Friday 30 January 2015

Qatar Airways takes 10% stake in British Airways-owner IAG - Your Middle East

Qatar Airways takes 10% stake in British Airways-owner IAG - Your Middle East:



"Qatar Airways on Friday said it had purchased almost 10 percent of IAG, parent of British Airways and Spanish carrier Iberia, the second European entry by a Gulf carrier.



"As part of efforts to enhance operations and strengthen existing commercial ties... Qatar Airways has acquired a 9.99 percent stake in IAG," the company said in a statement.



The airline's chief executive, Akbar al-Baker, said International Airlines Group "represents an excellent opportunity to further develop our westwards strategy.""



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Saudi Arabia’s waiting game with oil | GulfNews.com

Saudi Arabia’s waiting game with oil | GulfNews.com:



"As the ruler of a country that sits atop 300 billion barrels of oil, Saudi Arabia’s late King Abdullah was no fan of proposals to limit the burning of fossil fuels. During most of his reign, the king’s chief envoy to climate talks was a global-warming sceptic who boasted of his success at scuttling climate treaties.



But it was in the monarch’s final months that Saudi officials hit upon a more effective way to knock the clean-energy movement off its tracks: cheap gas.



Since King Abdullah’s death, Saudi officials have recommitted themselves to recent policies that have helped drive oil prices to their lowest levels in a decade. The kingdom’s efforts to manipulate oil markets are wreaking havoc with Saudi Arabia’s chief oil rivals, from Iran and Russia to the tar-sands mines of western Canada. Now energy experts are seeing evidence that the oil bust is helping Saudi Arabia achieve another long-term goal: undermining global efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels."



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Oil price fall leaves Gulf states with difficult reform choices - FT.com

Oil price fall leaves Gulf states with difficult reform choices - FT.com:



"Gulf states may have their political differences with Iran but they share a common taste for Persian bread, a staple through the region.



So when Iranian bakers working in Kuwaiti co-operative societies went on a five-day strike this month, public outrage grew as the price threatened to rise above eight US cents per flaky flatbread.



The industrial action, which was sparked by increases in the price of the kerosene that fires the bakers’ ovens after fuel subsidies were lifted, ended when the bakers were promised a return to subsidised rates."



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Saudi king stamps his authority with staff shake-up - FT.com

Saudi king stamps his authority with staff shake-up - FT.com:


"King Salman, Saudi Arabia’s new monarch, has announced an overhaul of key security, political and economic officials at the same time as unveiling populist cash handouts as he seeks to stamp his authority on the kingdom.



A week after taking the throne, King Salman announced investment projects including utilities investment worth SAR20bn ($5.3bn), and granted state employees a two-months’ salary bonus, among other benefits, the official Saudi news agency reported late on Thursday.



The IMF has urged Saudi Arabia, which spends about half its budget on current spending such as salaries, to restrain expenditure on wage growth, especially since oil prices have halved over the past few months."



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Dubai dealers Joyce and Reed chase Sunland’s $6m costs | The Australian

Dubai dealers Joyce and Reed chase Sunland’s $6m costs | The Australian:



"TWO men involved in a dodgy land deal in Dubai are still chasing Queensland-based developer Sunland for the $6.75 million in costs awarded to them by a Melbourne court more than a year after Sunland was ordered to pay.



Court documents filed by lawyers for Matthew Joyce — who was detained in Dubai for more than four years — and property wheeler and dealer Angus Reed show the pair are yet to receive their court-awarded costs for defending a civil suit brought against them by the company led by the Abedian family.



Sunland lost its Supreme Court case against Mr Reed and Mr Joyce, after alleging the pair hoodwinked the company into buying a prime plot of waterfront land in Dubai in 2007.

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