ADNOC's Covestro deal set for EU nod in coming weeks, sources say | Reuters

ADNOC's Covestro deal set for EU nod in coming weeks, sources say | Reuters

Abu Dhabi state oil firm ADNOC is expected to gain the EU green light for its 14.7 billion euro ($17 billion) bid for German chemicals company Covestro(1COVG.DE), opens new tab in the coming weeks, people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

The European Commission, the EU's competition enforcer, restarted its investigation into the deal on October 24 after stopping the clock on September 3 while waiting for requested information, according to an update on its site on Wednesday.

It set a new deadline of March 2.

ADNOC last month offered to change its articles of association to address EU concerns on its unlimited state guarantee, and also pledged to retain Covestro's intellectual property in Europe.

It subsequently tweaked the latter element following feedback from rivals and customers.

The Commission is likely to sign off on the deal this month, the people said, although the timing could still change.

"XRG does not comment on ongoing regulatory matters and continues to engage constructively with the Commission," ADNOC's international investment arm said.

The deal, ADNOC's biggest acquisition yet and one of the largest foreign takeovers of an EU company by a Gulf state, has sparked EU concerns that the company may be using state subsidies to acquire Covestro.

#Oman India Fertiliser: OMIFCO Is Said to Tap Banks for IPO - Bloomberg

Oman India Fertiliser: OMIFCO Is Said to Tap Banks for IPO - Bloomberg

Oman India Fertiliser Co. has picked banks for a potential initial public offering in Muscat, according to people familiar with the matter, as the sultanate revives efforts to privatize state assets and deepen its capital markets.

Societe Generale SA, Arqaam Capital Ltd. and Bank Muscat SAOG are among the arrangers working on the possible share sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The deal is expected to raise several hundred million dollars, the people said.

OMIFCO, as the fertilizer producer is known, is owned 50% by Oman’s state energy firm OQ SAOC, with the remainder split equally between Indian agricultural cooperatives IFFCO and Kribhco. It’s unclear which shareholders — if any — would pare their stakes in the offering.

OQ, SocGen and Arqaam Capital declined to comment, while representatives for Bank Muscat did not respond to requests for comment. Spokespeople for OMIFCO and the Indian cooperatives were not immediately available for comment.

IPO activity in Oman has cooled after a blockbuster 2024, when local firms raised $2.5 billion — more than London. A 30% rebound in the benchmark index since its April low has lifted sentiment, and the stock exchange’s chief expects as many as three listings in 2026.

OMIFCO, established as a joint venture between the governments of Oman and India, runs ammonia and urea production facilities in the sultanate, according to its website.

Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf bourses track global shares lower on valuation fears

Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf bourses track global shares lower on valuation fears

Most Gulf stock markets closed lower on Wednesday, in line with global shares after an overnight tech-led sell-off on Wall Street put the spotlight on stretched valuations.

Stocks are retreating from record highs on fears equity markets may have become overstretched after the CEOs of Wall Street heavyweights Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs questioned whether sky-high valuations can be sustained.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index declined 1.2%, falling for a fifth consecutive session, hit by a 0.6% fall in Al Rajhi Bank and a 2% tumble in Alinma Bank , as the lender traded ex-dividend. Elsewhere, utility firm Saudi Electricity Co plunged 8% - its biggest intraday fall since March 2022 - following a decline in quarterly net profit.

The headwinds from Wall Street's elevated valuations may spill over into the Saudi market. Despite Aramco's solid earnings and oil prices holding around the mid $60s per barrel, the latest global equity sell-off has exposed a latent sensitivity to high valuation levels that have gone untested for some time, said Ahmad Assiri, research strategist at Pepperstone.

"This recent downswing, the steepest since early October, could translate into mild selling pressure on (Saudi stocks) due to the overall correlation between global equity markets."

However, Savola Group advanced 3.7%, after the kingdom's largest food products company posted a 113% rise in third-quarter profit. Perfect Presentation For Commercial Services (2P) jumped 6.2% to be the top gainer on the index after its shareholders greenlit a 10% capital hike, increasing the firm's capital to 330 million riyals ($87.99 million).

In Abu Dhabi, the index dropped 0.4%, with ADNOC Drilling losing 1.3%, as the firm traded ex-dividend. Meanwhile, ADNOC Drilling has signed a definitive deal to acquire an 80% stake in MB Petroleum Services for an enterprise value of $204 million.

Dubai's main share index fell 0.3%. 

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index edged 0.2% higher, hitting an all-time high, led by a 5.7% leap in Talaat Moustafa Group, rising for a fourth consecutive session.

On Monday, the firm's unit launched the development of a new integrated tourism project with an anticipated investment of $788 million. The Egyptian market remains on a solid and healthy trajectory, backed by favorable corporate and macroeconomic developments and a generally better outlook, said Milad Azar Market analyst at XTB MENA.

#AbuDhabi #UAE Invests £20 Billion in the UK, Double Its 2021 Pledge - Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi Invests £20 Billion in the UK, Double Its 2021 Pledge - Bloomberg

Abu Dhabi has surpassed its £10 billion investment commitment to the UK, channeling more than twice that sum into British assets despite signs of strain in the bilateral relationship, according to people familiar with the matter.

The original pledge was part of the Sovereign Investment Partnership signed in 2021, led by the emirate’s Mubadala Investment Co. and the UK Office for Investment. The deal envisaged an increase in spending in the five-year period to 2026 and Abu Dhabi has exceeded that target, the people said, asking not be named discussing information that isn’t public.

The more than £20 billion outlay over the past four years follows a concerted push by British officials to draw investments from the oil-rich Gulf nation, the people said. Prime Minister Keir Starmer traveled to the region late last year and Chancellor Rachel Reeves spoke at the Saudi Future Investment Initiative conference recently, where she said a trade deal between the UK and Gulf states was nearing completion.

But in seeking investments from Abu Dhabi, Britain is competing with countries like the US, France and Italy. The Gulf city has committed over a trillion dollars to America and tens of billions more to the European countries this year alone, with a focus on emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

Still, a range of entities from Abu Dhabi — the United Arab Emirates’s capital that wields $1.7 trillion in sovereign wealth — have deployed cash into the UK despite tensions between the two sides, some of the people said.

Key sticking points include the UAE’s role in the Sudanese civil war, allegations that Abu Dhabi denies, as well as a forced sale of The Telegraph due to its links to UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The House of Lords has now approved legislation allowing foreign states to own up to 15% in UK newspapers, meaning the Abu Dhabi entity can take a minority holding.

Representatives for Abu Dhabi’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs didn’t respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the UK’s business and trade department said the country appreciated the UAE’s efforts to make their partnership a “success.”

“In any relationship with the breadth, depth and longevity enjoyed between the UK and the UAE, there will be challenges from time to time,” said Oliver Dowden, who was deputy prime minister in Rishi Sunak’s government. “Recent challenges have been well documented but my sense is of a broadly improving landscape.”

Prominent deals from UAE entities include telecommunications operator E&’s move to snap up a significant stake in Vodafone Group Plc a few years ago. More recently, the $330 billion sovereign wealth fund Mubadala bought a minority stake in London-based school operator Nord Anglia Education Inc. for $600 million.

Still, the city’s deployment into the UK is a tiny proportion of its overall outlay and has largely been opportunistic, one person familiar with the matter said. For instance, funds have seized on low valuations to back take-private transactions, like Abu Dhabi Investment Authority’s investment in Hargreaves Lansdown Plc and veterinary drugmaker Dechra Pharmaceuticals Plc.

Those deals were unveiled before the $1 trillion wealth fund had to write off its entire stake in Thames Water, the UK’s largest water utility — another sticking point in the bilateral relationship.

Allegations of breaking financial fair-play rules against Manchester City — which is also owned by Sheikh Mansour and denies wrongdoing — have also hurt ties. The football club is awaiting a hearing after being charged by the Premier League with more than 100 alleged breaches of rules.

The two sides recently reached a settlement in relation to Associated Party Transaction Rules that are related to the ability of top football clubs to sign sponsorship deals with companies related to their ownership.

Ties have still improved from earlier this year, when many marquee names from Abu Dhabi skipped a UK summit aimed at repositioning Britain as a country open for business. The event was attended by Yasir Al Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s nearly $1 trillion wealth fund and chairman of Newcastle United Football Club, though none of the UAE’s state-owned investors participated.

“The relationship between the UK and the UAE is much better, and that is in part thanks to Keir Starmer,” said Edward Udny-Lister, co-chair of the UAE-UK Business Council. “It still has some way to go though and there are a number of issues that need to be resolved first, but we’re on the right path.”