Barclays Reviewing UAE Retail Business For Potential Sale

The bank’s corporate banking, private banking and investment banking activities in the UAE are not part of the review.

Saudi Inflation Expected To Stabilise At 4.5% In 2013

Saudi’s inflation rate has been dropping for the last four months after touching a 14-month high in February.

UAE’s Abraaj and UK’s CDC Invest $17.5m In India’s Rainbow Hospitals

Rainbow Hospitals, a specialised maternity and paediatric healthcare chain, is based in Hyderabad, India.

UAE Lifts Ban On Loan Transfers For Nationals

Conditions involve the extension of personal loans, the size of each loan relative to the borrower’s income, and a maximum 48-month maturity for loans.

Abu Dhabi Doubles Development Fund Capital To Dhs16bn

The activities of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) will also cover the entire nation of the UAE, as per a new ruling.

Deutsche, HSBC Face Deadlock With Saudi’s STC On $1.2bn Loan

Saudi Telecom wants the banks to restructure a $1.2 billion loan taken for Axis Telekom.

Noor Islamic Bank Reports Dhs100m H1 Net Profit

The Dubai-based bank also announced an increase in customer deposits of 22 per cent while its customer base rose by 14 per cent.

Emirates Investment Bank Sees Q2 Profit Rise 48%

The Dubai-based private investment bank reported net profit for the first half of the year was up 28 per cent on 2012.

RAKBANK Appoints New CEO – Sources

Peter England, previously a senior banker at Malaysia’s CIMB Group, will take up the role.

Turkey’s Lira Defence A Lesson For India

India and Turkey’s central banks have taken contrasting approaches to the devaluing of their respective currencies.

S&P Downgrades Al Baraka Bank To Junk Status

The Islamic lender’s rating was reduced from BBB- to BB+ with a negative outlook on the back of increased sovereign and economic risk in the regions where it operates.

Kuwait’s KIPCO Reports 11% Q2 Net Profit Rise

Net profit in the three months to June 30 was 9.5 million dinars compared with 8.6 million dinars in the same period last year.

Aldar’s Q2 Profit Jumps On Sorouh Merger Deal

Aldar said quarterly earnings included a one-time gain of Dhs2.6 billion principally driven by the acquisition of Sorouh’s assets.

Standard Chartered Income Up 4% In H1 2013

Standard Chartered UAE recorded single digit growth in income during the first half of 2013.

Business Confidence Riding High In Dubai

The majority of businessmen in Dubai expect a profitable third quarter this year, find two official surveys.

Job Creation Up In Saudi’s Non-Oil Private Sector

Despite a rise in raw material prices, the Kingdom’s non-oil sector has seen slight growth.

Dubai’s Shuaa Capital Swings To Small Profit In Q2

The bank made a net profit of Dhs1.3 million in the quarter, compared with a loss of Dhs15.9 million for the same period last year.

Exclusive Interview: Rory Tapner, Coutts CEO

Rory Tapner, Coutts CEO, reveals how the UK’s most famous private bank is set on carving out a slice of the region’s rapidly growing wealth.

Commercial Bank Of Qatar Appoints New CEO

The lender has named Abdulla Saleh al-Raisi as its chief executive officer.

UAE Fuel Stations Resume Credit Card Payments

Card payments, suspended in 2007, will resume with a charge of Dhs2 for all fuel purchases made.

Luring Emirati Talent To Finance Remains A Challege

Attracting Emirati talent into the finance sector will be a long haul process.

DFG Sells 30.5% Stake In Malaysia’s Bank Islam

The sale transaction worth $550 million concluded on July 31.

UAE’s Abraaj Group Exits Investment In Ghana’s HFC Bank

The investment firm sold its stake in HFC to Republic Bank, an independent Caribbean bank, for an undisclosed sum.

MENA CEOs Confident About UAE and Saudi Growth

Despite a bullish outlook on sales growth by MENA CEOs, employment levels are expected to remain flat with businesses adopting a cautious approach.

IMF Warns Dubai On Debt, Surging Property Prices

Dubai property prices have soared around 35 per cent from a year ago in June, according to estimates, triggering fears of another bubble.

UAE Online Job Postings Fall 31% Annually – Monster

Healthcare job opportunities in the UAE were up by eight per cent from last year but chemicals industry jobs plunged 14 per cent.

Bahrain’s Investcorp Annual Profits Surge 56%

Investcorp made a net profit of $104.9 million in the 2013 fiscal year ended in June.

StanChart Hires Ex-Morgan Stanley Banker For Middle East Push

Sarmad Lone has joined the British lender as its regional head for global corporates for the MENAP region.

Dunia Finance Posts 91% Profit Increase For H1 2013

Dunia posts Dhs55.6 million profits; Dhs166.4 million revenues

Saudi Local Salaries Decline 10% Due To Inflation

Survey finds that male salary levels fell by SAR 371, while female salaries dropped by SAR 211.