Stock News: Gulf Markets Continue Rally On Oil, Saudi Budget Hopes

The Dubai index jumped 9.9 per cent, while the main Saudi index rose 2.5 per cent.

Bahrain Energy Projects Not Affected By Oil Slide – Minister

Fitch Ratings downgraded Bahrain’s credit outlook last week to negative, saying the fall in oil exacerbated an already challenging fiscal situation.

UAE Firms Lose $2.8bn Due To Data Loss And Downtime

The UAE ranks low in terms of companies’ maturity and approach towards data protection with just 34 per cent of firms considering data protection as relevant for their success.

Courtyard By Marriott Opens In Abu Dhabi

Mid-market brand targets connection-oriented business travellers

UAE Urges World’s Oil Producers Not To Raise Output In 2015

OPEC’s decision last month to leave its output ceiling unchanged, was followed by a fresh plunge of oil prices.

Qatar Oil Minister Says Market Experiencing “Temporary Correction”

Qatar’s oil minister said that the main reason for oil’s plunge in recent months was slow growth of the global economy and an increase in sources of supply.

Expat Residents Should Be Allowed Visa-Free Travel Across GCC – Official

The move will boost the GCC’s tourism industry, helping sectors such as aviation and hospitality.

Saudi-Based Alkhabeer Capital Launches New Unit To Fund Start-Ups

The new company, Alkhabeer Ventures, will help fund businesses in sectors such as technology, mobile, e-commerce, news media and social media.

Healthy Dubai Real Estate Market Can Ride Out Cheap Oil

Experts say that Dubai real estate would not be able to escape a temporary impact from cheaper oil but noted that the economy is well diversified to sustain the lull in oil prices.

Saudi’s Naimi Confident That Market Will Improve

OPEC producers sought to bring balance to the market but a lack of cooperation from other producers led to a continued fall in prices, Naimi said.

UAE Oil Minister Slams “Irresponsible” Non-OPEC Producers

Mazroui said the recent decision of OPEC to retain its production was correct, citing irresponsible supply from other producers for the recent fall in oil prices.

Dubai Developer Omniyat Says 81% Of Units Sold Off In New ANWA Project

The Dhs600 million seafront project registered Dhs432 million in sales during the first phase of launch.

FIFA’s Blatter: Only “An Earthquake” Will Stop Qatar From Hosting World Cup

The FIFA President said that both Qatar and Russia will retain their World Cup hosting rights even as the football governing body voted to publish Michael Garcia’s investigative report.

Jim Kouzes: What Makes A Good Leader?

Jim Kouzes, co-author of the ‘The Leadership Challenge’, gives his insight into what makes a good buisness leader.

Exclusive: Flydubai CEO On The Low Cost Airline’s Meteoric Rise

Ghaith Al Ghaith describes how flydubai became the Middle East’s largest short-haul airline in just five years.

Egypt Charges Captain, Officer Of Kuwaiti Ship With Manslaughter

The accident, which took place earlier this month, killed 25 Egyptian fishermen.

Egypt’s Sisi Meets Qatari Envoy, Signalling Possible Detente

Ties between Cairo and Doha deteriorated after Sisi removed the previous president Mohamed Mursi from power in July 2013 following mass protests against his rule.

Saudi Forces Kill Four Militants In Awamiya – Interior Ministry

The dead were behind the killing of a member of the security forces and wounding of another last week, a ministry spokesman said.

Bomb Blast In Bahraini Shi’ite Village Wounds Three Policemen

The bomb explosion occurred in Bani Jamra, a Shi’ite village northwest of the capital Manama.

Oman Sovereign Fund Boosts Buying Of Local Stocks

The organisation’s executive president said that the fund has been investing heavily in Muscat Securities Market, taking advantage of the fall in prices.

Raytheon Wins $2.4bn Contract For Qatar Patriot System

The contract, announced by the U.S. Department of Defense, includes spare parts and is due to be completed by April 30, 2019.

Middle East Ranked Among Top 10 Global Luxury Markets In 2014

Increased tourist flows to the region have catapulted the Middle East into the top global market for luxury spending, a new report says

UAE Says Oil Price Drop Won’t Last, Market To Return To Balance

UAE Oil Minister Suhail Bin Mohammed al-Mazroui said that all players must shoulder their responsibilities to reach market balance.

BlackBerry To Launch New Classic In UAE Before Year-End

The phone, priced at Dhs1799, is modeled around BlackBerry’s popular Bold 9900.

Saudi Arabia’s Naimi Says Difficult For OPEC To Cut Oil Output

Saudi Arabia, the largest producer in OPEC, will stick to its policy to maintain output, Naimi said, according to state news agency SPA.

Bahrain May Start Importing Russian Gas From 2017

A senior official said that gas will be transported by sea from Russia to Bahrain but did not specify the amount of gas that will be imported.

Kuwait Says Accepts Iraq Request On Gulf War Reparations

A UN official said that Iraq has requested a one-year deferral of a $4.6 billion reparations payment for destroying Kuwait’s oil facilities during the Gulf War.

Kellogg Outbids Abraaj For Third Time In Race For Egypt’s Bisco

Kellogg said on Thursday that it would improve its offer to 86.36 Egyptian pounds per share, hoping to secure the deal.

Saudi Crude Oil Exports Rise To Almost 6.9m bpd In October

The OPEC member exported 6.897 million barrels per day of crude in October, up from 6.722 million in September.

Dubai’s DP World Says Shareholders Back EZW Buy, London Delisting

The assent was granted at a meeting on Thursday, with the proposals receiving near-unanimous support from independent shareholders, DP World said.