• April 27, 2017

    ماذا يمكننا أن نتعلم من – قصص بدء المشاريع الصغيرة والمتوسطة في دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي؟

    These success stories highlight the value SMEs deliver to GCC economic imperatives. Even a cursory glance at the case studies reveal that these companies have shown remarkable prowess in identifying ideas that speak to customer pain points and have turned them into practical companies through actionable business models. Another notable characteristic is that, in keeping with trends in the rest of the world, these companies have harnessed digital business platforms to drive their revenues, growth and scalability. Coinciding with the...

  • March 26, 2017

    من المتوقع أن تشهد أرباح شركات دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي تحولاً في عام 2017

    Effect of lower oil prices and their impact on non-oil sectors was evident in the earnings performance of H2, 2016. Key sectors such as banking, telecom, real estate and construction all witnessed a fall in earnings. Banking and Telecom sector’s earnings declined by 7% and 29% during H2 2016 on a YoY basis. Poor performance of the former was due to tight credit and weak economic conditions, while the latter suffered from subdued performance of foreign subsidiaries, increased regulatory costs...

  • February 28, 2017

    ]أعمال الخليج[ خيارات التمويل البديل لدول مجلس التعاون الخليجي

    The article originally appeared in Gulf Business. Traditional financing options, such as bank funding, continue to rule the roost in the Gulf region. Rising oil exports led to large government revenues, which usually ended up as deposits in the region’s banking system and constituted a significant source of low-cost funds. However, the current lower oil price environment and the resulting budgetary deficits have forced market participants to look at alternative sources of funding, such as private equity, venture capital, peer-to-peer...

  • February 15, 2017

    هل معيار الشريعة الذهبي – فرصة جديدة؟

    Strict norms have hindered the development of gold related investable products in the Islamic finance world and restricted the investment only in the form of bullion and jewelry. A few gold related Islamic investment products which supported investors to buy and sell precious metals in a bulk form at competitive rates while, managing the supply chain to ensure secure vaulting existed prior to the introduction of the Gold Standard. However, lack of understanding and harmony of Sharia law with regards...

  • February 8, 2017

    ارتفاع مؤشر الأسعار الكويتي بنسبة 19% في ینایر 2017

    According to Marmore’s recently released Monthly Market Review, MENA bourses had a positive start to the year 2017, with nearly all markets ending the first month in green. Kuwaiti Price and Weighted indices led the charge, rising by 18.9% and 12.4%, respectively, followed by Bahrain (6.8%). Saudi Arabia and Oman were the only markets to register a fall in January, falling by 1.5% and 0.1%, respectively. Various reasons are being touted for the 14-day consecutive rally in the Kuwait bourses,...

  • January 31, 2017

    التوقعات محايدة لأسواق أسهم دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي

    According to تأسست شركة المركز المالي الكويتي “Markaz” report on GCC stock & debt market outlook 2017, Boursa Kuwait has started this year on an explosive note. The much followed price index gained 16% while the weighted index gained by 11% as compared to 1.4% for MSCI GCC index and a negative 2.7% for Saudi Arabia. This has been among one of the sharpest rallies for Kuwait main index in recent years as the index posted positive gains for the fourteenth consecutive...

  • January 5, 2017

    انهت أسواق الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا عام 2016 على وضع إيجابي

    According to Marmore’s recently released Monthly Market Review, MENA bourses had a positive month in December, with all markets ending the year in green. Morocco’s Casablanca Index led the charge rising 9.1 per cent, followed by Egypt’s HRMS index (7.2 per cent). Kuwait weighted and price indices had a positive month, with both climbing 3.5 per cent, amid a spurt in speculative trading ahead of the year-end. The Egyptian Index also registered the highest gains in the year, closing nearly...

  • October 3, 2016

    هل تسعى الشركات الخليجية إلى الاستفادة الكافية من وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي؟

    This increasing reach, twinned with the growing presence of young people on social media, has opened up new avenues for companies to interact with their customers of the industries that are currently active on social channels across the region, the retail industry leads engagement on Facebook in almost all of the GCC countries, with over seven million active followers. This is followed by the telecommunications industry at close to five million users. While the remaining top five industries in the...

  • September 4, 2016

    إنخفاض أرباح الشركات الخليجية بنسبة 8% في النصف الأول من عام 2016، ومن المتوقع أن تنخفض مرة أخرى بنسبة 4% في عام 2016

    Total earnings in 1H16 came in at USD 32.8 billion, partly supported by telecom and financial services sector. Among sectors, telecommunications and financial services posted positive earnings growth, as contribution from international markets and favorable exchange movements supported their bottom line. Earnings in banking sector remained flat while earnings in commodities, real estate and construction related sectors contracted as the fall in oil prices is increasingly felt across non-oil sectors. Blue chips fared relatively better, while earnings of mid-cap and...

  • August 3, 2016

    يمكن للمصرفيين أخيرًا أن يتطلعوا إلى نشاط الاندماج

    The article originally appeared in The National | Business The fee-based investment banking business has four key components – syndicated loans, equity capital markets, debt capital markets and mergers and acquisitions (M&A). While in other markets we can witness activity across these four components, in the GCC investment banking advisers depend on syndicated loans for their survival – 50 per cent of total investment banking fees on average. Equities is dull thanks to poor performing capital markets and the related dull...