Subprime woes lead NYC RE investors toward ME
Saturday, May 31st, 2008 Posted in Regional News | No Comments »Gulfnews.com reports (5/30) that New York City real estate investors hope to recreate the kinds of gains realized by Asian and Middle East SWFs during their recent investment period in New York City's big banks following the subprime losses by ...
RNCOS analysis suggests ME retail (tourism, banking, trading sectors) on growth trajectory
Saturday, May 31st, 2008 Posted in General | No Comments »The India-based sector analysis firm released its new report: "Middle East Retail Sector Analysis (2007-2010)." RNCOS, based on country-level analysis of the retail industry in the ME, focuses on growing opportunities in the ME markets. PR-Canada.net reports (5/30) "The ...
India’s Satyam hunts for deals in Asia, ME
Saturday, May 31st, 2008 Posted in Regional News | No Comments »India's fourth largest software firm confirms anticipation (5/30) of inking deals in Asia and the Middle East in the next quarter. "The outlook for deal closures is very positive in the Middle East and positive in Australia," Virender Aggarwal, ...
Allianz Global Investors selects Bahrain for ME office, Sharia-compliant funds
Thursday, May 29th, 2008 Posted in Regional News | No Comments »Germany-based Allianz Global, one of the world's five largest asset managers with $1.4T under management, has indicated (5/28) it will open its ME office in Bahrain, and that it intends to open two Sharia-compliant equity funds for the region. ...
UK law firm Eversheds receives license to open practice in UAE
Thursday, May 29th, 2008 Posted in General | No Comments »Diversified UK law firm Eversheds recently announced (5/28) the impending opening of its latest branch in UAE, following successful receipt of a practice license, reports The Northern Echo. The expanding firm has also opened offices in South Africa, Switzerland, Lithuania, ...
ME banks focus on tech investing for next decade
Thursday, May 29th, 2008 Posted in Islamic Finance | No Comments »Gulfnews reports (5/27) that ME banks anticipate spending $1T on tech and services over the next decade. Additionally, numerous ME banks intend to commit upwards of $3.5B in banking upgrades in half that time. Dubai plans to host the first ...
HFs, investors expect ME states to decouple currency from USD
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 Posted in General | 1 Comment »Wall Street Journal sources (5/27), reports Bloomberg, suggest that hedge funds and investors are betting that Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE will break their currencies' pegs to the US dollar. The upshot for these and perhaps other Middle Eastern ...
IME to start commodity futures in July; oil later
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 Posted in Markets | No Comments »Bloomberg reports (5/27) that the Iran Mercantile Exchange (IME) will begin trading futures contracts in selected commodities in July, with a view to eventually trading oil. IME began trading spot contracts in petrochemicals in February. IME's future contracts will bear ...
Forbes Special Report on Islamic Finance
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 Posted in Islamic Finance | No Comments »In April, Forbes reported that at least $500 billion in global assets are managed in accordance with Sharia (Islamic) law, with sustained annual growth of 10-plus percent. While bank stocks and the banking industry are being treated as "toxic" in ...
RGE Monitor on the Middle East
Thursday, May 15th, 2008 Posted in Regional News | No Comments »Key takeaways from the RGE Monitor's recent coverage (5/14) of the Middle East: "The IMF’s latest regional outlook for the Middle East – released on Monday – suggests that high oil prices will continue to fuel both government spending and private ...
