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

  ABU DHABI / Emirates Business Union National Bank (UNB), 50 percent owned by the Abu Dhabi government, will open its first branch in China next month, its chief executive said, as Gulf banks expand in the world’s second biggest economy. Union National has got approval from China’s central bank to convert its representative office into a branch in Shanghai, ...

  Bloomberg Indonesia’s central bank has cut borrowing costs enough to spur growth in the economy, Senior Deputy Governor Mirza Adityaswara said, giving his clearest signal yet that the bank’s easing policy is over as inflation pressures pick up. Boosting growth is “not about interest rates anymore,” Adityaswara said in an interview in Jakarta on Thursday. “We monitor the external ...

  Bloomberg For Mario Draghi, ‘all talk and no action’ at the European Central Bank may be just fine this week. The ECB president essentially preempted Thursday’s monetary policy decision back in December, when he announced that bond purchases will be extended until at least the end of 2017. With updated inflation forecasts said to be little changed for 2018 ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM The Emirates NBD Dubai Economy Tracker Index (DET) eased slightly to 56.2 in February from the two-year high reached in January, according to new data released today by the lender. The DET in February was higher than the average reading for 2016, signaling an acceleration in economic growth at the start of this year. Output and ...

  Dubai / WAM Nasdaq Dubai and Bourse de Tunis have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore collaboration possibilities, including initiatives regarding existing and future issuers and listings on the two exchanges. Ways to promote Islamic capital markets products and solutions will also be considered under the MoU, together with supporting potential links between central securities depositories in the respective ...

  Dubai / WAM The third edition of the Dubai Canvas Festival concluded following a week-long exhibition of scintillating 3D art created by some of the world’s most innovative exponents of the art form. The public 3D art festival was organised by Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the Government of Dubai Media Office, in partnership with Meraas, one of Dubai’s ...

  Dubai / WAM Emirates and Google are engaging visitors at this year’s Emirates Airline Festival of Literature with innovative on-ground experiences ranging from virtual reality 3D painting tools to an e-book reading lounge. Emirates’ on-ground activations run until March 11 at the InterContinental Hotel, Dubai Festival City. The airline is partnering with Google to feature Google Tilt Brush, a ...

  Dubai / WAM Minister of Infrastructure Development, Dr Abdullah bin Mohammed Belhaif Al Nuaimi on Thursday visited The Sustainable City, region’s first sustainable and integrated project and the first residential project in Dubai that produces clean energy. The tour to the city included a special preview on the first ever complete model of the Sustainable City which will be showcased ...

  Sharjah / WAM As part of its participation at the world’s leading travel trade show, the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) is reinforcing the emirate’s status as one of the Middle East’s leading tourism destinations by promoting four of its most impressive hospitality venues. Under the umbrella of Sharjah Tourism and Commerce Development Authority, Shurooq is attracting interest from ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM Khalifa bin Salem Al Mansouri, Acting Under-Secretary of the Department of Economic Development (DED) in Abu Dhabi, is expecting Abu Dhabi’s economy to achieve a growth rate of between 3.5 to 3.7 percent during the current year, in light of the emirate’s ongoing implementation of large projects, an increase in private sector investments and oil price stability. ...