HSBC Sees Oil and Virus Turmoil Boosting Middle East Deals - Bloomberg:
A historic crash in oil prices and fallout from the coronavirus pandemic will accelerate asset sales in the Middle East and open up a gap for sovereign wealth funds to make “opportunistic investments,” according to HSBC Holdings Plc.
“Corporates and sovereign entities will need to look at their portfolios more closely during challenging times and see what is core to them,” Nabil Lahham, head of advisory and corporate finance coverage for HSBC in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, said in an interview. “Some of them are also looking at gaps in their portfolio and seeking to do deals to fill those holes.”
The crisis may also trigger further consolidation across the Gulf, which has already seen some large-scale mergers and acquisitions in sectors such as banking and real estate, he said.
Governments across the oil-rich Middle East are looking at ways to shore up their finances that have been battered by a more than 50% slump in crude prices this year. Coupled with strict curfews to contain the coronavirus, most of the region is set for its deepest financial turmoil in decades.
No comments:
Post a Comment