyptians are feeling the squeeze from nearly 20 months of political turmoil that have gutted the nation's economy and brought home the meaning of the four-day Festival of Sacrifice, which begins Friday, marking the prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son for God.
"People are under a lot of pressure," Shamy said. "They have many expenses and not enough income to celebrate the holiday the way they used to."

Dubai builds two months of gas reserve for power - bi-me.com

Dubai has developed a two-month reserve of natural gas to ensure it can run its power plants in the event of a supply disruption, a government official said.

The Gulf emirate built up the gas reserves and cut the amount of diesel it stores, Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, chief executive officer of the government-owned utility Dubai Electricity & Water Authority, said yesterday in an interview.

Al Tayer is also vice chairman of the emirate’s Supreme Council for Energy, a policy planning body.

Currency Crisis in Iran; Copts in Egypt - Podcast courtesy @jadaliyya

It is no secret that the lives of ordinary Iranians; the wage earners and the poor, have been adversely affected in recent months by the soaring prices of staple goods. The country is now facing a currency crisis while the Rial has plunged by nearly 60 percent over the past three months. Popular disaffection with the worsening economic conditions has even led to a rare eruption of protests and merchant strikes in the capital. What are the reasons for the collapse of the Rial and accompanying soaring inflation? Is this solely due to United States and European Union sanctions reducing Iran’s ability to export petroleum while increasing the cost of financial transactions for the country? Or have certain Iranian government economic policies also played a major role in the current crisis? Shahram Aghamir spoke about these topics with Hamid Zangeneh who is a professor of economics at Widener University in Pensylvania. He also spoke with Mohammad Moeini who teaches economics at Bard College at Simon's Rock.

Eid mubarak


The Big Fall in the Stock Market is Still to Come

What a difference a week makes. Overnight we saw the Dow Jones fall over 200 points for the second time within a week. I wrote last Wednesday and focused my attention on the level of 1422 in the S+P 500.
S+P 500 Daily Chart
Source: Slipstream Trader
The horizontal line in the chart is the level of 1422, which was the high made in April this year. My view has been that a weekly close below that level will spell trouble for the stock market ahead.

Last night the S+P 500 closed at 1413, having fallen 3% in the last three sessions. If the S+P 500 remains below 1422 until Friday night then my weekly sell signal will be triggered.

Abu Dhabi SWF Invests in Aussie Shopping Malls - Deal Journal Australia - WSJ

Two of the world’s largest sovereign wealth and pension funds Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, or CPPIB, and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, or ADIA, are betting that Australians will keep shopping in-store, despite the rise of online alternatives.

CPPIB along with ADIA’s wholly-owned subsidiary Harina Company Ltd. have each paid 436 million Australian dollar (US$451 million) for a 37% stake in AMP Capital Retail Trust. The unlisted property trust owns half of Sydney’s Macquarie Centre and 80% of Gold Coast’s Pacific Fair Shopping Centre.

“The addition of these two assets expands our retail portfolio in Australia and represents a rare opportunity to acquire interests in two high quality and well located retail shopping centres with excellent future expansion and growth potential, CPPIB senior vice president of real-estate investments Graeme Eadie said. He added that the properties fit CPPIB’s long-term investment strategy of owning core assets over the long-term.

Making Space for Arab Entrepreneurs - NYTimes.com

A man stands in front of the floor-to-ceiling window at the Make Business Hub, talking via Skype on his iPad about his new technology start-up to a venture capitalist in another part of the world.

In a booth with a wooden table, three entrepreneurs are nervously practicing pitches for investors in front of a camera.

At white desks spread across the open work space, people are noisily typing on laptops or holding brainstorming meetings. Some simply gaze off into space searching for inspiration.