Sunday 29 November 2015

The Russia-Iran-Turkey energy triangle – old enemies locked in a power embrace | The National

The Russia-Iran-Turkey energy triangle – old enemies locked in a power embrace | The National:

"Tabnak, an Iranian news site, stated that “Russians are unreliable partners” in an article published in October. The website is close to the former Revolutionary Guards commander Mohsen Rezaei.

Iran and Russia may be confronting Turkish-backed groups in Syria’s civil war, with Turkey’s downing of a Russian jet last Tuesday the latest twist. But the three countries are locked in an embrace over energy, while Tehran and Moscow eye each other suspiciously over oil, gas and historical rivalries.

Turkish-Russian relations have deteriorated sharply over the aircraft incident. Vladimir Putin claimed: “We have long been recording the movement of a large amount of oil and petroleum products to Turkey from ISIL-occupied territories”, and said that the plane’s shooting down was to protect the smugglers."



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Budget deficit for UAE to be less than expected this year | The National

Budget deficit for UAE to be less than expected this year | The National:

"The UAE is set to undershoot its budget deficit projections this year, on the back of higher-than-forecast revenues and spending cuts.

The country ran a fiscal deficit of Dh21 billion in the first half of the year – meaning that it is on course to undershoot Government projections of a Dh124 billion deficit through this year.

At the current rate of spending, the UAE will run a full-year deficit of about 2.1 per cent of GDP this year."



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Gulf states unwilling to tighten oil taps alone: analysts | GulfNews.com

Gulf states unwilling to tighten oil taps alone: analysts | GulfNews.com:

"Saudi-led Gulf Opec members will reject pressure to shoulder the cost of cutting oil production alone despite warnings that prices risk sliding further, officials and analysts say.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE and Qatar, which pump more than half of Opec’s 32 million barrels of daily output, want a solid commitment from all other producers, especially non-Opec member Russia, to agree to production cuts across the board.

“Gulf states will not undertake a unilateral output cut. They need strong cooperation from other producers, mainly Russia, to cut,” Kuwaiti oil analyst Kamel Al Harami told AFP."



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Best Abu Dhabi Stock Rally Sputters as Etisalat Readies for MSCI - Bloomberg Business

Best Abu Dhabi Stock Rally Sputters as Etisalat Readies for MSCI - Bloomberg Business:

"Abu Dhabi’s best-performing stock in 2015 is showing signs of fatigue, just as it prepares to join MSCI Inc.’s emerging-market index.
Emirates Telecommunications Group Co. has declined for four days, its longest losing streak since Aug. 11, paring its advance this year to 51 percent. The shares had climbed to the highest valuation in about eight years based on future earnings -- now they’re trading below their 50-day moving average for the first time in more than two months."



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The $30 Oil Cliff Threatening Russia's Economy - Bloomberg Business

The $30 Oil Cliff Threatening Russia's Economy - Bloomberg Business:

"For Russia, $30 is the number to watch.
Crude prices at that level will push the economy to depths that would threaten the nation’s financial system, according to 63 percent of respondents in a Bloomberg survey. Lower prices for the fuel are next year’s biggest risk for Russia, which is unprepared to ride out another shock on the oil market, most economists said. Other dangers for 2016 include geopolitics, strains in the banking industry and the ruble, according to the poll of 27 analysts.
“If oil prices fall lower and stay at that low level for longer, risks of fiscal and financial destabilization increase significantly,” Sergey Narkevich, an analyst at PAO Promsvyazbank in Moscow, said by e-mail."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt rises as new c.bank chief arrives; Gulf sluggish | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt rises as new c.bank chief arrives; Gulf sluggish | Reuters:

"Egypt's stock market rose on Sunday as a new central bank governor took office, increasing hopes that the country's foreign exchange crisis can be resolved, while bourses in the Gulf were mostly sluggish.

Tarek Amer, a well-regarded former commercial banker, was to head the first meeting of the Egyptian central bank's new board on Sunday.

Many people expect him to work with the government to try to end a foreign currency shortage by regulating imports and supporting exports, which could benefit many listed firms. He is expected to be more generous in allowing the private sector to obtain foreign exchange."



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Middle East Stocks Decline; Dana Gas Soars on $2 Billion Award - Bloomberg Business

Middle East Stocks Decline; Dana Gas Soars on $2 Billion Award - Bloomberg Business:

"Stocks in Abu Dhabi led most Middle East markets lower, even as Dana Gas PJSC, an energy explorer based in the United Arab Emirates, soared after winning a court order over unpaid debts. Shares in Saudi Arabia and Egypt rose.
Dana advanced 15 percent, the most in almost a year, to 0.47 dirham at the close in the emirate, saying an international arbiter ordered the Kurdish government to pay the company and its partners about $2 billion for unpaid invoices. It was the most heavily traded stock on Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index, accounting for about 50 percent of the volume. The gauge declined 1.1 percent to the lowest level since Nov. 16. Egypt’s EGX 30 Index gained 0.8 percent as of 1:56 p.m. in Cairo and Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rose 0.1 percent."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt rises as new central bank chief arrives; Saudi firm | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt rises as new central bank chief arrives; Saudi firm | Reuters:

"Egypt's stock market rose early on Sunday as a new central bank governor took office, increasing hopes that the country's foreign exchange crisis can be resolved, while the Saudi market was firm.

Tarek Amer, a well-regarded former commercial banker, was to head the first meeting of the central bank's new board on Sunday.

Many people expect him to work with the government to try to end the foreign currency shortage by regulating imports and supporting exports, which could benefit many listed firms. He is expected to be more generous in allowing the private sector to obtain foreign exchange."



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Emirates NBD to maintain retail, wealth management momentum | GulfNews.com

Emirates NBD to maintain retail, wealth management momentum | GulfNews.com:

"Emirates NBD expects to sustain double-digit growth in its retail and wealth management business for the full year, Suvo Sarkar, senior executive vice-president & group head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management, told Gulf News in an interview.

The bank reported a 10 per cent growth in retail loans and 15 per cent growth in fee incomes in the first nine months of the year.

“We expect to continue double-digit growth in all our loan products — personal loans, auto loans and mortgage loans,” Sarkar said. “We are also reaping the benefits of digitisation and innovation. Nearly 10 per cent of our new loans are now booked via online and mobile banking.”"



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Saudi Arabia puts its might behind gas discoveries | GulfNews.com

Saudi Arabia puts its might behind gas discoveries | GulfNews.com:

"The hard push towards raising natural gas production in Saudi Arabia is relentless. Around the middle of November, Aramco signed contracts worth $5 billion (Dh18.3 billion) for the expansion of its domestic gas processing and distribution facilities.

The contracts cover the expansion and upgrading of the national Master Gas System (MGS), which was initiated in 1975 to transmit gas to major consumers in Saudi Arabia, including in the west of the country.

This has followed a contract worth $6.5 billion, also made in November, for the Fadhili gas processing plant (including sulphur recovery units). This will treat 2 billion cubic feet (bcf) a day of sour gas from the newly developed free gas offshore field of Hasbah in addition to 0.5 bcf from the onshore Khursaniyah oilfield."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets move little though Dana soars on Kurdistan news | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets move little though Dana soars on Kurdistan news | Reuters:

"Gulf bourses moved little in sluggish trade early on Sunday, weighed down by a lack of positive economic and corporate news, though Abu Dhabi's Dana Gas soared after saying it won a major court judgement in its dispute with Iraqi Kurdistan.

Dana jumped its 15 percent daily limit after saying a tribunal of the London Court of International Arbitration had directed the Kurdish regional government to pay $1.98 billion to a consortium including Dana within 28 days. There was no immediate comment from the Kurdish government.

Elsewhere, there was little incentive to buy stocks; Brent oil slipped back below $45 a barrel at the end of last week while global equity markets were soft."



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Oil's Big Players Line Up for $30 Billion of Projects in Iran - Bloomberg Business

Oil's Big Players Line Up for $30 Billion of Projects in Iran - Bloomberg Business:

"Total SA, Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Lukoil PJSC are among international companies that have selected oil and natural gas deposits to develop in Iran as the holder of the world’s fourth-largest crude reserves presents $30 billion worth of projects to investors.
Total is one of the companies that have been in the forefront of discussions and Eni SpA is also looking to invest, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said. Shell, Total and Lukoil all specified fields they would be interested in developing in Iran, Ali Kardor, deputy director of investment and financing at National Iranian Oil Co. said in an interview in Tehran. “Many companies are interested. Europeans are interested, Asian companies are interested,” Zanganeh told reporters at a conference in Tehran on Saturday. “Total is interested, Eni is interested.”"



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