Vodafone Qatar says scraps bid for broadband firm: statement | Reuters:
"Vodafone Qatar VQFS.QA has scrapped its bid to buy state-owned wholesale Internet provider Qatar National Broadband Network (QNBN), the country's No.2 mobile operator by subscribers said on Sunday.
In October, Vodafone Qatar announced it had reached a non-binding agreement to buy QNBN, pending regulatory and other approvals.
Vodafone Qatar did not explicitly state why the deal had failed in a bourse statement, but said that "following a due diligence and negotiation process, the parties have determined not to proceed with the transaction"."
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Sunday 30 November 2014
UAE to keep dirham pegged to US dollar, says Central Bank chief | The National
UAE to keep dirham pegged to US dollar, says Central Bank chief | The National:
"The UAE will keep its currency peg to the US dollar and media reports that the currency regime is under study are not true, the Central Bank governor was quoted as saying by state news agency Wam.
The UAE dirham, which has been fixed at a rate of 3.6725 to $1 since 1997, edged down to its lowest level against the dollar in over a year in the one-year forwards market last week as the price of oil, on which the economy depends heavily, fell to new four-year lows.
An economic committee of the Federal National Council, an advisory body to the UAE government, has suggested the Central Bank review the peg, a committee member told Reuters on Thursday, although he stressed that the recommendation was not related to the oil price slide."
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"The UAE will keep its currency peg to the US dollar and media reports that the currency regime is under study are not true, the Central Bank governor was quoted as saying by state news agency Wam.
The UAE dirham, which has been fixed at a rate of 3.6725 to $1 since 1997, edged down to its lowest level against the dollar in over a year in the one-year forwards market last week as the price of oil, on which the economy depends heavily, fell to new four-year lows.
An economic committee of the Federal National Council, an advisory body to the UAE government, has suggested the Central Bank review the peg, a committee member told Reuters on Thursday, although he stressed that the recommendation was not related to the oil price slide."
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Dubai property growth to slow to single-digit levels, says Damac founder | The National
Dubai property growth to slow to single-digit levels, says Damac founder | The National:
"Growth in the Dubai property market will slow to single-digit levels for the foreseeable future, according to Hussain Sajwani, the founder and chairman of Damac Properties, one of the UAE’s flagship developers.
Mr Sajwani, speaking exclusively to The National in an interview, said that the days of 20 to 30 per cent annual increases in the property market were over, and that the “price levelling” experienced by Damac and other developers in the past six months would continue.
“The drop during the crisis was dramatic, but so has been the recovery, with 20 to 30 per cent increases in 2012 and 2013,” he said. “To have that level of increase for a third year would be a bad thing. At Damac we see it close to single digits for the current year and beyond – between 8 and 10 per cent.”"
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"Growth in the Dubai property market will slow to single-digit levels for the foreseeable future, according to Hussain Sajwani, the founder and chairman of Damac Properties, one of the UAE’s flagship developers.
Mr Sajwani, speaking exclusively to The National in an interview, said that the days of 20 to 30 per cent annual increases in the property market were over, and that the “price levelling” experienced by Damac and other developers in the past six months would continue.
“The drop during the crisis was dramatic, but so has been the recovery, with 20 to 30 per cent increases in 2012 and 2013,” he said. “To have that level of increase for a third year would be a bad thing. At Damac we see it close to single digits for the current year and beyond – between 8 and 10 per cent.”"
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Middle East firms to increase debt component to fund growth | GulfNews.com
Middle East firms to increase debt component to fund growth | GulfNews.com:
"Middle East firms’ plans to increase debt-to-capital have more than doubled, whereby 58 per cent of Middle East and North Africa businesses expect to avail more debt-to-fund growth compared with 23 per cent six months ago, according to the latest EY [Ernst & Young] Capital Confidence Survey (CCB).
The CCB is a regular survey of senior executives from large companies around the world that gauges corporate confidence in the economic outlook and identifies boardroom trends and practices in the way companies manage their capital agendas.
According to the survey, 85 per cent of MENA businesses will focus on expanding their core offering into new markets and are also increasingly confident about addressing the challenges to deal-making since last year."
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"Middle East firms’ plans to increase debt-to-capital have more than doubled, whereby 58 per cent of Middle East and North Africa businesses expect to avail more debt-to-fund growth compared with 23 per cent six months ago, according to the latest EY [Ernst & Young] Capital Confidence Survey (CCB).
The CCB is a regular survey of senior executives from large companies around the world that gauges corporate confidence in the economic outlook and identifies boardroom trends and practices in the way companies manage their capital agendas.
According to the survey, 85 per cent of MENA businesses will focus on expanding their core offering into new markets and are also increasingly confident about addressing the challenges to deal-making since last year."
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Saudi Stocks Head Into Bear Market on OPEC Output; Dubai Slumps - Bloomberg
Saudi Stocks Head Into Bear Market on OPEC Output; Dubai Slumps - Bloomberg:
"Saudi Arabian stocks headed for a bear market after OPEC took no action to stem a slump in oil, triggering a rout in Middle Eastern equity markets.
The Tadawul All Share Index (SASEIDX) retreated 3.9 percent to 8,705.73 at 11:44 a.m. in Riyadh. The measure for the Arab world’s biggest bourse has slipped 22 percent from a high on Sept. 9. Dubai’s DFM General Index fell 4.9 percent, the most since Oct. 16. Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index declined 2.8 percent, Oman’s MSM 30 Index lost 5.9 percent and Qatar’s QE Index fell 4.7 percent.
Oil tumbled to the lowest since May 2010 after the 12-nation Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries maintained its collective production ceiling of 30 million barrels a day. Brent crude, the benchmark for more than half the world’s oil, lost 13 percent last week, the biggest weekly plunge since May 2011, to $70.15 a barrel, the lowest since May 2010. Saudi stocks are plunging four months after the country announced plans to give foreigners access to the bourse for the first time."
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"Saudi Arabian stocks headed for a bear market after OPEC took no action to stem a slump in oil, triggering a rout in Middle Eastern equity markets.
The Tadawul All Share Index (SASEIDX) retreated 3.9 percent to 8,705.73 at 11:44 a.m. in Riyadh. The measure for the Arab world’s biggest bourse has slipped 22 percent from a high on Sept. 9. Dubai’s DFM General Index fell 4.9 percent, the most since Oct. 16. Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index declined 2.8 percent, Oman’s MSM 30 Index lost 5.9 percent and Qatar’s QE Index fell 4.7 percent.
Oil tumbled to the lowest since May 2010 after the 12-nation Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries maintained its collective production ceiling of 30 million barrels a day. Brent crude, the benchmark for more than half the world’s oil, lost 13 percent last week, the biggest weekly plunge since May 2011, to $70.15 a barrel, the lowest since May 2010. Saudi stocks are plunging four months after the country announced plans to give foreigners access to the bourse for the first time."
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