Saudi Arabia has attracted $43bn of foreign investment in four years, says official report:
Saudi Arabia attracted $43 billion worth of foreign investment between 2013 and 2017, a study by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Riyadh has found.
The 493 investments were made by 361 foreign firms, the study noted, according to the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.
The economic transformation underway in the Kingdom is set to lure in more foreign investment.
Saturday 9 February 2019
#Qatar’s GDP per capita expected to scale up to $76,638 in 2023
Qatar’s GDP per capita expected to scale up to $76,638 in 2023:
Qatar’s GDP per capita will account for $63,482 this year and scale up to $76,638 in 2023, FocusEconomics has said in its latest country report.
Next year, it may reach $66,658, $69,889 (2021) and $73,216 (2022), FocusEconomics said.
The report has estimated Qatar’s international reserves at $30.4bn this year and $35.2bn in 2023.
Qatar’s GDP per capita will account for $63,482 this year and scale up to $76,638 in 2023, FocusEconomics has said in its latest country report.
Next year, it may reach $66,658, $69,889 (2021) and $73,216 (2022), FocusEconomics said.
The report has estimated Qatar’s international reserves at $30.4bn this year and $35.2bn in 2023.
#UAE Federal Bank to Sell Bond Following Passage of Debt Law - Bloomberg
U.A.E. Federal Bank to Sell Bond Following Passage of Debt Law - Bloomberg:
A federal lender in the United Arab Emirates will be the first to utilize the country’s newly effective debt law by selling its first bond later this month, according to a senior government official.
Emirates Development Bank, a state-owned institution that provides financing to citizens and small and medium-sized enterprises, plans a $750 million bond sale in February, its first debt issuance since the institution started operating in 2015, Younis Al Khoori, undersecretary at the U.A.E. Ministry of Finance, said Saturday in a Bloomberg TV interview from Dubai.
Proceeds will be passed on to the U.A.E. economy through loans to SMEs and other entities, as well as for housing, providing cost savings, Al Khoori said. “We are aiming for a certain yield and hopefully the market will not change much over the coming few weeks,” he said.
A federal lender in the United Arab Emirates will be the first to utilize the country’s newly effective debt law by selling its first bond later this month, according to a senior government official.
Emirates Development Bank, a state-owned institution that provides financing to citizens and small and medium-sized enterprises, plans a $750 million bond sale in February, its first debt issuance since the institution started operating in 2015, Younis Al Khoori, undersecretary at the U.A.E. Ministry of Finance, said Saturday in a Bloomberg TV interview from Dubai.
Proceeds will be passed on to the U.A.E. economy through loans to SMEs and other entities, as well as for housing, providing cost savings, Al Khoori said. “We are aiming for a certain yield and hopefully the market will not change much over the coming few weeks,” he said.
#Bahrain to Focus on `Stringent Cost Controls' to Balance Budget - Bloomberg
Bahrain to Focus on `Stringent Cost Controls' to Balance Budget - Bloomberg:
Bahrain, one of the oil-rich Gulf’s most vulnerable economies, will focus on “stringent cost controls” as it seeks cut its budget deficit and reduce interest costs while using investment to stimulate growth, the country’s finance minister said.
The government trimmed the deficit by 35 percent last year as part of a plan to balance the budget by 2022, said Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, minister of finance and national economy, in an interview Saturday with Bloomberg TV in Dubai. Cutting the deficit is a requirement of a $10 billion aid package funded by neighboring states including the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
“It is very important to ensure we maintain spend where that spend drives economic growth, creates jobs or provides essential services or subsidies,” Sheikh Salman said. “While at the same time ensuring we revisit any areas of operational expenditure where we can put more pressure.”
Bahrain, one of the oil-rich Gulf’s most vulnerable economies, will focus on “stringent cost controls” as it seeks cut its budget deficit and reduce interest costs while using investment to stimulate growth, the country’s finance minister said.
The government trimmed the deficit by 35 percent last year as part of a plan to balance the budget by 2022, said Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, minister of finance and national economy, in an interview Saturday with Bloomberg TV in Dubai. Cutting the deficit is a requirement of a $10 billion aid package funded by neighboring states including the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
“It is very important to ensure we maintain spend where that spend drives economic growth, creates jobs or provides essential services or subsidies,” Sheikh Salman said. “While at the same time ensuring we revisit any areas of operational expenditure where we can put more pressure.”
Russia Earns Moody's Investment Grade, Pledges Further Steps - Bloomberg
Russia Earns Moody's Investment Grade, Pledges Further Steps - Bloomberg:
Russia’s finance ministry vowed further action to entice fresh capital after Moody’s Investors Service joined two other companies in raising the country’s credit rating to investment grade.
Moody’s lifted Russia’s rating to Baa3 from Ba1 on Friday, putting the energy giant on par with Italy, South Africa and Hungary. S&P Global Ratings had upgraded the nation from junk last year, bringing it in line with Fitch Ratings.
In 2015, Russia was downgraded to junk by Moody’s as a slump in crude and foreign sanctions drove the economy into its longest recession this century. Oil prices have now recovered, and the nation has returned to fragile growth, though the restrictions haven’t been lifted and the U.S. has threatened to implement more.
Russia’s finance ministry vowed further action to entice fresh capital after Moody’s Investors Service joined two other companies in raising the country’s credit rating to investment grade.
Moody’s lifted Russia’s rating to Baa3 from Ba1 on Friday, putting the energy giant on par with Italy, South Africa and Hungary. S&P Global Ratings had upgraded the nation from junk last year, bringing it in line with Fitch Ratings.
In 2015, Russia was downgraded to junk by Moody’s as a slump in crude and foreign sanctions drove the economy into its longest recession this century. Oil prices have now recovered, and the nation has returned to fragile growth, though the restrictions haven’t been lifted and the U.S. has threatened to implement more.
Oil Doubters Mount a Comeback as Rally Stalls on Global Worries - Bloomberg
Oil Doubters Mount a Comeback as Rally Stalls on Global Worries - Bloomberg:
Hedge funds reversed course on oil just in time, plowing back into bearish bets as crude skidded into a wall of economic worries.
In a shift from four weeks of retreat, short-sellers boosted by 28 percent their wagers that Brent prices would fall in the week ended Feb. 5, according to data released Friday. That overshadowed the belief in rising prices, as investors weighed an OPEC supply cut against signs of weakening demand growth.
Brent’s rally has fizzled this month after the global benchmark gained 15 percent in January. Record U.S. shale drilling is threatening to offset the output cuts by Saudi Arabia, Russia and other top exporters. The economic picture also grew dimmer this week, with American and Chinese negotiators looking far apart on trade talks and disappointing data from Germany to Australia to the U.S.
Hedge funds reversed course on oil just in time, plowing back into bearish bets as crude skidded into a wall of economic worries.
In a shift from four weeks of retreat, short-sellers boosted by 28 percent their wagers that Brent prices would fall in the week ended Feb. 5, according to data released Friday. That overshadowed the belief in rising prices, as investors weighed an OPEC supply cut against signs of weakening demand growth.
Brent’s rally has fizzled this month after the global benchmark gained 15 percent in January. Record U.S. shale drilling is threatening to offset the output cuts by Saudi Arabia, Russia and other top exporters. The economic picture also grew dimmer this week, with American and Chinese negotiators looking far apart on trade talks and disappointing data from Germany to Australia to the U.S.
IMF's Lagarde says oil exporters have not fully recovered from oil shock, cautions against 'white elephant projects' | Reuters
IMF's Lagarde says oil exporters have not fully recovered from oil shock, cautions against 'white elephant projects' | Reuters:
Oil exporters have not fully recovered from the dramatic oil price shock of 2014, the head of the IMF said on Saturday, and she cautioned against spending money on “white elephant projects”.
“With revenues down, fiscal deficits are only slowly declining, despite significant reforms on both the spending and revenue sides, including the introduction of VAT and excise taxes,” Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF, told a conference in Dubai.
“This has led to a sharp increase in public debt, from 13 percent of GDP in 2013 to 33 percent in 2018.”
Oil exporters have not fully recovered from the dramatic oil price shock of 2014, the head of the IMF said on Saturday, and she cautioned against spending money on “white elephant projects”.
“With revenues down, fiscal deficits are only slowly declining, despite significant reforms on both the spending and revenue sides, including the introduction of VAT and excise taxes,” Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF, told a conference in Dubai.
“This has led to a sharp increase in public debt, from 13 percent of GDP in 2013 to 33 percent in 2018.”
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