News

Bloomberg Europe’s economy began 2019 with an unexpected growth spurt buoyed by France and Spain, easing pressure on the European Central Bank to add stimulus. The 0.4 percent increase in euro-region gross domestic product during the first quarter reported by Eurostat was twice the pace at the end of last year and more than economists predicted. Strong investment in Spain ...

Bloomberg Coal is piling up at ports across Europe, depressing both the cost of the fuel and price of electricity. Stockpiles at three European ports — Rotterdam, Amsterdam and Vlissingen — are near the highest since 2013. Supplies built up during a warmer than usual winter and as governments tried to reduce emissions from the most polluting fossil fuel. The ...

ABU DHABI / WAM First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) reported solid operating performance for the first quarter that ended on March 31, on Monday, with net profit amounting to AED3.1 billion, up 6 percent sequentially and 4 percent YoY. According to a press statement released by the bank, annualised earnings per share (EPS) stood at AED1.08, compared to AED1.06 in ...

Bloomberg The world’s biggest oil exporter is ramping up efforts to develop natural gas with plans for a 15-fold boost in output from unconventional deposits of the fuel. Saudi Aramco is building facilities to tap shale gas in the kingdom’s oil-rich eastern region and is making “a lot of progress” towards this goal, CEO Amin Nasser told report-ers in Dammam. ...

DUBAI / Emirates Business Emaar Malls recorded an increase in net profit by 7 percent to AED584 million ($159 million) during the first quarter (January to March) of 2019, compared to the net profit of AED548 million ($149 million), during the first-quarter (January to March) of 2018. Revenue for the first three months of 2019 reported a growth of 4 ...

DUBAI / WAM Dubai SME, the agency of the Department of Economic Development (DED), mandated to develop the small and medium enterprise (SME) sector, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to launch an index that will evaluate the cost of doing business for SMEs in Dubai. The MoU was signed by ...

SHARJAH / WAM Sharjah Airport announced its 2019 first quarter results during Arabian Travel Market event, registering over 3.156 million passengers. The increased number of passengers highlighted a recorded growth of 9.56 percent in passenger movement, compared to the same period in 2018 which registered 2.880 million passengers. It also revealed developments and projects that expect to increase capacity and ...

Dubai / Emirates Business Etisalat and Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD) on Monday announced their partnership to launch a co-branded CBD-Etisalat credit card. The new card will be available in two variants – Visa Platinum and Visa Signature – and will be UAE’s pre-eminent ‘Lifestyle’ credit card offering cardholders the fastest way to earn points on Etisalat’s award-winning Smiles platform. ...

SHARJAH / WAM Sharjah-based Air Arabia announced the launch of its new complimentary in-flight entertainment system ‘SkyTime’ that allows passengers to live stream digital content on smartphones, tablets or laptops while traveling with the carrier. The new innovative entertainment system is now available across Air Arabia’s fleet. Commenting on the launch, Adel Al Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer of Air ...

DUBAI / WAM HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, issued Executive Council Resolution No. 05 of 2019 approving the payment of select Dubai government fees and fines in instalments. The Resolution aims to support individuals and entities in fulfilling their financial obligations and enhance the process of ...