our Correspondent / Emirates Business Smartphones are becoming central to our lives not only for communication and gaming but also for shopping, entertainment and managing utility needs. Over 80% of UAE residents use a Smartphone and spend a significant amount of time with it. In lieu of the upswing, UAE based startup Digital Concepts launched a new mobile app called …

Abu Dhabi / WAM Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, opened on Monday the first Arab Fiscal Forum – Fiscal Policy and Growth, in Abu Dhabi, held in co-operation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The two-day event is being attended by Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of IMF, Arab Finance Ministers, senior officials, experts from regional …

Paris / AFP World oil prices are unlikely to rise from current levels before 2017, and even then their recovery will be slow as massive oil stocks feed into the market, the IEA said on Monday. “We must say that today’s oil market conditions do not suggest that prices can recover sharply in the immediate future—unless, of course, there is …

Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business Ahli Bank Q.S.C. (Ahlibank) announced that Moody’s has assigned it an A2/Prime-1 deposit ratings and a baa3 baseline credit assessment. Moody’s Investors Service has assigned long and short-term, local and foreign currency deposit ratings of A2/Prime-1 to Ahlibank and a Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) of baa3. The long-term deposit ratings carry a stable outlook. Moody’s …

Dubai / Emirates Business Ensuring a secure salary transfer system to the corporates in the UAE, UnionPay International has launched region’s first EMV prepaid salary cards. Through these cards, banks in the UAE can now offer workers secure and advanced payment services conforming to the country’s Wage Protection System (WPS), at economic costs. UnionPay International is a global provider of …

Alkesh Sharma Emirates Business Ushering in an innovative technology ‘aqua-agro’ that could ensure constant supply of land nutrients even to aquatic life, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences is looking forward to establish research ties with the Emirates. A high-level delegation of the leading European varsity visited the UAE and held talks with various educational and research institutes in the region. …

Abu Dhabi / WAM Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the international financial centre in Abu Dhabi, has announced that its Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA), is now a recognised member of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (OSCO) with effect from February 2016. As an associate member, ADGM-FSRA is committed to complying with international regulatory standards on financial markets and …

Dubai / WAM Dubai-based flydubai will operate up to 17 flights a day between Kuwait and Dubai between February 23 and 29. The 26 extra flights added to the schedule will accommodate the increase in passenger numbers between the two cities during Kuwait’s 55th National and Liberation Day Holiday. The carrier, which has been operating from the convenient Sheikh Saad …

ABU DHABI / WAM Mubadala Development Company, the Abu Dhabi-based investment and development company, on Monday announced that wholly owned asset Strata Manufacturing PJSC (Strata), the advanced composite aero-structures manufacturing facility, has made a range of new leadership appointments in order support Strata’s next phase of growth, including its expanding portfolio of products and capabilities for global original equipment manufacturers …

Brussels / AFP Top negotiators on a huge transatlantic trade treaty between the EU and US opened new talks on Monday with the aim to tackle one of the deal’s most controversial aspects. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), under negotiation since July 2013, would create the world’s biggest free trade zone, removing tariffs and harmonising regulation between the …