Sunday 4 March 2018

Deutsche Bank to JPMorgan Hire as Lenders Look Past Saudi Purge - Bloomberg

Deutsche Bank to JPMorgan Hire as Lenders Look Past Saudi Purge - Bloomberg:

"Global banks are pushing ahead with growth plans in Saudi Arabia four months after a crackdown on corruption threatened to derail ambitious plans to transform the economy. Lenders including UBS Group AG and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. have been hiring and Citigroup Inc. just won its first local advisory mandate since returning to Saudi Arabia after a 13-year absence. Deutsche Bank AG said it’s expanding in the kingdom as the outlook for bond and stock sales improves. While the speed of the purge and the lack of transparency unsettled markets when it started late last year, the banks appear unfazed after several of the princes and officials who were arrested have since been released. That’s good news for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who’s trying to solidify his grip on power without alienating the international investors he needs to transform the economy into a financial powerhouse and away from oil."



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Record Slide in Saudi Loans to Companies Poses Risk to Recovery - Bloomberg

Record Slide in Saudi Loans to Companies Poses Risk to Recovery - Bloomberg:

"Saudi bank lending to private companies shrank for an 11th month in January, the longest stretch in at least two decades, underscoring the challenge facing officials trying to boost growth in the largest Arab economy. Data released last week by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority showed total credit issued to private companies fell 1 percent from a year earlier, compared with a 41 percent jump in lending to the public sector -- the most in 11 months. That’s a problem for authorities looking to bolster non-oil private industries to overhaul an economy long reliant on oil revenue and state spending. It also illustrates how the government is caught between competing desires to stimulate the economy while shoring up public finances, after the plunge in oil prices in 2014 caused the budget deficit to surge. The kingdom has introduced value-added tax and removed some fuel subsidies, but also rolled out a package of handouts to offset the impact."



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JPMorgan, HSBC Among Banks Said to Help Manage Saudi Dollar Bond - Bloomberg

JPMorgan, HSBC Among Banks Said to Help Manage Saudi Dollar Bond - Bloomberg:

"Saudi Arabia selected banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and HSBC Holdings Plc to help arrange the sale of a dollar-denominated bond, people familiar with the matter said, as the kingdom seeks to plug its budget deficit.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc. will also manage the offering that may happen as soon as this month, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

The Saudi Finance Ministry declined to comment. HSBC, Goldman and JPMorgan declined to comment, while Citigroup didn’t immediately comment."



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Emirates Global Aluminium "well prepared" for market conditions following Trump tariff threat | ZAWYA MENA Edition

Emirates Global Aluminium "well prepared" for market conditions following Trump tariff threat | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

"Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) said on Sunday it was "well prepared" for any market conditions should U.S. President Donald Trump go ahead with sweeping tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.

"Alongside Europe, Asia and the United Arab Emirates, the U.S. is an important market for EGA," the company's spokesman told Reuters.

"We are well prepared for whatever market conditions may arise," he said.
"



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets mixed, Saudi stocks slip on banks

MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets mixed, Saudi stocks slip on banks:

"Gulf stock markets were mixed at Sunday’s close, with Abu Dhabi and Dubai ending the day in a narrow range, while the Saudi stock market, the biggest in the region, dropped 0.57 percent, amid weakness in energy and financial stocks. The Gulf market took little respite from a rise in oil prices and a rebound for Wall Street stocks on Friday and following U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports. “The low liquidity is still affecting the United Arab Emirates stock market and there seems little interest to allocate funds that are sitting on the side,” said Tariq Qaqish, Managing Director Asset Management at Menacorp in Dubai."



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Boom times for US shale oil producers

Boom times for US shale oil producers:

"“We are in the BOOM of FRAC SAND HAULING” proclaims a job advertisement on the website Indeed.com. Dozens of companies are looking for truck drivers in west Texas to haul the sand used for hydraulic fracturing, one of the processes that has unleashed the US shale oil revolution of the past decade. The sand is mixed with water and chemicals and pumped into wells at high pressure, to open cracks in the rock through which oil can flow. Drivers in the oilfield lead a rugged existence — they might work a rotation of three weeks on, one week off, and rely on truck-stop bathrooms for washing when they are on the road — but it has its rewards. Employers are offering $100,000 per year, sometimes more, and new vacancies are opening up all the time. There have been 12 new job adverts for sand truck drivers in west Texas posted just in the past week. To rev up excitement, one has a simple message: “THE OILFIELD IS BOOMING!!!!” The drivers wanted ads are a sign of how rapidly the US oil industry is changing. Over 2010-14, US crude production put on one of the strongest bursts of growth in the history of the oil industry, but the industry became a victim of its own success as oversupply in world markets sent prices tumbling, pushing it into a downturn. Activity slumped and dozens of companies were forced into bankruptcy. "



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Saudi Arabia's $16 billion syndicated loan cuts funding costs

Saudi Arabia's $16 billion syndicated loan cuts funding costs:

"Saudi Arabia’s planned $16 billion syndicated loan, one of the largest ever in emerging markets, will cut the kingdom’s cost of funding by paying banks much less than on previous borrowings.

The ministry of finance said on Twitter that it would offer banks a margin of 75 basis points over the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor) for the loan, which Saudi Arabia’s Debt Management Office plans to close by mid-March.

Offers from international banks for the loan, which will refinance, extend and increase an existing $10 billion facility raised in 2016 and due in 2021, exceeded $20 billion, it said."



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MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets trade in narrow range, lagging global markets and oil | ZAWYA MENA Edition

MIDEAST STOCKS-Gulf markets trade in narrow range, lagging global markets and oil | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

"Gulf stock markets were mostly mixed on Sunday, with Abu Dhabi and Dubai trading in a narrow range, held back by low liquidity. This was despite a rise in oil prices and a rebound for Wall Street stocks on Friday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. "The low liquidity is still affecting the United Arab Emirates stock market and there seems little interest to allocate funds that are sitting on the side," said Tariq Qaqish, Managing Director Asset Management at Menacorp in Dubai."



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