Gulf Countries To Invest Up To $5bn In Africa Annually – Study

Gulf states have provided $30 billion in funding over the last decade to develop African infrastructure, a study says.

Qatar’s Ahli Bank Signs $200m Debut Syndicated Loan

The loan will pay an interest rate of 120 basis points over the London interbank offered rate (Libor), a filing to the Qatar stock exchange said.

Austria Reports First MERS Case In Saudi National

The Saudi Arabian national is being treated in an isolation ward in a hospital while all people she had been in contact with would be checked for symptoms, a health ministry official said.

Funds To Slow Saudi Stock Buying, Bullish On UAE -Survey

Bullishness towards Saudi Arabia, which peaked in the July survey due to the announcement of stock market opening to foreign investment, has been declining.

Le Méridien Al Aqah Renovations Near Completion

Emirates Group’s east coast resort to unveil new rooms and improved connectivity

Kuwait Revokes Citizenship Of Opposition Activist

Kuwait-born Saad Al-Ajmi, spokesman of the nationalist opposition Popular Action Movement, was one of 18 people to have their citizenship removed.

Islamic State Fight Seen Costing U.S. $2.4bn Or More Annually

Intensifying the scale of operations against the militants could send costs soaring to between $13 billion and $22 billion annually, analysts say.

Bahrain Court Revokes Citizenship Of Nine Over Arms Smuggling

BNA news agency said the court found the nine men – who are all Bahraini-born Shi’ites – guilty of smuggling weapons, including explosives, into the country in a case that dates back to 2013.

Kuwait Markets Authority Endorses UN Terror Financing Rules

The U.N. Security Council last month named six people who would be subject to asset freezes because of their links to the Islamists and threatened sanctions against those who financed the insurgents.

Saudi Telecom’s Bahrain Unit Bets On Data To Boost Revenue

Viva said the launch of its next-generation mobile network – which allows web download speeds several times faster than its predecessor 3G – will help boost its revenues.

Saudi Sipchem Says Affiliate Restarts Butanediol Plant

The International Diol Co plant, which has an annual capacity of 75,000 tonnes, was shut from Aug. 29 to improve the efficiency of operations.

Dubai’s Emaar Properties’ Malls Unit IPO Priced At Top Of Range

Shares in the Emaar Malls Group IPO were priced at Dhs2.90 per share, giving an overall sale value of Dhs5.8 billion.

Pictures: Nakheel’s Upcoming Dhs150m Palm Jumeirah Boardwalk

The developer has awarded a contract for the project to Overseas AST Company.

Dubai’s DMCC Launches Health Insurance For Member Firms

The free zone said that its health insurance solution has been tailored to suit its members so that smaller firms can experience the benefits that are usually available to large corporates.

Saudi’s Sedco Capital Launches First In-House Managed Islamic Fund

The Gulf equities fund, domiciled in Luxembourg, has an intial $30 million in assets.

Dubai Tops List Of Billionaire Cities In The Middle East

The city has 34 billionaires with a combined wealth of $79 billion, says new report by Wealth-X and UBS.

UAE’s TRA Records Surge In National Domain Registrations

The rise in registrations on the UAE’s national domain also indicates an increase in the amount of Arabic content online, the telecoms regulator said.

Real Madrid And AC Milan To Play In Dubai On December 30

Football fans set to flock to Sevens Stadium to see two giants compete in Dubai Football Challenge

Dubai’s Emirates NBD To Price NZ Dollar Bond On Monday

The bank has set initial price thoughts for the $77.6 million issue of five years duration at 165 basis points over New Zealand midswaps, the document showed.

Doha Bank Calls Shareholder Meeting To Approve India Assets Buy

HSBC Bank Oman, an affiliate of HSBC Holding, said in April it had approved the sale of its Indian business to Doha Bank.

UAE’s Dana Gas Says Wins Gas Concessions In Egypt

The company will operate the North El Salhiya onshore area on a 100 per cent basis, and will partner with British major BP to explore El Matariya on a 50:50 ownership basis.

ISIL Threat Requires “Globalised Response” – Sheikh Mohammed

The extremist organisation “can and will” be defeated militarily, the UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister wrote in a column.

Ex Apple CEO’s Obi Mobile Launches Five Smartphones In the Middle East

Ex Apple mogul John Sculley plans to launch five mid-to-low end smartphones across the Middle East in the coming months, following the company’s Indian entry

PepsiCo Opens Food And Beverage Innovation Centre In Dubai

The new innovation centre will help develop products that will cater to the tastes of the local market and boost regional sales, the company said.

Saudi Tasnee To Pay $480m To Up Stake In Cristal Subsidiary

Tasnee has submitted an offer to the Gulf Investment Corporation to buy the additional stake in Cristal subsidiary , thus raising its overall holding to 79 per cent.

Dubai Amlak’s Shareholders Back Debt Restructuring

The shareholders agreed to the issuance of a sharia-compliant instrument worth up to Dhs2.1 billion ($571.8 million) and convertible into company stock, the company said.

Bahrain To Implement New Visa Policy From October 2014

The new policy will allow citizens from 66 countries to receive visas upon arrival in Bahrain, while visitors from another 36 countries will be eligible for e-visas.

Saudi Shi’ite Dissident Dies After Clash With Police – Media

Saudi Interior Ministry spokesman General Mansour Turki said that security forces shot and wounded Bassem Ali al-Qudaihi during an exchange of fire when they tried to arrest him.

Kuwait Budget Surplus Up In Last Fiscal Year As Spending Slows

The budget surplus, equivalent to around 26 per cent of gross domestic product, was up marginally from KD12.7 billion, or nearly 25 per cent of GDP, in the previous fiscal year.

UAE Ministry Of Health Cuts Prices Of 422 Drugs

The price reduction, the fifth in the UAE since 2011, will be carried out in cooperation with international pharma firms, the official news agency said.