Saudi satire star Nasser Al Qasabi receives death threats from ISIL

His comedy show ‘Selfie’ which debuted last week on MBC, has won praise for daring to mock the hardline militant group

Qatar group to push sports integrity in US even as World Cup award faces probes

Doha-based International Centre for Sport Security will talk about its efforts to boost transparency in bidding processes for major sporting events in the US

Germany frees Al Jazeera journalist despite Egypt’s request

Ahmed Mansour was released after Egypt was unable to dispel concerns about the extradition process

ABN Amro says Dubai employee dismissed for misconduct

The bank said the employee had received about $100,000 from a client and transferred it through his personal account to a third account

UAE’s Etisalat says will allow foreign share ownership

The telecoms firm is lifting a ban on foreign ownership of its shares, with a new cap set at 20 per cent of its stock

Etihad seals $23m deal to promote tourism in Australia

The deal will promote Australia among both business and leisure travellers mainly within Europe

Oman not in danger of MERS outbreak, says health ministry

An Omani businessman infected with the virus is currently in quarantine in Thailand

Almost 9 out of 10 UAE professionals looking to change jobs

The number of people looking to change jobs in the UAE was significantly higher than the global average, a report says

Agility unit to invest $225m in Abu Dhabi mall project

The mall will be a partnership project, the company said

Saudi Aramco may shut Jeddah refinery in several years

The refinery, which started operating in 1967, serves much of the country’s western region

Construction costs to delay Kuwait’s al-Zour oil refinery

The 615,000 barrel per day oil refinery has been repeatedly delayed by bureaucratic and political issues

Oil price fall not slowing growth in UAE, Saudi –report

Both countries have recorded growth in new business orders and have seen a rise in output, a report says

Five reasons why Dubai’s property market will not see 2009-type crash – S&P

The emirate’s real estate market is forecast to see a 10 to 20 per cent correction in prices this year, the report stated

Abu Dhabi’s crown prince is new chairman of investment fund ADIC

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan replaces President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan at the head of the fund

Kuwait’s Investment Dar loses appeal against lifting of legal protection

The company is seeking to agree a $2.69bn debt restructuring plan with investors

Dubai records highest inflation rate since 2009 in May

Housing and utility costs, which made up 44 per cent of all expenses, rose 7.8 per cent year-on-year

Oman, Japan ink deal to promote joint investments

The deal is expected to increase Japanese investments in Oman

Al Jazeera journalist says surprised by arrest in Germany

Ahmed Mansour, a talk show host on the channel’s Arabic service, was detained in Germany after an international police warrant was issued by Egypt.

Over 50% of UAE residents take at least one business trip a year – Expedia

A survey by the online travel site found that Western expats in the UAE travel most often for business

Saudis say to jointly invest up to $10bn with Russian fund

No details have been disclosed as yet about where or when the joint investments would be made

UAE, US sign tax agreement

As per the law, all financial institutions in the UAE are now required to disclose information about financial accounts held by US citizens

UAE sees strongest-ever economic year in 2014 – Sheikh Mohammed

The country recorded a 4.6 per cent rise in real GDP last year with nominal GDP reaching Dhs 1.47 trillion

Saudi Arabia, Russia sign nuclear power cooperation deal

The King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy announced the cooperation deal on its website

Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports slip in April

Exports fell to 7.737 million bpd from 7.898 million in March when they hit their highest levels in almost a decade

World Cup insurers risk flood of claims if Russia, Qatar lose bids

Russia and Qatar could be stripped of their FIFA World Cup hosting rights if evidence emerges of bribery in the bidding process, a senior official has said

Saudi warns citizens against sharing “faked” documents after Wikileaks release

WikiLeaks published more than 60,000 documents on Friday it says are secret Saudi diplomatic communications

Anger over Arab wars fuels jihadi threat in Saudi Arabia

A total of 2,284 Saudis have joined militant groups in Syria since the conflict began in 2011

UAE’s booming e-commerce market pushes up smart payments

increasing e-commerce spend and a push by governments to encourage cashless transactions are easing more and more consumers into smart payments

In Gulf, family business empires wary of going public

Many family firms think they can continue to prosper by modernising themselves without big changes to ownership or control.

Major investor in Dragon Oil says ENOC offer undervalues company

Dubai’s ENOC, which owns 54 per cent of Dragon Oil, raised its offer this week to buy out the minority shareholders