Rome / Bloomberg Italy’s deal with the European Commission on state guarantees for banks’ bad loans will help lenders reduce their stock of deteriorated debt, even though markets offered a skeptical reaction, Bank of Italy Governor Ignazio Visco said. “The guarantee mechanism will prove useful for facilitating the divestment of bad debts,” said Visco, who sits on the European Central …

RiyadH / Bloomberg Saudi banking stocks have fallen to the lowest levels in at least a decade relative to their net assets, showing the slump in oil is stoking concern that bad loans will increase. Following a 10 percent slide this year, an index of 12 lenders on the Tadawul All Share Index is trading at an average 1.3 times …

DUBAI / EMIRATES BUSINESS Sage Middle East, the leading provider of business management solutions, delived into the complex and exciting world of ubiquitous computing trends in business by hosting a luncheon discussion on trends in disruptive technologies at Dubai’s Shangri-La Hotel. The luncheon held in Dubai is the latest edition of Sage’s GCC series of discussions on trends in technology …