BUSINESS | Page 1 SPORT | Page 1 Doha Bank H1 net profi t Hungarian teen Milak rises 10.2% to QR519mn smashes Phelps record published in QATAR since 1978 THURSDAY Vol. XXXX No. 11255 July 25, 2019 Dhul-Qa’da 22, 1440 AH GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals In brief Prime minister meets Pakistani counterpart REGION | Diplomacy Iran open to tanker swap with Britain Iran hinted yesterday it is open to a tanker swap with Britain as the owners of a UK-flagged ship seized by the Islamic republic expressed hopes for “positive progress” after speaking to its crew. The seizure of the Stena Impero has been seen as a tit-for-tat move after British authorities detained an Iranian tanker off Gibraltar this month on suspicion it was shipping oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions. Page 6 ARAB WORLD | Confl ict Air raids kill 20 civilians in northwest Syria Bombardment by the Syrian regime and its Russian ally killed 20 civilians HE the Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani met yesterday with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and the accompanying delegation, during his short visit to the including five children yesterday in country. HE the Prime Minister hosted a dinner banquet in their honour. Page 3 the latest violence to hit northwest Syria. The Syrian regime and Russia have stepped up their deadly raids on the Idlib region since late April, despite an international deal intended to prevent a full-scale ‘1,700 apartments, villas off ensive. PM Johnson promises AMERICA | Politics added in second quarter’ Trump: Mueller hearing an ‘embarrassment’ O Marginal drop in rents in some Qatar areas US President Donald Trump Transactional volumes for houses a bold new Brexit deal By Pratap John yesterday described Robert Mueller’s Business Editor declined 25% quarter-on-quarter testimony to Congress on the Russia (QoQ) and 14% year-on-year (YoY). O Vows to quit EU by end of October, come what may probe as an “embarrassment” to the The median ticket size for residential nation, mocking his Democratic rivals mix of 1,700 apartments and vil- houses was QR2.8mn. Reuters for asking the former special counsel las were added in Qatar in the The fi ve largest ticket sizes were London to appear on Capitol Hill. Trump had Asecond quarter (Q2) of this year, seen in The Pearl, New Salata, Lusail said he would not watch the day’s bringing the total stock to 294,700 units and Abu Hamour for dwellings rang- proceedings, but after the first of two as of June-end, according to research ing from 1,400 sq m to 5,500 sq m. oris Johnson promised in his fi rst congressional hearings in the House and consultancy fi rm ValuStrat. As many as 53 transactions were speech as prime minister to lead Judiciary Committee, he made his Apartment supply consisted of recorded for residential buildings. BBritain out of the European Un- feelings known. Page 8 some 1,500 units from delivered Rawdhat Al Khail, Al Sadd, Najma, Al ion on October 31 with “no ifs or buts” projects in The Pearl, Lusail, Fereej Bin Wakrah and Muaither had the largest and warned that if the European Union EUROPE | Weather Mahmoud, Old Ghanim, Fereej Abdul transacted prices. refused to negotiate then there would Aziz, Musheireb and Al Dafna. As of May 2019, transactional vol- be a no-deal Brexit. 20th-century warming Completion of villas and com- ume in The Pearl and West Bay La- Johnson, who has been hailed by US unmatched in 2,000 yrs pounds in Al Kheesa, Al Wajbah, Umm goon was 274 units with a total value President Donald Trump as Britain’s World temperatures rose faster Salal Ali and The Pearl added 200 new of QR612mn. Trump, is sending the strongest message in the late 20th century than at properties to existing stock, it said. Residential median asking rents yet to the EU that he will be taking a dis- any other time in the last 2,000 An estimated 9,000 units are pro- declined 5.6% YoY and 1.5% QoQ, tinctly tougher approach to negotiating a years, according to research jected to be completed by end-2019, ValuStrat said. Median monthly ask- revision of the Brexit divorce deal. released yesterday which experts with 35% expected in Lusail, 35% in ing rent for apartments fell 1.1% quar- He took over from Theresa May at one said undermines climate deniers The Pearl and the remaining units terly and 5.4% annually, it said. of the most perilous junctures in post- questioning of mankind’s role in across other areas such as Fereej Bin Secondary apartment locations World War Two British history - the global warming. Page 12 Mahmoud, Nuaija, Musheireb, Ona- such as Al Wakrah, Old Airport, Najma United Kingdom is divided over Brexit Britain’s new Prime Minister Boris Johnson gives a speech outside 10 Downing Street iza, Al Dafna, Al Sadd, Ain Khaled, Al and Al Mansoura experienced highest and weakened by the three-year political in London yesterday. BUSINESS | Internet Khor and Abu Hamour, ValuStrat said. annual declines in rents of up to 13%. crisis that has gripped it since a 2016 ref- In terms of residential sales, the Median monthly asking rent for vil- erendum vote to leave the bloc. ate and we are forced to come out with to agree to revise the divorce deal that Legal penalties dent ValuStrat report showed that median las fell by 4% QoQ and 7.1% YoY. “We are going to fulfi l the repeated no deal.” May agreed last November but failed to Facebook profi t transacted ticket sizes for houses in- Villas in Muraikh, Al Gharrafa, Ain promises of parliament to the people Just hours after arriving in Down- push through the British parliament. Facebook yesterday reported that its creased by 12% quarterly and 3% an- Khaled, Abu Hamour, Al Khor and and come out of the EU on October 31, ing Street, the new Conservative Prime The gambit, an admission that three profit in the recently ended quarter nually. Umm Salal Mohamed experienced no ifs or buts,” Johnson, 55, said after Minister began work with one of the years of Brexit talks have failed, sets the plummeted due to costs of a US QoQ increase in median transacted annual falls in rent up to 12%, ValuS- arriving at the premier’s offi cial resi- biggest culls of senior government jobs United Kingdom up for a showdown privacy settlement in a quarterly prices can be attributed to larger ticket trat said. dence, No 10 Downing Street. in recent British history, changing all with the EU and thrusts Johnson towards update that was largely better than sizes of housing transactions experi- The second quarter 2019 ValuS- “We can do a deal without checks of the main ministers. Most of his ap- a potential constitutional crisis, or an expected and set its share price enced in areas such as Al Kharaitiyat, trat Price Index (VPI)-Residential, at the Irish border,” he said. “It is of pointees were Brexit supporters. election, at home. He has just 99 days higher. Profit in the second quarter Al Markhiya, Lusail, Abu Hamour, displayed an overall 6.3% annual and course vital at the same time that we Johnson’s bet is that the threat of a to renegotiate and ratify the so called fell 49% from a year ago to $2.6bn Madinat Al Khalifa and Rawdhat Al 0.8% quarterly decline in capital val- prepare for the remote possibility that no-deal Brexit will persuade the EU’s Withdrawal Agreement that the EU has while revenues increased to $16.9bn. Hamama. ues. To Page 3 Brussels refuses any further to negoti- biggest powers - Germany and France - repeatedly refused to amend. Page 11 New bridge set to be opened at Al Luqta tomorrow he Public Works Authority (Ash- will also establish a direct link between HE the Prime Minister and Inte- opened in 2021. ghal) has made one more giant these areas. rior Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin The corridor will have the fi rst cable- Tleap in its race towards opening The new bridge with four lanes will Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani and stayed bridge in Qatar as well as the the prestigious Sabah Al Ahmad Cor- go fully functional by 2020 remarkably Sheikh Nasser al-Mohamed al-Ah- largest intersection, longest bridge and ridor. bringing down traffi c congestion and mad al-Sabah, representative of Ku- deepest and longest bi-directional tun- Ashghal yesterday announced that a reducing travel time by 60% between wait Amir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad nel. It will establish a direct link among new 850m-long bridge will be partially the areas. The bridge will accommodate al-Jaber al-Sabah, had launched more than 25 residential areas and fa- opened tomorrow at Al Luqta on Sabah more than 16,000 vehicles per hour in Sabah Al Ahmad Corridor project on cilitate easy access to fi ve 2022 FIFA Al Ahmad Corridor. With the open- each direction. February 24 this year. World Cup stadiums. ing, two lanes from Al Luqta towards Al While announcing the partial open- Described as the first of its kind in As part of the project, E-Ring, F- Rayyan and from Al Rayyan to Al Luqta ing, Ashghal project engineer Ali Ibra- Qatar, Sabah Al Ahmad Corridor as- Ring, Mesaimeer, Al Bustan, Bu Erayy- will be available for traffi c. him said the new development is one of sumes much importance.