Saturday 10 December 2016

Vision 2030: The Blueprint for Life After Oil - Bloomberg

Vision 2030: The Blueprint for Life After Oil - Bloomberg:
"Both Saudi Arabia and the UAE, two of the Middle East's biggest powerhouses, are establishing a roadmap for economic development based on reduced reliance on oil. Top experts discussed what they see as the plan's biggest challenges and opportunities with Bloomberg's Riad Hamade at the Bloomberg Markets Most Influential Summit in Abu Dhabi on December 7. Panelists: Mohamed Alabbar, chairman, Emaar Properties; Bassem I. Awadallah, chief executive officer, Tomoh Advisory; and Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi, deputy group chief executive officer and chief executive officer, Emerging Sectors, Mubadala Development. (Source: Bloomberg)"

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Oil traders prepare flotilla to ship U.S. exports to Asia | Reuters

Oil traders prepare flotilla to ship U.S. exports to Asia | Reuters:
"Oil traders and major producers are lining up a flotilla of carriers to ship more U.S. crude to Asia in December than in nearly two decades as higher prices, supported by OPEC's proposed supply cuts, offer a rare opportunity to boost sales to the region.

A 40-year U.S. ban on crude exports was lifted in 2015 but only a few cargoes have shipped during a global glut in supply. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries last week agreed to its first supply cut in eight years as the cartel sought to end the two-year glut.

As peak winter demand kicks in, the difference between benchmark crude prices in the United States, Asia and Europe has widened to the most since August and opened up the trade route."

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Dubai Investments to close Dh1.1 bln loan by year-end: CEO | Reuters

Dubai Investments to close Dh1.1 bln loan by year-end: CEO | Reuters:
"Dubai Investments, part owned by sovereign wealth fund Investment Corp of Dubai, plans to close a 1.1 billion dirham ($299.52 million) loan by Dec. 31, its chief executive said on Saturday.

United Arab Emirates banks First Gulf Bank (FGB) and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank have been mandated for the loan, Khalid Bin Kalban told reporters in Dubai.

The loan will be used to build a residential project in Dubai's Mirdif neighbourhood located near the world's busiest airport for international travel, Dubai International."

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Emirates pour concrete to fight a global slowdown #UAE

Emirates pour concrete to fight a global slowdown:
"In November, Dubai opened the final phase of a 12km man-made canal connecting the city’s existing natural creek to the waters of the Gulf. The second phase of the $1bn waterway project has opened up 6.4km of extra waterfront, to be lined with foot and cycle paths, another stage in the rejuvenation of the emirate that has lured investors and tourists since the city opened property ownership to foreigners 14 years ago.

The delivery of government-driven infrastructure — following the creation of the Palm islands a decade ago — sits in sharp relief to a broader economic slowdown in the United Arab Emirates that has been caused by two and a half years of low oil prices.

The International Monetary Fund is predicting gross domestic product growth will fall from 4 per cent to 2.3 per cent this year, seeing only a modest recovery to 2.5 per cent next year."

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Hotels groups in UAE build on as growth slows

Hotels groups in UAE build on as growth slows:
"Hoteliers in the United Arab Emirates are bracing themselves for some fresh competition: another 54,000 hotel rooms are set for construction by 2020, according to a report this year by TopHotelProjects — an increase on present numbers of more than a third.

The boom in hotel construction comes despite falling revenues and slowing economic growth in important tourism markets such as China and the eurozone. Large hotel chains — including Paramount, Marriott and its subsidiary W Hotels, which all have new openings planned — seem undeterred.

Property agents say their confidence is inspired, in part, by the emirates’ ambitions to expand their appeal to different types of visitors. Dubai wants to be known for more than its malls, and Abu Dhabi for attractions beyond the oil business. “About half of the [forthcoming hotel] inventory is in Dubai, which is transforming itself from a beach, shopping and business destination,” says Gaurav Shivpuri, head of capital markets for the Middle East and north Africa at JLL, an estate agency group."

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Dubai lures foreign investors

Dubai lures foreign investors:
"When it is completed, ICD Brookfield Place — a new Foster + Partners-designed skyscraper in Dubai’s financial district — will tower 282m above the ground. It is one of the few development projects in the United Arab Emirates to tap into institutional investment from overseas. In 2012, the Investment Corporation of Dubai formed a joint venture with the global property arm of Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management, one of the world’s largest commercial property companies, to build it. Construction began this year.

Skyscrapers have sprouted rapidly out of the deserts of the UAE over the past 20 years, but so far ICD Brookfield Place remains a rarity in a commercial property market that is largely domestic and regional. Property advisers hope the tower is a sign of things to come.

“This is the single biggest opportunity that the UAE has in its real estate sector. There is extraordinary interest, but it is difficult because this is a fairly illiquid market,” says Nicholas Maclean, managing director for the consultancy CBRE Middle East. CBRE and estate agency group JLL are joint letting agents for ICD Brookfield Place.

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What’s at stake when Opec meets non-Opec producers

What’s at stake when Opec meets non-Opec producers:
"Opec is set to meet producers outside of the cartel in Vienna on Saturday as the 13-member group seeks contributions for a global output cut aimed at easing excess supplies and boosting the oil price.

After securing a deal last week to curb output by more than 1m barrels of oil per day, Opec producers are returning to Austria’s capital hoping they can add another 600,000 barrels a day in reductions from other countries."

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