Thursday 4 August 2016

Iran adopts oil contract as glut no barrier to boost output | GulfNews.com

Iran adopts oil contract as glut no barrier to boost output | GulfNews.com:

"Iran approved a new oil contract model, taking the nation a step closer to welcoming foreign investment in its energy industry and boosting production even more into an oversupplied market.

The contract model was approved at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, according to the official Islamic republic News Agency. Priority will be given to boosting output at jointly owned oil and gas fields, state radio reported, citing Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh. Iran wants to lure international companies that can make long-term investments worth billions of dollars and bring technology after sanctions were eased in January.

Iran has been working on the oil contract model for the past two years. The country hopes companies will invest as much as $50 billion a year. It’s already succeeding in meeting its pledge to regain market share it lost due to the sanctions over its nuclear program. Production was 3.55 million barrels a day in July, 27 per cent higher for this year and the most since December 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt closes at 13-month high, Gulf firms on oil | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Egypt closes at 13-month high, Gulf firms on oil | Reuters:

"Egypt's stock market closed at a 13-month high on Thursday amid optimism over Cairo's talks with the International Monetary Fund, while bourses in the Gulf firmed as oil prices came off multi-month lows and global equities firmed.

The main Egyptian index jumped 1.9 percent in its highest trading volume for seven weeks as institutional funds bought shares, bourse data showed.

The index rose 2.8 percent over the week on hopes that an IMF team visiting Cairo would agree on a three-year, $12 billion loan that would stimulate economic growth and ease a hard currency shortage."



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Middle East Drives LNG Demand as Glut Makes Prices Attractive - Bloomberg

Middle East Drives LNG Demand as Glut Makes Prices Attractive - Bloomberg:

"Countries in the Middle East and North Africa led by Egypt, Kuwait and Morocco are boosting liquefied natural gas import capacity, taking advantage of low prices to meet rising energy demand.
The region plans to add permanent terminals and temporary, off-shore units that will increase annual capacity by 58.2 billion cubic meters in 2021, energy lender Arab Petroleum Investment Corp. said in a report. Capacity was 39.1 billion cubic meters at the start of 2016, according to a March publication of the International Group of Liquefied Natural Gas Importers, a Paris-based industry group. Arab Petroleum didn’t provide current figures. Based on the two sets of figures, annual capacity in the region would increase to 97.3 billion cubic meters in five years.
New output from Australia and the U.S. is adding to an LNG glut, dragging the Northeast Asia LNG price down to an average of $5 per million British thermal units this year from $14 in 2014, according to assessments by New York-based World Gas Intelligence. Growing demand and a lack of cross-border pipelines in the region prone to conflict are making the Middle East and North Africa a growth market for the fuel. The region will account for 6.5 percent of global LNG demand by the end of 2017, up from about 1 percent in 2013, according to Apicorp."



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UAE healthcare firm AVIVO aims to raise $500 mln in London float in March | Reuters

UAE healthcare firm AVIVO aims to raise $500 mln in London float in March | Reuters:

"United Arab Emirates-based healthcare firm AVIVO Group aims to list in London next March and raise around $500 million from the offering, its chairman told Reuters on Wednesday.

The company is the latest from the emirates' burgeoning healthcare sector to seek a listing in Britain, as restrictive listing rules in their home jurisdiction and the lure of selling to institutional investors that are specialists in the industry draw them to London.

AVIVO Group has 43 healthcare outlets, including hospitals, clinics and dentistry services, the majority of which are in the UAE but also in Kuwait."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf recovers slightly as oil price rebounds | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf recovers slightly as oil price rebounds | Reuters:

"A recovery in oil prices and global equities helped lift stock markets in the Gulf slightly in early trade on Thursday after a weak performance in the region earlier this week.

Dubai's main index was up 0.4 percent as large and mid-cap stocks outperformed, with Emaar Properties climbing 1.2 percent.

In Abu Dhabi the index was dragged 0.4 percent lower by telecommunications firm Etisalat, which dropped 1.8 percent as it went ex-dividend."



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Middle East Strategy: What Investors Should Know - Bloomberg

Middle East Strategy: What Investors Should Know - Bloomberg:




"Amin Al-Kholy, managing director at Arqaam Capital Asset Management, discusses Middle East earnings, markets and where to look for opportunity. He speaks to Yousef Gamal El-Din on "Bloomberg Markets Middle East.""



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