Abu Dhabi’s NBAD Sees 16.8% Rise In 2012 Profit

National Bank of Abu Dhabi attributed the profit increase to higher investment and interest income.

Bahrain’s Investcorp Eyeing Italy Luxury Brands

The private equity firm said earlier this month that it plans to announce a new deal in early February.

Kuwait Awards $487m Port Contract To Turkey’s STFA

STFA will double the capacity at the port and build a small new one at the Ahmadi refinery.

Bahrain Residential Rents Stabilise In Q4 2012

The residential leasing market in the country is slowly picking up despite political instability, says report.

Qatar Puts Hold On £3bn Chelsea Barracks Plan

The UK economy has given the Gulf state reasons to be concerned about the development.

DP World Sees 2012 Profit In-Line With Forecasts

The port operator posted a 2.4 per cent rise in gross volume from 54.7 million in the previous year.

S&P Revises Bahrain’s Credit Outlook To Stable

Standard & Poor’s has ranked the state as BBB, as has Fitch while Moody’s ranks it Baa1.

Abu Dhabi’s TAQA Seals $1.4bn Financing For Morocco Plant

The financing for the Jorf Lasfar plant is the largest in over a decade for an international project in Morocco.

Oman Plans To Build $1.5bn Medical Complex

The government-funded project will cover five million square metres and will be built in the Batnah region.

Islamic Finance Grows Up

Islamic banks must confront the regulators to grow their products.

Abu Dhabi Sees Hotel Revenues Rise 6% In 2012

The emirate welcomed over 2.3 million hotel guests last year, up 13 per cent from 2011.

Emirates Targets Japan Exports Growth

New services to Haneda Airport will provide Japanese exporters and passengers more flexibility when connecting to the airline’s global network.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank Picks Banks For Bond Issue

The UAE-based lender plans to launch a conventional bond in the coming few days, say sources.

UAE’s ADNOC Supplying Fuel To Emarat Stations

The handover will save Emarat around Dhs80 million every month.

Qtel CEO Addresses Telecoms Gender Divide

Dr Nasser Marafih uses the World Economic Forum in Davos to highlight the issue.

Dubai Ranks Third Largest Passenger Airport

Airport beats forecasts by one million and has London’s Heathrow “firmly within its sights”.

Saudi Maaden To Shut Fertilizer Plant For Maintenance

The mining firm plans to close a diammonium phosphate fertilizer plant for three weeks.

UAE, Turkey Trade Up 197% In H1 2012

Trade exchanges between the two countries reached $5.3 billion during the first half of the year.

Abu Dhabi Property Merger Seen Completed June 30

Property firms Aldar and Sorouh agreed on an all-share merger last week creating a company with $13 billion in assets.

Obama Struggling Over Whether To Intervene In Syria

U.S. President: “In a situation like Syria, I have to ask: can we make a difference?”

Kuwait MPs Target Financial Help For Citizens

The proposal would be the first time Kuwait has given out financial aid.

Oman Telco Nawras Extends Profit Slump For Q4

The firm reported a Q4 net profit of 10.3 million rials, down from 11.9 million in 2011.

Qatar’s CBQ Posts 19% Q4 Profit Jump, Missing Estimates

The bank earned 447 million riyals in Q4. Analysts had forecast profit of 452.4 million riyals.

UAE To Highlight Expo 2020 Bid At WEF In Davos

The Higher Committee will use the World Economic Forum to promote Dubai’s bid.

Dubai May Ease Restriction For Foreign Investors

International investors may be allowed to start businesses in the UAE in partnership with nationals from the wider GCC region.

UAE’s ENOC Replaces Sanctioned Iran Oil With Qatari Supplies

Emirates National Oil Co (ENOC) was the biggest buyer of Iranian condensate in 2012.

Kuwaiti Consortium Signs Contract For Oil Exploration In Iraq

Under the contract, the Kuwait Energy- led consortium will begin exploration in Basra’s block 9.

Twitter Announces New Partnership In MENA Region

The micro-blogging site has made its first business move in the region, teaming up with Connect Ads.

New UAE Mortgage Law Expected In Second Half Of 2013

The UAE central bank is still holding negotiations with the Emirates Banks Association and no rule has been issued as yet.

Retailer SPAR To Enter Middle East

The company aims to have 30 stores in the region by end of 2015.