Nepali Official Denies Labour Abuses In Qatar

Britain’s Guardian newspaper reported that dozens of Nepali workers had died on Qatari building sites over the summer

Qatar World Cup 2022 “To Be Held In November”

Thomas Bach has claimed that he has received assurance from Sepp Blatter that the tournament will not clash with the Winter Olympics.

Ex-DIFC Exec Fined $7,500 For Falsifying Information

Tareck Fouad Farah was found guilty of issuing a letter containing false information.

ME Sovereign Funds Increasingly Investing In Property

Around 69 per cent of sovereign funds in the Middle East cited an increase in allocation of their investments to alternative options.

Saudi’s Almarai Prices Gulf’s First Corporate Hybrid Sukuk

BNP Paribas, HSBC, Saudi Fransi (Credit Agricole) and Standard Chartered were the leads.

Saudi Start-Up Glowork Gets $16m Investment

Saudi firm SAS has acquired a 51 per cent stake in Glowork, a platform that helps women in the Middle East find employment opportunities.

Vodafone Consortium To Launch 1,400km Fibre Network In Gulf

Vodafone, Kuwait’s Zain, UAE’s du and Kuwaiti internet service provider Zajil will create the Middle East-Europe Terrestrial System

Qatar Ranked 10 In UN’s Top Countries For Internet Use

Qatar is the only MENA country and one of the two non-European countries to be featured in the list.

British Airways Upgrading Jeddah Route To Boeing 777

Saudi travellers set to enjoy first class services to and from London next spring.

Damac Launches Paramount Project In Riyadh

Damac Towers by Paramount Hotels & Resorts will offer 215 units of serviced residences, from one to three-bed apartments.

Private Banking Special: Khaled Sifri, Emirates Investment Bank

Founded in 1976, EIB changed its strategy away from pure asset management to a wealth management platform offering private and investment banking services to a broader client base.

Dubai’s Revamped Al Ghurair Centre To Open On Oct 1

The Deira-based mall will feature over 130 new stores including Marks & Spencer, Mango and Omega.

Arabtec Hikes Worker Salaries By 20% Following Wage Strike

Arabtec has raised the salaries of 36,000 workers across its projects nationwide.

Oman Air And Bank Muscat Launch Visa Credit Card

Co-branded card is designed to reward and enhance loyalty among frequent flyers

Emirates Opens VIP Lounge At Bernabéu Stadium

Exclusive lounge enables guests to unwind before, during and after games.

Airbus Exec: Asian, Gulf Banks Fill Void In Plane Finance

Airbus has recently raised its 20-year jet demand forecast, saying the world needed to double its fleet to meet demand.

Bahrain Jails 50 For Ties To Anti-Government Group

Bahrain has seen almost daily protests by members of the Shi’ite majority since February 2011.

Nakheel Sells Homes Worth $125m In New Project

Dubai has been recovering from a real estate crisis and property prices have begun to rebound.

Dubai Stock Market Surges To 5-Year High On Heavy Buying

Dubai’s benchmark advanced 1.2 per cent to 2,771 points, its highest finish since November 2008

71% MENA Employers Influenced By Candidates’ Social Networks

A survey has found that 42 per cent of companies always research a new employee on the internet before hiring them.

Dubai Only City That “Deserves To Win Expo 2020”- Senior Official

The Expo 2020 winning bid will be announced in November this year.

Tax Breaks For Dubai’s Three And Four Star Hotels

The tax exemption, covering the 10 per cent municipality fee, will extend to applications over the next three years.

3,200 UAE Students Enrolled In UK Universities

The UAE’s booming private education sector has attracted many UK universities to setup affiliate campuses in Dubai.

Qatar GDP Growth Slows Marginally To 6% In Q2

GDP rose 0.6 per cent from the first quarter, according to the Ministry of Planning and Statistics.

Qatar First Bank Says CEO Mansour Resigns

Ahmad Mehsari from Qatar Islamic Bank will take over as the bank’s acting chief executive.

Egypt Received $7bn Of Promised $12bn In Gulf Aid

Egypt has received $3 billion from the UAE and $2 billion each from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait

Abu Dhabi Airport Sees 18.5% Rise In August Passenger Traffic

Over 1.5 million passengers passed through the emirate’s airport in August.

GCC Capital Expenditure To Rise By 8.2% In 2013

GCC states’ expenditure on rail schemes, expansion of power generation plants and housing projects is expected to boost capital expenditure in 2013.

Saudi Cleric Says Women Who Drive Risk Damaging Their Ovaries

A campaign calling for women to defy the ban in a protest drive on October 26 has spread rapidly online.

Government Debts Affect Dubai’s Business Confidence

According to the IMF, Dubai’s total debt stands at $142 billion, or around 102 per cent of its GDP.