The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.

  Bloomberg Ezra Holdings Ltd., a Singapore-listed oilfield services group, filed for bankruptcy in the US after weeks of facing hostile actions from creditors at home and abroad as it struggles to recover from a slump in oil prices over the past three years. The company filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code, according ...

  Bloomberg A European Central Bank inspection of Deutsche Bank AG’s risk controls found deficiencies in derivatives and complicated financial bets that raise questions about pricing processes at the German lender, Il Sole 24 Ore reported. The review, which started a few months ago and recently ended, found that the bank’s risk management systems were not sufficiently integrated or strong ...

  Bloomberg UBS Group AG is ‘very pessimistic’ about reaching an agreement with French authorities to settle a case of alleged tax fraud that forced the bank to post a 1.1 billion-euro ($1.2 billion) bond to cover any potential penalties three years ago, Journal du Dimanche reported. France’s financial prosecutor is seeking a 1.1 billion-euro fine from UBS to settle ...

  Bloomberg Wal-Mart Stores Inc. acquired online apparel seller ModCloth Inc. in an all-cash deal, part of an effort to expand its online operations and appeal to customers that may have avoided the retailer in the past. ModCloth will continue to operate as a stand-alone site, as well as work with Wal-Mart’s other operations, the retail giant said. ModCloth Chief ...

  Bloomberg Vodafone Group Plc is nearing an initial agreement to merge its Indian operations with Idea Cellular Ltd. in a deal that would create the largest telecom company in one of the world’s most competitive markets, people with knowledge of the matter said. The two firms plan to announce a preliminary agreement as soon as this month, according to ...

  Bloomberg Pakistan barred the first foreign national chief executive of the state-owned national airline from leaving the country as the government begins an investigation into a plane-lease contract. Bernd Hildenbrand, the German head of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Corp., has been put on a so-called exit control list and the nation’s anti-graft Federal Investigation Agency has been directed to ...

  Bloomberg French authorities joined the UK in a corruption probe of Airbus Group SE centered on allegations of fraudulent practices related to selling planes and arranging aircraft financing. The probe by the Parquet National Financier follows steps by the UK’s Serious Fraud Office in August to look into possible bribery and corruption in Airbus’s civil aviation business related to ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business As passenger volumes continue to grow and airlines worldwide expand their fleets, airport infrastructure is fast becoming a growth bottleneck. Privatisation has an important role to play in eliminating this barrier to growth, according to Oliver Wyman’s ‘Leveraging the Private Sector to Improve Airport Infrastructure’ report. The paper examines the issues and challenges of airport ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business Better Life, one of UAE’s leading home appliance retailers and a division of Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group LLC, introduced ‘Better Deals’ campaign to offer customers unprecedented value on purchases across their stores in the UAE. The incentives come in the form of bundled offers, instant-redeemable gift vouchers, free gifts and significant price offers, and ...

  ISLAMABAD / AP Ahmad Waqas Goraya couldn’t see anything through the black hood, but he could hear the screams. A blogger with a penchant for criticizing Pakistan’s powerful military and taking the government to task, Goraya was kidnapped in January along with four other bloggers. “I could hear the screams of torture,” he said in a telephone interview with ...