Middle East News Older Than 1 year-If your looking for specific news, using the search function will narrow down the results
Fitch: UAE banks' asset quality and liquidity pressures manageable
June 22, 2010--Fitch Ratings says in a special report today that the UAE banking sector's strong capitalisation should make its current challenges manageable despite rising impairments and difficult operating conditions. As such, Fitch believes that fresh government support for the sector is less likely to be required.
"The first half of 2010 has been difficult for the UAE's banks, with rising retail and corporate impairments, debt restructuring at Dubai government-related entities (GREs), reduced lending appetite and stubbornly high loan/deposit ratios resulting in some stagnation in the sector. The sector's capitalisation remains sound and should be sufficient to absorb the likely impact of the well-publicized problems of certain Dubai GREs and the Saudi corporates Saad and Al Gosaibi," says Robert Thursfield, a Dubai-based Director in Fitch's Financial Institutions team.
The UAE banking sector's profitability suffered in 2009 as the global economic crisis impacted the region more significantly and year-on-year comparatives in Q1 2010 were generally disappointing, although core interest and fee revenues are holding up relatively well. Impairment charges are still rising on both retail and corporate portfolios and with Dubai World (DW), other GREs and the remainder of the troubled Saudi corporates' exposures to provide for, sector profitability in 2010 is unlikely to exceed the 2009 level.
Confidence up among Gulf business leaders - HSBC
There has been a slight increase in hiring trends, with 39 percent of leaders surveyed saying they expect to increase staff numbers this quarter, compared to 37 percent in Q4 2009. Yuan-euphoria stops at Tadawul bourse Qatar market dips half a percent Kuwait exchange bucks global downtrend No "Super Tuesday" at Dubai market Saudi Regulator Approves Falcom Petrochemical ETF Jordan gets $76m loan for banking reforms Kuwait bourse ends flat Bahrain market adds a quarter percent
June 22, 2010--Confidence among the Gulf’s business community has risen over the last year, with Saudi business leaders proving to be the most upbeat, according to the latest HSBC Gulf Business Confidence Index released on Thursday.
During the past year, business leaders said they were confident of an upturn in revenue and profit and the index rose 20 points in the first quarter of the year, compared to the same period in 2009.
June 22, 2010--Lower oil prices and profit taking triggered the Tadawul All Share index (TASI) to fall by 1.35% to 6,363.55 points. Petrochemical shares in particular weighed on the market. Market bellwether Sabic closed at SR91.75 (off 3.42%). Credit Suisse Research warned on Sunday that the recent price increase in oil might be halted at the technical resistance level of $77 per barrel.
Beijing's decision to de-peg the as undervalued considered Yuan (against the Dollar) triggered a rally in Riyadh at the start of the week because the Saudi Riyal is pegged to the greenback, and a stronger Yuan would mean a higher export value for the GCC to China. Ann Wyman, Managing Director and Head of Emerging Marker Research at Nomura Saudi Arabia however told AME Info that the GCC is only indirectly affected by the Yuan re-valuation. Ann Wyman: "In relation to trade, while a modest appreciation of the Yuan against the USD would help export competitiveness on the margin, the move is not likely to be large enough to result in any major shifts in export performance in the region." Wyman added that, "while some may draw an analogy of currency flexibility in China with the Middle East, we still see no scope for movement on currency pegs in the region. Inflation remains low, and there are limited pressures for revaluation in any countries."
June 22, 2010--Low trading volumes and profit taking pulled the QE Index in Doha declined by 0.49% at 7,088.42 points. No stock, however lost more than 2.90%. On 22 June 2010, MSCI published its decision to retain Qatar as a frontier market. The country has been placed under review for a possible upgrade to emerging market status in MSCI's Annual Market Classification Review in June 2011.
EFG Hermes Vice President and Head of Equity research Fahd Iqbal said in a statement, he expected the MSCI's move. The dhipping firm Nakilat was the most liquid traded stock in Doha, closing 0.52% lower at QR19.10.
June 22, 2010--The KSE Market Index rose against the weak global and regional trend on Tuesday, finishing 0.44% higher at 6,672.7 points. Islamic bank Ithmaar extended its rally and closed 7.69% higher at KD0.035. News that The Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) has made an $800m investment in the Agricultural Bank of China, as Thomson Reuters reported, was received positively.
According to Josef Schuster, CEO of IPOX Schuster, a Chicago-based specialist on analyzing global IPOs, "the IPO of the Agricultural Bank of China represents another key milestone for the further development of Chinese Equity Capital Markets and equity culture." Schuster told AME Info further that "amid continued year-to-date underperformance of emerging markets, the participation of sovereign wealth funds will facilitate the pricing of the IPO and should be positive with respect to gathering further broad-based domestic and foreign interest for this year's largest global IPO."
June 22, 2010--After a strong debut of the week, investors booked profits at the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), which closed 1.37% lower at 1,542.07 points. Negative inputs from U. S. and Asian markets influenced traders' decisions.
Financials and real estate firms were the top declining sectors. Shuaa Capital was down 6.50% at Dhs1.15. Emaar Properties, the most liquid stock, ended nearly three percent lower at Dhs3.29. As most market participants preferred to stay on the sidelines turnover and volumes dropped by 50% compared to the Monday session.
June 21, 2010--Saudi Arabia approved its second exchange-traded fund this year as the kingdom seeks to expand investment opportunities in the Middle East’s largest bourse.
Falcom Financial Services will offer an exchange-traded fund for petrochemical companies on the bourse, the Riyadh-based Capital Market Authority said in a statement on the exchange’s website today. The market regulator approved in March its first ETF, offered by Falcom.
June 21, 2010--Ummaya Toukan, governor of the central bank of Jordan has said the Arab Monetary Fund has approved a $76m loan for the kingdom to undertake key financial reforms inclduing bank stress tests and setting up a credit bureau, Reuters has reported.
The disbursement of the funds is tied to implementing the three-phased plan, he said. Since the global downturn, monetary authorities in the kingdom have strengthened supervision of the country's banking sector to reduce financial vulnerabilities by boosting capital adequacy ratios, liquidity and installing early warning systems
June 2l, 2010--The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) faced a loss during the first hours of trading but a last minute buying spree saved the KSE Market Index (up 0.05% at 6,643.7 points) from ending in the red. Islamic bank Ithmaar topped the charts by closing 8.33% higher at KD0.0325 in a V-shape reversal.
Contrary to the UAE stock markets, real estate shares performed weaker at the KSE as the real estate sector index dipped half a percent. United Real Estate Company (down 2.6% at KD0.075) and Kuwait Real Estate Company (3.22% lower at KD0.060) and National Real Estate Company (off 2.9% at KD0.138) ended with losses
June 21, 2010--As at the Kuwait market, Ithmaar Bank posted the largest advance and ended 9.1% up at $0.12. Bahrain Telecom (Batelco) followed with a day gain of 2.73%, finishing at BD0.565.
As at the Kuwait market, Ithmaar Bank posted the largest advance and ended 9.1% up at $0.12. Bahrain Telecom (Batelco) followed with a day gain of 2.73%, finishing at BD0.565.
