Dubai welcomes record 9.31 million visitors in first half of 2024
Dubai, UAE - Dubai has reinforced its position as a global tourism leader by welcoming a record 9.31 million international...Economy
Asian markets drop as Biden drops out of White House race
Asian markets fell Monday as Joe Biden's decision to drop out of the US presidential race fuelled fresh uncertainty, while...Economy
Markets struggle again as US inflation fails to sooth rate worries
A highly anticipated report showed July consumer prices rose more than the previous month but less than feared, giving the...Hong Kong and Shanghai fell further, even as Alibaba surged in response to an earnings report showing a forecast-busting rise in first-quarter revenue
Sydney, Singapore, Manila and Jakarta also fell, though Seoul, Wellington and Taipei eked out gains. Tokyo was closed for a public holiday
Iraq’s apex bank introduces new exchange categories for dollar sales to travelers
BAGHDAD -- The Central Bank of Iraq has introduced three distinct categories of exchange companies dedicated to selling dollars to...Exchange companies will operate under strict Central Bank regulations and Anti-Money Laundering Law
Enhanced electronic platform by the Central Bank of Baghdad will oversee all dollar sales to citizens
Iraq streamlines imports, focuses on strengthening domestic industries
In a move to fortify the local market, Iraq's Ministerial Council of Economy has taken decisive steps, including the removal...Iraq's Ministerial Council of Economy removes four items from import lists
4% customs tariff reduction announced for imported live animals for slaughter
Dubai Municipality parks attract more than 15m visitors in H1
Dubai, UAE-- More than 15 million people visited Dubai Municipality public parks, neighborhood parks, lakes, and recreational facilities for the...The record-breaking trend marks a 50 percent increase in the same period of 2022, which recorded approximately 10 million visitors
The spike in the number of visitors to the parks and other recreational facilities is made possible by their location and ease of access
World’s largest cruise ship all set to sail
TURKU, FINLAND - With cruise bookings seeing a resurgence after the Covid pandemic caused luxury liners to mothball, a Finnish shipyard...Royal Caribbean's luxurious new vessel Icon of the Seas is nearing completion in the Turku shipyard on Finland's southwestern coast.
Resembling a village more than a ship, the mammoth vessel boasts colourful waterparks, more than 20 decks and can carry nearly 10,000 people.
UAE witnesses record 2.4m tourists in first six months of 2023
Abu Dhabi, UAE - A record 2.4 million tourists visited the UAE during the first six months of 2023, a...The emirate’s hotel establishments generated revenues exceeding AED3 billion during the same period, a 26 percent growth compared to last year.
The hotels also recorded an average occupancy rate of 70 percent, with the average stay in the emirate's hotels being 2.7 nights.
ADFD finances $105.4m energy security project in Tanzania
ABU DHABI, UAE - The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has signed a loan agreement with the Government of...The project’s objective is to fully connect the Kagera administrative region with the national electricity grid.
It will reduce dependency on energy imports from Uganda and provide sustainable electricity source.
CBUAE revokes licenses of currency exchange house, commercial broker company
Abu Dhabi, UAE - The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has revoked the license of Dirham Exchange, an exchange...The administrative sanctions followed after the entities were found in violation of the UAE laws on combating money laundering crimes, the financing of terrorism, etc
The findings showed that the entities had a weak compliance framework and failed to comply with their regulatory obligations and to report regulatory breaches to the CBUAE
Global stock markets slip as European banks’ shares hit
The dollar remained steady with talk of yet another US interest rate hike, while oil prices retreated following disappointing Chinese...The US trade deficit narrowed in June to $65.5 billion, compared with $68.3 billion in May, on a bigger pullback in imports than exports.
Another weak batch of trade data compounded worries about the struggling Chinese economy. Sales of Chinese products to foreign markets sank 14.5 percent on-year last month.
Dubai Q1 GDP grows 2.8% on surge in transport, storage sectors
The transportation and storage sector was the biggest contributor to overall growth at 48 percent. This was followed by the...Dubai’s growth in Q1 2023 is significantly higher than that of some of the most developed countries in the world. OECD countries recorded seasonally adjusted growth of 1.6%.
The accommodation and food services sector reported a 5.6 percent growth rate in the first quarter of 2023.
