Middle East

BEARING GIFTS, QATAR’S EMIR VISITS GAZA   By Gordon Platt   Qatar’s emir pledged $400 million to rebuild and modernize the Gaza Strip, in the first visit by a head of state to the Palestinian enclave since a military offensive by ...

RECORD US LOAN BACKS SAUDI PETROCHEMICAL PROJECT   By Gordon Platt   The US Export-Import Bank approved a $5 billion loan to Sadara Chemical, a joint venture of Saudi Aramco and Dow Chemical, to finance US exports needed to build ...

AGAINST ALL ODDS   By Justin Keay   Mid-20th-century tourists flocked to Lebanon, the Switzerland of the East. War and instability long ago changed that. Now, with the Syrian conflict spilling over its borders, the country faces yet another round ...

MILESTONES: IRAN   By Michael Shari   The collapse of Iran’s currency, the rial, has cut so deeply into the credibility of Iran’s government that it’s inching closer to regime change than it has been since a popular uprising deposed ...

FOREIGN AID PACKAGES BOOST EGYPT'S PROSPECTS   By Gordon Platt   Financial aid packages from the US, China, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, among others, will provide much-needed support for the Egyptian economy at a time when the country's FX reserves ...

A STUDY IN CONTRADICTIONS   By David Lipkin   Geopolitical and fiscal uncertainties are having an impact on Israel's growth prospects, but the country is benefiting from development of its natural gas reserves.   Although its export-oriented economy and high-tech ...

By Gordon Platt, Antonio Guerrero and Anita Hawser MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA ALGERIA Mohammed Laksaci Grade: C The central bank of Algeria, Africa’s second-largest oil producer, has kept its discount rate at 4% for the past few years to encourage ...

GULF BONDS PROVIDE SHELTER FOR INVESTORS FROM CRISIS   By Gordon Platt   The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states are enjoying enormous demand for their debt from global investors.   Sukuk, or Islamic bonds, are particularly popular, in part because ...

GLOBAL FINANCE names National Bank of Abu Dhabi and National Bank of Kuwait the World's Safest Banks 2012 in the Middle East NEW YORK, August 16, 2012 — Global Finance magazine ( GF mag.com) has named the Safest Banks in ...

Global Finance names the 2012 World's Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Banks in Middle East/Africa NEW YORK, July 27, 2012 – Global Finance has announced the First Round winners in the "World's Best Internet Banks" competition in Middle East/Africa. This is the ...

Global Finance names the 2012 World's Best Consumer Internet Banks in Middle East/Africa NEW YORK, July 20, 2012 – Global Finance has announced the First Round winners in the "World's Best Internet Banks" competition in Middle East/Africa. This is the ...

DRIVE FOR DEMOCRACY   By Gordon Platt   Adel El-Labban, group CEO and managing director of Ahli United Bank, Bahrain, has had a major influence on Middle Eastern banking.   Global Finance: The past 25 years in the Middle East have ...

SEEKING MORE-INCLUSIVE GROWTH   By Gordon Platt   After strong economic growth in 2011, the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council are spreading the wealth by putting a priority on non-oil job creation and social welfare.   Photo Credit ...

KUWAIT ORDERED TO PAY DOW CHEMICAL $2.16 BILLION   By Gordon Platt   Kuwait's state-run chemical company must pay the US's Dow Chemical $2.16 billion for wrongfully canceling a planned joint venture in December 2008, as the global economy was ...

NEW SHOPPING LIST   By Justin Keay   GCC sovereign wealth funds and banks are still selectively buying low-value assets in Europe, but higher-growth markets are increasingly on their radar.   When the global financial crisis first hit back in ...

THE POWER OF ONE   By Gordon Platt   Thirty-one years have passed since the six Arab oil-producing countries of the Gulf formed an economic and strategic alliance, following the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq war.   Known as the Gulf ...

OMAN: CRAFTING A NEW FUTURE   By Gordon Platt   Keenly aware that its vital oil resources are dwindling, Oman has embarked on a major economic diversification program.   Oman's economy has grown steadily in recent years, helped by rising ...

MILESTONES: MIDDLE EAST / US   By Anita Hawser   The ability of US bankruptcy law to handle shariah-compliant structures is being tested after Bahraini firm Arcapita Bank’s decision in March to file for bankruptcy protection in the US.   Business ...

NEW GRAVITATIONAL PULL   By Ryan Harrison   As companies in the region expand globally, their treasury and trade processes are growing in sophistication. As a result, transaction banking is becoming an ever-more-important business driver for both regional and global ...

By Thomas Clouse, Jonathan Gregson, Antonio Guerrero & Gordon Platt MIDDLE EAST The oil-exporting countries of the Middle East are enjoying strong economic growth, whereas countries that experienced political uprisings during the Arab Spring of 2011 are struggling to get back ...