GCC News Roundup – May 20, 2009
News & Views General
|
§ France Telecom’s unit submitted an obligatory tender offer to acquire the entire stake of Egypt based Mobinil. § Saudi Arabia’s capital expenditure on development projects rose 103% y-o-y to SR40.6 Bn during the first quarter of 2009. § Oman and Uzbekistan have set up a joint investment company with a capital of $500 Mn to encourage trade activities between the two countries. § Kuwait’s Zain telecom acquired a majority stake in Palestinian Telecommunications Co. (Paltel) in a share swap deal. The deal gives Zain a 56.5% stake in Paltel. § Orascom Telecom Holding is planning to reduce its capital expenditures in Pakistan and Bangladesh in a move to cut overall operational spending by 10%. § Capital Intelligence downgraded the foreign currency long and short-term ratings of The Investment Dar to ‘D’ (Default) from ‘SD’ (Selective Default) due to its recent default on $100 Mn sukuk. § Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank is planning to launch an Islamic finance company to provide a wide range of Shariah compliant products. § Oman’s state-owned Electricity Holding Co. announced to buyback Dhofar Power Co for an undisclosed sum. § Saudi Arabian Mining Co. announced to go ahead with its plans to build an aluminium smelter as development costs fell 20% to $8 Bn. § Kuwait Finance House finalized a KD115 Mn fund for companies in accordance with the government’s economic stability law. § Industries Qatar received QAR200 Mn in compensation with the government’s cap on steel prices in the local market during 2008. § Emirates Telecommunications is planning to bid for a stake in Morocco’s Medi Telecom and expand into Iran. § UAE-based Dana Gas, the largest private-sector natural gas company in the Middle East, plans to invest about $170 Mn in 2009 to expand in Egypt. § Kuwait is planning to raise its stake in the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and invest in Chinese energy and industrial sectors. § Aramex is planning to make acquisitions in Southeast Asia and Africa over the next two years. The company is mainly focusing to invest in Malaysian and Chinese medium sized companies.
|
Real Estate and Private Equity
§ Drake & Scull International won $61.5 Mn worth Mechanical, Electrical & Plumbing contract for the Kingdom of Sheba development on Palm Jumeirah.
§ Rixima commenced work on an AED700 Mn student accommodation project at Dubai International Academic City.
§ The National Investor plans to invest about AED257.6 Mn on various regional healthcare service sector initiatives. The capital for these businesses is expected between $10 Mn and $15 Mn.
§ Emaar Malls Group and its retailer partners invested AED20 Bn to develop the world’s largest shopping mall, ‘The Dubai Mall’.
§ Zabeel Investments halted its plans to invest $1 Bn in US hotels and prioritise on the completion of its property projects in Dubai.
§ Saudi Oger, which has $7.2 Bn in building contracts under execution, has planned to expand into Bahrain and Oman to diversify its revenues.
§ Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Development Company announced the closing of its third Islamic Sukuk issuance, amounting to SAR750 Mn, which is maturing in 2014.
§ Dubai-based Abraaj Capital is aiming to raise $4 Bn for a new fund to invest in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia.
