Economics
Brent crude rose above $111 per barrel on Tuesday as optimism coursed through financial markets after Greece's international lenders reached a deal on a new debt target, although worries about a looming US fiscal crisis kept a lid on gains.
Gold traded in a tight range above $1,748 an ounce on Tuesday, as traders moved to the sidelines after initially pushing up bullion by almost US$3 following a deal among Greece's international lenders to cut the country's long-term debt.
Dubai’s economy expanded 4.1 per cent from a year earlier in the first half of this year, official data showed on Monday, indicating the Gulf’s main trade and financial hub is holding up well in a weak global environment.
Qatar's sovereign wealth fund sold the last of the warrants it owns in Barclays on Monday, notching up a gain of more than £1.7bn ($2.7bn) from the controversial fundraising deal it struck with the bank four years ago.
A large-scale public sector strike is expected across Lebanon on Tuesday organized by the Union Coordination Committee in protest against the government’s delay in finalizing the pay hike.
Companies
US private equity firm TPG has acquired truck and trailer parts distributor FleetPride from Bahrain's alternative asset manager Investcorp for over US$1bn, Investcorp said in a statement on Tuesday.
Phase one of Dubai’s newly approved AED10bn (US2.7bn) entertainment and leisure development, which will include five theme parks based on movies and characters from Hollywood and Bollywood movies, will be completed in 2014, it has been confirmed.
A quarter of the UAE hotel projects in the pipeline have been put on hold, while 54 per cent will be developed, according to a new study by property consultants Christie and Co.
Dubai Group, part of the ruler of Dubai's personal empire, has cut half its staff of about 30 people as part of cost-cutting measures in its $10 billion restructuring, three sources told Reuters on Monday.
A consortium including Samsung Engineering and Shanghai Electric have won an SR11.3bn ($3bn) deal to build a water desalination plant on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia.
