Middle East

EMERGING MARKETS ROUNDUP: MIDDLE EAST   by Gordon Platt   After five months of political wrangling, Lebanon’s prime minister Najib Mikati on June 13 announced a new government led by the Shiite Hezbollah movement, giving Syria and Iran renewed influence ...

GUNS AND BUTTER   The GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries, led by Saudi Arabia, will spend $120 billion over the next few years to buy advanced fighter planes and anti-missile defense systems. They are spending even larger sums to placate ...

GCC REGIONAL REPORT: OIL MARKETS   By Gordon Platt   Global politics, supply dynamics and the fiscal needs of the GCC’s governments are combining to cloud the prospects for oil prices .   Oil prices have been volatile in recent ...

COUNTRY REPORT: EGYPT   By Justin Keay   Egypt is still in the very early stages of transition, but if it can establish political stability, its economy should grow strongly over the coming years.   If confidence really is the ...

COUNTRY REPORT: KUWAIT   By Gordon Platt   Kuwait has been largely unaffected by the winds of change sweeping through the Middle East and North Africa.   In the 50 years since Britain ended its protectorate and Kuwait became an ...

SAUDI ARABIA REOPENS IPO MARKET WITH TELECOM ISSUE   By Gordon Platt   The first initial public offering of the year in Saudi Arabia, home of the Arab world’s largest stock market, attracted more than 638,000 subscribers, more than 92% ...

Middle East Change Creates New Opportunities   Banks in the Middle East are pulling in their horns in light of the widespread political upheaval in the region. Markets have been unsettled by the political developments, but the economic fundamentals remain ...

Dubai’s Strategic Location Helps It Pull Out Of Slump   By Gordon Platt   Dubai’s position as a strategic trading hub has towed it out of its economic slump.   New heights: Dubai economy looks up Dubai’s position as a ...

Global Finance Announces Best Banks by Region 2011 NEW YORK, April 8, 2011 – Global Finance magazine has announced its annual awards for the World’s Best Banks in Developed and Emerging Markets. For the first time, the selections will be ...

THE MIDDLE EAST 2011: OUTLOOK   By Justin Keay   The rising tide of activism surging through the Middle East and North Africa is accelerating a transformation already well under way.   When asked what was most likely to blow ...

THE MIDDLE EAST 2011: QATAR   By Justin Keay   Careful economic management and a strong strategic vision have helped propel Qatar to the front ranks of the world’s fastest-growing economies.   Ten years ago, Qatar could have safely laid ...

THE MIDDLE EAST 2011: THE BANKS   By Justin Keay   The current market conditions may have prompted slowing in their expansion plans, but the Middle East’s banks are still building for the future.   Until late 2010, the sentiment ...

WINDS OF CHANGE   These are times of unprecedented change in the Middle East and North Africa. Years of pent-up frustration among the region’s youth—around 60% of the population in some countries—has already swept away two governments. More may follow, ...

THE MIDDLE EAST 2011: DUBAI'S RESURGENCE   By Justin Keay   After a tough two years, Dubai has consolidated its position as a regional financial and transport hub and is set for a sharp upturn.   Anyone arriving on a ...

BUSINESS AS USUAL DESPITE UNREST   By Anita Hawser   The turmoil sweeping the Arab world threatens to cause a contagion that will spread far beyond the Middle East, says Barings Asset Management.   Kuwait and other GCC countries in ...

Global Finance names the 2011 World's Best Emerging Market Banks in the Middle East NEW YORK, March 24, 2011 — Global Finance magazine has named the “Best Emerging Market Banks in the Middle East” in an exclusive survey to be ...

ROUNDUP: MIDDLE EAST   By Anita Hawser   In the wake of the political and social unrest that has been sweeping across the Middle East following the downfall of the Tunisian and Egyptian leaders, ratings agencies are preparing to issue ...

INDUSTRIAS BACHOCO: POULTRY PRODUCER OFFERS PROTECTION IN TROUBLED MARKET   By Anita Hawser   In times of uncertainty investors often turn to so-called defensive stocks, and Mexico poultry producer Industrias Bachoco is certainly that.   Despite other problems that may ...

NEWSMAKERS: ISRAEL   By Dan Keeler   Steinitz: One-year budgets are a “terrible mistake” Just two years after being mired in the depths of the global financial crisis, Israel is experiencing a sharp and sustained recovery that is the envy ...

COVER STORY: MIDDLE EAST   By Laurence Neville   Nervous investors are looking for signs of stability in the Middle East and North Africa. The region’s burgeoning investment banking industry may provide the reassurance they’re looking for.   The political ...