Abu Dhabi / WAM Abu Dhabi is targeting a 5 percent growth in cruise tourism over the coming season, with 350,000 passengers set to visit the emirate in 2017-2018, Sultan Al Dhaheri, Acting Executive Director, Tourism Sector, at the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (ADTCA), told Emirates News Agency (WAM). The UAE capital is on a tourism drive at …

DUBAI / WAM The UAE and Saudi Arabia, on Monday, signed a work plan for the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO), agreement launched by the two countries in Dubai, aimed at implementing quickly and efficiently the mutual acknowledgement made for the AEO programme between the two countries. Mohammed Jumaa Busaiba, Director-General of Federal Customs Authority (FCA), and Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al …

Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) has debuted a new business intelligence and data warehousing platform, provided by Gulf Business Machines (GBM), the region’s number one provider of IT solutions. GBM completed the implementation of the enterprise business intelligence and data warehousing platform project earlier this year. The new platform is engineered to support ADX’s …

SHARJAH / WAM The Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), hosted a meeting with the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, and his accompanying delegation, to discuss a number of economic issues of common concern. The meeting, which was held in the presence of Abdullah Sultan Al Owais, Chairman of the SCCI, included discussions on means of enhancing bilateral economic …

DUBAI / Emirates Business Emirates on Monday confirmed that its first two Boeing 777-300ER aircraft fitted with its soon-to-launch First Class product will operate from Dubai to the airline’s Belgian and Swiss destinations starting from December 1. Emirates’ new First Class cabin will feature six private suites laid out in a 1-1-1 layout, compared to the eight private suites in …

Bloomberg Saudi energy services com- pany Arkad, which is building a nationwide pipeline netw- ork for oil giant Saudi Aramco, will expand outside the kingdom in a venture with ABB Ltd. that opens the doors to business in North Africa and the Gulf region. Arkad signed a deal to acquire a majority stake in a new joint venture with ABB’s …

Bloomberg Wealthy nations are falling short on promises to help the develo- ping world reduce greenhouse gases by investing in clean energy, jeopardizing the global fight against climate change. Clean energy investments in China, sub-Saharan African and other emerging markets fell 27 percent in 2016, to $111.4 billion, Bloomberg New Energy Finance said in a study Monday. Less than 10 …

HASSI RMEL / Reuters Algeria’s state energy firm Sonatrach on Monday started $2 billion of new investments into the Hassi Rmel gas field to keep production stable at the country’s biggest gas field. “The objective is to maintain the 190 million cubic metre output for the next 10 years,” Chief Executive Abdelmoumene Ould Kaddour told reporters at the site. Hassi …

KHOBAR / Reuters State-controlled utility Saudi Electricity Co (SEC) reported a 6.8 percent increase in third-quarter net profit on Monday due to falling costs as the company improves efficiency. SEC made a profit of 5.26 billion riyals ($1.40 billion) in the three months to Sept 30, according to a bourse statement, up from 4.92 billion riyals a year earlier. The …

Bloomberg The acquisition spree that returned much of Alberta’s oil sands to Canadian hands is so far working out as the buyers projected, with results at Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. and Cenovus Energy Inc. beating expectations on the back of higher output and lower costs. Canadian Natural posted third-quarter profit that topped analysts’ estimates as its buyouts of Royal Dutch …