Dubai / Reuters Gulf stock markets fell early on Monday after oil and Asian equities dropped because of the threat of a U.S. interest rate hike, while Dubai builder Drake & Scull declined sharply because of concern about its financial situation. Brent crude dropped back to just above $50 a barrel in Asian trade amid talk that a U.S. ...

  London / AFP Eurozone stock markets rose on Monday looking ahead to a key meeting of central bankers at the end of the week, but London retreated on heavy falls for heavyweight mining shares. Around 1000 GMT, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 was down 0.4 percent compared with the close on Friday. In the eurozone, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 rose 0.3 ...

  Tokyo / AFP Tokyo stocks closed higher on Monday on a weaker yen after the vice chairman of the Federal Reserve talked up the US economy while the Bank of Japan’s boss indicated there could be fresh easing measures next month. In the US, Stanley Fischer on Sunday said the world’s top economy had met the bank’s targets and ...

  ABU DHABI / Emirates Business Continuous improvement, innovation, and environmental sensitivity have become the watchwords for the cleaning industry in the region as more and more companies in the sector are sourcing products and equipment keeping sustainability in mind. Globally, the market for green cleaning products is expected to reach US$51 billion in value terms with a CAGR of ...

  Ajman / Emirates Business The Ajman Tourism Development Department (ATDD) announced the launch of two classification programs for desert camps and tourism villages, the first of its kind in the United Arab Emirates. Desert camps are divided into two types which are day use and overnight but will fall under one category while tourism villages will have different categories ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The growing power of social media influencers and bloggers has been borne out by new research from Dubai-based PR agency BPG Cohn & Wolfe that shows that 71 per cent of UAE residents aged 18-40 are happy to take advice online before purchasing. Beauty, fashion and food are the areas where residents are most ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business ENOC Retail, Emirates National Oil Company’s retail business segment, announced ambitious growth plans of 150 per cent for its Zoom stores network in the UAE by 2025 to cater to increasing customer demand and population growth. The company also aims to triple its turnover in the next 15 years. ZOOM’s growth plans include the opening ...

  Bloomberg Oil fell after the longest run of gains in four years as Iraq sought to increase exports amid a global oversupply and Nigerian militants called an end to hostilities. Futures dropped as much as 2 percent in New York after climbing 16 percent the previous seven sessions. Iraq will boost crude shipments by about 5 percent in the ...

  WAM CEO of Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) Mohammed Ghazi Al-Mutairi announced that a collective KD1.71 billion has been spent on a bio- fuel project, which was locally and internationally financed. In an interview with Al-Rai, carried by state news agency, KUNA, on Sunday, Al-Mutairi said that the funding was possible through loans from local banks which is given ...

  Bloomberg Iran’s central bank is signaling that it will loosen its grip on the rial in an effort to end a dual-exchange rate system seen as an obstacle deterring foreign investment needed to rebuild the economy. Policy makers, in a decision reported earlier this month, allowed commercial lenders to buy foreign currencies using rial rates set by the market ...