Editorial Column
Saudi stock market crash a cause for concern
- The ruin of hundreds of thousands of small shareholders in the Saudi stock market crash is a worrying development. It is financial catastrophe for those involved, and is already impacting on consumer spending. But the authorities now need to tread carefully to minimize the total economic effect of the crash.
- Saudi Arabia: Saturday, May 20 - 2006 at 10:54 |
Can Middle East stock markets recover their strength?
- Shares rallied strongly at the start of the week in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, but were still falling in Kuwait and Doha. So does this mark a bottom for the Middle East stock markets or is there yet more bad news to come for investors?
- Saudi Arabia: Sunday, May 14 - 2006 at 09:23 |
Middle East stock markets tumble, a second Asian Financial Crisis?
- Not since 1998 and the Asian Financial Crisis have Middle East stock markets had a tougher time. Then as now booming markets turned to bust, with huge percentage falls. But at that time oil prices slumped to $10-a-barrel and there was good reason for gloom.
- Saudi Arabia: Sunday, May 07 - 2006 at 18:29 |
Can Dubai make its tourism vision come true?
- The timetable may have slipped from 2010 to 2012 but Dubai is targeting 15 million visitors a year, around three times the current number. Yet as the Arabian Travel Market revs-up nothing seems impossible for the emirate of Dubai with well planned investment in the tourism sector that nowhere in the world can match.
- United Arab Emirates: Thursday, April 27 - 2006 at 09:43 |
Why are Gulf stock prices falling when oil prices are hitting record highs?
- This is the Gulf conundrum of our time. Oil prices are above $75-a-barrel for the first time ever. Yet the Dubai Financial Market is 52% off its peak of late last year, and the Saudi stock index is down 36%, and oil could spike to $100-a-barrel. What is going on?
- United Arab Emirates: Saturday, April 22 - 2006 at 12:02 |
Creating a single GCC currency is good news for Gulf business
- News that the central bankers of the GCC have agreed on the convergence criteria needed to create a single currency by 2010 is a healthy development. Anyone who has to transfer money around the region knows what a headache and expense this represents, and besides there are wider implications of a currency union.
- Saudi Arabia: Thursday, April 06 - 2006 at 10:07 |
Where next for regional stock markets?
- The big corrections of this year have been followed by a modest rally in share prices. But many investors have burned their fingers badly, and market volumes are down. So expecting a quick return to the good times might appear over optimistic.
- Saudi Arabia: Thursday, March 30 - 2006 at 11:31 |
IPOs in the UAE: surely there has to be a better way!
- The initial public offerings for a second UAE telecom operator called Du, and the Tamweel mortgage company resulted in massive oversubscriptions. More than the GDP of the country, $184 billion, chased these two IPOs which drained liquidity and crashed the local stock market. Does it have to work this way?
- United Arab Emirates: Tuesday, March 21 - 2006 at 09:11 |
Web Feeds