Private equity investment spree expected
The Middle East’s private equity funds, which have long lagged behind their global peers, have built up at least $5bn in capital ready to invest in new opportunities, industry leaders…
Opec warns of risks facing oil demand
Opec warned of uncertainties overshadowing demand for oil, as member states gathered in Vienna for a meeting to discuss production quotas amid a sharp fall in oil prices. Abdalla El-Badri,…
Opec’s price hawks press Saudis on output
A year ago, Opec delegates held what Ali Naimi, the veteran Saudi oil minister, described as “one of the worst meetings we have ever had”. The signs are that the…
Syria savagery suggests regime in despair
If any further proof were needed about the nature of the regime headed by Bashar al-Assad, the horror of the recent and continuing massacres in Syria provides it. Of the…
Saudi Arabi set to clash with Opec over output
Saudi Arabia is on course for a showdown with fellow Opec members at this week’s meeting of the global oil cartel, after it called for a higher output target despite…
Sabic’s ambitions reveal shrewd moves
It is one of the world’s biggest companies, and one of the Gulf’s few global corporate players. But few users of products made by Saudi Arabian Basic Industries Company would…
Dubai court to wind up US law firm
A Dubai court will next week issue a winding-up order on the law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf’s operations in the United Arab Emirates as former staff in the Gulf seek…
Jordan picks easyJet as Olympics carrier
Jordan has become the first country to make a budget airline its official Olympic Games carrier, with the announcement on Monday that easyJet will fly its athletes and support staff…
Development to transform UK distribution
According to its satellite navigation display screen, the Land Rover in which the Financial Times is travelling has left dry land behind and is now deeply immersed in the waters…
IAEA’s nuclear talks with Iran stall
The International Atomic Energy Agency declared on Friday that its negotiations with Iran over Tehran’s nuclear programme had stalled badly, a development that the UN agency described as “disappointing.” Amid…
Energy: Exposed on both flanks
©Reuters Steep climb ahead: Bob Dudley, chief executive, must prove to investors he can streamline BP One of Britain’s few remaining global industrial champions, BP, is fighting on two fronts.…
EFG-Hermes faces own Arab spring
It has been a difficult 12 months for EFG-Hermes, the leading Middle East investment bank, which now finds itself in the teeth of a financial storm as the subject of…
Barak admits Israel’s cyberwar activity
Israel needs to play a more active role in cyber warfare and is developing both offensive and defensive capabilities, Ehud Barak, the defence minister, said on Wednesday. Mr Barak’s statement,…
Sawiris backs out in bid for EFG-Hermes
Naguib Sawiris, the Egyptian telecommunications mogul, has decided against joining a consortium of investors attempting to take over EFG-Hermes , the Middle East investment bank. Mona Zulficar, chairwoman of EFG-Hermes…
Qtel takes majority holding in Asiacell
Qtel, Qatar’s state telecommunications company, is set to become the majority shareholder in Asiacell, the Iraqi mobile operator that is preparing for its initial public offering in Baghdad. Qtel has…