Oil and gas investments to fall to 2013 levels next year:
"Oil and gas investments in Norway are expected to fall by 18.5% next year, reads a note released by financial services group DNB.
‘Statistics Norway's August survey for oil and gas investments supports the expectations of a sharp decline in oil investments next year. Companies say they will invest NOK 185.3 billion in 2015. This is 13.9 percent less than the estimate for 2014 issued August 2013. Moreover, the figures for 2015 include costs associated with removal and shutdown. These costs were not included in the figures for 2014 (given in August last year). Adjusted for this the decline is 18.5 percent from 2014 to 2015,’ DNB said on Monday.
The financial services group, which also sees a decline in manufacturing investments, basically forecasts 2015 oil and gas investments to go back to 2013 levels. "
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Monday, 8 September 2014
Iran banks pressed to retreat from asset speculation - FT.com
Iran banks pressed to retreat from asset speculation - FT.com:
"Cranes crowd an 11,000sq metre patch of prime property in one of north Tehran’s most affluent areas as workers race to build a 19-storey tower that will encompass a huge shopping mall.
An adjacent hoarding announces that the main contractor of what will be the Atlas Mall is the Iranian Atlas Company, a private construction group. But this enterprise is in fact owned by Bank Ansar, which is affiliated to the elite Revolutionary Guards.
Iran has eight state-run and 19 “privately owned” banks – although these are frequently subject to interference from the state, with their shares bought by entities affiliated to power centres, which then influence banking policies and exploit funds – all of which have invested heavily in the ownership and management of commercial entities outside the banking sector."
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"Cranes crowd an 11,000sq metre patch of prime property in one of north Tehran’s most affluent areas as workers race to build a 19-storey tower that will encompass a huge shopping mall.
An adjacent hoarding announces that the main contractor of what will be the Atlas Mall is the Iranian Atlas Company, a private construction group. But this enterprise is in fact owned by Bank Ansar, which is affiliated to the elite Revolutionary Guards.
Iran has eight state-run and 19 “privately owned” banks – although these are frequently subject to interference from the state, with their shares bought by entities affiliated to power centres, which then influence banking policies and exploit funds – all of which have invested heavily in the ownership and management of commercial entities outside the banking sector."
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Corporate and infrastructure sukuk issuance likely to rise, despite recent dip - bi-me.com
Corporate and infrastructure sukuk issuance likely to rise, despite recent dip - Business Intelligence Middle East - bi-me.com - News, analysis, reports:
"Corporate and infrastructure sukuk issuance is likely to rise over the next few years, despite the dip in issues over the past eight months compared to the same period of 2013, says Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today in report: "Why Corporate And Infrastructure Sukuk Issuance Is Declining, Despite Healthy Prospects."
Issuance has trended downward this year in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Malaysia, dropping 33% and 7%, respectively. By contrast, total sukuk issuance (including financial institutions and sovereigns) grew by 19% in the GCC and by 6% in Malaysia over the same period.
"We attribute the decline in corporate and infrastructure sukuk in large part to cheap and ample bank liquidity, which has made issuers less reliant on the capital markets," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Karim Nassif."
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"Corporate and infrastructure sukuk issuance is likely to rise over the next few years, despite the dip in issues over the past eight months compared to the same period of 2013, says Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today in report: "Why Corporate And Infrastructure Sukuk Issuance Is Declining, Despite Healthy Prospects."
Issuance has trended downward this year in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Malaysia, dropping 33% and 7%, respectively. By contrast, total sukuk issuance (including financial institutions and sovereigns) grew by 19% in the GCC and by 6% in Malaysia over the same period.
"We attribute the decline in corporate and infrastructure sukuk in large part to cheap and ample bank liquidity, which has made issuers less reliant on the capital markets," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Karim Nassif."
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Dubai could switch back to single airport model in 20-30 years | GulfNews.com
Dubai could switch back to single airport model in 20-30 years | GulfNews.com:
"Dubai International could close in the coming decades as the Dubai government steps up its investment in future super-hub Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central (DWC), said Paul Griffiths, Dubai Airports chief executive officer, by phone on Monday.
The Dubai government has so far decided to keep Dubai International open. But the two-airport model could change in twenty to thirty years time, Griffiths said, when Dubai International will require new investment.
Griffiths said closing Dubai International “may be a sensible option” given the value of the land it sits on and that the money could “be best used for DWC.”"
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"Dubai International could close in the coming decades as the Dubai government steps up its investment in future super-hub Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central (DWC), said Paul Griffiths, Dubai Airports chief executive officer, by phone on Monday.
The Dubai government has so far decided to keep Dubai International open. But the two-airport model could change in twenty to thirty years time, Griffiths said, when Dubai International will require new investment.
Griffiths said closing Dubai International “may be a sensible option” given the value of the land it sits on and that the money could “be best used for DWC.”"
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Ras Al Khaimah Charts Its Own Economic Course - Middle East Real Time - WSJ
Ras Al Khaimah Charts Its Own Economic Course - Middle East Real Time - WSJ:
"Eclipsed by its fellow emirates Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah is setting its own, more quiet, course towards economic prosperity.
While the emirate’s officials are keen to emphasize what differentiates Ras Al Khaimah from its U.A.E. neighbors, the similarities are undeniably there: its strategy revolves around a familiar theme which is to be the bridge between East and West and to that end it has established a number of free zones.
“The formula is exceedingly simple. The same benefits you can get in other free zones in the U.A.E. – the tax free status, foreign ownership – at a much lower cost in both to set up and to operate. There’s no magic,” said Peter Fort, a former Morgan Stanley banker who is now economic adviser to Ras Al Khaimah’s ruler, Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, and also head of the RAK Free Trade Zone Authority, which accommodates around 7500 companies from over a 100 countries."
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"Eclipsed by its fellow emirates Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah is setting its own, more quiet, course towards economic prosperity.
While the emirate’s officials are keen to emphasize what differentiates Ras Al Khaimah from its U.A.E. neighbors, the similarities are undeniably there: its strategy revolves around a familiar theme which is to be the bridge between East and West and to that end it has established a number of free zones.
“The formula is exceedingly simple. The same benefits you can get in other free zones in the U.A.E. – the tax free status, foreign ownership – at a much lower cost in both to set up and to operate. There’s no magic,” said Peter Fort, a former Morgan Stanley banker who is now economic adviser to Ras Al Khaimah’s ruler, Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, and also head of the RAK Free Trade Zone Authority, which accommodates around 7500 companies from over a 100 countries."
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EU Need for Russian Gas Via Ukraine Wanes as Stores Fill - Bloomberg
EU Need for Russian Gas Via Ukraine Wanes as Stores Fill - Bloomberg:
"
Europe’s reliance on Russian natural gas shipments via Ukraine is declining after the region pumped a record volume of the fuel into underground inventories, minimizing the risk of shortages during the coming winter.
The blue line on the CHART OF THE DAY shows average daily flows at Velke Kapusany on the Slovakian-Ukrainian border, the biggest single entry point for Russian gas into the European Union, last month fell to a record, according to data from Slovak grid operator Eustream AS going back to 2011. The red histogram shows the 28-nation bloc has pumped a record volume of gas into storage, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe, a lobby group in Brussels.
Russia, which meets about 15 percent of Europe’s gas demand through Soviet-era pipelines across Ukraine, halted supplies to its neighbor on June 16 in a dispute over debt and prices, echoing similar spats in 2006 and 2009 that left European customers short of fuel. OAO Gazprom assumes countries that get their gas via Ukraine understood the possible risks in the spring and filled up storage sites at a faster pace, Sergei Kupriyanov, a spokesman for the Russian pipeline gas export monopoly, said by phone on Sept. 3."
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"
The blue line on the CHART OF THE DAY shows average daily flows at Velke Kapusany on the Slovakian-Ukrainian border, the biggest single entry point for Russian gas into the European Union, last month fell to a record, according to data from Slovak grid operator Eustream AS going back to 2011. The red histogram shows the 28-nation bloc has pumped a record volume of gas into storage, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe, a lobby group in Brussels.
Russia, which meets about 15 percent of Europe’s gas demand through Soviet-era pipelines across Ukraine, halted supplies to its neighbor on June 16 in a dispute over debt and prices, echoing similar spats in 2006 and 2009 that left European customers short of fuel. OAO Gazprom assumes countries that get their gas via Ukraine understood the possible risks in the spring and filled up storage sites at a faster pace, Sergei Kupriyanov, a spokesman for the Russian pipeline gas export monopoly, said by phone on Sept. 3."
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Goldman Sukuk Lures Mideast’s Top Fund Manager Mashreq - Bloomberg
Goldman Sukuk Lures Mideast’s Top Fund Manager Mashreq - Bloomberg:
"Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) will probably succeed in its latest attempt to sell sukuk as investors clamor for Islamic bonds, according to the manager of the Middle East and Africa’s best performing sukuk fund.
Buyers “have to look at different opportunities” with demand outpacing supply, according to Abdul Kadir Hussain, who oversees about $700 million as the chief executive officer of Mashreq Capital DIFC Ltd. Goldman Sachs will meet investors in the region this week before potentially selling a dollar-denominated, benchmark-sized issue through its unit JANY Sukuk Co., people with knowledge of the deal said last week.
The New York-based lender’s first foray into the Islamic capital markets three years ago ended without a sale amid criticism from scholars about the structure of its sukuk program and the use of funds raised. This time the planned security will be a Sukuk al Wakala, where one party entrusts another to act on its behalf."
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"Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) will probably succeed in its latest attempt to sell sukuk as investors clamor for Islamic bonds, according to the manager of the Middle East and Africa’s best performing sukuk fund.
Buyers “have to look at different opportunities” with demand outpacing supply, according to Abdul Kadir Hussain, who oversees about $700 million as the chief executive officer of Mashreq Capital DIFC Ltd. Goldman Sachs will meet investors in the region this week before potentially selling a dollar-denominated, benchmark-sized issue through its unit JANY Sukuk Co., people with knowledge of the deal said last week.
The New York-based lender’s first foray into the Islamic capital markets three years ago ended without a sale amid criticism from scholars about the structure of its sukuk program and the use of funds raised. This time the planned security will be a Sukuk al Wakala, where one party entrusts another to act on its behalf."
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