FRENETIC SELLING | Page 2 Alibaba probe stirs global worry, $200bn China tech rout

Tuesday, December 29, 2020 Jumada I 14, 1442 AH

OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION : Page 8 GULF TIMES Ooredoo’s chief strategy offi cer wins top accolade BUSINESS at WeQual Awards 2020 Fitch affirms Commercial Bank rating at ‘A’ with stable outlook

Qatar is seen Fitch Ratings has, once again, aff irmed improving operational eff iciency, and Commercial Bank’s unchanged long-term issuer strengthening risk controls and oversight of default rating at “A” with a stable outlook. international operations. The rating is driven by an “extremely high Commercial Bank CEO Group Joseph Abraham probability” of support from the Qatari said, “Given the challenges imposed by Covid-19, authorities, and reflects Qatar’s strong ability to the aff irmation of Commercial Bank’s stable support domestic banks, Fitch said. outlook is a very positive outcome. It is mainly Commercial Bank’s strong commercial banking due to the prudent economic management by top destination franchise is underpinned by established public the government of Qatar as well as our financial and private corporate relationships. strength and commitment to our strategy According to Fitch, Commercial Bank has established in 2016.” With Fitch’s rating in place, succeeded in executing its turnaround strategy Commercial Bank currently enjoys strong credit that began in 2016 by strengthening its core ratings from all the major agencies. The bank’s capitalisation, reducing its concentration in long-term outlook is rated A3 by Moody’s, and real estate and contracting and increasing BBB+ by Standard & Poor’s. All ratings come for many global government and public sector exposure, with a stable outlook. business players QLM set to complete

By Peter Alagos Business Reporter listing procedures ith its robust investment climate, Qatar is seen as a key destination Wfor major international businesses seeking to expand their footprint abroad, an in early January offi cial of hypermarket giant LuLu has said. According to Dr Mohamed Althaf, director of LuLu Hypermarket, the company is ex- aving successfully panding its infrastructure and “deepening its completed the initial relationship” with Qatar, which he described Hpublic off ering (IPO), as “a very good market for us now.” QLM Medical and Life Insur- Althaf said LuLu is adding more hyper- ance Company is all set to markets to its roster of stores in Qatar, with complete the listing proce- at least four expected to open in 2021. He said dures in early January 2021, ac- LuLu is also building food security ware- cording to the top offi cial of the houses, as well as a “deep storage” facility in Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE). Al Wukair for its logistics and storage needs. “The IPO of QLM has been “At the same time, our online and cyber successfully completed and we presence is also expanding. We are now in look forward to completing the the process of setting up the fi rst ‘fulfi lment rest of the listing procedures centre’ exclusively for e-commerce, so that by the company in early Janu- at least all the items will be delivered without ary 2021,” QSE chief executive any disruption,” said Althaf. Rashid bin Ali al-Mansoori Althaf also said LuLu has been working tweeted yesterday. with at least 40 companies in Qatar to local- QLM’s conversion into a ise its private label production. This, he said, public shareholding company would allow for the manufacture of aff ord- is expected to be completed by able products that would benefi t consumers tomorrow and the fi rst con- in the country. stituent general assembly has QSE chief executive Rashid bin Ali al-Mansoori. LuLu’s partnership with the Italian Embas- been scheduled for tomorrow sy in Doha and the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) Dr Mohamed Althaf, director, LuLu Hypermarket. (December 30). investment diversifi cation, capitalisation of QR1.1bn. The has been instrumental in bringing in high- QLM, a subsidiary of Qatar deepening the market, and at- inclusion of new companies quality, yet, aff ordable Italian products into Althaf said the partnership with both the ised farm co-operatives, so we work directly Insurance Group, had early this tracting more local and foreign contributes to stimulating trad- the country, said Althaf, who added that its embassy and ITA also gives LuLu the oppor- with them. month tapped the market with investments,” he had said. ing and enhancing investors’ export hub in Milan, Italy is on track and is ex- tunity to work directly with Italian farmers “Because of the partnership, these compa- a 60% IPO at QR3.15 a piece to QLM, which has 350mn confi dence as well as liquidity pected to operate by the fi rst quarter of 2021. co-operative, Coldiretti, which is the leading nies become fi rst time exporters out of Italy raise as much as QR659.4mn. shares, had off ered 210mn in the QSE, which has become a “Due to the aggressive lockdowns in Eu- Italian organisation of cultivators represent- because majority of them are small farms, so Al-Mansoori had said the shares to the public through well-established fi nancial mar- rope, we have pushed our opening of the fa- ing half-million Italian farmers. what we do is procure their products and lo- listing of QLM is an “important the IPO in twin tranches. The ket, according to al-Mansoori. cility in Milan to next year. Hopefully by April “We have a very special predilection with calise them. We meet all the local legislations addition” that will give more subscription had concluded At present, the QSE has 47 or May, before the next Ramadan, we should the Italian Trade Agency…Italy has got some and regulatory requirements needed and depth to the market. on December 23. The IPO cor- listed constituents, including be in operation,” Althaf said. of the most well-managed and most organ- make them export ready,” Althaf said. “It will act as a gateway for responds to a total market fi ve in the insurance sector.

Qatar trade surplus jumps more than 28% in November: PSA

By Santhosh V Perumal non-crude soared 168% to QR1.38bn, and 22.1% decline month-on-month Business Reporter crude by 20% to QR2.51bn and and year-on-year respectively in the other non-specified commodities by review period. 0.6% to QR2.2bn; whereas those of In November 2020, imports from More-than-doubled exports of non- petroleum gases and other gaseous China stood at QR1.15bn, which ac- crude and a double-digit growth in hydrocarbons fell 2.1% to QR9.53bn counted for 15% of the total imports shipments of crude led Qatar’s trade in November 2020. in the country; the US QR1.04bn surplus to jump more than 28% The exports of petroleum gases and (14%); India QR0.49bn (7%); to QR9.06bn in November 2020 other gaseous hydrocarbons tanked Italy QR0.45bn (6%) and Germany compared to October this year, ac- 32.2% year-on-year and crude QR0.41bn (6%). cording to off icial statistics. by 41%; while those of non-crude On a monthly basis, the country’s The country’s merchandise trade swelled 29.6% and other non-speci- imports from the US soared 62.65%, surplus, however, witnessed a 27.4% fied commodities by 0.5%. India by 16.99%, the UK by 8% and fall year-on-year this November, Petroleum gases constituted 61% of Germany by 6.9%; while those from according to figures released by the the exports of domestic products China shrank 36.29% in the review Planning and Statistics Authority compared to 65% a year ago period, period. (PSA). crude 16% (20%), non-crude 9% (5%) On a yearly basis, Qatar’s imports The Asian region accounted for and other commodities 14% (16%). from China declined 16.33%, the US more than 65% of Qatar’s exports In November this year, Qatar’s by 14.49% and Germany by 4.84%; with Japan, China and South Korea shipments to Japan amounted to even as those from Italy and India occupying the first three slots; while QR2.98bn or 18% of the total ex- grew 13.92% and 1.04% respectively the imports came from diversified ports; China QR2.73bn (17%); South in the review period. geographies. Korea QR2.3bn (14%); India QR1.95bn In November this year, imports of In November 2020, total exports of (12%) and Singapore QR0.87bn (5%). turbojets and turbojet propellers goods (including exports of goods On a monthly basis, Qatar’s exports were valued at QR0.42bn; motor of domestic origin and re-exports) to Japan surged 31.28%, China cars and other vehicles for transport were QR16.6bn, showing more than 20.26%, South Korea 15.58% and at QR0.3bn; parts of aeroplanes 8% surge on a monthly basis but Singapore 2.6%; while India declined to Singapore witnessed a 51.83% India by 12.56% in November 2020. which shot up 23.3% and 63% on Qatar’s total imports (valued at cost or helicopters at QR0.19bn; and declined 25.1% on yearly basis. 23.53% in the review period. plunge, Japan by 36.73%, South Ko- The country’s re-exports amounted monthly and yearly basis respec- insurance and freight) amounted other non-specified commodities at On a monthly basis, the exports of On a yearly basis, Qatar’s exports rea by 28.79%, China by 18.09% and to QR0.99bn in November 2020, tively. to QR7.54bn, which showed 8.9% QR6.63bn. Gulf Times 2 Tuesday, December 29, 2020 BUSINESS

Bloomberg QuickTake Q&A Dissecting China’s crackdown on its Internet giants

By Bloomberg News off the value of market leaders including Tencent consumer market. In manufacturing, it intervened work for curbing potentially anti-competitive be- the present scrutiny is shaping up to become one Hong Kong and Alibaba over two days. directly many times to reach the point where much haviour such as forced exclusivity deals, algorithm- of the largest concerted actions against private 2. Why the move now? of the world’s technology is made in China, even if based prices favouring new users or below-cost enterprise in decades. it’s not always by Chinese companies. The central pricing to eliminate competitors. In that sense it 9. Is the Internet being singled out? China’s biggest Internet companies flourished We don’t know exactly. The country’s leaders have metropolis Zhengzhou, dubbed by locals as iPhone echoes concerns raised by regulators worldwide with at least tacit support from the government. said little about their intentions, apart from protect- City, wouldn’t have become Apple Inc’s biggest who are investigating whether Facebook, Google China’s private sector has maintained a delicate Now two events have raised doubts about where ing consumers and maintaining financial stability production base without government incentives. and other Internet giants are leveraging their relationship with the Communist Party for decades, those giants stand: the last-minute suspension of by mitigating risks. Some analysts and investors say While less active in software and services, China dominance to squash competition, or abusing and has only recently been recognised as central to a stock offering by billionaire Jack Ma’s sprawl- they think regulators are merely re-asserting their facilitated their development by eff ectively creat- user data. Consumers in China in recent years also the nation’s future (Ma was confirmed as a Commu- ing Ant Group Co due to regulatory pressure; oversight power, not looking for drastic changes. ing its own version of the Internet that’s blocked have protested against the gradual erosion of their nist Party member in 2018). While the government and the introduction of a draft antitrust policy Others think they may have grown frustrated with off from the rest of the world by what’s known as privacy via technology from facial recognition to has been steadily tightening its grip on the world’s seemingly designed to rein in the most powerful, the swagger of tech billionaires and want to teach the Great Firewall. In the absence of Facebook Inc big data analysis. second-largest economy, it had taken a relatively including Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (Ant’s major them a lesson by breaking up their companies – or Twitter Inc, Tencent’s WeChat and Sina Corp’s 7. What’s this about VIEs? hands-off approach toward the Internet, e-com- backer) and Tencent Holdings Ltd, operator of even if it means short-term pain for the economy Weibo have flourished as social networks. Once Al- merce and digital-finance spheres. That could be the WeChat super-app. In the final days of 2020, and markets. What is known is that at a conference phabet Inc’s Google pulled out, Baidu Inc extended Embedded in the rules is a reference to the need changing as Big Tech amasses ever-more influence regulators fired their opening salvos – open- in October, Ma criticised China’s financial system its dominance of desktop search. for off icial approval for mergers and acquisitions and power through the data and loyal patronage of ing an investigation into alleged monopolistic as outdated and complained that regulators were 5. And the Internet? involving Variable Interest Entities. The VIE model hundreds of millions of consumers. conduct at Alibaba and ordering Ant to re-focus shortsighted. He was summoned to Beijing for a has been used by Alibaba and others to sell shares 10. Will Ant – or anyone else – get on its roots as a digital-payments provider. All rare joint meeting with the country’s top financial Early movers Alibaba and Tencent grew massively overseas, because Chinese law restricts foreign broken up? that has left investors worried about what’s next off icials. The new regulations soon followed. and came to dominate the entire ecosystem. investment in Internet companies (along with for China’s Big Tech players and if the unusual 3. Why’s Jack Ma getting singled Together with Ant they had a combined market banking, mining and private education). The exotic Beijing told Ant to overhaul its suite of services freedom enjoyed by entrepreneurs like Ma might out? capitalisation of nearly $2tn in early November – corporate structure – pioneered by Sina and its – which include consumer loans, wealth manage- be coming to an end. easily surpassing state-owned behemoths like Bank investment bankers during a 2000 IPO – magically ment and insurance. It stopped short of calling 1. What happened? The charismatic impresario behind two of the of China Ltd as the country’s most valuable compa- turns a Chinese company into a foreign one with for splitting the company but the language left country’s largest corporations, Ant and Alibaba, nies. Their networks of investments encompass the shares that overseas investors can buy. But it has that option open. The central bank stressed it was Years of loose regulatory oversight in China helped is arguably the one person most closely identi- vast majority of Chinese startups in arenas from never been formally endorsed by Beijing, leaving important Ant “understand the necessity of over- Ant become a fintech giant, with businesses span- fied with the rise of China’s Internet sector. Long a artificial intelligence (SenseTime, Megvii) to fresh investors perennially nervous about their bets hauling its business” and told it to come up with a ning payments, banking, wealth management and regular face on the global conference circuit, the veggies (Meicai) and digital finance (Ant Group). unwinding overnight. plan and timetable as soon as possible. Authorities insurance. But just ahead of what was to be a $35bn flamboyant billionaire has all but vanished from Their patronage helped groom a new generation 8. Has this happened before? also berated Ant for what they said was sub-par mega-listing in Shanghai and Hong Kong, Chinese public view since Ant’s IPO got derailed. As of early including food and travel giant Meituan and Didi corporate governance and disdain toward regula- authorities slapped new rules on the consumer- December, he was advised by the government to Chuxing – China’s Uber. Rare are those that prosper Yes, to an extent. Tencent, for instance, became a tory requirements. As for other companies, Beijing lending industry, in which Ant is the biggest stay in the country, a person familiar with the mat- outside their aura, the largest being TikTok-owner target of a campaign to combat gaming addiction is expected to tread cautiously, looking to rein in player. That led to an indefinite suspension of Ant’s ter has said. ByteDance Ltd. among children in 2018. While its shares took a their growing clout without undermining some of November 5 initial public off ering. The following 4. Is this a big change for China? 6. What are the legal issues? hit, they eventually recovered to hit new highs. the nation’s biggest corporate success stories. It’s week regulators proposed new rules intended to Alibaba has done the same after running afoul of unclear when or whether Beijing will wring conces- curb monopolistic practices across its Internet The government has played an important role in China’s antitrust watchdog is seeking feedback on authorities on everything from unfairly squeez- sions from Alibaba in its antitrust investigation, or landscape, spooking investors and wiping $290bn developing the tech sector, aided by a massive 22 pages of edicts that would establish a frame- ing merchants to turning a blind eye to fakes. But what they could be.

Alibaba’s Alibaba probe stirs global $10bn stock buyback plan fails to worry, $200bn tech rout halt slide By Coco Liu the Internet industry for the fi rst time Bloomberg – Beijing can fi ne violators up to 10% of their revenue. In Alibaba’s case, Reuters that could mean a levy of as much as Beijing/Hong Kong libaba Group Holding Ltd led $7.8bn. a second day of frenetic sell- China’s e-commerce leader on Aing among China’s largest tech Monday raised a proposed stock re- libaba shares slumped 9% to their fi rms, driven by fears that antitrust purchase programme by $4bn to lowest since June on Monday, as scrutiny will spread beyond Jack Ma’s $10bn, eff ective for two years through Athe fi rm’s upsized $10bn buyback Internet empire and engulf the coun- the end of 2022. But the buyback pro- programme failed to ease concerns about try’s most powerful corporations. gramme was overwhelmed by fears a regulatory crackdown on co-founder Alibaba and its three largest ri- that the steps taken against Ant are Jack Ma’s e-commerce and fi nancial em- vals – Tencent Holdings Ltd, food just the tip of the iceberg. While the pire. delivery giant Meituan and JD.com central bank stopped short of calling A sharp sell-off over two sessions has Inc – have shed nearly $200bn over for a breakup, the fi nancial services knocked almost $116bn off the tech gi- two sessions since Thursday, when giant now needs to present specifi c ant’s Hong Kong-listed shares. regulators revealed an investigation measures and a timetable for over- The downward spiral intensifi ed into alleged monopolistic practices hauling its business. when Chinese regulators announced on at Ma’s signature company. That The State Administration for Mar- Thursday the launch of an antitrust in- marked the formal start of the Com- ket Regulation dispatched offi cials vestigation into Alibaba and said they munist Party’s crackdown on not to Alibaba’s Hangzhou headquarters would summon its Ant Group affi liate to just Alibaba but also, potentially, the last Thursday and the on-site inves- meet. wider and increasingly infl uential tigation was completed on the day, Alibaba’s US shares sank more than tech sphere. according to local news reports. The 15% during the day. “It is very hard to predict the out- People’s Daily – the Communist Party “The antitrust investigation into Ali- come of the Chinese government’s mouthpiece – ran a commentary over baba has yet to specify the penalties, ongoing investigation into Alibaba the weekend warning Alibaba’s peers which is worrying investors a lot,” said and other large consumer Internet to take the antitrust investigation into Zhang Zihua, chief investment offi cer of platforms,” Baird analyst Colin Sebas- Alibaba as a chance to lift their own Beijing Yunyi Asset, adding a probe out- tian wrote in a note. He cut his price awareness of fair competition. come could “greatly change” the com- target on Alibaba’s US-listed shares Ma, the fl amboyant co-founder of pany valuations. to $285 from $325, citing “uncertainty The Alibaba Group logo is seen at its headquarters in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China. Once hailed as the Alibaba and Ant, has all but vanished Putting investors more on edge was around government oversight and po- standard-bearers of China’s economic and technological ascendancy, Alibaba and its compatriots now face increasing from public view since Ant’s IPO got news over the weekend that China’s cen- tential for direct regulatory action in pressure from regulators worried about the speed with which they’re amassing clout in sensitive arenas such as media derailed last month. As of early De- tral bank had asked Ant to shake up its the coming year.” and education. cember, the man most closely iden- lending and other consumer fi nance op- The company’s American deposi- tifi ed with the meteoric rise of China erations. tary receipts fell 1.7% in premarket payments service and overhaul ad- gaining infl uence over the daily lives Jackson Wong, asset management Inc was advised by the government to These developments are part of a trading, adding to last session’s 13% jacent businesses from insurance to of hundreds of millions. That concern director at Amber Hill Capital Ltd, stay in the country, a person familiar crackdown on monopolistic behaviour in drop, while JD.com lost 1.6%. The money management, spurring talk of crystallised in November, when regu- said by phone. “There is still very big with the matter has said. China’s booming internet space in gener- day’s Hong Kong trading was fi erce: an eventual breakup. lators weighed on Ant’s $35bn initial selling pressure on fi rms like Alibaba, Ma isn’t on the verge of a personal al, but Ma’s business empire in particular Alibaba fell 8% Monday, shedding Once hailed as the standard-bear- public off ering before unveiling draft Tencent or Meituan. These com- downfall, those familiar with the sit- after he publicly criticised the regulatory $270bn of value since its October ers of China’s economic and tech- rules enshrining sweeping powers panies have been growing at a pace uation have said. His very public re- system for stifl ing innovation. peak. Tencent and Meituan both nological ascendancy, Alibaba and to clamp down on anti-competitive deemed by Beijing as too fast and have buke is instead a warning Beijing has Last month, Chinese regulators tumbled more than 6%. Alibaba rival its compatriots now face increasing practices in sectors from e-commerce scales that are too big.” lost patience with the outsize power abruptly suspended Ant’s blockbuster JD.com Inc slid roughly 2%. pressure from regulators worried to social media. It’s unclear what concessions regu- of its technology moguls, increasingly $37bn initial public off ering in Shanghai On Sunday, China’s central bank about the speed with which they’re “The Chinese government is lators may try to wring from Alibaba. perceived as a threat to the political and Hong Kong, which was on track to be ordered Ma’s other online titan – Ant amassing clout in sensitive arenas putting more pressure or wants to Under the existing Antitrust Law – and fi nancial stability President Xi the world’s largest, just two days before Group Co – to return to its roots as a such as media and education and have more control on the tech fi rms,” now undergoing revisions to include Jinping prizes most. its planned debut.

Philippines president signs Indonesia pledges to return to 3% fi scal defi cit limit by 2023 $93.7bn national budget for 2021 Bloomberg but President Joko Widodo recently said Cov- donesia’s credit rating with a stable outlook on Jakarta id-19 vaccines will be provided to the popula- December 22, citing the government’s commit- Reuters secured 752bn pesos and 696bn pesos tion for free, potentially increasing the burden ment to getting the budget defi cit back below Manila respectively, accounting for nearly a third of on government coff ers. 3% of GDP by 2023. the budget. ndonesia’s government will keep its promise Indonesian policy makers see a return to fi scal Kacaribu, 42, was appointed to the Finance Budget for the health ministry was at 210bn to gradually reduce the budget defi cit and re- discipline as an important priority, as it boosts Ministry in April just as the pandemic was rear- Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte pesos while defence receives 206bn pesos. Iturn to fi scal discipline, after it had to raise confi dence among investors in the country’s ing its head in the sprawling archipelago. Before signed on Monday a 4.5tn pesos ($93.7bn) The budget includes 72.5bn pesos to buy, the defi cit cap this year amid the coronavirus sovereign bonds and is highly valued by credit that, he was head of research for macro and fi - budget for next year, the country’s largest store and distribute Covid-19 vaccines, in pandemic, a top economic offi cial said. rating companies. nance studies at the University of Indonesia’s yet, to bankroll economic recovery and line with Duterte’s pledge to inoculate the The government will lower the funding gap “We have created quite an achievement in Institute for Economic and Social Research. fund the purchase of millions of doses of entire 108mn population starting in May next year and restore the defi cit cap of 3% of terms of macro stability, and it has also served One of the government’s greatest challenges Covid-19 vaccines. 2021. With about 470,000 infections and gross domestic product by 2023, Febrio Kacar- our policy makers as a good guideline,” Kacaribu in returning to fi scal discipline is tax collection, The approval of the national budget, a tenth more than 9,000 deaths, the Philippines ibu, head of fi scal policy at the Finance Ministry, said, referring to the defi cit cap. “We’d still like especially if a sluggish recovery limits tax pay- greater than that of 2020, seeks to return has the second highest Covid-19 cases said in an interview in Jakarta. Indonesia waived to see that limit in place.” ments from businesses and corporations. what was formerly one of Asia’s fastest and casualties in Southeast Asia, next to the defi cit cap this year via an emergency law Indonesia is well-positioned to unwind its Through end-November the Finance Minis- expanding economies back to growth Indonesia. because of the pandemic, widening this year’s fi scal stimulus after extensive spending dur- try had met just 77% of this year’s tax-revenue and help contain coronavirus infections. Around a thousand new cases are still projected defi cit to 6.3% of GDP. ing the pandemic on social protection, business target, down more than 18% from last year’s The budget enables the country to heal, reported daily, despite varying levels of “We look at it very carefully, and we’ve done restructuring and free vaccinations, said Wisnu pace. It’s not only due to the recession: Lower rebuild and resume the economy’s upward restrictions in the capital since mid March. our math,” Kacaribu said. “Is going back to 3% Wardana, an economist at PT Bank Danamon in corporate-tax rates, as well as various fi scal trajectory, Duterte said after its signing. The Philippine economy is targeted to post achievable? Yes.” Jakarta. incentives off ered during the pandemic, have “This coming year, we intend to recover as a 6.5% to 7.5% growth in 2021 and another The government expects Southeast Asia’s “In our view, getting the fi scal defi cit back on pressured tax revenues. Reforms may be neces- one nation,” he said. 8% to 10% uptick in 2022, picking up from a largest economy to contract by as much as 2.2% track is about discipline as well as prudence. But sary to improve Indonesia’s tax ratio, which – at The education sector and public works 8.5% to 9.5% downturn this year. this year before returning to 5% growth in 2021. more importantly, it’s about credibility,” he said. less than 10% of GDP last year – is low com- The budget defi cit for 2021 is set at 5.7% of GDP, Japan Credit Rating Agency Ltd affi rmed In- pared to regional peers. Gulf Times Tuesday, December 29, 2020 3 BUSINESS

KUWAIT KUWAIT OMAN

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

Ekttitab Holding Co Sak 15.60 -0.64 94,700 Oman Packaging 0.31 0.00 - Al-Madar Finance & Invt Co 91.00 -1.09 6,877,911 Real Estate Trade Centers Co 28.80 -0.69 21,000 Oman Oil Marketing Company 0.80 0.00 - Gulf Petroleum Investment 19.60 1.03 9,470,277 Acico Industries Co Kscc 88.90 0.00 12,100 Oman National Engineering An 0.10 0.00 14,800 Mabanee Co Kpsc 660.00 0.15 345,317 Kipco Asset Management Co 72.70 -1.76 50,000 Oman Investment & Finance 0.09 3.53 807,800 Inovest Co Bsc 68.50 0.00 - National Petroleum Services 1,049.00 0.00 - Oman Intl Marketing 0.52 0.00 - Al-Deera Holding Co 16.00 0.00 - Alimtiaz Investment Group 115.00 0.00 3,893,266 Oman Flour Mills 0.70 0.00 340 Mena Real Estate Co 27.90 0.36 41,879 Ras Al Khaimah White Cement 65.00 0.00 - Oman Fisheries Co 0.09 0.00 - Amar Finance & Leasing Co 51.40 -0.96 2 Kuwait Reinsurance Co Ksc 209.00 0.00 - Oman Europe Foods Industries 1.00 0.00 - United Projects For Aviation 305.00 0.00 580 Kuwait & Gulf Link Transport 53.00 -2.57 105,080 Oman Education & Training In 0.25 0.00 - National Consumer Holding Co 50.20 5.46 94,850 Humansoft Holding Co Ksc 3,810.00 0.32 43,308 Oman Chromite 3.64 0.00 - QATAR Amwal International Investme 33.70 0.00 - Automated Systems Co Kscc 69.50 -1.70 84,712 Oman Chlorine 0.28 0.00 - Equipment Holding Co K.S.C.C 29.60 4.59 832,528 Metal & Recycling Co 43.80 9.50 20,610 Oman Ceramic Company 0.42 0.00 - Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Arkan Al Kuwait Real Estate 82.90 0.00 43,530 Gulf Franchising Holding Co 60.00 0.00 - Oman Cement Co 0.24 0.00 317,151 Gfh Financial Group Bsc 50.90 6.04 953,486 Al-Enma’a Real Estate Co 49.50 -1.00 364,198 Oman Cables Industry 0.42 0.00 - Zad Holding Co 14.99 -0.66 7,146 Energy House Holding Co Kscp 29.80 3.47 247,527 National Mobile Telecommuni 633.00 0.00 95 Oman Arab Bank Saog 0.18 -0.57 124,558 Widam Food Co 6.25 1.63 352,360 Kuwait Co For Process Plant 399.00 -1.24 535,666 Al Bareeq Holding 69.80 -3.06 928,998 Oman & Emirates Inv(Om)50% 0.04 0.00 - Vodafone Qatar 1.35 -0.37 509,859 Al Maidan Dental Clinic Co K 1,220.00 0.00 - Unicap Investment And Financ 42.40 5.21 10 Natl Aluminium Products 0.09 0.00 - United Development Co 1.67 -0.83 2,104,115 National Shooting Company 19.20 -0.52 43,057 Al Salam Group Holding Co 25.50 0.79 1,057,113 National Real Estate Develop 5.00 0.00 - Salam International Investme 0.66 2.01 54,916,690 Al-Ahleia Insurance Co Sakp 475.00 0.00 6,002 Mashaer Holding Co Ksc 58.90 -0.17 35,199 National Mineral Water 0.09 0.00 - Qatar & Oman Investment Co 0.90 0.78 3,033,352 Wethaq Takaful Insurance Co 20.60 0.00 - Manazel Holding 31.70 0.63 822,497 National Life & General Insu 0.34 0.00 - Qatar Navigation 7.04 0.14 383,536 Salbookh Trading Co Kscp 38.10 -2.31 300,413 Tijara And Real Estate Inves 43.00 0.00 - National Gas Co 0.14 0.00 100 Qatar National Cement Co 4.22 0.48 137,579 Aqar Real Estate Investments 61.00 0.00 - Jazeera Airways Co Ksc 700.00 0.14 378,766 National Finance Co 0.13 0.00 - Qatar National Bank 18.09 0.11 912,722 Hayat Communications 55.50 0.91 44,720 Commercial Real Estate Co 115.00 0.88 254,134 National Detergent Co Saog 0.63 0.00 - Qatar Islamic Insurance Grou 6.70 0.00 - Soor Fuel Marketing Co Ksc 122.00 0.00 51,090 National International Co 84.00 0.00 1,444,800 National Biscuit Industries 3.92 0.00 - Qatar Industrial Manufactur 3.21 3.22 44,173 Tamkeen Holding Co 5.20 0.00 - Taameer Real Estate Invest C 20.10 0.00 574,001 National Bank Of Oman Saog 0.16 1.29 6,000 Qatar International Islamic 9.15 -0.78 160,071 Alargan International Real 110.00 0.00 - Heavy Engineering And Ship B 400.00 0.50 385,119 Muscat Thread Mills Co 0.07 0.00 - Qatari Investors Group 1.87 -0.05 1,827,306 Burgan Co For Well Drilling 158.00 0.00 321,482 National Real Estate Co 75.10 0.13 329,731 Muscat Insurance Co Saog 0.35 0.00 - Qatar Islamic Bank 17.36 -0.12 497,697 Kuwait Resorts Co Kscc 63.50 -0.31 630,646 Al Safat Energy Holding Comp 19.50 1.04 2,067,870 Muscat Gases Company Saog 0.21 0.00 2,188 Qatar Gas Transport(Nakilat) 3.21 0.44 860,045 Oula Fuel Marketing Co 124.00 0.81 17,838 Kuwait National Cinema Co 750.00 0.00 - Muscat Finance 0.04 0.00 - Qatar General Insurance & Re 2.64 9.97 192,912 Palms Agro Production Co 64.60 0.00 - Danah Alsafat Foodstuff Co 11.80 0.00 - Muscat City Desalination Co 0.10 0.00 - Qatar German Co For Medical 2.27 -0.26 1,887,233 Mubarrad Holding Co Ksc 73.90 1.65 1,502,210 Independent Petroleum Group 450.00 0.00 - Musandam Power Co 0.31 0.00 - Qatar Fuel Qsc 18.81 -0.27 558,943 Shuaiba Industrial Co 171.00 0.00 - Kuwait Real Estate Co Ksc 108.00 -1.82 8,385,304 Majan Glass Company 0.18 0.00 - Qatar First Bank 1.73 -0.52 3,820,107 Aan Digital Services Co 12.20 -1.61 48,400 Salhia Real Estate Co Ksc 494.00 1.02 127,073 Majan College 0.16 0.00 - Qatar Electricity & Water Co 18.15 -0.77 38,589 First Takaful Insurance Co 39.50 0.00 - Gulf Cable & Electrical Ind 766.00 0.92 53,289 Hsbc Bank Oman 0.09 0.00 164,699 Qatar Exchange Index Etf 10.35 -0.20 3,895 Kuwaiti Syrian Holding Co 31.90 0.00 1,501 Kuwait Finance House 676.00 -0.15 1,228,024 Hotels Management Co Interna 1.25 0.00 - Qatar Cinema & Film Distrib 3.99 0.00 - National Cleaning Company 52.20 -0.57 1,001 Gulf North Africa Holding Co 64.20 0.47 9,000 Gulf Stone 0.12 0.00 - Al Rayan Qatar Etf 2.41 -0.17 6,963 United Real Estate Company 49.20 -1.60 10,000 Hilal Cement Co 91.00 0.00 - Gulf Mushroom Company 0.31 0.00 - Qatar Insurance Co 2.44 0.00 183,116 Agility 672.00 -0.44 661,505 Osoul Investment Kscc 80.00 0.00 115 Gulf Investments Services 0.09 5.81 1,622,369 Qatar Aluminum Manufacturing 0.97 0.41 7,984,822 Kuwait & Middle East Fin Inv 121.00 0.00 736,771 Gulf Insurance Group Ksc 759.00 5.12 83,663 Gulf Invest. Serv. Pref-Shar 0.32 0.00 - Ooredoo Qpsc 7.86 -0.30 1,863,357 Fujairah Cement Industries 33.10 0.00 - Umm Al Qaiwain General Inves 75.00 0.67 3,000 Gulf International Chemicals 0.10 0.00 - Alijarah Holding Company Qps 1.25 0.16 7,209,081 Livestock Transport & Tradng 182.00 0.00 15,500 Aayan Leasing & Investment 91.80 -0.22 4,950,517 Gulf Hotels (Oman) Co Ltd 3.88 0.00 - Mazaya Real Estate Developme 1.24 -0.64 4,029,167 National Industries Grp Hold 180.00 -0.55 1,606,340 Alrai Media Group Co Ksc 49.00 0.00 - Global Fin Investment 0.06 0.00 - Mesaieed Petrochemical Holdi 2.06 0.34 2,141,294 Warba Insurance Co 85.00 0.00 153,550 National Investments Co 135.00 -0.74 32,000 Galfar Engineering&Contract 0.04 0.00 32,471 Al Meera Consumer Goods Co 20.46 -0.44 20,224 First Dubai Real Estate Deve 40.70 0.00 238,135 Commercial Facilities Co 184.00 -1.08 10,000 Galfar Engineering -Prefer 0.39 0.00 - Medicare Group 8.86 -0.43 13,727 Al Arabi Group Holding Co 198.00 0.00 - Yiaco Medical Co. K.S.C.C 918.00 9.16 924 Financial Services Co. 0.18 0.00 - Mannai Corporation Qsc 3.07 2.13 420,508 Kuwait Hotels Sak 63.10 12.48 99,261 Dulaqan Real Estate Co 274.00 0.00 - Financial Corp/The 0.08 0.00 - Masraf Al Rayan 4.54 -0.35 1,032,001 Mobile Telecommunications Co 606.00 -0.33 2,344,767 Real Estate Asset Management 90.20 0.00 - Dhofar Tourism 0.49 0.00 - Al Khalij Commercial Bank 1.84 0.77 17,082,477 Eff ect Real Estate Co 20.50 0.00 - Munshaat Real Estate Project 70.40 0.00 - Dhofar Poultry 0.18 0.00 - Industries Qatar 11.06 0.18 205,874 Tamdeen Real Estate Co Ksc 245.00 0.00 1,100 Noor Financial Investment Co 172.00 0.58 426,932 Dhofar Intl Development 0.29 0.00 - Inma Holding Company 5.17 0.10 2,146,338 Al Mudon Intl Real Estate Co 18.00 0.00 - Al Tamdeen Investment Co 310.00 0.00 - Dhofar Insurance 0.16 0.00 - Investment Holding Group 0.61 0.50 32,978,146 Kuwait Cement Co Ksc 232.00 0.43 255,133 Credit Rating & Collection 22.00 0.00 - Dhofar Generating Co Saoc 0.19 0.00 1,000 Gulf Warehousing Company 5.09 0.67 528,499 Sharjah Cement & Indus Devel 42.20 0.00 - Ifa Hotels & Resorts Co. K.S 19.30 -1.03 452,656 Dhofar Fisheries & Food Indu 1.28 0.00 - Gulf International Services 1.69 0.06 1,836,182 Kuwait Portland Cement Co 784.00 0.90 153,505 Dhofar Cattlefeed 0.12 0.00 204 Ezdan Holding Group 1.80 1.06 6,135,586 Educational Holding Group 345.00 0.00 - Dhofar Beverages Co 0.26 0.00 - Doha Insurance Co 1.39 0.29 8,143 Bahrain Kuwait Insurance 200.00 0.00 - Construction Materials Ind 0.03 0.00 - Doha Bank Qpsc 2.38 0.04 772,184 Asiya Capital Investments Co 35.20 0.28 35,216 Computer Stationery Inds 0.26 0.00 - Dlala Holding 1.82 -0.38 1,650,559 Kuwait Investment Co 124.00 0.81 274,449 OMAN Bankmuscat Saog 0.39 0.00 536,992 Commercial Bank Psqc 4.40 0.92 13,740,551 Burgan Bank 211.00 0.00 910,723 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Bank Nizwa 0.10 0.00 62,300 Barwa Real Estate Co 3.41 -0.70 940,236 Kuwait Projects Co Holdings 155.00 0.00 302,004 Bank Dhofar Saog 0.10 0.00 20,000 Baladna 1.79 -0.06 1,382,809 Al Madina For Finance And In 15.40 0.00 - Arabia Falcon Insurance Co 0.08 0.00 - Voltamp Energy Saog 0.13 0.00 443 Al Khaleej Takaful Group 1.90 -0.26 635,860 Kuwait Insurance Co 390.00 -2.26 25,059 Aman Real Estate Inve Reit 0.10 0.00 1,100 Vision Insurance Saoc 0.09 0.00 - Aamal Co 0.86 -0.23 2,412,406 Al Masaken Intl Real Estate 24.70 -0.40 410,801 Aloula Co 0.08 0.00 - United Power/Energy Co- Pref 0.90 0.00 - Al Ahli Bank 3.24 0.00 - Intl Financial Advisors 57.00 -1.72 1,459,287 Al-Omaniya Financial Service 0.07 0.00 - United Power Co Saog 0.99 0.00 100 First Investment Co Kscc 38.90 8.36 61,348,947 Al-Hassan Engineering Co 0.01 -12.50 22,821 United Finance Co 0.04 0.00 95,372 KUWAIT Al Mal Investment Company 5.90 0.00 - Al-Fajar Al-Alamia Co 0.70 0.00 - Ubar Hotels & Resorts 0.13 0.00 - Bayan Investment Co Kscc 40.00 -4.08 39,236 Al-Anwar Ceramic Tiles Co 0.25 0.00 258,920 Takaful Oman 0.12 0.00 - Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Egypt Kuwait Holding Co Sae 360.00 0.00 - Al Suwadi Power 0.05 0.00 145,039 Taageer Finance 0.08 0.00 - Coast Investment Development 48.20 0.00 365,044 Al Sharqiya Invest Holding 0.07 4.48 50,000 Sultan Center Food Products 97.10 0.52 2,102 Sweets Of Oman 0.55 0.00 - Privatization Holding Compan 40.20 0.00 132,055 Al Maha Petroleum Products M 0.62 0.00 - Kuwait Foundry Co Sak 263.00 -3.66 189,800 Sohar Power Co 0.05 0.00 - Injazzat Real State Company 73.80 0.00 - Al Maha Ceramics Co Saoc 0.22 1.40 62,843 Kuwait Financial Centre Sak 84.30 2.68 308,411 Sohar International Bank 0.09 1.09 502,000 Sanam Real Estate Co Kscc 34.50 0.00 - Al Madina Takaful Co Saoc 0.07 -1.33 129,955 Ajial Real Estate Entmt 180.00 1.12 143,343 Smn Power Holding Saog 0.08 0.00 - Aviation Lease And Finance C 207.00 1.47 2,305,652 Al Madina Investment Co 0.02 0.00 100,000 Kuwait Finance & Investment 42.20 1.20 2,014,610 Shell Oman Marketing - Pref 1.05 0.00 - Arzan Financial Group For Fi 55.30 -0.36 1,799,976 Al Kamil Power Co 0.32 0.00 - National Industries Co Ksc 153.00 0.00 - Shell Oman Marketing 1.00 0.00 - Ajwan Gulf Real Estate Co 10.70 0.00 - Al Jazerah Services -Pfd 0.55 0.00 - Kuwait Real Estate Holding C 25.00 0.00 - Sharqiyah Desalination Co Sa 0.16 -10.00 6,000 Kuwait Business Town Real Es 40.00 -0.74 5,539 Al Jazeera Steel Products Co 0.14 -0.72 297,100 Securities House/The 42.90 -0.23 540,258 Sembcorp Salalah Power & Wat 0.10 0.00 13,750 Future Kid Entertainment And 85.00 0.00 - Al Jazeera Services 0.23 3.59 373,900 Boubyan Petrochemicals Co 630.00 0.64 170,340 Salalah Port Services 0.60 0.00 - Specialities Group Holding C 78.30 -3.57 1,555,768 Al Buraimi Hotel 0.88 0.00 - Al Ahli Bank Of Kuwait 210.00 1.45 1 Salalah Mills Co 0.55 0.00 - Abyaar Real Eastate Developm 7.30 0.00 - Al Batinah Power 0.05 0.00 87,700 Ahli United Bank (Almutahed) 291.00 0.34 144,960 Salalah Beach Resort Saog 1.38 0.00 - Dar Al Thuraya Real Estate C 66.00 -4.35 2 Al Batinah Hotels 1.13 0.00 - National Bank Of Kuwait 841.00 -0.24 2,286,720 Sahara Hospitality 3.12 0.00 - Kgl Logistics Company Kscc 28.70 -1.03 142,580 Al Batinah Dev & Inv 0.07 0.00 - Commercial Bank Of Kuwait 515.00 3.00 50 Renaissance Services Saog 0.34 0.00 2,000 Combined Group Contracting 201.00 1.01 197,493 Al Anwar Holdings Saog 0.06 1.64 10,000 Kuwait International Bank 208.00 0.00 1,040,745 Raysut Cement Co 0.34 1.80 173,588 Jiyad Holding Co Ksc 45.00 0.00 - Al Ahlia Insurance Co Saoc 0.37 0.00 1,750 Gulf Bank 217.00 0.46 1,863,707 Phoenix Power Co Saoc 0.05 -1.89 15,477 Warba Capital Holding Co 48.50 0.00 - Ahli Bank 0.13 0.00 21,500 Al-Massaleh Real Estate Co 34.50 0.00 - Packaging Co Ltd 2.21 0.00 - Gulf Investment House Ksc 87.20 -2.57 1,036,840 Acwa Power Barka Saog 0.48 0.00 - Al Arabiya Real Estate Co 25.80 0.39 120,100 Ooredoo 0.39 0.00 36,742 Boubyan Bank K.S.C 568.00 -0.35 859,165 Abrasives Manufacturing Co S 0.05 0.00 - Kuwait Remal Real Estate Co 20.50 0.99 105,610 Ominvest 0.33 0.00 - Ahli United Bank B.S.C 232.00 -0.43 5,607,276 A’saff a Foods Saog 0.55 0.00 - Alkout Industrial Projects C 675.00 0.00 - Oman United Insurance Co 0.40 0.00 - Osos Holding Group Co 90.00 0.00 11 0Man Oil Marketing Co-Pref 0.25 0.00 - Oman Telecommunications Co 0.71 0.00 37,416 A’ayan Real Estate Co Sak 58.50 -0.51 153,439 Al-Eid Food Ksc 83.40 1.34 55,000 Oman Refreshment Co 0.96 0.00 - Investors Holding Group Co.K 17.80 0.00 1,071,336 Qurain Petrochemical Industr 340.00 0.29 123,883 Oman Qatar Insurance Co 0.10 0.00 - Al-Mazaya Holding Co 56.00 0.00 613,100 Advanced Technology Co 570.00 0.00 - LATEST MARKET CLOSING FIGURES

Ant turning from windfall to nightmare for global investors

Bloomberg corralled investments from the world’s Its wealth management business London biggest funds. Among them: Warburg which includes the Yu’ebao platform Pincus LLC, Carlyle Group Inc, Silver that sells mutual funds and money Lake Management LLC, Temasek market funds, accounted for 15% of wo months ago, global investors Holdings Pte and GIC Pte. revenue. including Warburg Pincus, Car- The global investors backed the Credit tech, which includes Ant’s Tlyle, Temasek and GIC were on company when it was valued at about Huabei and Jiebei units, was the the cusp of a massive windfall from $150bn in its last round of fundraising biggest revenue driver for the group, what would have been the world’s in 2018. A break-up would make the contributing 39% of the total in the largest initial public off ering. return on their investments uncertain, first six months this year. It made loans Now, returns on the hundreds of with the timeline for an IPO that was to about 500mn people. millions of dollars they invested due in November now pushed into the That outcome would be underpinned with Ant Group Co are in jeopardy. distant future. by the idea that China’s leaders have On Sunday, China ordered Ant to The government could ask Ant to spin grown frustrated with the swagger reexamine its fintech businesses – off its more lucrative operations in of tech billionaires and want to spanning from wealth management wealth management, credit lending teach them a lesson by killing off to consumer credit lending and and insurance, off loading them into their businesses – even if it means insurance – and return to its roots as a a financial holding company that will short-term pain for the economy and payments service. face tougher scrutiny. markets. While the central bank’s statement “The emerging reality is China’s China’s private sector has maintained was short on specifics, it presents a regulators are adopting similar a delicate relationship with the serious threat to the growth and most regulation toward banks and fintech Communist Party for decades, and lucrative operations of billionaire players,” said Michael Norris, research has only recently been recognised as Jack Ma’s online finance empire. and strategy manager at Shanghai- central to the nation’s future. Many Regulators stopped short of asking based consultancy AgencyChina. commentators have attributed the directly for a breakup of the company, Ant’s payments business alone recent crackdown on fintech companies yet stressed it was important leaves much less to the imagination. to remarks Ma made at a conference in Ant “understand the necessity of While the service handled $17tn October, when he decried attempts to overhauling its business” and told it of transactions in one year, online rein in the burgeoning field as short- to come up with a plan and timetable payments have largely been loss- sighted and outmoded. as soon as possible. making. The two biggest mobile Between them, Alibaba, Ant and Authorities also berated Ant for sub- payments operators, Ant and Tencent commanded a combined par corporate governance, disdain Tencent, have heavily subsidised the market capitalisation of nearly $2tn toward regulatory requirements, and businesses, using them as a gateway in November, surpassing state-owned engaging in regulatory arbitrage. to win over users. To make money, behemoths such as Industrial & The central bank said Ant used its they leveraged the payments services Commercial Bank of China Ltd as the dominance to exclude rivals, hurting to cross sell products including wealth country’s most valuable companies. the interests of its hundreds of millions management and credit lending. Alibaba said on Monday it would of consumers. Mild among children in 2018. While its also sending out a warning to other “Ant’s growth potential will be capped increase its share buyback to $10bn Ant said in response that it will set Optimists say regulators are merely shares took a hit, they eventually Chinese fintech companies.” with the focus back onto its payments from $6bn. The company’s board up a special team to comply with re-asserting their right to oversee the recovered to all-time highs. Some see it as an opportunity for Ant. services,” said Chen Shujin, a Hong authorised the increased program, regulators’ demands. It will maintain country’s financial sector, sending a Ant’s aff iliate, Alibaba Group Holding With the industry as a whole facing Kong-based head of China financial eff ective for two years through the end business operations for users, vowing warning to the internet companies Ltd, similarly regained the confidence tougher oversight, Ant has more research at Jeff eries Financial Group of 2022. It shed more than $200bn in not to increase prices for consumers without intentions of drastic change. of investors after short-run selloff s resources to cope with the challenges Inc. “On the mainland, the online market value since November, when and financial partners, while stepping Beijing could be trying to make an following accusations by authorities as an industry leader, said Zhang. payments industry is saturated and regulators halted Ant’s IPO. up risk controls. example out of Ma’s Ant, the largest on everything from unfairly squeezing Ant’s market share pretty much Alibaba fell as much as 5.1% in Hong The Hangzhou-based firm needs to among a raft of new but pervasive merchants to turning a blind eye to Bad reached its limit.” Kong trading on Monday, to the lowest set up a separate financial holding fintech platforms. Past crackdowns fakes on its e-commerce platform. A more troubling outcome would be since July. company to comply with rules of this nature have dealt short-term “I don’t think regulators are thinking if regulators moved to break up Ant Nightmare The trio have invested billions of and ensure it has suff icient capital, blows to companies, leaving them of breaking up Ant, as no fintech Group. That would complicate the The worst case scenario would be for dollars in hundreds of up-and-coming regulators added. mostly unscathed. Social media giant company in China has a monopoly shareholder structure, and hurt the Ant to forgo its money management, mobile and internet companies, Here are some of the scenarios from Tencent Holdings Ltd, for instance, status,” said Zhang Kai, an analyst at company’s fastest-growing businesses. credit and insurance businesses, gaining kingmaker status in the investors and analysts on what the became a prominent target of a market research firm Analysys Ltd. Valued at about $315bn before its halting its operations in the units that world’s largest smartphone and restructuring could look like: campaign to combat gaming addiction “The act is not just targeting Ant but initial public off ering was halted, Ant service half a billion people. internet market by users. Gulf Times 4 Tuesday, December 29, 2020 BUSINESS

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Avg 30,461.04 +261.17 Apple Inc 135.40 2.60 6,956,257 S&P 500 Index 3,736.48 +33.42 Amgen Inc 225.38 1.10 89,362 Nasdaq Composite Index 12,890.13 +85.40 American Express Co 118.81 1.24 78,857 S&P/Tsx Composite Index 17,623.88 +30.31 Boeing Co/The 216.68 -0.22 422,719 Mexico Bolsa Index 43,671.16 +298.96 Caterpillar Inc 180.04 0.27 104,875 Brazil Bovespa Stock Idx 118,360.50 +553.60 Salesforce.Com Inc 224.05 -0.77 471,347 Ftse 100 Index 6,502.11 +6.36 Cisco Systems Inc 45.16 1.39 935,405 Cac 40 Index 5,598.37 +76.36 Chevron Corp 85.15 -0.21 487,189 Dax Index 13,800.75 +213.52 Walt Disney Co/The 177.45 2.14 544,875 Ibex 35 Tr 8,165.10 +53.60 Dow Inc 55.15 0.66 125,885 Nikkei 225 26,854.03 +197.42 Goldman Sachs Group Inc 260.51 1.70 201,329 Japan Topix 1,788.04 +9.63 Home Depot Inc 271.77 0.31 125,581 Hang Seng Index 26,314.63 -71.93 Honeywell International Inc 210.59 0.51 80,986 All Ordinaries Indx 6,917.49 +24.86 Intl Business Machines Corp 125.72 0.83 200,960 Nzx All Index 2,144.95 +2.74 Intel Corp 47.43 0.76 1,420,234 Bse Sensex 30 Index 47,353.75 +380.21 Johnson & Johnson 153.10 0.41 339,946 Nse S&P Cnx Nifty Index 13,873.20 +123.95 Jpmorgan Chase & Co 125.72 0.96 531,528 Straits Times Index 2,840.14 -1.90 Coca-Cola Co/The 54.08 1.20 626,781 Karachi All Share Index 30,601.75 +157.26 Mcdonald’s Corp 214.65 1.54 154,225 Jakarta Composite Index 6,093.55 +84.85 3M Co 175.67 0.66 81,495 Merck & Co. Inc. 80.50 0.45 226,267 Microsoft Corp 225.59 1.27 1,477,521 Nike Inc -Cl B 141.48 -0.08 233,312 TOKYO Procter & Gamble Co/The 138.45 0.53 206,279 Travelers Cos Inc/The 139.54 0.76 35,365 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Unitedhealth Group Inc 346.53 1.68 184,134 Olympus Corp 2,215.50 0.96 2,150,500 Visa Inc-Class A Shares 211.98 1.57 379,806 Japan Post Holdings Co Ltd 791.50 -0.06 6,345,700 Verizon Communications Inc 58.79 -0.09 803,059 Sumitomo Corp 1,346.00 -0.33 1,937,200 Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc 39.98 0.91 310,529 Canon Inc 2,023.50 -0.57 7,717,800 Walmart Inc 143.95 0.31 326,147 Nintendo Co Ltd 65,880.00 1.87 1,189,300 Eisai Co Ltd 7,239.00 0.37 560,600 Unicharm Corp 4,957.00 -0.24 611,400 FTSE 100 Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd 17,870.00 1.13 750,000 Smc Corp 63,290.00 0.89 107,200 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Mitsubishi Corp 2,546.50 -0.31 2,582,000 Keyence Corp 57,560.00 1.93 438,800 Anglo American Plc 2,435.00 -1.10 693,243 Nidec Corp 12,920.00 0.39 1,250,500 Associated British Foods Plc 2,296.00 2.00 332,268 Japan Exchange Group Inc 2,640.00 3.37 1,198,500 Admiral Group Plc 2,923.00 -0.75 131,520 Nomura Holdings Inc 539.30 -0.68 8,714,500 Ashtead Group Plc 3,433.00 -0.23 133,345 Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd 3,465.00 2.64 1,980,900 Antofagasta Plc 1,440.00 0.77 154,451 Subaru Corp 2,004.00 -2.34 3,250,400 Auto Trader Group Plc 583.60 -0.82 466,370 Sumitomo Realty & Developmen 3,160.00 -1.59 847,900 The bull and bear sculptures in front of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The DAX ended yesterday with a gain of 1.5% at Aviva Plc 328.00 0.61 2,701,455 Orix Corp 1,575.50 2.40 5,796,800 13,790.29 points, a record. Avast Plc 532.50 0.95 355,902 Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd 4,579.00 1.51 794,000 Aveva Group Plc 3,185.00 -0.75 75,350 Asahi Group Holdings Ltd 4,277.00 -0.58 1,358,700 Astrazeneca Plc 7,223.00 -0.01 594,889 Softbank Group Corp 7,706.00 0.18 15,953,100 Bae Systems Plc 504.00 0.56 1,332,889 Mizuho Financial Group Inc 1,303.00 -0.04 7,699,100 Barclays Plc 154.60 1.83 31,966,362 Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdin 3,159.00 0.57 499,000 British American Tobacco Plc 2,730.00 0.59 775,408 Japan Tobacco Inc 2,186.00 -0.50 14,707,500 Barratt Developments Plc 688.00 1.78 1,542,059 Z Holdings Corp 618.00 1.41 12,461,300 Bhp Group Plc 1,964.40 -0.08 656,435 US, European stocks Sumitomo Electric Industries 1,392.00 2.47 3,066,800 Berkeley Group Holdings/The 4,716.00 1.68 211,060 Daiwa Securities Group Inc 460.60 -0.56 4,082,600 British Land Co Plc 504.00 1.27 619,974 Mitsui Fudosan Co Ltd 2,141.50 -0.56 1,988,900 B&M European Value Retail Sa 514.80 0.35 272,276 Ajinomoto Co Inc 2,286.00 1.26 1,194,000 Bunzl Plc 2,408.00 -0.99 147,767 Ono Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 3,207.00 1.14 800,200 Bp Plc 263.00 -1.03 12,764,523 Daikin Industries Ltd 22,795.00 1.54 413,100 Burberry Group Plc 1,760.00 0.11 287,865 in record territory on Toray Industries Inc 607.10 -0.07 3,831,400 Bt Group Plc 138.35 1.10 7,379,862 Astellas Pharma Inc 1,559.50 1.36 2,524,000 Coca-Cola Hbc Ag-Di 2,390.00 0.04 194,674 Bridgestone Corp 3,433.00 -0.52 2,245,400 Compass Group Plc 1,387.50 -0.64 1,018,466 Sony Corp 10,180.00 2.28 3,170,900 Croda International Plc 6,408.00 -0.12 218,890 Hoya Corp 14,265.00 1.03 415,400 Crh Plc 3,136.00 0.80 192,854 Eneos Holdings Inc 365.90 0.80 12,864,800 stimulus, Brexit deal Dcc Plc 5,340.00 0.72 33,114 Nippon Steel Corp 1,335.00 -0.74 3,823,500 Diageo Plc 2,914.00 -0.63 1,005,300 Suzuki Motor Corp 4,802.00 -1.19 1,039,700 Evraz Plc 477.30 0.82 698,528 EU states approved the measure yes- “The stimulus balloon will allow the Nippon Telegraph & Telephone 2,644.50 0.28 3,823,800 AFP, Reuters Experian Plc 2,791.00 0.43 395,099 Sompo Holdings Inc 4,157.00 0.61 580,800 terday and it will take eff ect provision- markets to navigate better the number Ferguson Plc 8,802.00 -0.63 65,994 Paris Daiwa House Industry Co Ltd 2,994.00 -0.63 1,035,500 ally while European lawmakers con- of new air pockets due to the virus’s Flutter Entertainment Plc 15,045.00 -1.34 57,291 Bandai Namco Holdings Inc 8,883.00 0.49 614,100 latest variant,” he added. Fresnillo Plc 1,139.50 0.22 144,637 sider it after the start of the year. Hitachi Ltd 4,045.00 0.35 1,612,800 Glencore Plc 235.00 -0.66 4,874,517 S and European stocks pushed The Brexit deal and the US aid pack- Markets have recently been shaken Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 3,696.00 -1.31 3,880,000 Glaxosmithkline Plc 1,332.60 -0.36 2,440,527 into record territory yesterday, age were pushing the DAX to “a new by the news of the emergence of a new Kyocera Corp 6,197.00 0.11 671,900 Gvc Holdings Plc 0.00 0.00 - buoyed by a pandemic recovery high”, said Jochen Stanzl, an analyst at variant of the coronavirus that author- Nissan Motor Co Ltd 551.80 -0.61 14,948,600 U Hikma Pharmaceuticals Plc 2,551.00 0.91 56,406 Asahi Kasei Corp 1,036.00 0.73 1,972,300 package agreed in the US and Britain’s CMC Markets. ities believe may spread more easily. Hargreaves Lansdown Plc 1,552.00 1.47 407,508 Kirin Holdings Co Ltd 2,441.50 0.54 2,149,700 Brexit deal with the EU. The market is “breathing a sigh of Asian markets traded mixed yester- Halma Plc 2,398.00 -1.19 144,857 Marubeni Corp 683.30 0.65 4,691,600 Wall Street also snapped higher, relief” after the Brexit deal, independ- day. Hsbc Holdings Plc 386.00 0.05 6,092,329 Mitsubishi Ufj Financial Gro 457.20 2.65 43,704,800 Homeserve Plc 1,061.00 -0.93 124,958 with the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq ent analyst Timo Emden added. The launch of a cross-border Euro- Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings 614.40 -0.58 3,953,600 Intl Consolidated Airline-Di 163.40 0.99 19,732,751 Composite all pushing past record Several EU nations including France, pean vaccination programme on Sun- Toyota Motor Corp 7,898.00 1.40 3,645,300 Intermediate Capital Group 1,726.00 -0.35 65,164 closing levels. Germany, Italy and Spain began rolling day also fuelled hopes of a pandemic- Kddi Corp 3,063.00 1.02 3,663,900 Intercontinental Hotels Grou 4,627.00 -1.28 85,392 “The stock market is in a celebra- out their fi rst Covid-19 vaccinations on free second half in 2021 and of a strong Softbank Corp 1,292.00 0.43 11,481,200 3I Group Plc 1,157.00 -0.17 292,088 Panasonic Corp 1,174.00 1.03 4,080,900 tion mode this morning,” said Patrick J Sunday, although the supply is limited. economic rebound. Imperial Brands Plc 1,544.00 0.26 352,931 Fujitsu Ltd 14,545.00 1.54 630,200 O’Hare at Briefi ng.com. “For the markets, it remains crucial German food delivery fi rm Delivery Informa Plc 547.20 0.48 737,460 M3 Inc 9,424.00 1.21 2,088,100 The jump came after US Presi- to get Covid-19 under control as soon Hero topped the STOXX 600 with a Intertek Group Plc 5,760.00 -0.52 37,673 Central Japan Railway Co 14,145.00 1.69 586,500 Jd Sports Fashion Plc 848.60 -0.19 485,602 dent Donald Trump signed a $900bn as possible,” Emden said. 9.1% gain, ending at a record high af- Nitori Holdings Co Ltd 22,320.00 2.27 650,100 Just Eat Takeaway 8,054.00 0.68 21,208 (€735bn) stimulus bill late Sunday, The DAX’s previous intraday high ter it said it will sell South Korean food Ms&Ad Insurance Group Holdin 3,082.00 0.65 807,200 Johnson Matthey Plc 2,470.00 -0.84 83,381 averting a government shutdown and was 13,795 points in February, but it delivery app Yogiyo as part of the con- Kubota Corp 2,259.50 2.01 1,749,200 Kingfisher Plc 265.40 -1.70 1,493,893 ditions for regulatory approval of its Seven & I Holdings Co Ltd 3,663.00 0.08 1,576,500 removing considerable uncertainty for plunged to 8,255 points in March as Land Securities Group Plc 692.20 1.14 446,643 Resona Holdings Inc 356.90 0.39 8,717,500 the world’s largest economy. the pandemic shutdowns battered Eu- takeover of top South Korean food de- Legal & General Group Plc 266.40 2.54 6,531,402 Chubu Electric Power Co Inc 1,236.50 0.73 1,511,500 Trump had previously refused to rope’s economy. livery app owner Woowa Brothers. Lloyds Banking Group Plc 38.61 3.99 255,450,332 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries 3,046.00 4.96 3,030,000 Markets recovered as restrictions on Dutch technology fi rm Prosus bot- London Stock Exchange Group 8,878.00 -0.25 69,224 sign the relief package, arguing that it Sysmex Corp 12,230.00 1.79 279,700 Mondi Plc 1,709.00 0.12 200,037 included wasteful spending. the economy were lifted in the sum- tomed out the STOXX 600 in the wake Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd 1,622.00 -0.49 2,864,800 M&G Plc 204.40 1.69 2,336,699 Meanwhile in Europe, Frankfurt’s mer and after central banks pumped of a Chinese probe into local technol- Shiseido Co Ltd 6,905.00 -1.83 1,149,400 Melrose Industries Plc 178.95 3.50 2,813,538 blue-chip DAX index set an intraday billions in monetary stimulus into the ogy majors, in one of whom Prosus Shionogi & Co Ltd 5,556.00 0.71 689,500 Wm Morrison Supermarkets 176.30 1.41 2,099,797 Terumo Corp 4,230.00 0.52 1,396,700 high of 13,818.65 points, topping the economy, including 1.85tn euros by the holds a stake. National Grid Plc 857.20 -0.21 1,303,482 Tokyo Gas Co Ltd 2,344.50 2.18 1,307,500 previous high set in February before European Central Bank. Automobile makers were among the Natwest Group Plc 168.95 1.23 11,485,079 Tokyo Electron Ltd 37,380.00 2.72 630,400 the coronavirus pandemic forced Eu- The emergency US package is part top boosts to the German index, given Next Plc 6,928.00 -0.09 245,099 East Japan Railway Co 6,763.00 1.76 1,472,000 Ocado Group Plc 2,250.00 0.49 184,649 rope into lockdown. of a larger spending bill that, with that the country is a major supplier of Itochu Corp 2,935.50 0.84 1,959,900 Phoenix Group Holdings Plc 717.60 0.67 516,210 It ended the day with a gain of 1.5% Trump’s signature, will avoid a gov- autos to the UK. Fujifilm Holdings Corp 5,419.00 -0.68 1,475,800 Pennon Group Plc 947.20 0.57 230,431 at 13,790.29 points, a record closing ernment shutdown today. The striking of a trade deal appeared Honda Motor Co Ltd 2,921.50 -0.39 3,047,400 Polymetal International Plc 1,683.50 0.06 190,130 level. The president’s turnaround came have cleared several regulatory doubts Shimano Inc 24,350.00 0.43 73,700 Prudential Plc 1,353.00 -0.18 956,286 Fast Retailing Co Ltd 86,900.00 0.67 400,400 In Paris, the CAC 40 rose 1.2% to after a day marked by calls from across over the future of the EU-UK auto sup- Persimmon Plc 2,875.00 1.63 566,394 Recruit Holdings Co Ltd 4,198.00 0.26 2,145,200 5,588.30 points, while the stock market the political spectrum for action to ply chain. Pearson Plc 681.40 1.07 221,265 #N/A Invalid Security 0.00 0.00 - in London was closed for a holiday. avert a fi nancial and social disaster in “We can fi nally breathe a big sigh of Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc 6,494.00 0.65 215,766 Royal Dutch Shell Plc-A Shs 1,327.60 -0.52 1,206,654 The EURO STOXX 50 closed 1.0% the world’s largest economy, especially relief and say that chaos over the stim- Royal Dutch Shell Plc-B Shs 1,285.00 -0.46 1,726,584 up at 3,578.04 points. among the most vulnerable. ulus bill is over,” said Hussein Sayed, Relx Plc 1,792.50 0.65 524,996 SENSEX On December 24, Britain and the Eu- “For Americans that have been end- chief market strategist at FXTM. Rio Tinto Plc 5,574.00 -0.46 302,226 ropean Union agreed a post-Brexit deal lessly checking their mailboxes for a “A sell-off has been averted and this Rightmove Plc 643.00 -2.19 553,866 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume that allayed the threat of disruption to stimulus check, this is the best holiday could provide one last boost to risk as- Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc 115.75 0.13 19,316,221 Adani Ports And Special Econ 483.55 1.04 8,372,924 business on January 1, when measures present anyone could ask for,” said Axi sets in the last four trading days of the Rsa Insurance Group Plc 677.40 -0.27 427,586 Asian Paints Ltd 2,683.90 1.35 1,226,254 strategist Stephen Innes. year.” Rentokil Initial Plc 508.20 -0.47 393,054 extending free trade are set to end. Axis Bank Ltd 617.65 1.22 8,444,506 Sainsbury (J) Plc 226.70 1.21 1,425,227 Bajaj Finance Ltd 5,204.10 0.37 1,932,606 Schroders Plc 3,440.00 0.41 40,941 Bharti Airtel Ltd 521.60 0.83 12,882,390 Sage Group Plc/The 584.20 -0.44 545,249 Bajaj Auto Ltd 3,414.70 1.18 536,954 HONG KONG HONG KONG Segro Plc 949.80 1.47 544,609 Bajaj Finserv Ltd 8,995.05 0.03 344,994 Smurfit Kappa Group Plc 3,408.00 -0.93 69,660 Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd 382.75 1.38 4,903,064 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Standard Life Aberdeen Plc 289.70 0.17 1,241,405 Britannia Industries Ltd 3,603.55 -0.41 463,358 Ds Smith Plc 377.90 -0.03 604,002 1.58 Cipla Ltd 830.15 -0.37 4,810,932 Ck Hutchison Holdings Ltd 54.50 4,250,335 Hong Kong & China Gas 11.42 0.53 13,137,595 Smiths Group Plc 1,522.50 0.10 84,021 -1.01 Coal India Ltd 137.65 1.03 15,223,089 Hang Lung Properties Ltd 19.60 2,507,200 Bank Of Communications Co-H 4.16 2.46 13,660,024 Scottish Mortgage Inv Tr Plc 1,182.00 -0.17 1,176,664 3.38 Divi’s Laboratories Ltd 3,766.00 0.44 387,691 Ck Infrastructure Holdings L 41.25 2,283,454 China Petroleum & Chemical-H 3.48 2.35 75,095,257 Smith & Nephew Plc 1,525.50 -1.07 428,566 0.19 Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories 5,201.80 0.00 411,173 Hengan Intl Group Co Ltd 54.00 2,666,134 Hong Kong Exchanges & Clear 414.20 0.29 3,984,999 Spirax-Sarco Engineering Plc 11,155.00 -1.54 13,029 -1.71 Eicher Motors Ltd 2,451.35 0.60 711,668 Cspc Pharmaceutical Group Lt 7.47 78,157,220 Bank Of China Ltd-H 2.63 1.54 263,837,140 Sse Plc 1,522.00 0.36 568,298 0.68 Gail India Ltd 122.65 2.08 17,437,291 Hang Seng Bank Ltd 133.30 1,032,515 Hsbc Holdings Plc 40.00 -0.25 34,795,081 Standard Chartered Plc 472.60 0.13 1,187,585 0.00 Grasim Industries Ltd 906.65 1.06 1,489,896 China Resources Land Ltd 31.25 9,849,105 Power Assets Holdings Ltd 41.25 1.23 2,139,048 St James’s Place Plc 1,150.00 0.97 213,865 0.64 Hcl Technologies Ltd 921.80 0.27 3,884,750 Ck Asset Holdings Ltd 39.60 5,691,630 Mtr Corp 43.85 0.57 2,311,298 Severn Trent Plc 2,276.00 -0.91 87,018 0.13 Housing Development Finance 2,476.45 0.87 2,085,391 Sino Biopharmaceutical 7.47 63,107,914 Techtronic Industries Co Ltd 108.70 0.65 1,294,214 Tesco Plc 232.90 2.96 9,297,614 0.17 Hdfc Bank Limited 1,412.85 1.13 5,849,597 Henderson Land Development 29.85 1,147,128 China Overseas Land & Invest 17.20 -0.58 13,419,152 Taylor Wimpey Plc 167.00 0.09 9,560,021 4.51 Hdfc Life Insurance Co Ltd 678.70 3.26 5,624,012 Aia Group Ltd 95.00 19,472,133 Tencent Holdings Ltd 519.00 -6.65 60,559,725 Unilever Plc 4,310.00 -0.02 554,122 4.85 Hero Motocorp Ltd 3,082.60 0.31 742,559 Ind & Comm Bk Of China-H 4.76 476,267,156 China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd 4.61 3.60 94,521,650 United Utilities Group Plc 895.40 -0.53 403,570 -1.50 Hindalco Industries Ltd 239.90 1.24 8,213,627 Sun Hung Kai Properties 98.50 7,173,174 Link Reit 70.00 1.60 3,776,657 Vodafone Group Plc 123.24 0.20 16,318,770 0.41 Hindustan Unilever Ltd 2,388.90 -0.56 1,532,477 New World Development 36.35 2,356,390 Petrochina Co Ltd-H 2.40 0.84 83,152,056 Wpp Plc 813.00 0.07 663,947 4.93 Icici Bank Ltd 520.10 1.28 14,470,472 Geely Automobile Holdings Lt 24.50 116,399,007 Cnooc Ltd 7.50 2.18 177,333,282 Whitbread Plc 3,214.00 2.42 187,196 -4.01 Indusind Bank Ltd 866.95 1.66 5,449,095 Xiaomi Corp-Class B 31.15 306,895,516 China Construction Bank-H 5.80 2.11 347,813,094 -0.12 Infosys Ltd 1,240.30 0.34 4,607,051 Swire Pacific Ltd - Cl A 43.10 519,171 China Mobile Ltd 45.50 2.25 37,195,999 -0.59 Indian Oil Corp Ltd 91.70 1.61 13,213,126 Sands China Ltd 33.45 4,857,101 Alibaba Group Holding Ltd 210.00 -7.98 104,426,789 2.06 Itc Ltd 209.50 0.43 15,741,000 Wharf Real Estate Investment 39.70 2,582,434 0.49 TOKYO Jsw Steel Ltd 386.60 5.56 11,720,459 Clp Holdings Ltd 71.45 2,283,408 0.40 Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd 1,988.90 1.44 2,743,069 Country Garden Holdings Co 10.08 15,067,786 -0.91 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Larsen & Toubro Ltd 1,289.40 2.15 3,405,825 Aac Technologies Holdings In 43.50 9,513,823 5.41 Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd 710.95 0.01 2,484,872 Wuxi Biologics Cayman Inc 96.40 9,853,635 GCC INDICES Murata Manufacturing Co Ltd 9,320.00 4.67 2,995,300 -1.47 Maruti Suzuki India Ltd 7,483.00 0.50 521,320 Shenzhou International Group 147.50 4,813,056 Indices Lt Price Change Kansai Electric Power Co Inc 963.20 0.39 2,431,200 1.31 Nestle India Ltd 18,597.35 0.17 65,357 Ping An Insurance Group Co-H 93.05 24,791,077 Denso Corp 6,044.00 0.17 1,215,400 China Mengniu Dairy Co 44.85 0.11 4,291,447 Ntpc Ltd 100.45 0.50 15,454,893 Doha Securities Market 10,559.36 -4.97 Dai-Ichi Life Holdings Inc 1,538.00 0.07 2,092,700 -3.02 Oil & Natural Gas Corp Ltd 93.80 0.70 17,759,262 Sunny Optical Tech 157.50 7,122,368 West Japan Railway Co 5,279.00 3.31 938,200 Boc Hong Kong Holdings Ltd 23.80 1.49 7,247,975 Power Grid Corp Of India Ltd 191.55 0.82 3,869,826 Kuwait Stocks Exchange 4,567.00 +32.90 Komatsu Ltd 2,771.50 0.56 1,473,300 1.80 Reliance Industries Ltd 2,003.30 0.46 7,947,719 China Life Insurance Co-H 17.00 33,977,341 Fanuc Corp 25,220.00 -0.10 508,400 Citic Ltd 5.45 1.87 24,296,500 Sbi Life Insurance Co Ltd 901.65 3.18 4,187,861 Oman Stock Market 3,624.54 +9.36 Mitsui & Co Ltd 1,898.00 -0.55 2,864,000 -1.79 State Bank Of India 275.20 3.13 36,870,242 Galaxy Entertainment Group L 57.50 8,289,955 Kao Corp 7,934.00 0.90 793,400 Wh Group Ltd 6.42 0.94 17,498,199 Secom Co Ltd 9,321.00 -0.41 433,600 Shree Cement Ltd 23,715.55 -0.47 58,822 Sekisui House Ltd 2,060.50 1.08 1,217,000 Sun Pharmaceutical Indus 586.95 -0.59 12,299,793 Aeon Co Ltd 3,298.00 1.17 2,009,900 Tata Steel Ltd 632.65 1.66 10,480,517 Tokio Marine Holdings Inc 5,281.00 0.84 1,012,400 Tata Consultancy Svcs Ltd 2,929.40 0.69 2,108,994 Otsuka Holdings Co Ltd 4,474.00 0.04 904,200 Tech Mahindra Ltd 947.10 -0.02 1,870,669 “Information contained herein is believed to be reliable and had been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. The Oriental Land Co Ltd 16,620.00 0.61 516,500 Titan Co Ltd 1,543.55 3.19 2,497,242 accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed. This publication is for providing information only and is not intended Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 5,406.00 3.27 1,513,400 Tata Motors Ltd 186.35 5.91 98,012,135 as an off er or solicitation for a purchase or sale of any of the financial instruments mentioned. Gulf Times and Doha Bank Ana Holdings Inc 2,148.50 -1.44 6,793,100 Upl Ltd 453.40 0.89 3,146,922 or any of their employees shall not be held accountable and will not accept any losses or liabilities for actions based on Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Gr 3,182.00 0.89 4,470,200 Ultratech Cement Ltd 5,142.15 1.93 410,405 this data.” Mitsubishi Electric Corp 1,572.50 0.87 2,334,100 Wipro Ltd 382.90 0.18 4,725,879 Gulf Times Tuesday, December 29, 2020 7 BUSINESS Bolstered by pandemic, tech titans face growing scrutiny

AFP Amazon 67% and Apple 68%. Zoom, created in 2011 on hate speech and requirements for transparency ing regulation of content for several months, and ing small business, exploiting its employees and Paris by a Californian engineer, has watched its share over algorithms. recently announced new rules for e-commerce. promoting over-consumption with disregard for the price jump 600% in 2020, while Airbnb’s share Drawing lessons from past failures — delayed and November’s dramatic suspension of the IPO for environment — yet the French branch of Jeff Bezos’ value doubled on the day of its IPO. drawn-out procedures and weak penalties — the online payment giant Ant Group — which was company made record sales during the “Black Accelerating the transition to an ever more digital Meanwhile Chinese apps, long confined to the Digital Services Act could see companies face expected to raise a record $34bn — was interpreted Friday” sales bonanza. existence, the coronavirus pandemic has tightened local market, are exploding in app stores around crippling fines or even bans from the EU market for by many observers as a shot across the sector’s Shoshana Zuboff , a professor at Harvard Business tech giants’ grip on billions of customers’ lives. the world: notably TikTok but also SHEIN for breaches. bows from the Chinese government. School and the author of a book on “surveillance Governments and users are belatedly coming to clothes shopping and another video sharing The bloc’s competition chief Margrethe Vestager And last week, market regulators launched an anti- capitalism”, has denounced the sale of personal terms with the power held by the likes of Apple and platform, Likee. has said the draft laws would bring “order to chaos” monopoly investigation into Ant parent company data to advertisers. Amazon, particularly in focus this year thanks to The pandemic may have strengthened these online, reining in the massive “gatekeepers” who Alibaba shortly after Communist Party leaders Speaking on a European Parliament panel last their role in everything from setting up video meet- high-flying digital giants, but it has also ener- dominate markets. vowed to crack down on “disorderly capital expan- week, she said Google’s possible acquisition of fit- ings to doing our shopping for us. gised calls to regulate the conglomerates which The United States is also acting on competition sion”. ness wearables maker Fitbit should be blocked. Most of the planet has spent at least part of 2020 continue to expand through hundreds of acquisi- concerns, with US federal and state antitrust enforc- Despite public outcry over their failings to rein “Google’s assurances cannot be trusted,” she said. in lockdown, and as Western consumers clicked tions. ers filing suits against Facebook on December 9 in misinformation or hate speech, among other Some argue that targeted advertising is nothing through Google and Facebook, hundreds of mil- “Until 2017, the benefits, especially in terms of inno- seeking to overturn its acquisitions of Instagram things, tech companies have seen little impact on new, however. lions of Chinese users turned to Baidu, Alibaba, vation, were considered to outweigh the damage,” and WhatsApp. their bottom line. Jacques Cremer, a professor at the Toulouse School Tencent or Xiaomi. said Toledano, who has written a book about taking “For nearly a decade, Facebook has used its domi- In the US, Facebook was boycotted in July by a hun- of Economics in France, said it is “normal” that Fa- These “superstars” of online capitalism “have given control back from Google, Amazon, Facebook and nance and monopoly power to crush smaller rivals dred or so advertisers against the backdrop of the cebook, Google or Twitter “use the data they have the impression, in this world where so many things Apple. and snuff out competition, all at the expense of Black Lives Matter movement, without any major on me to show me ads”. that seemed solid are now fragile, that they are That has changed, however, as they now stand everyday users,” Letitia James, New York’s attorney economic damage. “We must regulate the platforms, but be careful not above it all and even invincible,” said Paris-based accused of not paying enough taxes, unfair com- general, said. Ride-hailing platforms Uber and Lyft, which refused to make scapegoats of them,” said Cremer, who economist Joelle Toledano. petition, stealing media content and spreading In October the Justice Department and 11 states to take on their thousands of drivers as employees last year advised the European Commission on While governments are spending trillions of dollars fake news. launched proceedings against Google, accusing it as required by California law, managed to convince proposed regulation. to avoid widespread bankruptcies and mass unem- The European Union has unveiled an ambitious set of having illegally strengthened its monopoly on voters there to support them in a crucial referen- “They are incredibly imaginative companies, ex- ployment, shares of these companies have been of new rules to clip their wings, ranging from limits online searches and advertising. dum in November. traordinarily well managed, and off er a high quality rising since January: Facebook’s stock is up 35%, to their power over the market to cracking down In China, meanwhile, authorities have been tighten- And in France, Amazon is accused of destroy- of service.”

India stocks Asian markets mixed as climb to fresh records Trump signs Covid bill on steady foreign AFP Tokyo inflows sian markets were mixed yes- terday as US President Donald Bloomberg ATrump signed a massive coro- Mumbai navirus relief bill, with a boost in posi- tive sentiment dampened by concern over a new strain of Covid-19. India stocks rose as inflows Under pressure from all sides, from foreign investors Trump approved the stimulus package headed for a record quarter. worth $900bn late on Sunday in the The S&P BSE Sensex climbed United States, having delayed doing so 0.8% to 47,353.75 in Mumbai. for nearly a week. The NSE Nifty 50 Index “An otherwise quiet day in Asia has advanced 0.9%. Both gauges sparked to life,” Jeff rey Halley, Senior closed at fresh all-time Market Analyst at OANDA, said after highs. the signing. Indian equities have surged “The headline should provide a wel- as part of a global shift by come boost to sentiment in Asia, which investors into emerging was likely to waver today as Chinese markets as countries begin authorities over the weekend told Ant rolling out vaccines. Financial to go back to its core pay- The inflows have shown ments business,” he added. little sign of slowing for the Before signing the bill, Trump holiday season, as investors tweeted that he had “good news” to poured about $6.5bn into come, sending markets swinging high- the market this month, data er even before the measures were ap- updated through Wednesday proved. showed. Equities and oil prices have taken That would be the second- a hit recently as virus cases surged highest monthly total on across the planet and a new more record. transmissible strain was reported in “Investors should stay Britain, forcing governments to im- focused on quality sectors pose tight restrictions and lockdowns and stocks, and also watch to contain the disease over the festive the trend in foreign investor period. inflows, which is the main Tokyo closed 0.7% higher at factor of the recent rally,” 26,854.03 points yesterday, with Ja- said Vinod Nair, head of karta, Mumbai and Bangkok also in research at Geojit Financial positive territory. Services Ltd in Kochi. Shanghai, Seoul and Singapore were Indian stocks are set to fl at, while Hong Kong closed down witness record foreign 0.3% at 26,314.63 points and Manila inflows this quarter. slid 1.1%. All 19 sector sub-indexes Sydney and Wellington were closed A view of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, operated by Japan Exchange Group Inc (JPX). Tokyo stocks closed 0.7% higher at 26,854.03 points yesterday. compiled by BSE Ltd for a holiday. advanced yesterday, led European stock markets opened ment shutdown today. The president’s strategist Stephen Innes. “The stimu- cines has boosted hopes that 2021 its first cases of the new strain and by a gauge of real estate fi rmer. turnaround came after a day marked lus balloon will allow the markets to could bring a respite from the pan- closed its borders to all non-resident companies. Paris was up 0.7% and Frankfurt by calls from across the political spec- navigate better the number of new air demic, which has killed more than foreign arrivals until late January. All but two of the 30 rose 1.3%, with dealers citing the trum for action to avert a fi nancial and pockets due to the virus’s latest vari- 1.7mn people since emerging in China Over the weekend China’s central constituents of the Sensex Brexit trade deal as a major positive for social disaster in the world’s largest ant,” he added. late last year. bank summoned executives from Ant index gained. Europe’s biggest economy and trade economy, especially among the most But with various lockdown meas- But jitters remain over the new strain Group and demanded the fi ntech gi- HDFC Bank Ltd contributed powerhouse. vulnerable. ures in place worldwide due to the new that emerged in Britain and reached ant “strictly rectify” its lending, insur- most to the index advance London was closed for a holiday. “For Americans that have been end- strain, “vaccine rollout remains the key several other European countries as ance and wealth management services, and jumped 1.2%, while The emergency US package is part lessly checking their mailboxes for a to unlocking the ultimate rally door”, well as South Korea and Japan. as the state squeeze continues on the Titan Co Ltd was the biggest of a larger spending bill that, with stimulus check, this is the best holiday Innes warned. Analysts in Tokyo said investors re- once unbridled empire of tech tycoon winner, rising 3.2%. Trump’s signature, will avoid a govern- present anyone could ask for,” said Axi The approval and roll-out of vac- mained cautious after Japan reported Jack Ma. Gig economy workers say they can no longer survive

AFP of his job at the moment and criticises was more work in the richer towns. there’s no flexibility — you have to work almost $3.4bn in its stock market debut. an aff luent suburb of Kuala Lumpur. Paris calculations by Deliveroo’s algorithm that She slept in her car or shelled out $25 for when there’s demand. His smartphone off ers him a job — $5.50 Before Covid-19 hit, he was a driver for decide how much to off er him for jobs. a room. You’re going to work late nights, long for a 4.6-mile delivery in 30 minutes. Grab in Johor, southern Malaysia. “A delivery that’s worth six euros at noon Mighetto was pulling in $60-$80 an hour weekends and every single holiday.” “That’s the equivalent of $11 an hour, that’s “I could easily make a comfortable living. Whether in Paris, Kuala Lumpur or is worth just three euros in the evening. before expenses in 2017 but a series of In the spring, she gave up driving for fear too little,” said Gutekunst. But after the virus outbreak, life became California, gig economy workers fear they You can’t earn a living with this job, unless rate cuts caused that to fall to $20 at the of catching Covid-19 but had to fight for “My personal minimum is $18 an hour. I tough as many people lost their jobs and can no longer survive on meagre earnings you’re willing to live like a slave.” beginning of the year and to less than $10 unemployment benefits of $450 per week often make more than that, because I have my income was reduced,” Amal told AFP from jobs that leave them increasingly He recently joined an association of gig in March. instead of the $167 paid to gig workers. a strategy.” as he waited outside a department store vulnerable. delivery drivers that seeks to improve She finds the algorithms opaque and She received a $600 per week supplemen- Part of it is to be selective and focus on for his ninth order of the day. The term “gig” stretches back a century working conditions. pernicious. tal federal benefit that the US introduced western Los Angeles and the beach towns Given the bleak prospects in Johor, he to jazz musicians who used it to refer to a “We should be able to defend ourselves,” “So it knows me personally,” said Mighetto. as part of its Covid-19 stimulus measures of Marina Del Rey and Santa Monica. headed to the capital. “There were no job one-off show but now the “gig economy” he maintains. “And the bonus off ers were changed, but it ran out after four months. But mostly it consists of playing diff erent opportunities in my home town as I lack involves millions of people in all sorts When Erica Mighetto began driving with you know, based on what I was willing to Mighetto is bitter about a California refer- platforms off against each other. academic qualifications,” he explained. of jobs, from Uber drivers to Deliveroo Lyft three years ago, “I just loved it”, she accept.” endum — backed by Uber — to overturn a Gutekunst’s job acceptance rate for Door- Amal earns a little more than $700 a delivery teams. said. If friends were getting bonus off ers of $50 state law that would have forced gig firms Dash was 12% that day but he said it can month if he puts in long hours. Wissem Inal does more than 700km (450 Her grown son had left the house and she for doing 20 rides per week, the algorithm to recognise their drivers as employees, often be just 2%. That day he reached his daily average of miles) a week on his scooter, delivering up thought it would be a great move until she would off er her $350 — but for 120 rides and pay them minimum wages and “To make decent money... you really have $27 after a gruelling 14 hours. to 10 takeout meals in the Paris suburbs found a job in bookkeeping or property a week. benefits. to juggle, to play with all the off ers to “Look around, there are so many of us do- every evening. management. To get enough jobs and claim the bonus, California voters approved the measure make your living.” ing delivery. It is getting tough,” he said. “At the moment, with the lockdown I “I really enjoyed, you know, choosing my drivers would accept lower fees. with 58% of the vote. Amal Fahmi, 24, keeps his eye glued to Amal would prefer a steady job but does end up with €500 ($600) a month net,” own hours,” she told AFP. “You’re in this like, vicious cycle black “We shouldn’t be stripping workers of his cell phone and the Grab delivery app not completely regret the path he has said the 32-year-old who has driven for “I thought life was good.” hole,” said Mighetto. basic labour protections so people can get popular in Southeast Asia. chosen. Deliveroo since 2017 but also takes jobs Mighetto lived in Sacramento but would She does not buy the argument that gig cheap rides,” she said. He is one of many Malaysians who makes What motivates me is I am the boss... I can for Uber Eats and Stuart. drive more than an hour to the San Fran- work is flexible. Twenty-seven-year-old Devon Gutekunst a living delivering food, medication and manage my time and most importantly, no Inal has trouble seeing the “good side” cisco area on weekends because there “I personally call it on demand work... delivers for DoorDash, which just took in shopping by motorcycle in Petaling Jaya, one scolds me,” he laughed. Tuesday, December 29, 2020 GULF TIMES BUSINESS

Ooredoo chief strategy officer wins top EU clears way for China investment pact AFP Outgoing US leader Donald Trump has Brussels engaged in a trade war with China but his suc- accolade at WeQual Awards 2020 cessor has also expressed concern about the EU outreach, with his team urging Brussels to EU member states gave political backing to consult with Washington. Ooredoo has announced its chief strategy off icer, a number of diff erent high-profile companies Brussels’ planned investment pact with China The European Commission, the EU executive, Munera al-Dosari, has been honoured with an across a range of industries, including JP yesterday, clearing the way for a deal between had said before Christmas that the draft of the award at the recent WeQual Awards 2020. Morgan, Rolls-Royce, Centrica, and Zurich. the world’s biggest economic blocs. “political agreement” was “95% ready” and Al-Dosari won the award in the Strategy Being listed as a finalist in the WeQual awards At a meeting of ambassadors, the German EU just needed the capitals’ green light. Development Category of the WeQual Awards, enables candidates to access a range of WeQual presidency noted no member had “raised a China’s commitment to labour rights had re- which were designed to promote diversity and support services and networks designed to stop sign and the way for a political endorse- mained a hurdle, but Europe has long sought gender equality within the group executive support a move to group executive level. ment was thus cleared”, a diplomat said. greater access to the huge Chinese market for committees of the Europe, Middle East and Since getting the award, 25% of WeQual award The diplomats noted “recent positive develop- its companies. Africa (EMEA)’s largest companies. winners have been promoted to the global ments” in negotiations, with China reportedly The head of the EU chamber of commerce The WeQual organisation itself, founded by executive committees of FTSE and Fortune 500 addressing concerns over the alleged use of in Beijing Joerg Wuttke told AFP this month Briton Katie Litchfield, aims to identify and companies. forced labour on its farms. that negotiators had “apparently made great recognise female executives ranked a level Sabah Rabiah al-Kuwari, director of PR at This came after the Chinese foreign ministry strides on market access”. As part of the below group C-suite with the aim of supporting Ooredoo, said: “We’re delighted that our said last week that “negotiations have entered accord the EU has also been pushing Beijing them to take up positions in C-suites. colleague Munera has been recognised for the final stretch” — and a second EU diplomat to reinforce respect for intellectual property, Twenty four finalists were selected from an her outstanding contribution to strategy said an agreement could now be formally an- end obligations to transfer technology, reduce extensive list of potential candidates, with the development at Ooredoo. nounced this week. subsidies for public enterprises and improve finalists being assessed against seven criteria: “Munera is an incredibly valuable member “We have to be careful, but as long as China on climate commitments. leadership, cognitive ability, integrity, drive and of our senior management team, and a role is in agreement, there could be an off icial an- While Trump’s administration has engaged resilience, equality, knowledge of the business, model to many aspirational young Qatari nouncement from Brussels and Beijing by the in a war of words with Beijing, Brussels has and personal development. All candidates women thanks to her talent, dedication and end of the week,” the senior envoy told AFP. taken a balanced approach. were assessed blind, with no details of name or commitment to her career. We look forward to The deal would be a major boost for both The EU states treat China as a “systemic rival” company shared in their application. seeing Munera progress yet further, and we’re sides and strengthen economic ties between and have expressed concerns over China’s Finalists were then invited for a 30-minute sure she will be an asset to Ooredoo in the the giants before the arrival of US president- rights record, especially its clampdown in Ooredoo chief strategy off icer, Munera al-Dosari. interview with a panel of judges drawn from years to come.” elect Joe Biden in the White House in January. Hong Kong and treatment of the Uighurs.

Brexit trade deal gets EU SAB launches Phase 3 of green light

AFP Brussels risk management project The European Union gave the green light yesterday to its post-Brexit trade deal with the QNA UK, clearing the way for it to come into eff ect Doha in the New Year. The British parliament will have to ratify the deal later this week, but Brussels will apply it he State Audit Bureau (SAB) provisionally, cushioning the economic shock has launched the third phase of of the divorce. Tthe risk management project, Customs and regulatory controls on cross- which aims to develop risk manage- Channel commerce will still come into eff ect ment processes in the entities under on January 1 after Britain leaves the EU single SAB control, and enable them to de- market. velop proactive plans to reduce risks But there will be no immediate return to a and preserve public funds. regime of tariff s and quotas that could have The four-day third phase targets disrupted trade after Britain’s decision to quit 53 entities subject to the Bureau’s the club. control. Sebastian Fischer, spokesman for the German The director of Risk Management presidency of the EU, said: “EU Ambassadors and Quality Assurance Department have unanimously approved the provisional at the SAB, Sheikh Sultan bin Nayef application of the EU-UK Trade and Coopera- al-Thani, said that the risk manage- tion Agreement.” ment project is one of the strategic Under EU procedure, the decision by ambas- projects that the SAB has adopted sadors from the 27 member states to endorse with the aim of improving the risk the plan will take eff ect at 3:00pm (1400 GMT) management process in State insti- today. tutions, through an integrated risk But there is no expectation that any EU management system that achieves members will now slow the adoption of the more eff ective management and op- trade deal, the fruit of a tortuous 10-month timum utilisation of resources and negotiation. ensures reaching the strategic objec- Germany holds the rotating EU presidency tives of these entities. and Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokeswoman All bodies subject to the Bureau’s Ulrike Demmer said the coalition government control will benefi t from this impor- has no objection to the text. “Germany can tant project, he said, pointing that 58 accept the negotiated accord,” she said. entities have taken part in the fi rst The European Parliament will want to study and second phases of the project, the deal even after its provisional application while participation of all parties will and was expected to convene a session in the be completed during the next year. first half of next year to ratify it. The project aims to identify and But on Monday, MEPs were discussing the analyse the data of risks that any possibility of pushing that date back further to party, subject to the Bureau’s con- give themselves more time to study the text trol, may be exposed to, and to de- and to watch how relations develop. termine the effi ciency of these enti- The member states’ provisional approval ties in managing these risks, which The third phase of the risk management project, launched by the State Audit Bureau, aims to identify and analyse the data of risks that any party, subject to the will last until the end of February, but EU may aff ect the achievement of goals Bureau’s control, may be exposed to, and to determine the eff iciency of these entities in managing the risks. parliamentary leaders asked on Monday for and the implementation of strategic a few more weeks to arrange a vote in March plans. ered one of the fi rst regulatory agen- the risk management project, which various entities subject to their con- operational risks, as well as compli- or April. The State Audit Bureau is consid- cies in the world to have adopted aims to monitor all types of risks in trol, be them strategic, fi nancial or ance risks.

Foreign, Arab institutions increasingly turn net buyers on QSE

By Santhosh V Perumal The domestic institutions’ net selling increased significantly Business Reporter to QR46.98mn against QR11.78mn on December 27. Local retail investors turned net sellers to the tune of QR3.42mn compared with net buyers of QR4.56mn on Foreign and Arab institutions were increasingly net Sunday. buyers and the Gulf funds were seen bullish on the Qatar The Gulf individuals were also net sellers to the extent of Stock Exchange, which otherwise settled in the negative QR0.55mn against net buyers of QR0.73mn the previous yesterday. day. The buying interests in four of the seven sectors The foreign individuals’ net buying declined noticeably to notwithstanding, the 20-stock Qatar Index was down five QR0.15mn compared to QR1.91mn on December 27. points or 0.05% to 10,559.36 points, although it touched an However, the foreign institutions’ net buying increased intraday high of 10,573 points. substantially to QR33.01mn against QR6.19mn on Sunday. Local and Gulf individuals were seen net profit takers on the The Gulf funds turned net buyers to the extent of QR8.63mn market, whose year-to-date gains were at 1.28%. compared with net sellers of QR3.77mn the previous day. Trade turnover and volumes were on the increase on the The Arab institutions’ net buying strengthened markedly to bourse, where the industrials, banking and consumer goods QR4.16mn against QR2.13mn on December 27. The MoUs signed yesterday were on creating an electronic link between the banks and the GTA to encourage the sectors together accounted for about 90% of the total The Arab individuals’ net buying also grew notably to payment of taxes and by using diff erent e-payment methods. trading volume. QR4.1mn compared to QR0.02mn on Sunday. Islamic equities were seen declining faster than the main Total trade volumes grew 73% to 179.6mn shares, value by index on the market, whose capitalisation, nevertheless, saw 44% to QR308.26mn and transactions by 20% to 5,319. QR78mn or 0.13% jump to QR609.17bn, mainly on microcap The real estate sector’s trade volume more than doubled segments. to 13.21mn equities and value also more than doubled to GTA signs agreements with A total of 10,858 exchange traded funds (Masraf Al Rayan QR22.76mn on more than doubled deals to 705. sponsored QATR and Doha Bank sponsored QETF) valued The consumer goods and services sector’s trade volume at QR57,067 changed hands across three deals; while in the soared 90% to 59.56mn stocks and value by 43% to debt market, there was no trading of sovereign bonds and QR57.94mn, while transactions were down 6% to 1,103. banks to facilitate tax payment treasury bills. There was 72% surge in the industrials sector’s trade volume The Total Return Index was down 0.05% to 20,300.02 points to 49.61mn shares, 20% in value to QR44.55mn and 30% in and Al Rayan Islamic Index (Price) by 0.2% to 2,412.11 points; deals to 1,214. QNA ment of taxes and by using diff erent Al-Attiyah said that the plan to while All Share Index was up 0.06% to 3,234.48 points. The banks and financial services sector’s trade volume shot Doha e-payment methods. link the authority with banks will The real estate index declined 0.45%, telecom (0.32%) and up 59% to 52.06mn stocks, value by 48% to QR157.52mn and The agreement was signed by GTA gain momentum in the future, add- consumer goods and services (0.17%); whereas insurance transactions by 4% to 1,534. assistant head of tax aff airs Ghanem ing that the goal is to facilitate the gained 1.59%, transport (0.35%), industrials (0.1%) and banks The insurance sector reported 32% expansion in trade he General Tax Authority (GTA) bin Khalifa al-Attiyah; chief oper- process of paying taxes so that it can and financial services (0.02%). volume to 1.02mn shares and 28% in value to QR2.13mn on and QNB signed a fi nancial ating offi cer and executive general be done electronically. Major losers included United Development Company, almost tripled deals to 96. Tservices agreement yesterday. manager at QNB Financial Serv- He added that the banks were QIIB, Qatar Electricity and Water, Barwa, Zad Holding, The transport sector saw 29% jump in trade volume The GTA also signed three memo- ices Ali Rashid al-Mohannadi; gen- selected based on how ready their Mazaya Qatar, Ooredoo and Vodafone Qatar; even as to 1.77mn shares, 42% in value to QR8.14mn and 31% in randums of understandings (MoU) eral manager and head of wholesale infrastructure is to implement the Qatar General Insurance and Reinsurance, Qatar Industrial transactions to 175. with Masraf Al Rayyan, Dukhan banking at Masraf Al Rayan Moham- process. Manufacturing, Mannai Corporation, Salam International However, the telecom sector’s trade volume plummeted Bank, and Al Ahli Bank. ed Isamil al-Emadi; CEO of Dukhan He called on other banks to com- Investment, Widam Food, Commercial Bank, Ezdan and Gulf 27% to 2.37mn equities, while value was up 12% to The MoUs were on creating an Bank Khalid Youssef al-Subaei; and plete their infrastructure so that they Warehousing were among the gainers. QR15.22mn and deals by 44% to 492. electronic link between the banks Deputy CEO of Al Ahli Bank Mo- can off er the same service in the fu- and the GTA to encourage the pay- hamed al-Namla. ture.