North Africa

UAE energy giant ADNOC will use extremely autonomous agentic expert system in the energy industry for the first time, in collaboration with G42, Microsoft and AIQ, its CEO Sultan Al Jaber said on Monday at a market event in Abu Dhabi. The UAE, a rich oil manufacturer and longtime security partner of the U.S., is expecting greater access to American technology to develop its own advanced tech market. The push is led by the government-backed G42, which in April got a $1.5 billion investment from Microsoft , which intends to diversify the UAE's economy away from oil. The rapid development...

Major stock exchange in the Gulf were mixed in early trade on Tuesday on weakening oil even as stress intensified in the area and as financiers braced for thirdquarter incomes. Saudi Arabia's benchmark index dropped 0.1%, struck by a 0.9% fall in ACWA Power and a 0.6% fall in the nation's most significant loan provider, Saudi National Bank. Somewhere else, oil giant Saudi Aramco relieved 0.4%. Oil costs - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - slid as much as $3 to a near two-week low throughout Asian trade on the back of a weaker demand outlook and after...

Most stock exchange in the Gulf were subdued in early trade on Wednesday with dispute in the Middle East the most pressing concern, although the Qatari index was buoyed by Qatar National Bank. An escalation of fighting in Lebanon and the ongoing one-year-old war in between Israel and Hamas in Gaza has actually raised fears of a wider Middle East conflict. The decline in Gulf markets started after Iran launched a. missile barrage on Israel on Oct. 1. Israel has actually sworn to. strike back and is weighing its alternatives, with Iran's oil. centers considered a possible target. Saudi Arabia's...

Libya was preparing to reboot oil production that has actually been shut considering that late of August after a contract on a brand-new head of the central bank was reached, 2 oilfield engineers informed Reuters on Tuesday. We are now awaiting orders from the Corporation (the. state oil company) to resume production at its typical levels after. a month-long stoppage, stated an engineer from the Jalu 59. oilfield. An engineer from the Elfeel oilfield stated they took. benefit of the almost one-month closure to perform. maintenance. National production and export operations were dropped in. August when the parallel government in...

Abu Dhabi's economy grew 4.1% in the second quarter of 2024, according to preliminary government price quotes, driven by nonoil sectors as the citystate accelerates efforts to diversify away from hydrocarbons. The United Arab Emirates capital's gross domestic product (GDP) in Q2 reached 297 billion dirhams ($ 80.87. billion), according to the government stats centre, and the. contribution of non-oil sectors stood at over 55%, the highest. in about ten years, at 164.2 billion dirhams. Non-oil GDP rose 6.6% in Q2, significantly outshining. in general GDP growth, led by increases in construction,. production, and finance and insurance coverage activities. The...

Libya's easternbased parliament agreed on Monday to authorize the election of Naji Mohamed Issa Belqasem as governor of the reserve bank, in a move that might assist end a crisis which has actually slashed the nation's oil output. In a telecasted session, your house of Representatives (HoR). also approved Mari Muftah Rahil Barrasi as his deputy. The approvals might get rid of the primary political barrier to. resolving a crisis over control of the Reserve bank of Libya (CBL). and oil revenues that has greatly reduced Libya's oil production. and exports. Belqasem was previously the central bank's director of. banking...

The majority of significant stock markets in the Gulf climbed in early trade on Thursday, in line with Asian shares, supported by news of aggressive financial stimulus from China, although geopolitical stress in the area restricted the benefit. China's central bank on Tuesday unveiled its biggest stimulus considering that the pandemic to pull the economy out of its deflationary funk and back towards the government's growth target. Driving the optimism was a main readout from a meeting of China's politburo that said the country would deploy necessary fiscal costs to fulfill this year's economic development target of roughly 5%. Saudi...

Major stock markets in the Gulf increased in early Thursday trade after a lot of reserve banks in the region cut their essential interest rates following a larger than typical policy easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The Fed cut its benchmark rate by 50 basis points (bps) on Wednesday, with policymakers seeing another half a portion point fall by the end of this year. Saudi Arabia's benchmark index acquired 0.4%, with Al . Rajhi Bank rising 1.1%. The kingdom, the area's greatest economy, cut its. redeemed arrangement (Repo) rate and reverse repo rate by 50 bps. each to 5.5%...

Libya's reserve bank, at the centre of a weekslong crisis that has actually slashed oil output, stays cut off from the global monetary system, its seasoned governor who was removed by political factions in a. objected to relocation informed Reuters on Thursday. Sadiq al-Kabir, speaking from self-imposed exile in. Istanbul, stated the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) board designated. by western Libyan factions to change him controls the country's. internal payments system however foreign banks are not handling. it. All worldwide banks that we deal with, more than 30. significant international organizations, have suspended all. deals, he said, adding that...

Libya's central bank, at the centre of a weekslong crisis that has actually slashed oil output, stays cut off from the international monetary system, its experienced governor who was removed by political factions in a. objected to relocation informed Reuters on Thursday. Sadiq al-Kabir, speaking from self-imposed exile in. Istanbul, stated the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) board appointed. by western Libyan factions to replace him manages the country's. internal payments system but foreign banks are not handling. it. All global banks that we handle, more than 30. significant global organizations, have suspended all. deals, he stated, including that he...

Algerian authorities declared President Abdulmadjid Tebboune the frustrating winner of Saturday's election on Sunday, however a rival prospect declared abnormalities in the count and fewer than half of signed up voters cast ballots. Official initial results offered Tebboune 95% of the vote, enough to avoid a second round run-off, with Abdelaali Hassani Cherif getting 3% and Youcef Aouchiche 2%. Turnout was 48%. Tebboune, backed by the military, was facing just nominal opposition from Hassani Cherif, a moderate Islamist, and Aouchiche, a moderate secularist, both keeping up the true blessing of Algeria's powerful facility. Hassani Cherif's campaign stated ballot station officials...

A candidate in Algeria's. presidential election has actually declared irregularities in the vote. count, with outcomes due later on Sunday expected to offer. President Abdulmadjid Tebboune a second term in office. Saturday's election drew little enthusiasm from voters, with. initial turnout figures of 48% in the contest in between. Tebboune and Abdelaali Hassani Cherif, a moderate Islamist, and. Youcef Aouchiche, a secularist. Hassani Cherif's project said ballot station authorities had. been pushed to inflate outcomes and declared failures to. deliver vote-sorting records to prospects' agents, as. well as instances of proxy group ballot. It did not say whether it believed...

Hassana, the investment arm of Saudi Arabia's primary pension fund, is considering ending up being an anchor financier in Brookfield's new $2 billion Middle East fund, it stated on Thursday. That would bring Hassana on board with the kingdom's PIF sovereign wealth fund, which revealed on Wednesday that it had entered a non-binding contract to become an anchor investor in the Brookfield Middle East Partners fund. Hassana might assign approximately $500 million to the fund, in addition to Brookfield's own $500 million dedication, the statement said. PIF had actually not disclosed the size of its capacity support. The Brookfield fund...

The majority of major stock exchange in the Gulf increased in early trade on Thursday, buoyed by wish for a potential ceasefire offer in between Israel and Hezbollah. Lebanon's prime minister revealed hope on Wednesday that a. ceasefire handle Israel would be announced within days as. Israel's public broadcaster published what it said was a draft. arrangement offering a preliminary 60-day truce. The push for a ceasefire for Lebanon is taking place. alongside a similar diplomatic drive to end hostilities in Gaza. Saudi Arabia's benchmark stock index acquired 0.2%,. with ACWA Power Company advancing 3.9% and aluminium. products maker Al...

Spanish steel maker Sidenor sent out a letter stating it was considering a tender offer for part or all the shares of train maker Talgo, the latter said late on Wednesday in a filing to the stock exchange regulator. Talgo did not say whether Sidenor divulged the stake it intends to buy or at what rate. Independently owned Sidenor is headquartered in the Basque Nation and runs numerous steel mills in northern Spain. Sidenor's move comes two months after Hungarian consortium Ganz-Mavag last month withdrew a previous tender offer for the Spanish train maker following the Spanish government's veto on...

Significant stock markets in the Gulf were combined in early trade on Thursday in the background of simmering geopolitical tensions in the region and ahead of a U.S. inflation report. Israel's armed force stated it had gotten rid of a Hezbollah member in Syria who passed on intelligence versus Israel in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, while Syrian media reported on Thursday that Israeli airstrikes struck targets in Syria. Israel has actually intensified its retaliation for the Hamas attack, sending soldiers into Lebanon and airstrikes into Iran, Yemen and Syria in the hunt for Iran-backed militants, raising fears of a. broader...

Major stock exchange in the Gulf increased in early trade on Monday amid expectations of a U.S. interest rate cut this week, with the Saudi index on course to acquire for a. 3rd session. The Fed's two-day financial policy meeting beginning on. Tuesday will take centre stage for the week. Expectations are. for the reserve bank to kick-start a relieving cycle, providing. space for local central banks to think about cutting rates. Markets are pricing in a 59% opportunity of a 50 basis points. ( bps) cut, with a 41% possibility of a 25 bps cut, CME FedWatch. tool revealed....

Significant stock exchange in the Gulf increased in early trade on Thursday after U.S. inflation data paved the method for a Federal Reserve rate cut next week, while traders waited for more financial data from the United States. The U.S. consumer price index increased 0.2% in August, but underlying inflation showed some stickiness, which might result in the Fed providing a smaller 25-basis-point cut at its upcoming conference. Fed policymakers will likely start long-awaited rate cuts next week as they look for to reduce the chance of an economic crisis even as stubborn underlying cost pressures put them off more...

The Biden administration on Wednesday notified the U.S. Congress that it will provide Egypt with $1.3 billion in military help, a State Department representative stated, the first time considering that 2020 Egypt will get the overall quantity of U.S. funding despite human rights conditions. The statement comes as Washington has actually relied heavily on Cairo - a longstanding U.S. ally - to moderate up until now unsuccessful talks in between Israel and Hamas on a ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza. Of the $1.3 billion in U.S. foreign military funding designated to Egypt, $320 million goes through conditions...

AngloGold Ashanti will purchase Egyptfocused smaller rival Centamin in a $2.5 billion stock and money deal, the business stated on Tuesday, as the U.Slisted worldwide miner expands its operations in Africa. Under the terms of the deal, Centamin investors will receive 0.06983 new AngloGold Ashanti shares for each Centamin share and $0.125 in cash. The implied 163 cent per share deal represents a premium of 36.7% to Centamin's Monday closing price of 120 cent, the companies said in a declaration. The acquisition accompanies a flurry of deal activity in the gold mining sector over the previous couple of years, with...

Tunisia's electoral commission on Monday declined a court judgment restoring 3 governmental candidates and cops jailed another candidate in what opposition critics stated was another example of President Kais Saied stifling competition. Defying the greatest judicial body, the commission approved only the candidateships of Saied and two others, Zouhair Magzhaoui and Ayachi Zammel, for the Oct. 6 governmental election. The commission is the only body constitutionally entrusted with the integrity of election, Farouk Bouasker the head of electoral commission stated. Previously on Monday, authorities detained Zammel, a member of his project told Reuters. The campaign member said the arrest appeared...

Major stock exchange in the Gulf rose in early trade on Monday as investor belief stayed upbeat on hopes of a September rate cut in the United States. The Federal Reserve is anticipated to begin a rate-cutting cycle at its monetary policy conference on Sept. 17-18. Traders presently see a 67% opportunity of a 25 basis-point (bp). decrease by the U.S central bank this month and a 33% opportunity of. a 50-bp cut, according to the CME FedWatch tool. Financiers await the U.S. ISM production and services. prints, in addition to the JOLTS task openings, ADP private payrolls. and the...

Significant stock markets in the Gulf fell in early trade on Thursday due to increasing geopolitical stress in the region, while financiers await U.S. weekly unemployed claims information to evaluate the health of the labour market. In the Middle East, combating continued in the Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas militants, without any indications yet of a. concrete development in ceasefire talks in Cairo. More than 40,500 Palestinians have been eliminated in the war,. according to Gaza's health ministry. The congested enclave has. been laid to squander. The majority of its 2.3 million individuals have actually been. displaced numerous times...

China will enforce export limitations on antimony and associated components in the name of nationwide security, its commerce ministry said on Thursday, Beijing's. latest move to limit deliveries of important minerals in which. it is the dominant provider. China accounted last year for 48% of worldwide mined output of. antimony, a strategic metal utilized in military applications such. as ammunition, infrared missiles, nuclear weapons and night. vision safety glasses, as well as in batteries and photovoltaic. devices. The constraints are being enforced in order to protect. national security and interests, and meet international. commitments such as non-proliferation, the ministry stated...