Egypt to appoint global firm to tighten airport security

The government is expected to appoint a security firm by the end of December to review airport safety

UAE Ministry of Health to reduce price of 142 new drugs

New prices will come into place from January 1

Lower oil prices to hit property investments in 2016, JLL warns

Fiscal restructuring in the GCC, prompted by low oil prices, could slow real estate investment next year, a new report shows

Emirates expects 535,000 people to fly out from Dubai before Christmas

More than 34,000 people expected to board flights from Dubai on December 18 alone

Nakheel makes Dhs 220m sukuk profit payment

The firm’s last profit payment on its Dhs 4.4bn sukuk was issued in June this year

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Petroleum signs deal with China National Petroleum

Potential areas for collaboration under the deal include the upstream oil and gas sector outside the UAE

UAE and China create $10bn investment fund

The joint fund will be managed and operated by Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Company and two Chinese state entities

Middle East digital sales on smartphones surpasses world average

Purchases completed on mobiles n the UAE and Saudi Arabia amount to 79 per cent of all digital sales

Dubai residential real estate sees further declines in Q4 – report

Average residential sales fell 16 per cent and 14 per cent year-on-year in apartments and villas respectively

Sharjah’s Q3 residential rents fall 1.6% as supply mounts

Residential rents declined marginally by 0.3 per cent quarter – on- quarter in Q3 2015, a new report shows

IATA cuts 2015 profit forecast for Middle East airlines as low oil prices persist

Regional airlines are anticipated to post a collective profit of $1.4bn in 2015, down from IATA’s earlier forecast of $1.8bn

The threat to the Middle East from cyber criminals and terrorists

Kaspersky Lab CEO warns that malware threats are getting more sophisticated

Dubai Festival City Mall to get ‘mega media’ light show

Laservision project costing Dhs 1.6bn has been earmarked for late 2016

World leaders hail new Paris climate deal, UAE says “happy” with agreement

The agreement calls for addressing global warming and the cutting of greenhouse gas emissions

Select Group chief Rahail Aslam on why he remains bullish about Dubai’s property market

Select Group founder says dipping property prices don’t deter the developer from launching new projects

Flying high: Exclusive interview with Emirates president Sir Tim Clark

Long-serving president Sir Tim Clark reveals the plans in place to take the company to even greater heights

Flydubai continues Russia push

Despite the slowdown in the Russian economy, flydubai is bullish about its long-term prospects in the country

GCC oil and gas sector still dominates economy, ready to invest in new tech

Crude oil prices have more than halved since hitting highs of around $114 in June 2014

Ajman-based Al Zorah launches Nicklaus-designed golf club as part of mega project

The golf estate is part of the 5.4 million square metre Al Zorah master development.

United Airlines to stop flying to Dubai, blames oversupply

The American airline will cancel the Washington DC- Dubai route from end-January 2016

Etihad Rail receives approval to begin stage one commercial operations

Stage one will transport sulphur from Shah and Habshan to the port of Ruwais on two daily trains

Fitch lowers GCC banks’ 2016 ratings to negative due to cheap oil

About 16 per cent of all ratings assigned to GCC banks were negative

AccorHotels announces $2.9bn acquisition of Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel brands

The cash and share deal is the second major takeover in a month following Marriott International’s $12.2bn Starwood Hotels and Resorts acquisition

Top 10 watched and shared YouTube videos in MENA in 2015

Among the top 10 videos in 2015 are comedy shows, social commentaries and moments from big names Bader Saleh, Shady Srour and Hayla Ghazal

Dubai’s Meraas launches hotels and resorts subsidiary

The new entity will integrate hotel projects developed by Meraas and manage the hotels of independent owners and developers

Dubai Parks and Resorts expansion could include new theme parks and hotels

The project’s chief executive said that the themepark has plans to expand further if visitors grow steadily

Iran’s aviation industry poised for take off ahead of sanction lift

Boeing and Airbus may be rubbing their hands at the prospect of a revitalised Iranian airline industry but Gulf airlines are happy scooping up business in the interim as the world

Middle East’s automotive industry slows, but motor companies remain optimistic

Weak global economy and low oil prices have hit car sales in the region

The business of private jets

Despite some challenges, the outlook for the Middle Eastern private aviation market remains robust

Emirates launches Dubai service to Yinchuan and Zhengzhou

The airline will offer flights to the two cities on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday