UAE insurance sector grows with rise in gross written premiums in Q3 2023
Abu Dhabi, UAE - The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has said that the UAE insurance sector continued to...Economy
Climate threats haunt GCC’s economy and finance
The GCC faces a critical challenge as climate risks like extreme heat and water stress rise, potentially impacting the region's...Economy Climate Change
S&P devises new credit rating scale for Saudi Arabia
S&P Global Ratings has introduced a new national credit rating scale for Saudi Arabia in response to a growing interest...The new scheme will help identify the creditworthiness of local loan takers, and comes as Saudi Arabia pursues policies of economic diversification
S&P said the rating scale will be complementary to the one used globally, with the methodology “generally the same” as the international-focused system
Erdogan defends ‘risky but correct’ economic policy
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday defended his "risky but correct" economic policy of low interest rates, as the...Under pressure from Erdogan, the central bank has made a series of interest rate cuts since September despite double-digit inflation
The Turkish leader goes against conventional economic thinking to claim high interest rates cause high inflation, and vowed again to keep the main rate low
OECD cuts world growth forecast, warns of Omicron threat
The OECD warned Wednesday that the Omicron coronavirus variant threatens the global economic recovery as it lowered the growth outlook...The global economy is now expected to expand by 5.6 percent this year, down from an earlier forecast of 5.7 percent
Its forecast for 2022 remains unchanged at 4.5 percent, but the report was released only days after Omicron was detected
‘Physical currency won’t disappear anytime soon’
Ralf Wintergerst, Group CEO of 170-year-old German firm Giesecke+Devrient (G+D), said physical currency is a resilient form of payment and...Ralf Wintergerst said digital currency is a central bank-issued digital form of physical money and that it was different from cryptocurrency.
In Germany and the Middle East there are a lot of opportunities for moving things like government services to people directly with digital solutions.
Iraq’s ‘wasta’ system favors lucky few, frustrates many
Youth in Iraq get job through “wasta,” the system of “who you know” that has become Iraq’s pervasive scourge.Youth in Iraq get job through “wasta,” the system of “who you know” that has become Iraq’s pervasive scourge
The practice has fueled frustration, mass anti-government protests and waves of emigration from the oil-rich, war-scarred and poverty-stricken country
Canada bans travelers from Egypt, Nigeria, Malawi over Omicron fears
All travelers flying to Canada need to be tested at the airport upon landing except for the US.All travelers flying to Canada need to be tested at the airport upon landing except for the US
Unvaccinated people can no longer board airplanes or ride trains in Canada
FCSC documents UAE’s success since discovery of oil in 1950s
In its new report to be published soon, titled "The UAE: Data Documenting the Journey until 2020", the Federal Competitiveness...The report highlighted a significant rise in the country’s GDP from AED58.3 billion in 1975 to over AED1.3 trillion in 2020
The contribution of non-oil sectors to GDP surged from 43 percent in 1975 to 83 percent in 2020
Asian markets mostly up, oil rallies as virus and Fed hold attention
A mild recovery from the previous two days' steep losses was turned on its head in the region on Tuesday...With medical experts saying the full outlook for Omicron was still being assessed, analysts said markets would remain volatile
Crude which was pummelled Friday and again Tuesday also enjoyed some advances with both main contracts up more than two percent
Tech 2022 trends: Meatless meat, Web 3.0, Big Tech battles
Meat alternatives have become common in an increasing number of US households, thanks in part to Beyond Meat and Impossible...Meat alternatives have become common in an increasing number of US households, thanks in part to Beyond Meat and Impossible Food plant-based products
In web 3.0, "users, creators and developers would have stakes and votes" in a platform in much the way a cooperative works
Tel Aviv ranked world’s priciest city for first time
Tel Aviv climbed the rankings partly due to the strength of the national currency, the shekel, against the dollar, as...The Israeli city climbed five rungs to score top place for the first time in the authoritative ranking compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)
The Worldwide Cost of Living Index is compiled by comparing prices in U.S. dollars for goods and services in 173 cities
