Thursday 23 October 2014

Rosneft Asks for $49 Billion From State Welfare Fund to Survive Sanctions | News | The Moscow Times

Rosneft Asks for $49 Billion From State Welfare Fund to Survive Sanctions | News | The Moscow Times:



"State-owned oil major Rosneft has requested more than 2 trillion rubles ($49 billion) from one of Russia's oil-revenue-funded, rainy-day reserves to help it weather Western sanctions, Finance Minster Anton Siluanov told news agency RIA Novosti on Wednesday.



The sum amounts to over half the cash stored in Russia's National Welfare Fund, a sovereign wealth fund that was created as a backstop to Russia's pension system and held 3.2 trillion rubles ($83.2 billion) as of Oct. 10.



Major Russian companies and banks have queued up for access to financial aid from the fund in recent months after Western sanctions on Moscow over Ukraine locked them out of overseas capital markets, leaving many with multi-billion-dollar debts to international lenders that they cannot roll over."



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Dubai’s Borrowings from its Biggest Bank Surpass 100 Billion Dirhams - Middle East Real Time - WSJ

Dubai’s Borrowings from its Biggest Bank Surpass 100 Billion Dirhams - Middle East Real Time - WSJ:



"The Dubai government has borrowed more than 100 billion U.A.E. dirhams ($27.24 billion) from Emirates NBD as of the end of the third quarter, according to the bank’s most recent financial statements, underscoring the extent to which the emirate has come to rely on its biggest lender for financing after the global recession.



Emirates NBD, which is majority-owned by the Dubai government through the Investment Corporation of Dubai, has long been disclosing the loans as a related-party transaction in its quarterly financial statements. They have almost tripled since the financial crisis set in at the end of 2008, when the bank reported AED34.8 billion on its books.



The sharp rise shows how Dubai’s government has leaned increasingly on Emirates NBD for financing since the crisis, when many global financial institutions packed up their bags and left amid concerns that the emirate and its over-leveraged companies were on the verge of a debt default. Today, Emirates NBD’s AED102.4 billion worth of loans to Dubai constitute nearly half of its AED213.7 billion of overall loans and receivables."



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Middle Eastern debt issuance plunges 68% to $6.3 billion in Q3 | Economy | Saudi Gazette

Middle Eastern debt issuance plunges 68% to $6.3 billion in Q3 | Economy | Saudi Gazette:



"The value of Middle Eastern  mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity  reached $11.8 billion during the third quarter of 2014, an 18 percent decline from the value registered during the previous quarter, Thomson Reuters/Freeman Consulting said, 60 percent less than the value recorded during the previous quarter.



Nadim Najjar, Managing Director, Middle East & North Africa, Thomson Reuters, said: “Middle Eastern equity and equity-related issuance during the first nine months of 2014 totaled $5.1 billion, a 43 percent increase in activity from the same period in 2013 ($3.6 billion).”



He added: “Middle Eastern debt issuance reached $6.3 billion during the third quarter of 2014, down 68 percent from the record-breaking second quarter total of $19.7 billion.  Boosted by the strong second quarter, bonds issued so far during 2014 increased 5 percent from the same period last year, to $32.8 billion.”"



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Good bargains in UAE equities as market stabilises | GulfNews.com

Good bargains in UAE equities as market stabilises | GulfNews.com:



"The Dubai index, which shed about 14 per cent last week, has thrown up good bargains in select sectors, even as markets stabilise.



On Wednesday, the Dubai Financial Market General Index rose as much as 2.8 per cent before ending 2.34 per cent higher to be at 4,545.91. That adds to previous session’s 1.5 per cent gains.



“We expect market to stabilise. There are good bargains to buy in the market and the volatility should ease a bit,” said Sebastien Henin, head of asset management at The National Investor."



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Dubai index jumps nearly 3 per cent to hit over 1-week high | GulfNews.com

Dubai index jumps nearly 3 per cent to hit over 1-week high | GulfNews.com:



"The Dubai index, which has been fluctuating in recent ranges, jumped as much as 2.8 per cent on Wednesday to hit its highest level in more than a week buoyed by strength in global markets. The Abu Dhabi index also ended higher led by Arkan Building Materials.



The Dubai Financial Market General Index ended 2.34 per cent higher to be at 4,545.91, after hitting a high of 4.568.18. Arabtec, the biggest publicly traded construction in the UAE, jumped 5.70 per cent, while Emaar Properties, which has the highest weightage on the index, ended 1.47 per cent higher.



“They are still taking cues from international markets. The focus will remain on global economies and euro zone’s impact on the global economy,” Marwan Shurrab, fund manager and head of trading at Vision Investments & Holdings said."



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Oil slump could have growth implications for GCC | GulfNews.com

Oil slump could have growth implications for GCC | GulfNews.com:



"Until a few months ago, any suggestion of a potential economic slowdown in GCC region could have been scorned by even the most seasoned economists. But the rapid pace at which oil price are falling have prompted some to reconsider their regional outlook.



Oil prices have declined sharply since June on concerns about weaker global growth and increased supply. The Opec reference oil price has declined nearly 23 per cent since its June peak, reaching $85 per barrel.



“Despite progress on economic diversification in the GCC over the last decade, regional budgets remain highly reliant on oil revenues and are thus vulnerable to sustained changes in oil prices,” said Khatija Haque, Head of MENA Research at Emirates NBD."



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Libya OPEC Governor Calls for Output Cut Amid Oil Plunge - Bloomberg

Libya OPEC Governor Calls for Output Cut Amid Oil Plunge - Bloomberg:



"Libya’s OPEC governor called for the group to reduce oil output by at least 500,000 barrels a day as its biggest members discount supplies to defend market share rather than cut production to boost prices.



The market is oversupplied by about 1 million barrels a day, Libya’s Samir Kamal said by e-mail yesterday. His comments reflected personal views, not the official Libyan position, he said. They mark the first time a member nation representative is suggesting how much production needs to be reduced after prices entered a bear market.



Brent crude, a benchmark for more than half of the world’s oil, has tumbled about 25 percent since June, as producers including Saudi Arabia cut export prices to stimulate demand amid the highest U.S. output in almost 30 years. Banks including BNP Paribas SA and Bank of America Corp. predict the price rout may be over, in part because they expect the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to reduce supply."



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