First Gulf Bank Rebrands For Expansion Drive

UAE lender says the rebrand signals its clear plans to grow.

Deyaar Launches Hotel Tower In Dubai’s Business Bay

The launch continues Deyaar’s move into the hospitality sector.

Saudi Arabia Announces Jump In New Cases Of Deadly MERS Virus

MERS has infected 244 people in the Kingdom, of whom 76 have died, according to officials.

Saudi’s SABIC Says Natural Gas Shortage Limiting Domestic Growth

SABIC chief said that increased competition among sectors and a shortage of gas have made internal expansion hard.

Dubai Real Estate Investment Up 57% In Q1 2014

Emiratis invested around Dhs7 billion in Dubai property while Indians continued to be the top foreign investors with transactions worth Dhs5.8 billion.

ADCB To Buy $122.5m SME Loan Portfolio From Mubadala GE

The portfolio, which comprises loans to SMEs in the UAE, will strengthen the bank’s position in the sector.

Saudi’s Khodari Q1 Net Up On Auction But Operating Profit Plunges

The firm’s operating profit fell 96 per cent partly due to reforms in Saudi Arabia’s labour market.

Saudi Savola Group Q1 Profit Rises 43%

The company made a profit of 423 million riyals in the first three months of 2014, up from 295 million riyals in the year-earlier period.

Nakheel Awards Dhs47m Contracts For Deira Islands Project

The developer has appointed AE7 for design, supervision, architectural and engineering services.

Saudi SABIC Profit Slips In Q1, CEO Says Must Expand Abroad

SABIC made a net profit of 6.44 billion riyals ($1.72 billion) between January and March compared to 6.56 billion riyals a year earlier.

National Bank Of Oman Q1 Profit Rises 20%

The bank made a profit of $26.75 million in the first three months of 2014, according to a statement in Oman bourse.

Kuwait Finance House Q1 Profit Rises But Misses Estimates

Net profit rose to 26.06 million dinars in the first three months of 2014 from 23 million dinars in the same period a year ago.

Two Killed In Bahrain Car Explosion – Interior Ministry

The ministry said on its Twitter account the explosion was in the mostly Shi’ite village of al-Maqshaa’, outside of the capital Manama.

China Says To Help Qatar Central Bank Buy Chinese Bonds

This is the latest step to widen foreign access to Chinese capital markets.

Concerned For Stability, Saudi Arabia Tightens Curbs On Dissent

Liberal reformers, atheists and human rights advocates have all been targeted through a series of arrests and new laws in the Kingdom.

Nuclear Power: Boon Or Bane For The GCC?

As the UAE and Saudi race to build nuclear reactors to meet mounting energy needs, the inevitable question arises – is nuclear a viable option?

Majority Of UAE Parents Fund Children’s Education Through Current Income

The study found that the majority of parents in the UAE were financially ill prepared for their children’s education.

Emirates To Cut 41 Flights During Dubai Airport Runway Upgrade

The 80-day renovation programme at the airport will begin on May 1.

Saudi Conservatives Protest Against Westernisation

Dozens of local men were found demonstrating in front of the court against social reforms in the Kingdom.

Abu Dhabi’s Mega Industrial Zone Kizad Completes Phase One Of Logistics Park

Kizad said that around 83 per cent of the logistics park has been pre-leased to a number of local and international firms.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala 2013 Profit Jumps On Financial Investments

Mubadala, which has stakes in GE and private equity firm Carlyle, saw net profit tripling over the last year.

Expert Warns Dubai To Regulate Off-Plan Property Market

Rising volumes of cash transactions and off–plan sales could inflate prices to 2008 levels, an expert has said.

Dubai Restaurant Zuma Bans Cigar Smoking

Cigarettes are still allowed within the restaurant’s bar and lounge areas.

Saudi’s Dar Al Arkan Q1 Net Profit Rises 4.3%

The property developer said the net profit hike was mainly due to increased sales of developed properties at higher gross margins.

Saudi PetroRabigh Says Unit Shutdown Extended To April 25

The firm estimated financial loss due to the outage to amount to around SAR214 million.

Saudi Retailer Jarir Says Board Recommends SAR1.83 Q1 Dividend

The figure is slightly higher than the SAR1.60 per share that the firm paid in the corresponding period of 2013

Exclusive: No Negative Feedback From Tourism Dirham: Dubai Tourism Chief

The new charge, varying between Dhs7 and Dhs20, was introduced on March 31 and is applicable per room per night across hotels in Dubai.

Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank Considers Sale Or Merger

The deal, estimated to be worth $5 billion, would be the largest banking transaction in the region for the past 20 years.

Saudi Authorities Detain Activist After Court Appearance

Waleed Abu al-Khair has been charged with breaking allegiance to King Abdullah, disrespecting authorities and inciting public opinion.

Qatar Islamic Bank Posts 15% Q1 Net Profit Increase

The bank made a net profit of $92 million in the opening three months of 2014.