Saudi British Bank Q1 Profit Rises 14%

The bank said it made 1.08 billion Saudi riyals ($287.97 million) in the three months ending March 31.

Saudis Keeps May Crude Supply Steady To 2 Asia Buyers -Sources

Saudi Arabia has supplied full contractual volumes to most Asian buyers since late 2009.

Dubai’s Limitless Asks Creditors For More Time To Repay $1.2bn Debt

Limitless, a former property arm of Dubai World, restructured the Islamic debt facility in October 2012.

UAE Central Bank To Launch Overnight Lending Facility On Apr 15

The Interim Marginal Lending Facility will allow lenders to use certain assets as collateral to swap for one-day loans.

Saudi Arabia’s Crude Oil Output Drops To 9.566m bpd In March

The world’s largest oil exporter and OPEC heavyweight supplied 9.899 million bpd in February.

Cyber-Attacks Up 91% In 2013

Oil and gas companies were found to be among the most at risk of cyber-attacks last year.

Kuwait Boosts Oil And Diesel Supplies To Egypt

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation will provide Egypt with 85,000 barrels of crude oil per day.

UAE Transport And Public Sector Most Targeted by Spam, Malware In 2013

Two thirds of UAE companies were targeted with spam in 2013.

Abu Dhabi Among Global Top 20 Cities For Mall Development

The UAE capital has 778,000 sq m of new retail space in its development pipeline, says CBRE.

Arab Youth: UAE Is The Best Country To Live In

The Gulf state was also voted a model nation worldwide by the majority of Arab youth in annual survey.

Dubai’s DGCX To Launch Agricultural Contracts In Q1 2015

Large volumes of some agricultural goods such as wheat, rice and pulses are re-exported through Dubai.

Dubai Tells Global Bankers To Expect Another Boom

The emirate organised its first big investor roadshow since the crisis in London.

Samsung Electronics’ Lower Q1 Estimate Highlights Smartphone Challenges

Samsung estimated that its January-March operating profit fell by 4.3 per cent to 8.4 trillion won ($7.96 billion).

Five Minutes With… Alvaro Silva-Santisteban F, Director, Peru Trade Office – UAE

Peru hopes to double trade with the UAE this year, according to the head of the Trade, Tourism and Investment Office of Peru in the UAE.

Etihad Nears Extension Of Air Berlin Partnership; Still Looking At Alitalia

The Gulf carrier is expected to give a proposal to the Italian airline soon to start formal talks on the potential investment.

Emirates NBD May Write Back Dubai World Exposure

The Dubai lender provisioned five per cent of its total Dhs9 billion ($2.5 billion) exposure to Dubai World.

Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth Cruise Ship To Make Debut Call In UAE

Cruise liner Queen Elizabeth will arrive on April 17 at Zayed Port as part of a 2014 World Cruise programme and will spend a day in Abu Dhabi.

UAE Company Marka To Launch IPO In Dubai, Plans DFM Listing

The 12-day offer of 275 million shares at Dhs1 each, represents 55 per cent of the company’s capital.

Starwood, MAF Sign Deal To Open Westin, Le Meridien Hotels In Bahrain

Both the hotels are scheduled to open in July 2014.

Dubai House Rents Up 23% In Q1 2014

Sports City recorded the largest rise in rents as rates grew by 41 per cent, a report says.

Kuwait In Talks To Renew Contracts On Supplying Oil To Egypt

In July 2013 Kuwait pledged $4 billion to Egypt, including $1 billion in oil products.

Whatsapp new privacy features

Middle East Banks “Scared” Of Social Media – Senior Banker

Lenders in the region must create effective social media strategies if they want to thrive in the future, say experts.

Kuwait’s Oil Output Capacity Rises To 3.3m Bpd – KPC

Kuwait’s oil production is expected to reach 3.5 million barrels per day by 2015, a senior official said.

Dubai’s Sheikh Ahmed Says Agreement In Principle On UAE Bourse Merger

Advisors had been appointed last year to help facilitate a merger of the exchanges, but the idea has been discussed sporadically for years without a deal.

UAE NRIs Will Increase Investments In India Post Elections – Survey

The majority of respondents expect investor friendly policies as India elects new government.

Bahrain Q4 GDP Growth Slows To 5.4%

The mining sector, which includes oil production and accounts for over a fifth of GDP, led growth in the fourth quarter.

Etihad CEO Says Near Finalising Next Stage Of Air Berlin Partnership

German media reports last month said the UAE-based airline could increase its stake in Air Berlin to 49.9 per cent from the current 30 per cent.

Dubai Gold Exchange To Introduce Spot Gold Contract In June

The contract is expected to be for 1 kilogramme (32 troy ounces) of 0.995 purity gold, a spokesman said.

Dubai Gold Centre To Tighten Sourcing Supervision

The move comes after the British media alleged that the DMCC failed to follow international guidelines designed to govern sourcing of gold.

Small Blast Heard In Bahrain Capital – Witnesses

The incident took place near a government security building in the Adliya district.