Tuesday 21 January 2014

Flipping Axis

Kuwait’s Zain seeks new loan as $867m facility nears maturity - Al Arabiya News

Kuwait’s Zain seeks new loan as $867m facility nears maturity - Al Arabiya News:



"Kuwait’s Zain has sought proposals from banks for a loan worth hundreds of millions of dollars, two banking sources said on Tuesday, as the telecom company raises cash before an existing $867 million debt facility matures.



The No. 5 telecom operator in the Gulf Arab region by market value has invited lenders to participate in the deal and for their views on what likely interest rate it would pay for securing the loan, the bankers said, speaking on condition of anonymity as the information is not public.



“Zain is often discussing potential new loans to finance possible expansion opportunity purposes and general corporate needs, as well as trying to refinance existing loans at better rates and conditions for the group and its operations,” a Zain spokesman said in an emailed response."



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UAE's TAQA eyes investments in water projects in MENA, India | Reuters

UAE's TAQA eyes investments in water projects in MENA, India | Reuters:



"Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) TAQA.AD plans to grow its water business via new projects and acquisitions across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) as well as India by creating an independent operation, a company executive said on Tuesday.



Currently, the firm's power and water businesses operate together as in many of its markets water desalination and power generation plants are situated in close proximity.



The state-owned utility has investments in the energy and power sector from India and the Middle East and Africa to the United Kingdom and north America. Its desalination assets, however, are all located in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)."



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Fourth-quarter surge for Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding | The National

Fourth-quarter surge for Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding | The National:



"Profits at Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding, which is controlled by the billionaire Prince Al Waleed bin Talal, rose more than 10 per cent in the fourth quarter amid a rise in the value of its assets



Prince Alwaleed's Kingdom Holding completes $80m land sale
Kingdom, which owns stakes in Citigroup as well as Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation and Twitter, said in a regulatory disclosure that net income for the quarter ended December 31 stood at 231.2 million Saudi riyals (Dh226.4m), compared with 209.6m riyals a year earlier.



Profit for the full year increased 5 per cent to 742.5m riyals."



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Dubai eager to capitalise on Iran opening - FT.com

Dubai eager to capitalise on Iran opening - FT.com:



"The many daily flights between Dubai and Tehran are always busy. But these days the Iranians heading home after business and shopping trips are increasingly joined by briefcase-toting western and Asian passengers.



They are part of a new wave of foreign investors eager to investigate business opportunities in post-sanctions Iran, a potentially lucrative trade that Dubai, the commercial hub of the United Arab Emirates, is eager to capitalise on.



Last week, Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum called for sanctions to be lifted on the Islamic republic. “I think we need to give Iran space, Iran is our neighbour and we don’t want any problem,” he told the BBC in an interview. “If they agree peace with the Americans and the Americans lift sanctions, then everyone will benefit.”"



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Saudi Telecom lifts index with strong Q4 earnings | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Saudi Telecom lifts index with strong Q4 earnings | Reuters:



"Saudi Arabia's telecom sector helped lift the bourse on Tuesday after Saudi Telecom Co (STC), its second biggest firm by market value, posted an earnings surge. Most other regional markets also gained.



STC beat analysts' estimates as it made a net profit of 3.62 billion riyals ($965 million), up from 393 million riyals in the prior-year period. Analysts on average forecast STC's profit would be 2.51 billion riyals.



Although the profit jump was mainly due a change in STC's method of accounting for an Indian unit, Saudi retail investors tend to look at headline numbers.



"The main reasons for the strong reported net income are the increased cost efficiencies, which commenced in third quarter 2013," Abdulelah Babgi, an analyst at NCB Capital in Riyadh, said in a note. "This is coupled with an improvement in income from associates.""



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Russia may become world's leader in shale oil production – BP | Russia Beyond The Headlines

Russia may become world's leader in shale oil production – BP | Russia Beyond The Headlines:



"According to a BP forecast, in 20 years' time, Russia will become the world's second largest tight oil producer. The company's experts estimate that by 2035 it will be producing 800,000 barrels of shale oil a day.



Russia's oil majors confirm BP experts' predictions by declaring that they view unconventional oil production as a priority. A source at Rosneft said that the company's estimated reserves of shale oil stood at about 1.4 billion tons.



In the near future Rosneft expects to increase its unconventional oil production and, through the use of new technologies, arrive at an annual production of 10 million to 15 million tons."



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Qatari Diar advances on plan to bail out Barwa Real Estate | Doha News

Qatari Diar advances on plan to bail out Barwa Real Estate | Doha News:



"A government-backed shareholder of Barwa Real Estate has agreed to buy its stake in Barwa Bank, the indebted developer has said. The move would pump some QR2.4 billion (US$659 million) into the Qatari firm, in exchange for 37.34 percent of the bank.



 The deal – which still requires legal and government approval – is part of an existing agreement that would see the Qatari Diar, which is owned by the Qatar Investment Authority, buy QR20 billion ($5.49 billion) worth of assets from Barwa Real Estate to help it reduce its liabilities.



The Diar already owns 45 percent of the Barwa Group, the parent company of Barwa Real Estate that also has interests in financial services and infrastructure."



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RIGZONE - Abu Dhabi Government Extends Upper Zakum Oil Field Concession by 15 Years

RIGZONE - Abu Dhabi Government Extends Upper Zakum Oil Field Concession by 15 Years:



"Japan's Inpex Corporation (Inpex) announced Tuesday that the Government of Abu Dhabi has decided on the extension of the Concession for the Upper Zakum Oil Field, offshore Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Concession has now been extended to Dec. 31, 2041 by adding more than 15 years to the previous term. The Upper Zakum is being jointly developed by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), Exxon Mobil (EM) and an Inpex subsidiary Japan Oil Development Co., Ltd. (JODCO)."



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Menacorp breathes new life into Abu Dhabi’s once-buzzing trading floor | The National

Menacorp breathes new life into Abu Dhabi’s once-buzzing trading floor | The National:



"A UAE-based brokerage firm has opened up shop at the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, reversing a trend of closures since the global financial crisis as companies sought to cut costs.



Menacorp, the country’s biggest stockbroking firm by traded value, said it had leased a booth on the trading floor of the exchange, to serve its client base.



 The booths of the exchange once buzzed with the urgent chatter of brokers as traders launched their buy and sell orders via paper aeroplanes over the heads of rival investors jamming the trading room floor. But over the past five years the number of brokerages in operation halved to just under 50, leaving many of the booths of the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) General Index vacated with their lights turned off."



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Uralkali Agrees to 24% Cut in Potash Price for China - Bloomberg

Uralkali Agrees to 24% Cut in Potash Price for China - Bloomberg:



"OAO Uralkali (URKA), the world’s largest potash producer, agreed to supply the soil nutrient to China at a price 24 percent less than it did before pulling out of a joint supply deal with Belarus.



 Uralkali will sell potash to a group of Chinese customers at $305 a metric ton under a contract covering the first half of 2014, the Berezniki, Russia-based company said yesterday in a statement. The agreement covers 700,000 tons. The price compares with the $400 Uralkali charged when it marketed potash jointly with Belarus until July.



 “It’s a definitive price point that people can look at and use as some sort of floor price,” Peter Prattas, a Toronto-based analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald LP, said yesterday in a telephone interview. “Buyers have been waiting for something like this as a catalyst so they can start buying again.”"



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