UAE to announce bank exposure rules

Source: The Peninsula (Read full story)

The United Arab Emirates central bank is expected to announce within one or two months rules restricting the amount of exposure which banks can have to the debt of government-related entities (GREs), a top commercial banker said yesterday. Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, head of the national banking industry association and chief executive of Mashreq Bank, told reporters that each bank would then discuss the time frame for its compliance with the central bank on a case-by-case basis. “It is already finalised by the central bank. Now the central bank just has to announce it – I think in the next month, two months max. It’s already passed the board,” he said.

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Saudi Arabia’s fifth international airport ‘nearly ready’

Source: Arabian Business (Read full story)

Saudi Arabia will soon have its fifth international airport, with Al Ahsa set to compete for Bahraini and Qatari traffic, according to Arab News. The Al Ahsa Airport, which presently operates only two to four flights per week, was given international status by the Saudi Arabian civil aviation authority, GACA, in 2011. It has since been working on the required upgrade, including adding immigration and customs controls, expanding aircraft parking facilities and the terminal, which were nearly completed, a source told Arab News.

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GCC railways open up new investment opportunities

Source: Gulf News (Read full story)

The Gulf region is the fastest growing railway market sector in the world, according to Dr Ahmad Bin Mohammad Al Futaisi, Oman’s Minister of Transport and Communications. Speaking at a two-day ‘Investment Opportunities Forum — Railway Project’, which ended on Monday, the minister said: “I have seen countries in the region mark major development in the diversity and integration of their transport systems including roads, sea and airports, but what was most prominently absent is railways.”Al Futaisi reckons that there is an opportunity for 100 billion Omani riyals investments for planned 40,000 kilometres of railways for the region in the foreseeable future.

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Qaradawi expelled from Kuwait

Source: Tehran Times (Read full story)

Controversial cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi has left Kuwait after being asked to leave due to the divisive remarks he has made inciting violence and bloodshed. Qaradawi, who has often voiced support for suicide bombings, was in Kuwait to attend the fourth annual meeting of the International Islamic Charitable Organization (IICO), the Islam Times reported. Kuwaiti MP Abdullah al-Tamimi criticized IICO Chairman Abdullah Al-Maatouqand and called for the expulsion of several of the people invited to the meeting, including Qaradawi, for what he called their lack of neutrality on Islam.

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First domestic steel for Barakah

Source: World Nuclear News (Read full story)

 The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec) has taken delivery of the first consignment of domestically produced nuclear-quality reinforcing steel for the Barakah nuclear power plant project. The first order of 45,000 tonnes of rebar supplied to Enec by Emirates Steel Industries includes 5000 tonnes of nuclear quality product. Emirates Steel is the only steel maker in the Middle East and North Africa region qualified to produce so-called Q-class nuclear quality reinforcing steel, and claims to be only the fourth company in the world qualified by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) to produce rebar to nuclear qualified standards.

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 Iran, Oman sign MoU to boost defense cooperation

Source: PressTV (Read full story)

Iranian and Omani defense ministers have inked a memorandum of understanding to strengthen military cooperation between the two countries. The MoU was signed by Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan and Oman’s Minister Responsible for Defense Sayyid Badr bin Saud Al Busaidiat in Tehran on Tuesday at the end of their official talks. According to the agreement, the Armed Forces of Iran and Oman would boost cooperation in the fields of education, sports, and culture. Under the agreement, Iran and Oman will work together in tackling drug and human trafficking.

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