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Saudi stocks drop at opening after kingdom shoots down missiles
March 26, 2018--Saudi Arabia's main stock index dropped by 0.5 percent at opening on Monday as investors were spooked by news of missiles fired overnight into the kingdom.
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Kuwait's Silk City is key project in China's One Belt One Road initiative
March 22, 2018--Kuwait's Silk City and the five-island developments are a key project in the One Belt One Road initiative, and will strengthen Kuwait-China relations, said Mr. Jiang Zengwei-Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC).
In a keynote address at the Kuwait Investment Forum (KIF 2018), Mr. Jiang Zengwei said Kuwait was one of the first GCC nations to have diplomatic ties with China and relations between the two countries have strengthened over the years. He said the One Belt One Road initiative complements Kuwait's Vision 2035 in fostering development in several core sectors.
Qatar Stock Exchange welcomes the largest Islamic ETF in the World by Al Rayan
March 21, 2018--Al Rayan Qatar ETF (QATR) commenced trading today with initial assets in excess of 120 million USD
Al Rayan Investment will operate the ETF which tracks the price performance of the QE Al Rayan Islamic Index.
The ETF has the lowest management fee of any Shari'a-compliant fund globally
Qatar Stock Exchange today admitted to trading the Al Rayan Qatar ETF under the symbol "QATR". To mark the launch of the ETF, the exchange today welcomed the fund's founder, Masraf Al Rayan,and fund manager,Al Rayan Investment, to open trading in Doha. The Fund will track the QE Al Rayan Islamic Index (Price) which is comprised of large and medium sized, Shari'a-compliant, listed Qatari companies.
The Al Rayan Qatar ETF becomes the largest single-country Islamic ETF in the world and is the latest addition to QSE's burgeoning exchange-traded fund lineup.
Economic Growth in Gulf Region Set to Improve following a Weak Performance in 2017
March 19, 2018--The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region witnessed another year of disappointing economic performance in 2017 but growth should improve in 2018 and 2019, according to the World Bank's biannual Gulf Economic Monitor released today in Kuwait.
The region eked out growth of just 0.5% in 2017-the weakest since 2009 and down from 2.5% the previous year. The GCC region’s economies experienced flat or declining growth as lower oil production and tighter fiscal policy took a toll on activity in the non-oil sector. External debt issuance continued to rise to help finance large fiscal deficits.
Listing And Trading Of Al Rayan Qatar ETF On Qatar Stock Exchange ETF ON QATAR STOCK EXCHANGE
March 19, 2018--Qatar Stock Exchange announces that effective 21st March 2018, the Al Rayan Qatar ETF will be admitted to trading.
The Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) issued by Masraf Al Rayan tracks the QE Al Rayan Islamic Index (Price). The benchmark measures the price performance of Shari'a complaint stocks (as approved by Al Rayan's Shari'a Supervisory Board) listed on Qatar Stock Exchange.
The Group Securities will act as the Liquidity Provider (LP) for the ETF.
MIDEAST STOCKS-Milaha boosts Qatar before index entry, Al Rajhi pulls down Saudi
March 15, 2018--A surge by Qatar Navigation (Milaha) lifted the Qatari equity index on Thursday ahead of the stock's entry into FTSE indexes, while profit-taking in Al Rajhi Bank pulled down Riyadh.
Qatar's index climbed 1.1 percent as Milaha added 4.0 percent in unusually heavy trade.
From Now, it Will be Cheaper for Companies to Make Issuances on TASE
March 14, 2018--On March 13, 2018 a tax bill passed its final hearings in the Knesset, whereby issuance expenses are to be recognized and deductible for tax purposes.
The bill proposes that every company or partnership that issues equity and is listed on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) will be able to deduct the issuance expenses of shares or participation units that are listed on TASE.
This measure is expected to provide more Israeli companies with an incentive to go public, giving the Israeli public the opportunity to be part of the success of the Israeli companies.
Saudi Aramco IPO in serious trouble: NY out, London iffy and Tadawul risky
March 14, 2018--Two years ago, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's announcement that Aramco would conduct an IPO for 5% of its shares was by far the biggest news on the planet.
Today, the bigger news is the possibility that it won't list any time soon, or any more or that it will exclude international markets like London, or New York.
Israel: Staff Concluding Statement of the 2018 Article IV Mission
March 14, 2018--Israel's economy is thriving, enjoying solid growth and unemployment declining to historic lows. Near-term prospects are for further robust growth in the next few years and inflation is expected to rise although the pace of that increase is uncertain.
But relative poverty is the highest among OECD countries, partly owing to wide gaps between the employment and productivity of the Israeli-Arab and Haredi subgroups relative to non-Haredi Jews. Unless these gaps are narrowed, the substantial shifts in population composition that will unfold in coming decades could undermine growth and stability.
Israel should seize this opportunity to implement further reforms, especially in education and training, product markets, and the business environment, to sustain strong and inclusive growth.
MIDEAST STOCKS-Higher ownership ceilings boost Qatar, Egypt climbs on CIB
March 13, 2018--Qatar's stock market continued rising on Tuesday after two top companies said they were raising their ceilings for foreign ownership, while strength in Egypt's biggest bank lifted that market. Most of the rest of the region was subdued.
The Qatari stock index, which had soared 5 percent on Monday, added a further 1.6 percent. Qatar National Bank, which had risen its 10 percent daily limit on Monday, climbed 6.9 percent.
