Saudi Arabia Jails 13 For Aiding Overseas Fighters

They were all given travel bans to come into force after their sentences finish.

Australia Prioritises Gulf Free Trade Agreements

Minister wants to ‘turbo charge’ investment opportunities on back of abundant air links

Saudi Arabia Seizes Drugs Worth $267m, Arrests Six

Police uncovered 22.6 million amphetamine pills hidden inside coils of barbed wire and rolls of plastic.

Kuwait Opposition Calls For Elected Government, Reforms

The Opposition Coalition said parliament should be able to work without the threat of dissolution.

Saudi Liberal Website Closed By Jeddah Court

Local media reported that the website was shut down for publishing anti-Islamic material.

New UAE Law To Award 10% Of Government Contracts To SMEs

The law is expected to be enacted within three months or less, the UAE economy minister said.

Saudi’s SAFCO Q1 Net Profit Drops 9.6%, Beat Estimates

The firm made a quarterly net profit of 843 million riyals ($224.8 million), compared to 932 million riyals in the corresponding period of last year.

Europe’s Top Banks Cut 80,000 More Staff In Post-Crisis Overhaul

Banks across the globe have shrunk radically since the 2008 collapse of U.S. bank Lehman Brothers sparked the financial crisis.

Kuwait To Open Main Tenders For New Zour Refinery In May

The refinery, which will become the biggest in the Middle East, will begin operations by late 2018 or early 2019.

Shell, BP Sign 5-6 Year LNG Supply Deals With Kuwait

The total volume of super-cooled gas to be delivered between the two companies would be around 2.5 million tonnes a year, a senior official said.

Qatar Lender CBQ Foreign Ownership Limit Upped To 25%

The bank did not state what its previous cap was but official data showed foreign investors owned 15.21 per cent at the end of Sunday.

LuLu To Open Six New Hypermarkets In Malaysia

The Abu Dhabi-based group will invest around $200 million in its hypermarkets across Malaysia.

German Tank Sale To Saudi Arabia Likely To Be Cancelled

German media have reported interest by Saudi Arabia in buying up to 800 Leopard 2 tanks from Germany.

Saudi Bourse Changes Closing Price Calculation For Shares

In future, the closing price will be the average of all trades in the final 15 minutes, weighted by the volume traded at each price.

Emirates To Stay Put At Dubai International During Runway Maintenance

Move likely to be welcomed by resident and transfer passengers but both airports will be under scrutiny

Abu Dhabi Ports Expect Year-End Spike In Traffic As Projects Boom

Cargo traffic at Abu Dhabi’s Khalifa and Zayed ports combined is expected to top 12 million tonnes this year, up from 9.3 million tonnes in 2013.

Jobseekers On The Rise In The UAE As Hiring Increases

The number of job vacancies saw a two per cent year-on-year growth in March while jobseekers rose seven per cent, says a new survey.

Saudi Arabia May Close Shops Early To Boost Employment

From early July, shops may be required to close at 9pm instead of midnight.

Dubai Ranks Among World’s Top 25 Places To Visit On TripAdvisor List

The Dubai Fountain and the Creek were some of the attractions highlighted in the emirate.

Iran: The Largest And Most Enigmatic Frontier Market

Iran boasts a large, educated population and a wealth of business opportunities, writes Ali Borhani, founder of Incubeemea.com.

New Six Flags Theme Park To Open In Dubai In 2017

The project, being developed in partnership with Meraas, will be located in the Dubai developer’s multi-themed park project in Jebel Ali.

Dubai’s Shuaa Capital Q1 Net Profit Dhs8.2m Vs Net Loss

The firm attributed higher revenues to a strong recovery in the capital markets and a pick-up in the local market for IPOs.

Dubai Real Estate Deal Values Up 38% In Q1 2014

The emirate recorded sales activities worth Dhs31.5 billion and mortgage transactions worth Dhs28 billion in Q1 2014, the land department says.

Saudi’s Al Rajhi Bank Q1 Net Profit Slips 16.9%

The bank made SAR1.71 billion ($456 million) in the three months ended March 31.

National Bank Of Kuwait Q1 Net Profit Up 3.2%

Net profit was KD83.9 million in the three months to the end of March.

Customer Service “Biggest” Challenge For UAE Banks – Senior Official

Lenders hurting themselves by cold-calling customers, says head of Retail Banking at Emirates NBD.

Italian Court Bars Emirates From Flying Between Milan, New York

Emirates, which may appeal the decision, started to fly the Malpensa-New York route in October last year.

UAE Energy Minister Hopes Western Partners Keep Oilfields Role

ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Total and BP have each held 9.5 per cent equity stakes in the ADCO concession since the 1970s.

Kuwait Orders Blackout In Court Case Over “Plot” Tape

A statement said all forms of communication were banned from discussing the case, including news outlets and social media.

Dealing With The Shale Gas Equation

Is the rise of shale gas and oil a threat or an opportunity for GCC nations?