Abu Dhabi, UAE - UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed strategic relations in a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. Sheikh Mohamed underscored the importance of maintaining stability in Russia and ensuring the safety and security of its people. President Putin expressed his satisfaction...

Tehran, Iran-- Qatar and Iran have agreed to bolster ties in the labor sector with the aim of raising capacities, exchanging experiences, developing a consultation mechanism between the two countries, exchanging experiences in the field of vocational and technical training and training centers. In this connection, the Qatari-Iranian Joint Committee...

Kuala Lumpur,  Malaysia - The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) expects global oil demand to rise to 110 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2045, 23 percent higher than current levels, OPEC Secretary-General Haitham Al Ghais said during the Energy Asia 2023 conference which began Monday in the...

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- Prominent Abu Dhabi companies are taking part in Impower Fund Forum, the largest asset and wealth management conference in Europe that will see participation of more than 1,400 international players from nearly 60 countries. The companies from Abu Dhabi that will take part in the event include...

Dubai, UAE - National banks in the UAE have increased their credit financing to the business and industrial sectors by AED40.6 billion ($11 billion) or 5.8 percent as of the end of April 2023, according to the Central Bank of the UAE.  The statistics reveal that national banks provided a...

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA- The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) announced on Monday that Jeddah will host the next edition of the FIFA Club World Cup 2023. This follows an official visit made by a FIFA delegation to Jeddah last week to inspect...

PARIS, FRANCE- Common standards unveiled on Monday for companies to report their greenhouse gas emissions could curb misleading climate claims in the corporate world, the chair of the body that wrote the norms told AFP. Currently, most large companies report how many tons of carbon they emit into the atmosphere each...

After performing the ritual circumambulation of the Kaaba, the giant black cube at Mecca's Grand Mosque that Muslims pray towards each day, worshippers set off for Mina, about seven kilometers (more than four miles) away, in suffocating heat.

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- Institutional investors bought more local stocks than they sold in the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) and the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) from January to June this year, according to the latest data from the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA). Net purchases by institutional investors totaled...

Manama, Bahrain -- Treasury bills valued at Bahrain Dinar 70 million ($185 million) issued this week by the Central Bank of Bahrain have been oversubscribed 109 percent The bills, carrying a maturity of 91 days, are issued by the CBB, on behalf of the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The...

DOHA, QATAR -  New data from Qatar Tourism (QT) revealed that the country welcomed 253,191 cruise visitors during its 2022-23 season (Dec. 2022 March 2023), an increase of 151 percent compared to the previous season (100,500 visitors). This sharp uptake in visitor figures is particularly impressive given that this year's...

Dhahran, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Aramco and the Beekeepers Cooperative Society in Rijal Almaa Governorate in Asir Region have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to support beekeeping and beekeeping products in the region. Through this initiative, the Beekeepers Association aims to produce approximately 10,000 queen bees and 4,000 breeding...

Cairo, Egypt - The remittances to Egypt, the biggest recipient of such flows in the MENA region, are set to increase by 3.1 percent in 2023 followed by a decline of 1.4 percent in 2024, according to World Bank’s latest report. Remittances to the country decreased by 10 percent year...

Tehran, Iran-- The future of relations between Iran and the United Arab Emirates is promising and in line with the interests of both nations, according to Iran's ambassador to the UAE. "The two countries intend to find ways to have warmer and closer relations in light of developments in the...

Dubai, UAE - The Middle East region is expected to experience a demand for 78,000 cabin crew members, 28,000 commercial pilots, and 22,000 commercial aircraft maintenance technicians by 2032, a report on the Middle East aviation industry by Canadian firm CAE has revealed.  The CAE analysis projects that the global...

Dubai, UAE-- Dubai Customs has scuttled nearly 2,600 attempts during the last three years to smuggle drugs, combating a concerted campaign to bring in drugs into the emirate as it commemorates the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26th each year. Between 2020 and 2022, Dubai...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Al Hilal club announced on Sunday the signing of Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly to join Al Hilal from Premier League side Chelsea. The club added that Koulibaly's contract extends for three seasons until the end of 2025-2026 season. Koulibaly scored two goals in 32 appearances...

MOSCOW, RUSSIA - Russia's foreign ministry said on Sunday that Beijing had backed Moscow's efforts to counter a short-lived armed uprising led by the head of the Wagner mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin. "The Chinese side expressed support for the efforts of the leadership of the Russian Federation to stabilize the situation...

BERLIN, GERMANY - On his many visits to semiconductor factories and electric car plants, Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz bangs the drum for an economy at the forefront of an industrial transformation. But the picture painted by business leaders and experts is less rosy, predicting hard times to come for Europe's largest...

ABU DHABI, UAE -  AD Ports Group, a leading facilitator of global trade, logistics, and industry, and Premier Marine Engineering Services, a UAE-based shipyard company on Sunday announced the formation of a new joint venture, SAFEEN Drydocks. AD Ports Group will own 51 percent of the joint venture and the...

SHARJAH, UAE - The emirate's real estate activity during May 2023 logged a total value of US$653 million (AED 2.4 billion), further enhancing Sharjah's position as an ideal destination for investors, businessmen and families. The Real Estate and Mortgage Report issued by Sharjah Real Estate Registration Department (SRERD) revealed that...

Luxury accommodations and air-conditioned shopping malls have not replaced the deeply ingrained culture of hospitality in Islam's holiest city.

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- The emirate of Abu Dhabi has approved the disbursement of housing benefits worth US$844 million to citizens in order to lift up their standard of living. In this connection, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu...

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- Some 900,000 passengers are expected to pass through Abu Dhabi International Airport on more than 5,000 flights to and from 109 destinations spread over 59 countries. The projected numbers were released by Abu Dhabi Airports in anticipation of an increase in traffic at Abu Dhabi International Airport...

SANTA CLARA, US -  The CEO of Nvidia said that the world's most valuable chipmaker is "extremely likely" to invest in Europe. Nvidia's Jensen Huang told reporters that expanding in Europe was a "wonderful idea." By investing money in Europe, Nvidia would join other semiconductor giants like Intel that are also...

BAGHDAD, IRAQ - The Finance and Business Center in Iraq is set to become a hub for trading and selling both governmental and private securities, according to the Prime Minister's financial advisor Mudhar Muhammad Salih. In an interview with the Iraqi News Agency (INA), Salih emphasized the center's role in...

KUWAIT- Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) announced that the broad money supply (M2) went up by 0.3 percent last May to settle at US$130.6 billion (KD 39.6 billion). Local banks' private sector deposits increased by 0.6 percent to settle at US$119.4 billion (KD 36.2 billion), revealed the CBK's economic research...

Dubai, UAE--The Dubai Police and Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) have signed an agreement to back the social initiative, "Bayti", with $5.44 million to support people with low-income in home construction and furnishing. The ‘Bayti’ initiative was recently launched by Dubai Police General Command, the Department of Islamic Affairs and Charitable...

Tehran, Iran--Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations has rejected the claim by the United States and its allies about Russia’s use of Iranian drones in the Ukraine war. The mission in a statement on Friday said the "anti-Iran claims" are aimed to influence the six-month periodic report of UN...

New York, United States - Metatime, a blockchain technology company, has so far raised $25 million through crowdfunding, pre-sales, and angel investments, with investors from Turkey, Denmark, and Germany. The investors included Yildiz Tekno Venture Capital Investment Trust, Yildiz Technical University Technopark, and telecommunications and financial institutions, who participated in...

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) has made it mandatory for foreign vehicles crossing into the UAE by land at Al Ghuwaifat Port Station to be insured, from June 26, 2023. The vehicle owners driving into the country can now buy insurance...

DUBAI, UAE -  A total of 4,048 real estate transactions worth over US$4.2 billion  (AED 15.6 billion) were conducted during the week ending 23rd June, 2023, according to figures released by the Dubai Land Department (DLD). The DLD report showed that 278 plots were sold for US$473 million (AED 1.74...

FRANKFURT, GERMANY -  Shares in Siemens Energy plummeted on Friday after the company warned that technical problems at its wind turbine unit were worse than previously thought. The group scrapped its full-year profit target and said it was setting aside more than US$1.1 billion (1 billion euros) over the coming years...

Dubai, UAE -- Dubai Financial Market has delisted shares of Gulf General Investments Company's shares, effective 23 June 2023, under the rule that empower it to delist any security that has been suspended from trading for a duration of six months. The shares will remain in each investor's account with...

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia -- The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the Agence Française de Développement have signed an agreement to co-finance projects worth more than $4 billion in developing countries and support these countries in achieving their UN Self-development Goals (SDGs). The MoU was signed by the president of the...

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM -  Eurozone economic activity worsened in June to a five-month low, hit hard by a fall in industrial production, a keenly watched survey showed on Friday. The eurozone entered a technical recession at the start of the year, according to official figures published earlier this month. But inflation remains...

Mecca, Saudi Arabia - The annual hajj pilgrimage, one of the five pillars of Islam, will start on Sunday with more than two million Muslims from around the world expected to take part this year. It will be the largest pilgrimage since the coronavirus pandemic forced Saudi authorities to dramatically...

Dubai, UAE - A highly sophisticated malware, known as Operation Triangulation, has recently been unveiled, revealing the covert surveillance capabilities it granted to attackers. This cyberattack specifically targeted iOS devices through iMessage, employing a spyware implant named TriangleDB.  Operation Triangulation operates discreetly, leaving no trace of its activities on the...

Le Bourget, France -  Riyadh Air has signed a deal for 90 GEnx-1B engines to power its new fleet following its recent agreement for a wide-body order of 39 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. The order also includes spare engines and a TrueChoice services agreement. The agreement was signed at the...

PARIS, FRANCE - European airlines have been hit by a consumer complaint filed with the EU's executive arm accusing the 17 companies of greenwashing, the practice of making misleading climate-related claims. The European Consumer Organization, or BEUC, said Thursday the claims made by the airlines breach EU rules on unfair commercial...

XINJIANG, CHINA - China has successfully performed the world's first liver resection surgery utilising a domestically developed 5G remote robot, reported China Economic Net. A medical team from Zhejiang and Xinjiang provinces collaborated through the use of 5G remote robot, overcoming a considerable distance of 4,600 kilometers. The surgery was...

ABU DHABI, UAE/ KARACHI, PAKISTAN -  AD Ports Group announced on Thursday the signing of a concession agreement with Karachi Port Trust (KPT), the Pakistani federal government agency that oversees the operations of Karachi port. Under the terms of the 50-year concession agreement, a Joint Venture between AD Ports Group,...

Dubai, UAE -- Dubai real estate market recorded real estate transactions worth AED 2.5 billion ($680 million) on Thursday, Dubai Land Department said. The transactions included 744 sales worth AED2 billion, in addition to 153 mortgage deals of AED542.55 million, and 27 gift deals amounting to AED31.3 million. The sales...

LONDON, UK -  The Bank of England on Thursday lifted its key interest rate by a half-point to five percent to tackle stubbornly high UK inflation despite such a move worsening a cost-of-living crisis. The higher-than-expected hike to a 15-year high was the 13th increase in a row. "There had been...

Abu Dhabi, UAE - Hub71, Abu Dhabi's global tech ecosystem, has welcomed its first cohort of the year comprising 15 startups operating in priority sectors including HealthTech, FinTech, and EdTech. The addition of the latest cohort has increased the size of Hub71’s vibrant community to over 240 startups. In the...

Sharjah, UAE -- The Federation of UAE Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) and the International Development Bank (IDB)-UAE have launched Ma'an (Together) initiative to strengthen Emirati and Iraqi private sectors. The two entities aim to achieve this by using Ma'an to encourage private sector businesses to broaden their operations...

Cairo, Turkey – Suez Canal revenue surged by 35 percent to $9.4 billion in the financial year 2022-23, up $7 billion from the previous year, Suez Canal Authority (SCA) Chairman Osama Rabie said on Wednesday. Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, Rabie attributed the Suez Canal's revenue increase to the...

Abu Dhabi, UAE--The UAE airports have received nearly 31.8 million passengers in the first quarter of 2023, a rise of 11.5 million passengers from the same period in 2022, when about 20.4 million passengers were recorded, according to the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE). Indicating that the civil aviation...

Dubai, UAE--The UAE has unveiled what it calls as the next generation of future design tools, enabling government entities to draft and adopt practical initiatives and projects that will enhance the UAE's readiness for the future. The launch took place during the first meeting of the UAE Future Network, with...

Abu Dhabi, UAE--The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) has noted with satisfaction the persistent credit appetite of the private sector in the country, evident in the strong demand growth for loans that were coupled with financial institutions’ increased willingness to lend in the first quarter of this...