Middle East ETF News Older than One Year
Bahrain Bourse closes even
May 31, 2011--The Bahrain Bourse ended flat at 1,346.66 points on Tuesday. Islamic investment bank Gulf Finance House (GFH) closed flat at $0.125. Earlier in the day GFH reported a profit for the first quarter of $11.93m
compared to a loss of $7.5m in the same period of 2010.
Source: AME Info
Yemen conflict costs economy $5bn - trade minister
May 31, 2011--Yemen's trade minister has said the political crisis has cost the economy as much as $5bn and that immediate aid is needed to prevent a
meltdown, Reuters has reported. "We have reports that the losses range between four to five billion dollars," Hisham Sharaf Abdalla told the news service. "The economy should not be held hostage to the political crisis, because the situation is alarming.
Source: AME Info
DGCX Weekly Market Comentary -May 29, 2011
May 29, 2011-Economic Data Overview
Monday is a holiday in the US but the remaining four days are packed with economic data. There won't be much to distract from the upcoming May data on employment and payrolls, but the numbers will round out what is known about conditions in the second quarter to-date. The median estimate for May non-farm payrolls is around up 200,000. This is roughly between the performance for the first quarter average (+175,000 a month) and the April increase (+244,000).
The expectation for the unemployment rate is at 8.9%, down one-tenth from April. The outlook for the labour market remains on a sustained path of modest improvement. The May report on Friday should confirm this. Leading up to the employment data will be a few other labour market indicators, the most important of which is likely to be the ADP National Employment Report on Wednesday. The readings for the last three months have shown a fairly good correspondence to the actual payroll data. If the May numbers point to another steady rise, it will confirm expectations for the Friday BLS data. Also on Wednesday, the Challenger report on layoff intentions in May should offer some evidence about the health of the labour market. Layoff activity has been quite low in recent months, and should remain so for now. While job growth remains sluggish, job losses have stabilized. Initial jobless claims on Thursday could well remain elevated. Severe weather has plagued the Midwest with widespread flooding and a series of tornados that caused pockets of destruction. It may take a few weeks for the full extent of impact on new filings to be seen.
The ISM will release its indexes for manufacturing and non-manufacturing on Wednesday and Friday, respectively. Regional data suggests that there has been some slowing in the factory sector in May, in part related to shortages in the supply chain and also due to severe weather conditions that have hindered deliveries. Services are likely to feel the pinch less, but consumers and business have been expressing less confidence, and therefore are likely to limit demand in the non-manufacturing sector. However, expansion should continue in new orders, and employment to make modest gains. Other indicators for manufacturing and services scheduled for release during the week are...
Source: DGCX
IMF Note on Economic Transformation in MENA: Delivering on the Promise of Shared Prosperity
May 27, 2011--Executive Summary
The spark ignited by the death of Mohammed Bouazizi has irretrievably changed the future course of the countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). But each country will change in its own way and at its own speed. Nor will they necessarily have a common political or economic model when they reach their destination.
The response to the recent popular protests in the MENA clearly entails a political dimension. But social and political stability will only be assured if the region creates 50–75 million jobs over the next decade for the people joining the labor force and to reduce unemployment, and if the economic model is seen as fair and inclusive.
Incremental changes in economic management will not deliver this outcome. A substantial increase in the pace of economic growth is needed, which calls for policies that support an enabling environment for the private sector. Change must also build on successes and achievements. In particular, the region’s hard-won gains in macroeconomic stability need to be preserved during the coming period of structural transformation. To secure wide support among all stakeholders, growth strategies also need to deliver broadly shared gains to overcome skepticism grounded in past experiences where “reforms” were seen as imposed from above to benefit a privileged few.
view the IMF Note on Economic Transformation in MENA: Delivering on the Promise of Shared Prosperity
Source: IMF
"No major impact on Islamic finance due to Arab Spring"
May 26, 2011--The Islamic Finance industry does not suffer major setbacks due to the political turmoil the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) goes throuh, sayd John H. Vogel, senior corporate and finance partner at the international law firm Patton Boggs LLP, based in Washington D. C. Speaking at the Luxembourg Financial Forum 2011,
Vogel, an legal expert in Islamic finance, added that the industsy has grown globally to $1.2tr, and that growth in the GCC, Southeast Asia and Europe mitigates possible setbacks in the MENA region. "The range in Shari'ah finance is so broadm regionally and in relation to products, that its annual growth rate of 15% is not in danger," Vogel concluded.
Source: AME Info
Kuwaiti banks lift stock market
May 26, 2011--The KSE Market Index ended 0.07% higher at 6,374.10 points on Thursday.
Al-Ahili Bank of Kuwait jumped three percent to reach KD0.680. National Bank of Kuwait, the largest lender in the country, closed flat at KD1.220. Gulf Franchising Holding lost the most (down 10.87% at KD0.0205.
Source: AME Info
Qatar bourse ends series of losses
May 26, 2011--The Qatar Exchange Index posted the first gain this week (up 0.71% at 8,400 points) as bargain hunters entered the scene.
Doha Bank closed 1.08% higher at QR51.60. Vodafone Qatar failed to join the rebound and finished off 0.63% at QR7.90.
Source: AME Info
Abu Dhabi market dips insignificantly
May 26, 2011--The ADX General Index closed 0.08% lower at 2,598.23 points.
Aldar Properties bucked the trend and gained 0.75% to close at Dhs1.34 after Abu Dhabi's first real estate developer said it need no further financial suport from the government. RAK Ceramics lost the most, ending 7.84% to Dhs.92.
Source: AME Info
GCC Corporate Earnings - 1Q11 -Earnings surge by 19% backed by Kuwait & Saudi-Markaz Report
May 25, 2011--As of third week of May 2011, we have 96% visibility in terms of market cap and 78% visibility in terms of number of companies to measure the performance of GCC corporate earnings.
Qatar enjoys nearly 100% market capitalization visibility, closely followed by Saudi Arabia with 99% visibility. Bahrain’s visibility at 70% is the lowest in GCC region.
view report-GCC Corporate Earnings-Q1-2011-Earnings surge by 19% backed by Kuwait & Saudi
Source: Kuwait Financial Centre "Markaz"
Tadawul bourse stays firm, despite regional index losses
May 25, 2011--The Tadawul market in Riyadh gained 0.19% to reach 6,723.64 points
It was the only gaining index in the GCC on Wednesday. Jouf Cement was the most liquid sharea and the top gainer on Wednesday (up 7.35% at SR16.80). Building companies benefit form a planned spending spree amounting to SR130bn HH Saudi King Abdullah, Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques, announced in mid-March. The budget is aimed to build schools, hospitals, roads and to create jobs for young Saudi nationals. Over the week, the Tadawul market added 0.56%. The market will remain closed on Thursday, marking the first day of the Saudi holiday but a debate about shifting the weekend to Friday and Saturday has received momentum this week.
Source: AME Info
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