Middle East ETF News Older than One Year
Saudi Arabia to invest SR200bn in water projects
April 1, 2010--The chief executive of Saudi Arabia's National Water Co, Loay Al Musallam, has said that the kingdom plans to invest SR200bn in water projects over the coming 15 years, 70% of which will be for sewage and waste water treatment projects, Reuters has reported.
'We currently have a sewage project in Riyadh and Jeddah with an investment of SR18bn and we are looking to expand these projects to the rest of the kingdom,' he said. The company controls all of the kingdom's groundwater wells and sewage and desalination plants.
Source: AME Info
Foreign investors purchase Dhs1.959bn worth of shares on DFM during the last week, and sold Dhs1.959bn
April 1, 2010--Dubai Financial Market announced that the value of shares bought by foreign investors, or non-UAE nationals, during last week (28 Mar. - 1 April.) reached Dhs1.959bn comprising 43.5% of the total value of stocks traded during the period.
The value of stocks sold by foreign investors during the same period reached Dhs1.959bn comprising 43.5% of the total value of stocks traded during the period. Net foreign investment on the market reached Dhs52.2 thousand during the same period, as aggregate sell.
Source: AME Info
Saudi 'could boost output' by 4.5m bpd
April 1, 2010--Saudi Arabian oil minister Ali Al- Naimi has said that once demand recovers from recession, the kingdom could boost output by as much as 4.5 million barrels-a day, Bloomberg has reported.
The kingdom is waiting for usage to rise after increasing capacity to 12 million barrels a day, he said. "Demand is gradually growing right now," Al-Naimi said.
Source: AME Info
Saudi bank lending up 1.6% y-o-y
April 1, 2010-The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Sama) has said that lending by Saudi Arabian banks to businesses rose in February at the fastest pace for five months, helping to revive the economy after a credit squeeze, Bloomberg has reported.
Lending to the private sector increased an annual 1.6% in February, double the rate of the previous month, Sama said. "It's only one month's data, but the trends are consistent with an economy coming back to life," Simon Williams, a Dubai-based economist at HSBC Holdings said.
Source: AME Info
DFM posts slight rise
April 1, 2010--The Dubai Financial Market (DFM)rose 0.90% to 1,859.96, with 17 stocks rising, five falling and four holding steady.
Shuaa was the day's biggest riser, moving up by 4.83% to Dhs1.52.
Source: AME Info
ADX falls 1.68%
April 1, 2010--The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) fell 1.68% on its last day of trading of the week, going to 2,859.57.
Nine stocks fell, 14 rose and eight held steady. Finance house was the day's biggest faller, going down by 9.19% to Dhs4.15.
Agthia was the day's biggest gainer, moving up by 5.79% to Dhs2.03.
Source: AME Info
Mena mergers, acquisitions value down 67%
April 1, 2010--According to Ernst & Young's annual Mena update, mergers and acquisitions deals announced in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region fell by 67% in value to $34bn in 2009 compared to deals worth $102bn that were announced in 2008.
The number of announced deals dropped by 24% from 465 in 2008 to 353 in 2009, the report said.
Source: AME Info
Qatar to post QR9.7bn surplus
April 1, 2010--Qatar's finance minister Youssuf Hussein Kamal has said that the government expects to post a budget surplus of QR9.7bn ($2.67bn) in the fiscal year 2010/11 as rising oil prices counter a 25% jump in spending, state news agency QNA has reported.
Qatar drafted its budget for the coming fiscal year, which starts in April, with expenditures of QR117.9bn, above the QR94.5bn budgeted for the current year. Revenues were set at QR127.5bn for fiscal 2010/11, compared with QR88.7bn in 2009/10.
Source: AME Info
Mideast firms take DRs route to raise funds
March 31, 2010--Firms in the Middle East are seen mopping up funds by issuing depositary receipts (DRs) in the international markets as the traditional source of capital dries up due to the financial crisis.
DRs are used as the preferred vehicle for portfolio diversification and cross border investments, where an investor can invest in equities of other countries where they can be traded on the local exchange.
The region witnessed $9.2 billion (Dh33.8bn) of DRs trade on the US and non-US exchanges last year.
"The GCC is one of the last markets where DRs will really kick off. There are a number of companies in the Gulf that we are talking to, several have mandates to do DRs. After the Dubai World announcement, lots of companies will be making announcements that involve DRs," said Peter Gotke, Vice-President for DRs at BNY Mellon.
Source: Zawya
OPEC chief says current oil price range is fair
March 31, 2010--The head of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said Tuesday that current international oil prices hovering around $80 a barrel are good for the world economy and oil-producing countries.
But OPEC Secretary General Abdalla Salem El Badri said that “anything below $70 will not permit us to invest.” Oil prices have ranged from $70 to $80 a barrel in recent months.
Source: Todays Zaman
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