Sunday 3 December 2017

Swiss banks hand over information on Saudi princes

Swiss banks hand over information on Saudi princes:

"Switzerland’s banks have begun reporting suspicious account activity among some of their Saudi Arabian clients to the Swiss Money Laundering Reporting Office, part of the federal police service, according to people close to the situation.

Lawyers acting for the banks have submitted information over the past week and expect several dozen submissions to be made in total, two people involved in the process said.

The exercise reflects the banks’ nervousness about being found in breach of rules governing money laundering and corruption. It follows the arrest last month of more than 200 people, including some of Saudi Arabia’s richest businessmen and princes. They were detained at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh as part of an anti-graft operation launched by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s powerful heir apparent."



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Dana Gas says Sharjah Court allows it to take part in UK legal proceedings  - The National

Dana Gas says Sharjah Court allows it to take part in UK legal proceedings  - The National:

"Dana Gas, the Sharjah-based company in the midst of a legal battle to declare its US$700 million sukuk illegal, will be able to take part in proceedings in a UK court after the lifting of restrictions on its participation by a Sharjah court on Saturday. The Sharjah Court of First Instance on September 17 issued an anti-suit injunction that prevented the oil and gas company from participating in the UK trial, where a London High Court judge ruled last month in favour of bondholders who are seeking payment of the sukuk that matured in October. Dana Gas had declared in June that its sukuk, which it was seeking to restructure, is now non Sharia-compliant following developments in the Islamic finance, and that it is therefore not obliged to repay the debt to creditors. These include New York-based BlackRock, the world's biggest asset manager."



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RDIF in talks with UAE partners for investments | GulfNews.com

RDIF in talks with UAE partners for investments | GulfNews.com:

"Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) is talking to many partners from the UAE to invest in Russia, a senior representative of the Fund told Gulf News. “Russia is a growing market. The growth is picking up in 2017 with the estimate of 2 per cent for the whole year, but many sectors are growing even faster due to the macroeconomic trends and the support by the government. We are talking to many partners from the UAE for joint investment,” said the representative. He said Mubadala Investment Company committed investments of up to $6 billion (Dh22 billion) in Russia in renewables, infrastructure, ports and airports and other sectors."



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Qatar riyal stabilising in offshore market after c.bank pledge on dollar supply

Qatar riyal stabilising in offshore market after c.bank pledge on dollar supply:

"Qatar’s riyal is stabilising in offshore trade, recovering from several weeks of increasing volatility, after the central bank pledged to ensure liquidity in the foreign exchange market, commercial bankers said on Sunday. Some currency traders said they believed the central bank had sold U.S. dollars offshore in significant amounts during recent days, but this could not be confirmed. Until late November, the riyal swung widely between its peg of 3.64 to the U.S. dollar, widely used onshore, and much weaker offshore rates. On Nov. 21, it traded as low as 3.8950 on the Reuters conversational dealing platform."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Yemen helps Saudi rise for eighth day, Qatar rebounds on FX

MIDEAST STOCKS-Yemen helps Saudi rise for eighth day, Qatar rebounds on FX:

"Saudi Arabia’s stock market rose for an eighth straight day in active trade on Sunday, climbing above technical resistance, as sentiment was helped by hopes for an end to the conflict in Yemen. A stabilising currency helped Qatar rebound. Former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh said on Saturday he was ready for a “new page” in ties with the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen if it stopped attacks on his country, in a move that could pave the way to end nearly three years of war. The Saudi stock index gained 1.2 percent to 7,089 points. It rose above resistance around 7,000 points, which has capped the market since mid-October and roughly coincides with the 200-day average, now at 7,014 points."



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OPEC deal could produce a Goldilocks scenario for Saudi Aramco IPO | Arab News

OPEC deal could produce a Goldilocks scenario for Saudi Aramco IPO | Arab News:

"Khalid Al-Falih, Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, would have come away from Vienna last week with the satisfaction of a job well done and mission accomplished, on two fronts.
As the Kingdom’s oil supremo, he would have been happy with the deal to maintain production by OPEC — and its new ally Russia — until the end of next year.
In his capacity as chairman of Saudi Aramco, he would be no less pleased that another variable had been ticked off in the preparations to launch the initial public offering of the world’s biggest oil company, also slated by official pronouncements for the end of 2018."



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Sovereign investment fund assets set to double under new roadmap | ZAWYA MENA Edition

Sovereign investment fund assets set to double under new roadmap | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

"Saudi Arabia is furthering plans to create the world's largest sovereign wealth fund and use it as a vehicle for driving economic growth, a move that will have a far-reaching impact on regional and global markets, as well as open opportunities for investment.

Unveiled on October 25 the Public Investment Fund (PIF) Programme 2018-20 is a development roadmap which aims to position the PIF as one of the world’s top sovereign wealth funds.

Key objectives of the plan are to increase assets under management from $230bn today to $400bn by 2020 and $2trn by 2030, and achieve average investment returns of 4-5% by 2020, up from the current 3%."



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UAE markets working to confirm bottoms | ZAWYA MENA Edition

UAE markets working to confirm bottoms | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

"The Dubai Financial Market General Index (DFMGI) dropped by 40.76 or 1.18 per cent last week to close at 3,420.17. Most issues were down as there were only seven that advanced against 29 declining. Volume fell to a multi-week low, but that can be attributed to the four-day trading week due to the holiday. For the past four weeks the DFMGI has been trying to secure a bottom after falling as much as 8.21 per cent from the October peak as of the 3,382.83 low hit two weeks ago. During the recent decline the index retraced approximately 70 per cent of the prior rally that began from the June low. That’s a good amount and therefore it wouldn’t be surprising to see the recent bottom hold and lead to at least a bounce higher. Further supporting the potential for a rally is the recent price pattern that has formed. It has taken the form of a potential bullish inverse head and shoulders pattern. This is a classic trend reversal pattern that can be used to mark the end of a downtrend and the beginning of an uptrend. Nevertheless, the pattern is not considered valid until there is an upside breakout. Until then the pattern can evolve into a different consolidation pattern and can also just be a rest before the downtrend continues."



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