Latest news
Zawya: Middle East injects US$180 billion into 113 new power, water, energy projects
Middle East Electricity shines spotlight on booming energy sector; UAE forges ahead with power, water, energy projects worth US$34.2 billion. New power, water, and energy projects valued at US$180 billion are underway or at the planning stages in the Middle East, as the UAE forges ahead with 20 projects worth US$34.2 billion. Read the full article here.
Zawya: QNB projected to grow by 10 percent this year
Qatar National Bank (QNB) is projected to grow by 10 percent in the year 2012. The country’s fast growing economy and huge projects in the pipeline would be the growth drivers, H E Yousuf Hussein Kamal, the Minister of Finance and Economy, has said. The Minister, who is also the chairman of the country’s lead bank, was talking to the media on the sidelines of QNB Group ordinary and extra-ordinary…
Qatar profiled on famous “60 Minutes” programme
On Sundays CBS News runs a world-famous programme called “60 Minutes” that is watched by 14-15 million people. On January 15th, 2012 it had a 13 minute programme on Qatar and the Middle-East in general. It talked about Arab spring, Qatar’s current developments and its future prospects, had interviews with Qatar’s leaders, discussed the role of Al-Jazeera in the Middle-East etc. During the programme the host of the show comes to a conclusion about Qatar that: “This is…
Zawya: Region sits on gold mine of untapped solar energy
Abu Dhabi: The Gulf region has been blessed with an energy surplus for perpetuity due to its abundance of solar energy, the most technically viable source of renewable energy at present, a leading climate change expert said. Read the full article here.
Zawya: IMF Has Asked GCC States To Boost Contributions
The oil-rich Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC, states have been approached by the International Monetary Fund to increase their financial contributions as the fund seeks to boost its resource base by an extra $500 billion to $600 billion to help battle the euro-zone debt crisis, Oman’s central bank governor said Thursday. Read the whole article here.
EFG-Hermes MENA Economics Note – Saudi Arabia: Record Oil Production in December
• Record Saudi Oil Production in December 2011 Saudi oil production rose to 10 million barrels per day (bpd) in December 2011, according to EIA-released data. This was the highest level in three decades and lifted average 2011 oil production to 9.4 million bpd. The increase came despite a further rise in Libyan oil output in December. We see the higher Saudi oil output as being aimed at stabilising the…
The fund’s NAV up by +0.6 percent in December
In December LHV Persian Gulf Fund gained +0.6% and for the whole 2011 the fund’s performance was -2.3%. Despite the fact that in 2011 GCC-countries showed strong economic growth and companies increased their profits, we witnessed stock prices moving sideways. As a result the valuations of the investments that we’ve made in LHV Persian Gulf Fund have become even more attractive. In addition to inexpensive valuations our investments also offer strong dividend yields. For example expected dividend yields…
LHV Persian Gulf Fund made its first investments to Saudi Arabia
Last week LHV Persian Gulf Fund made its first investments to Saudi Arabia, a state with one of the world’s largest oil reserves. According to the central bank of Saudi Arabia, in 2011 the real GDP growth will be +5.1% and the budget surplus 9.1% of GDP. Until now LHV Persian Gulf Fund had investments in Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman and Kuwait, who are all Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member…
The fund’s NAV declined by -1.04 percent in November – Morningstar upgrades the fund to four stars
The fund’s NAV declined by -1.04 percent in November. Despite the fact that this year we’ve seen very difficult times on global financial markets in general, LHV Persian Gulf Fund has on the contrary to many other global stock markets managed to escape from big losses and has mainly moved sideways. The investments in the fund portfolio are in our opinion very attractive – the average P/E on our investments…
Zawya: Qatar Sells $5 Billion 3-Tranche Bond Into Heavy Demand -Source
Qatar sold a $5 billion, three-tranche bond Tuesday, meeting strong demand, according to a person familiar with the deal. The bond issue, which was composed of five-year, 10-year and 30-year maturities, met heavy investor demand, with orders totaling about $9.5 billion, that person said. Read the full article in Zawya.
