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Friday, March 3, 2017 Jumada II 4, 1438 AH

MORE DEPENDENT : Page 3 GULF TIMES Russia seen dominating European gas market BUSINESS for two more decades ‘Healthcare sector being extended and Fed tees up March hike as reformed in Qatar’

By Pratap John key policymaker shifts tone Chief Business Reporter Qatar’s healthcare sector is being extended and reformed, Reuters and the country is making eff orts to further regulate medical Boston/San Francisco devices, BMI Research has said in a report. Despite a weaker economic outlook due to the collapse of oil prices, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) markets dominate he Federal Reserve is setting the BMI’s MENA Medical Devices Risk/Reward Index, with the UAE stage for a US interest-rate increase being the most attractive market in the region, followed by Tlater this month, with the central Qatar. bank’s leading voice on international eco- The UAE has substantial private and public sector investment nomics saying the global economy seems plans ahead of Dubai’s Expo in 2020, and Qatar will ensure to have turned a corner, clearing the way continued public sector spending ahead of the FIFA World Cup for a hike “soon.” in 2022, BMI said. “After being an important constraint in Although the Qatar market is “small”, BMI said, it mostly the past few years, the external environ- driven by large health infrastructure projects, but per capita ment currently appears more benign than expenditure is high. Due to limited domestic production, the it has been for some time, even though market relies on imports. risks remain,” Fed governor Lael Brainard The small population, mainly urban, has been driven by non- said Wednesday in an address at Har- Qataris. The age structure is only pyramidal for the Qatari vard University. “Assuming continued population. progress, it will likely be appropriate soon The healthcare sector is being extended and reformed, and to remove additional accommodation, the country is making eff orts to further regulate medical continuing on a gradual path.” devices. The speech marks a shift from the cau- “Lower hydrocarbon prices do not present a significant threat tious, dovish tone that Brainard has used to Qatar’s fiscal sustainability but the government will seek to in many of her recent speeches, and adds tighten control over public spending, currently focused on the an important voice to the chorus of offi - FIFA World Cup in 2022,” the Fitch Group company said. cials signalling rates may rise when the Fed Islamic law is the basis of the legal system, and Qatar scores next meets in mid-March. well in terms of business transparency, it said. Several Fed speakers so far this week In terms of the wider region, BMI said Mena (Middle East and have already succeeded in boosting the North Africa) “underperforms the global scores” for industry market pricing of a March hike to 70% rewards as well as country rewards. from 20% last week. Mena is the second least attractive region in the world in Coupled with the comments of other which to commercialise a medical device. Fed offi cials in recent days, and looking On the other hand, BMI said the GCC markets off er the best ahead to remarks by Fed Chair Janet Yellen prospects, as reflected in their dominance of the top spots in today, Brainard’s comments will likely Federal Reserve board governor Lael Brainard speaks at the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in its new Medical Devices Risk/Reward Index (RRI). help cement sentiment that the Fed will Cambridge, Massachusetts on Wednesday. The speech marks a shift from the cautious, dovish tone that Brainard has used in many Iraq and Egypt, with low industry and country risks scores, raise rates in two weeks. of her recent speeches, and adds an important voice to the chorus of off icials signalling rates may rise when the Fed next meets in languish at the bottom of the regional Index. “I believe the economy is strong enough mid-March. It is a small medical device market in the global context, led that we can manage it,” Dallas Fed presi- by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran. The non-GCC sub-region dent Robert Kaplan, a voting member this ley said on Tuesday that the case for a rate Policymaker forecasts after the Fed’s On Wednesday, Brainard referred to ex- is increasing its market share at the expense of the GCC year on the Fed’s policy committee, said hike has become “a lot more compelling” December 2015 rate hike pointed to four pected expansive fi scal policy as an “up- sub-region, weighted down by a slowdown in Saudi Arabia. earlier on Wednesday. “We should begin and San Francisco Fed president John Wil- more rate hikes in 2016. side” risk. The population is growing steadily but the proportion of the the process sooner so we can ensure that it liams said a rate hike would be seriously The Fed managed just one. And indeed the view among Fed policy- population aged 65 and over remains small. A significant level is gradual and patient.” considered at the March meeting and that What is different this year is that trad- makers appears to be that further policy of urbanisation off ers good prospects, it said. This week has an unusually high con- he sees no reason to delay. ers are actually falling into line with the tightening is appropriate regardless of any Mena also underperforms on industry risks and country risks, centration of Fed speeches, with four out The message from Fed offi cials, along March rate-hike view and the Fed’s cur- potential fi scal boost, as infl ation edges the BMI report said. of fi ve Federal Reserve governors - includ- with data showing stronger infl ation and rent forecast for three rate hikes this higher and the economy nears the Fed’s The healthcare system in countries such as Iraq has suff ered ing chair Janet Yellen - speaking ahead of manufacturing activity, has bolstered bets year. goal of full employment. because of the ongoing conflict. With rising healthcare costs the March 14-15 rate meeting. that the Fed would in two weeks make the The US central bank left rates un- Raising rates in March gives the Fed and lower oil prices in countries with oil wealth, private health New internal Fed rules on public com- fi rst of the three rate rises it expects this changed at its January meeting, and had room to deliver more rate hikes should expenditure is rising to stave off the erosion of state revenues. munications make today the last chance to year. not been expected to move again until May Trump’s policies bolster growth, or to Economic growth across Mena will pick up in 2017 with a few set up market expectations before the next The messaging appears to have aligned or June in part because so little is known pause should they slow the economy or notable exceptions such as Saudi Arabia, while Iran will be the Fed meeting. fi nancial markets with the Fed. That has about US President Donald Trump’s fi scal if this year’s European elections unsettle economic outperformer. New York Fed president William Dud- not happened in past years. plans. markets. Iraq February oil exports up despite Opec cuts Second tranche of QSE transition to EM from March 19: FTSE Russell

By Santhosh V Perumal weight from 20% to 28% as the sum secondary emerging market index. Business Reporter of restricted shareholders is “more re- They were Aamal Company, Al Meera strictive than the offi cial foreign own- Consumer Goods Company, Barwa, ership limit”. Commercial Bank, Doha Bank, Ezdan lobal index compiler FTSE Rus- Another constituent, Qatari Inves- Holding Group, Gulf International sell has said the second 50% tors Group would retain an unchanged Services, Industries Qatar, Masraf Gtranche of Qatar Stock Ex- investable weight due to it “failing the Al Rayan, Medicare Group, Ooredoo, change-listed stocks transitioning into headroom test” (which is done on a Qatar Electricity and Water, Nakilat, emerging market (EM) will take place quarterly basis), it said. Qatar Insurance, QIIB, Qatar Islamic with eff ect from March 19. As per FTSE, Qatar, with high per Bank, QNB, Milaha, Qatari Investors “As the QSE is closed on Friday, capita income, comes under invest- Group, Salam International Invest- 17 March 2017, the March 2017 index ment grade in creditworthiness and ment, United Development Company review changes for Qatari securities has suffi cient broad market liquidity and Vodafone Qatar. within FTSE Russell indexes will be to support sizeable global investment As many as 10 stocks were classifi ed based on the closing price from Thurs- and also has “reasonable and compet- under large cap and they are: Barwa, day, March 16, 2017,” said the London itive” implicit and explicit transaction Ezdan, Industries Qatar, Masraf Al Stock Exchange group entity. costs. Rayan, Ooredoo, Qatar Electricity and Flames emerge from flare stacks at the oil fields in Basra, Iraq on January 17. Iraq’s crude exports rose 1% by In February this year, FTSE Russell Moreover, Qatar’s bourse, which Water, Nakilat, Qatar Insurance, Qatar volume in February, contrasting with a decrease in monthly shipments by Saudi Arabia after both countries had confi rmed that the second 50% follows T+3 settlement system, has Islamic Bank and QNB. agreed to Opec’s plan to cut oil production in an eff ort to prop up prices and trim a global oversupply, Bloomberg tranche of Qatar transitioning to sec- suffi cient competition in brokerage Similarly, 10 equities were classi- reported. Exports increased to 3.85mn bpd last month, about 39,000 bpd more than in January, according to ondary emerging market status within business to ensure high quality inter- fi ed under midcap segments and they port-agent reports and ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Shipments from the southern port of Basra the FTSE Global Equity Index (GEI) mediary services. There has also been are Aamal Company, Al Meera, Com- grew by about 1%, and sales by the Kurdish Regional Government in the north of the country rose about 9%, the series would be implemented in con- suffi cient competition to ensure high mercial Bank, Doha Bank, Gulf Inter- data show. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is limiting output in the first half of this year to cut junction with the March 2017 semi- quality custodian services in QSE, national Services, QIIB, Milaha, Qatari global crude stockpiles that are weighing on prices. The group agreed on November 30 to decrease annual review. which has “rare” incidence of failed Investors Group, United Development production by 1.2mn bpd, with 11 countries outside of Opec pledging to reduce by about 600,000. Vessel-tracking Although the investable weight of trades. Company and Vodafone Qatar. data compiled by Bloomberg show that Saudi Arabia, the group’s largest member, cut exports by about 2% in a Qatari constituent was supposed In September 2016, FTSE Rus- Medicare Group and Salam Interna- February to 7.04mn bpd - supporting the kingdom’s assertion that it’s paring output. to have doubled, it said Aamal Com- sell had confi rmed the inclusion of all tional Investment have been classifi ed pany will have an increased investable the earlier indicated 22 stocks in its under small cap segment. Gulf Times 2 Friday, March 3, 2017 BUSINESS Oman gains breathing space with $5bn bond sale

Reuters which returned to the interna- borrowing and the drawdown of ket again” this year, said Anita sovereign funds. The fi ve-year 300 bps over and the 30-year at to increase revenues through a Dubai tional bond market in 2016 after 500mn rials from fi nancial re- Yadav, head of fi xed income re- tranche, a maturity which tra- 387.5 bps over. range of reforms but has limited an absence of two decades. serves. search at Emirates NBD. ditionally attracts demand “The government would have room to manoeuvre. Order books for the issue This week’s bond sale covered Alternatively, if Oman does from Gulf investors, totalled paid more if the deal had been In early February, public criti- man’s government has totalled $20bn, bankers said, over 90% of the international choose to raise more foreign debt $1bn, while the 10- and 30-year done after a US rate hike. Also cism of the government’s hikes given itself breathing showing that though Oman is borrowing plan. abroad this year, it could reduce tranches raised $2bn each. the risk of a rating downgrade of local fuel prices prompted the Ospace from the pressure among the fi nancially weakest The early issuance may save its domestic borrowing, which Much of the two longer is non-negligible, given that cabinet to freeze the price of the of fi nancing a large budget defi - oil exporters in the Gulf, it can money for Oman since US inter- threatens to hurt the economy tranches appeared to go to US Standard & Poor’s has a nega- basic type of gasoline, pending cit by selling $5bn of interna- for now count on strong inter- est rate hikes are set to resume by tightening liquidity in the investors, who also snapped up tive outlook on its BBB- rating new steps to compensate poorer tional bonds, almost completing national demand for its high- as soon as this month, and given banking system. Saudi Arabia’s debut bond issue on Oman. Pricing would have Omanis. its entire foreign borrowing plan yielding debt. the risk that credit rating agen- Oman’s issue this week “put last October. been a lot higher if the rating Last week, the fi nance min- for 2017 in a single issue. At the beginning of this year, cies could lower Oman’s rating its public fi nances in a safe space This reduced the impact of had changed negatively,” said istry raised the basic corporate Wednesday’s bond sale, in Oman said it planned to cover or outlook later this year. and removed potential disrup- Oman’s bond on liquidity within Yadav. income tax rate to 15% from 12%, tranches of fi ve, 10 and 30 years, a projected 3bn rial ($7.8bn) “Unless they spend more than tive causes of uncertainty”, the region, bankers said. The rating risk suggests imposed a 3% rate on very small was about double the size that budget defi cit in 2017 with 2.1bn planned - which may be a pos- said Fabio Scacciavillani, chief The fi ve-year bond was Oman’s next international debt companies that had previously most investors had expected rials of international borrow- sibility - they may not need to strategy offi cer at Oman Invest- launched at 190 basis points sale may be more diffi cult. been exempt, and removed other and a huge amount for a country ing, 400mn rials of domestic tap the international debt mar- ment Fund, one of the country’s over mid-swaps, the 10-year at The government is seeking exemptions.

‘Israel-Turkey gas pipeline could be ready Mediclinic urges Abu Dhabi in four years’

Reuters Herzliya, Israel

An underwater pipeline to rethink healthcare reform connecting Israel’s massive off shore gas field Leviathan to Economies, demographics are Turkey could be built within attractive in Gulf; but firms face four years, one of the partners regulatory risks in era of cheap oil; in the project said yesterday. Al Noor hit by Abu Dhabi insurance Israel has been pursuing several policy change regional export deals for its newfound gas reserves and Reuters the Leviathan group is moving Abu Dhabi ahead with development plans since making its final $3.75bn investment decision last week. nternational healthcare operator Yossi Abu, chief executive of Mediclinic is requesting the Abu Delek Drilling and Avner Oil, IDhabi government to rethink a said a new 500km (300 mile) change in medical insurance rules that pipeline could have gas flowing has damaged its business after it bet big to Turkey by the end of 2020, on acquiring Al Noor Hospitals, its re- about a year after it comes gional CEO told Reuters. online for the Israeli market. At least two other healthcare compa- “This is the target,” he told nies operating in Abu Dhabi are also in reporters at a news briefing. talks with authorities, seeking a revers- Leviathan, one of the largest al or amendment to the reform that re- off shore discoveries of the past duces state insurance coverage for citi- decade, was found off Israel’s zens using private hospitals, according Mediterranean coast in 2010. to two industry sources who declined It has an estimated 622bn cubic to be named due to the sensitivity of metres (BCM) of gas reserves the matter. and is expected to become Abu Dhabi has cut insurance cover- operational in 2019. age under its Thiqa plan to 80% from Delek Drilling and Avner, 100%, meaning patients have to pay subsidiaries of Israeli conglom- 20% of bills if they seek treatment at erate Delek Group, each have a private hospitals. 22.67% stake in Leviathan. The rule, which does not apply to Texas-based Noble Energy has government hospitals, was introduced 39.66% and Ratio Oil has the last July - at the worst possible time remaining 15%. for Mediclinic as it had just bought Abu Additional export destinations Dhabi private hospital group Al Noor International healthcare operator Mediclinic is requesting the Abu Dhabi government to rethink a change in medical insurance rules that has being discussed are Egypt, for about $1.7bn. damaged its business aft er it bet big on acquiring Al Noor Hospitals Europe and the Palestinian ter- The London and Johannesburg- ritories, including power plants listed company’s experience illustrates be adjusted again around the end of this growing populations are burdened with Noor, many to join new hospitals in Mediclinic share price levels of 120 in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, regulatory risks in the Gulf’s oil-ex- year - partly because reduced Thiqa some of the world’s highest levels of the area, and new doctors had to be rand, which are now around 40% lower Abu said. porting countries as low crude prices coverage had led to higher costs at state lifestyle diseases, such as diabetes. hired. “We were hit by a multitude than mid-2016 when the above-men- Delek and Noble are also dampen economies and strain state fi - hospitals, hitting the government’s Encouraged by such trends, Medi- of headwinds. I think it was the tim- tioned rules changed in Abu Dhabi, we partners in the nearby Tamar nances. budget. clinic, which has 73 hospitals and 43 ing - we couldn’t have predicted. It is believe that Mediclinic is attractively field, which began production The fi rm has begun asking the state The Health Authority of Abu Dhabi clinics across South Africa, Namibia, going to be a challenging year,” said priced for longer-term investors.” in 2013. Health Authority of Abu Dhabi over the did not respond to requests for com- Switzerland and the UAE, bought Al Hadley. Mediclinic has not diversifi ed across That group signed a deal in Thiqa change, David Hadley, chief ex- ment about the private sector’s re- Noor last year. Mediclinic’s London-listed shares the region as broadly as some rivals to 2014 to sell $500mn of gas ecutive of Mediclinic Middle East, told quest on the Thiqa change or whether But since the Thiqa change, Al Noor’s have dropped 8% since the company share out its risk. over 15 years to two Jordanian Reuters in an interview. it planned to scrap the reform or extend in-patient volumes have dropped 38% issued a profi t warning for its Middle Its stock performance stands in stark companies, Arab Potash Co and “Other providers have done the it to all hospitals. and out-patient volumes by 43%, Had- East business last week. contrast to rival NMC Health, which the Jordan Bromine Co. same,” said Hadley, adding that the It has previously said that the rule ley said. While timing played its part, other has seen its shares rise almost 13% There has been some op- reform had channelled patients to gov- change would contribute to its eff orts to To compound Mediclinic’s problems, factors might also have contributed to year-to-date, according to Thomson position in Jordan to buying ernment hospitals. increase effi ciency, standardise opera- at around the same time as the reform, the company’s struggles in the region, Reuters data. gas from Israel but Abu said “We don’t have a problem with the tions and increase the sector’s fi nancial competition intensifi ed in Abu Dhabi however. NMC, one of the oldest healthcare supplies from Tamar are now policy on co-payments as long as it ap- viability for the benefi t of patients and with three new players entering the “In the long-term it will probably be players in Abu Dhabi, has operations flowing. “Since early this year plies to the entire industry.” the healthcare system as a whole. sector, while thousands of expatriates clear that Mediclinic overpaid for the Al in seven emirates of the UAE as well as we started to export, it’s not One of the industry sources said that By many measures, the Gulf is an at- and their families left because of job Noor acquisition,” said Neil Brown, an- Saudi Arabia and Qatar, while Medi- huge quantities, but it’s still an although authorities will not give in to tractive destination for foreign health- losses in a slowing economy. alyst at Electus, a South Africa-based clinic has operations in just Abu Dhabi export to Jordan,” he said. pressure in any way, the policy might care providers; incomes are high and Also, 147 doctors out of 600 left Al fund manager. “However, at these and Dubai. QSE edges lower on selling pressure Gradual tax plan lifts Egypt; By Santhosh V Perumal The transport sector saw its index decline Local retail investors’ net profit-booking Business Reporter 0.88%, followed by banks and financial fell considerably to QR20.99mn against services (0.77%), industrials (0.35%) and QR46.62mn on Wednesday. consumer goods (0.32%); whereas real Total trade volume rose 52% to 14.06mn ex-dividend shares hit Dubai Gainers outnumbered losers on the Qatar estate gained 0.58%, telecom 0.41% and shares, value by 30% to QR449.39mn and Stock Exchange. yet its main index lost 31 insurance rose 0.37%. deals by 20% to 5,590. points yesterday, mainly on selling pres- Major losers included QNB, Milaha, Aamal The consumer goods sector’s trade Reuters However, rising stocks in Dubai 0.7% as real estate investment trusts, sure from domestic and Gulf institutions as Company, Mazaya Qatar, Doha Bank, volume more than doubled to 0.88mm Dubai outnumbered falling ones by 18 to 13. the focus of massive activity by day well as non-Qatari individual investors. Masraf Al Rayan, Al Khaliji, Woqod, Al equities and value also more than doubled Builder Arabtec, which in mid- traders in the past week, jumped The transport, banking, industrials and Meera, Qatari Investors Group and Gulf to QR72.74mn on a 51% jump in transac- February posted a net loss of about again. consumer goods counters witnessed Warehousing. tions to 587. gypt’s stock market rose sharp- 2.95bn dirhams ($803mn), fell 0.3% Riyad REIT, the most heavily trad- higher than average profit booking, which Nevertheless, about 53% of the stocks The transport sector’s trade volume more ly yesterday after the fi nance after releasing a presentation outlin- ed stock, added 4.6%. led the 20-stock Qatar Index decline 0.29% gains with major risers being Qatar Gen- than doubled to 0.69 stocks and value Eminister said he would pro- Najran Cement fell 0.8% after say- to 10,721.15 points. eral Insurance and Reinsurance, Al Khaleej also more than doubled to QR23.51mn on pose only a gradual introduction of ing it was temporarily halting one of Selling was rather seen skewed within mid Takaful, Ooredoo, Vodafone Qatar, Qatar almost-doubled deals to 640. a stamp duty on transactions, while its production lines with output ca- and large equities in the market, whose Insurance, Commercial Bank, Qatar First The telecom sector’s trade volume more stocks going ex-dividend dragged pacity of 3,000 tonnes per day be- year-to-date gains were contained at 2.72%. Bank, Alijarah Holding, Industries Qatar, than doubled to 2.01mn shares, value down Dubai. cause of low demand and high inven- Islamic stocks were, however, seen falling Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding, Ezdan, soared 50% to QR22.73mn and transac- The Egyptian index climbed 2.6% tory build-up. slower than the main index well as the United Development Company, Islamic tions by 33% to 240. as blue chip Global Telecom jumped Al Tayyar Travel soared 9.3% be- other indices in the bourse, where foreign Holding Group and Medicare Group. The real estate sector witnessed a 66% 7.6% . fore being suspended in the after- institutions turned bullish and there was Domestic institutions turned net sellers to surge in trade volume to 4.29mn equities, Amr al-Garhy told Reuters on noon at the company’s request pend- weakened net selling by local retail inves- the tune of QR31.19mn compared with net 38% in value to QR94.91mn and 6% in deals Wednesday that he would propose a ing the announcement of a “material tors. buyers of QR34.2mn on March 1. to 971. duty starting at 1.25 Egyptian pounds development”. Trade turnover and volumes were on the Non-Qatari individual investors were also The banks and financial services sector’s ($0.08) per 1,000 to the government After the close, Al Tayyar denied increase in the market, where banking, net sellers to the extent of QR5.57mn trade volume expanded 62% to 4.57mn next week, rising to 1.5 pounds in the Egypt’s stock market jumped 2.6% local media reports that it had signed realty and telecom sectors together ac- against net buyers of QR32.79mn the previ- stocks, value by 38% to QR143.65mn and second year of implementation and yesterday after the finance 5bn riyals ($1.3bn) worth of deals with counted for more than 77% of the total ous day. transactions by 42% to 2,159. 1.75 pounds in the third. minister said he would propose only Indonesian agencies to bring Muslim volumes. GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) institu- There was a 5% increase in the industrials “We are working on not aff ecting a gradual introduction of a stamp pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. Market capitalisation eroded more than tions’ net profit-booking strengthened to sector’s trade volume to 1.15mn shares but the size or value of transactions in the duty on transactions. However, it said it was represented QR2bn, or 0.38%, to QR577.21bn as mid, QR26.24mn compared to QR8.61mn on on an 11% decline in value to QR61.6mn and market,” Garhy said. in a Saudi business delegation now large and small cap equities fell 0.62%, Wednesday. 29% in deals to 862. Dubai’s index sank 1.0%. ing a three-phase recovery plan. It visiting Indonesia with King Salman, 0.45% and 0.32% respectively; whereas However, non-Qatari institutions turned However, the insurance sector’s trade Dubai Islamic Bank plunged 9.3% predicted stabilisation of its business and that it would announce any fur- microcaps gained 0.74%. net buyers to the tune of QR83.45mn volume tanked 59% to 0.46mn equities and GFH Financial slid 11.0%; both in 2017, preparation for expansion in ther developments in due course. The Total Return Index shed 0.29% to against net sellers of QR7.64mn on March 1. and value by 38% to QR30.24mn, whereas stocks went ex-dividend yesterday. 2018, and growth in 2019. Elsewhere in the Gulf, Kuwait’s 17,550.29 points, the All Share Index by GCC retail investors were also net buyers transactions gained 18% to 131. The scope of the falls was larger Abu Dhabi’s index climbed 0.6% index gained 0.4% to 6,767 points; 0.31% to 2,977.16 points and the Al Rayan to the extent of QR0.54mn compared with In the debt market, there was no trading of than normal for ex-dividend stocks on the back of Abu Dhabi Commer- Oman’s index rose 0.4% to 5,815 Islamic Index by 0.14% to 4,123.44 points. net sellers of QR4.12mn the previous day. treasury bills and government bonds. and suggested a lack of institutional cial Bank, which added 4.1%. points, while Bahrain’s index slipped buying support. The Saudi Arabian index gained 0.2% to 1,342 points. Gulf Times Friday, March 3, 2017 3 BUSINESS

A section of the Bratstvo gas pipeline crosses a river near Ivano-Frankvisk, Ukraine as seen in this photo dated February 6, 2014. Ukraine is a key route for Russia’s energy exports to Europe. Gazprom, Russia’s state-run export monopoly, shipped a record amount of gas to the European Union last year and accounts for about 34% of the trading bloc’s use of the fuel. Russia will remain the biggest source of supply through 2035, Shell said last week, echoing comments by BP in January. Russia seen dominating European gas market for two more decades

Energy majors see Russia shrugging off outside Europe. Overall, LNG shipments to the controlled producer said in October. That means “There should be space for both increased Russia’s share of EU gas consumption will rise competition from LNG; Gazprom’s gas region, led by Qatar, were stagnant last year. its prices will adjust if a sudden inflow of gas LNG and Russian gas” in light of shrinking to 40% by 2035 from more than 30% now, sales abroad account for 10% of Russia’s “Russia will for sure remain Europe’s largest gas from elsewhere depresses the market. “I think domestic production in the EU and improving according to BP. exports supplier for at least two more decades,” even if there’s a lot more that Russia can do,” Melissa demand, according to Christopher Haines, Gazprom gas sales abroad account for more most of the incremental gains in EU imports are Stark, managing director for Energy and Utilities head of oil and gas at BMI Research. That’s than 10% of Russia’s total exports and the Bloomberg met by LNG from somewhere else, said Vladimir at Accenture, said in an interview in London. provided “Russian gas prices continue to company sees its market share holding or rising Moscow/London Drebentsov, chief economist for Russia and CIS “They can even be more commercial than they evolve to more closely reflect European hub slightly to about 35% by 2025, management at BP in Moscow. have been in the past. They’ve not had to be prices,” he said. board member Oleg Aksyutin told investors in Gazprom chairman Viktor Zubkov reiterated Any fluctuations in Russian supplies into Europe Singapore on Tuesday. Europe has wanted to wean itself from Russian on Monday that 2017 European exports are Russia has enough reserves to remain tend to whipsaw markets. In January 2009, Europe will remain Gazprom’s “priority natural gas ever since supplies from its eastern expected to be close to last year’s level. Europe’s main gas provider for years when the dispute with Ukraine last disrupted market” and no one else can provide gas neighbour dropped during freezing weather But the company may face greater competition to come, President Vladimir Putin said supplies, UK prices soared as much as 27% in at the same price, deputy chief executive in 2009. Almost a decade later, the region has from LNG this summer as its oil-linked prices in December. “Gazprom is supplying one day. officer Alexander Medvedev said at the same never been more dependent. become less attractive relative to market rates, more gas to Europe than Russia or the Russia has enough reserves to remain Europe’s event. US LNG costs some 30% more than Gazprom, Russia’s state-run export monopoly, according to London-based analysts from Soviet Union ever did,” he said. “We main gas provider for years to come, President Gazprom’s gas in Europe supplied through its shipped a record amount of gas to the European Energy Aspects Ltd to BMI Research. have enough gas for ourselves, even Vladimir Putin said in December. “most expensive” route, via Ukraine, Aksyutin Union last year and accounts for about 34% More LNG will arrive in Europe from about mid- considering the growing requirements “Gazprom is supplying more gas to Europe said. of the trading bloc’s use of the fuel. Russia will year as new plants start producing the fuel in of the Russian economy, and for our than Russia or the Soviet Union ever did,” he Russian volumes will stay above LNG in Europe remain the biggest source of supply through the US and Australia, increasing supply options counteragents, the buyers of our gas” said. “We have enough gas for ourselves, even if Asian demand is strong enough to absorb 2035, Royal Dutch Shell said last week, echoing for customers. Russian gas will also become considering the growing requirements of the an oversupply of LNG, the Oxford Institute for comments by BP in January. more expensive after last year’s 52% gain in that commercially aggressive because they’ve Russian economy, and for our counteragents, Energy Studies said in a report published this EU lawmakers have had their hearts set on Brent crude. a long-term contract type situation that they’ve the buyers of our gas.” week. diversifying supplies with liquefied natural The company has means to remain competitive. been able to dominate.” LNG will by 2025 surpass Norwegian gas as a “There are so many moving parts now,” said gas delivered by tanker from the US, where After adjusting price formulas in its export Europe’s domestic output is declining because share of supply, with both the liquid fuel and James Henderson, an analyst at the OIES said. production of the fuel skyrocketed last year. So contracts, Gazprom has diluted the influence of of the natural aging of fields in the North Sea imports from Russia needed to off set declining “So many more things are happening around far, those shipments have failed to materialize oil prices in favour of linking revenue to Europe’s and production limits at the Dutch Groningen domestic production, according to Shell, which the world that have an impact on the European amid a lack of firm contracts and higher prices traded gas markets, a person close to the state- field, Europe’s biggest. controls about a fifth of the world’s LNG trade. gas market.”

Bloomberg QuickTake Russian gas

By Anna Shiryaevskaya European countries. Meanwhile, plans for new pipelines to bypass Ukraine and cement ties to Russia have divided European leaders. There’s an agreement to double the capacity of the Europeans who want to get tough with Russia Nord Stream route under the Baltic Sea, which must face a chilling fact: They need Russian links directly to Germany, the biggest buyer. natural gas to stay warm in the winter. About a In October, Russia formalised a plan to build a third of the continent’s gas comes from Russia, second gas pipeline through Turkey. Russian a vulnerability laid bare by shutoff s during gas faced increased competition globally after freezing weather in 2006 and 2009. Central the start of US shale gas exports in 2016. To to the predicament is the conflict in Ukraine, help protect its market share, Gazprom has which carries the bulk of Russia’s European- been holding auctions that off er more flexible bound gas via a Soviet-era pipeline network. prices and terms. Gazprom and Ukraine’s Alternatives for powering Europe’s homes Naftogaz are still pressing competing claims and factories come at a much higher cost. So against one another that seek to recover despite pledges to reduce its dependence on billions of dollars from more than a decade of Russia, Europe is buying more gas than ever disagreements over pricing and unpaid bills. from its eastern neighbour. The Background The Situation Russia began exporting gas to Poland in the The European Union has stepped in repeatedly 1940s and laid pipelines in the 1960s to deliver more integrated market for gas, which provides gas varies widely — ranging from the bulk analysts at Sanford Bernstein. Russia is keen over the years to try to settle disputes fuel to captive Soviet satellite states. Supplies about 20% of Europe’s energy. The EU has of supply in Eastern Europe to zero in to sell more gas to Europe to help pull its between Russia and Ukraine and to help avert to Europe were steady through the Cold War. repeatedly vowed to diversify its energy supply Spain and Portugal — making it difficult economy out of the longest recession in two disruptions in supply. The most recent talks, The two major shutoff s were triggered by and the most vulnerable countries have raced to to forge a unified approach. Efforts to decades, triggered by the slump in energy in December, made little headway. Ukraine pricing disputes after Russia accused Ukraine lay pipelines, connect grids and build terminals become less captive to monopoly pricing prices. It’s also suffering from US and EU stopped buying gas from Russia for its own of siphoning gas. The second disruption, in the to import liquefied natural gas. Russia also plans and supply manipulation have been sanctions stemming from its aggression in use in 2015 — the year after Russia annexed icy winter of 2009, lasted almost two weeks to sell more gas to China, raising the prospect complicated by Germany’s decision to shun Crimea. Oil and gas taxes fund about 40% its Crimean peninsula — and relies on resale and halted all gas transit to the EU via Ukraine, that Europe may eventually have to compete nuclear power and coal and by widespread of Russia’s national budget. Longer-term of Russian gas from neighbouring countries leading to a scramble for supply. Slovakia and with Asia for Siberian fuel. opposition to fracking. They also come at alternatives for Europe include bringing gas instead. The EU has also accused Gazprom, some Balkan countries had to ration gas, shut The Argument a cost. Eliminating Europe’s dependence supplies from Azerbaijan and other parts the Russian state-controlled gas producer, of factories and cut power supplies. Since then, on Russian gas could require as much of the Caspian region, along with importing abusing its market power in certain eastern better infrastructure has been built to create a Around Europe, dependence on Russian as $200bn in investment, according to more US gas. Gulf Times 4 Friday, March 3, 2017 BUSINESS

Poor man’s gold spurned as Indian G20 leaders seen keeping FX farmers strapped for cash language intact, says diplomat Bloomberg Mumbai Reuters Tokyo

Silver imports by India, one of the world’s top buyers, will roup of 20 fi nance leaders will probably shrink this year to likely refrain from making big the lowest since 2012 as the Gchanges to their commitment government cracks down on to resist currency wars at this month’s black money, farmers struggle meeting in Germany, despite US Presi- for cash and stockpiles remain dent Donald Trump’s rhetoric on ex- ample. change-rate policy, Japan’s former top Purchases from overseas currency diplomat said. plunged 60% to about 3,000 Hiroshi Watanabe, who retains close metric tonnes last year and contact with international fi nancial will contract further in 2017, diplomats, said the US may maintain according to Chirag Sheth, an pressure on countries with large trade analyst at Metals Focus Ltd, an surpluses, such as Germany and Japan, independent precious-metals to boost fi scal spending and contribute research firm, in Mumbai. to global growth. Demand for jewellery has But Trump’s administration, which suff ered after Prime Minister has yet to fi ll key positions at its Treas- Narendra Modi scrapped old ury Department, won’t have enough high-denomination notes in time to lay out a strategy to push for November to clamp down on major changes to the G20 communique the black market and bring at the March 17-18 meeting in Baden- more transparency to the Baden, he said. financial system. That hit the “Japan would fi ght very hard to de- rural economy which depends fend a G20 agreement that excessive more on cash than urban areas, currency volatility is undesirable,” Wa- and hurt demand from farmers. tanabe said. Inventories are “sizeable” after He added that Germany would likely record imports in 2015, Sheth support Japan in pushing back on de- said. mands by Washington to use their trade “Investment demand for surpluses to boost fi scal spending. silver will continue to fare badly “Trump’s administration probably and we wouldn’t be surprised doesn’t yet have a list of agendas it can to see a 10 to 12% drop” this throw at its G20 counterparts,” Watan- year in India, said Sheth, who’s abe told Reuters yesterday. tracked precious metals for 13 It may take until the second half of years. On the global market, in- the year for Washington to fi rm up its vestors have shown increasing stance on economic diplomacy, said interest because of rising po- Watanabe, who served as vice fi nance litical risk. Assets in exchange- minister for international aff airs for traded funds rose in February three years to 2007. for the first time in four months, Sources have told Reuters that Ger- while funds and other specula- many, which holds the rotating presi- tors almost doubled net-long dency of the G20, will press the group US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (right), Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (2nd from right) and other diplomats listen to German Foreign Minister Sigmar bets on the Comex this year. to reaffi rm its commitment to promot- Gabriel (3rd from left) speaking during a meeting on Syria at the World Conference Centre in Bonn. Germany, which holds the rotating presidency of the G20, will press While prices have been ris- ing free trade and resist currency wars the group to reaff irm its commitment to promoting free trade and resist currency wars when finance ministers meet in March for the first time since Trump’s election. ing, they’re way below the peak when fi nance ministers meet in March in 2011 and haven’t even caught for the fi rst time since Trump’s election. However, it also agreed that excessive that a strong yen would hurt Japan’s the BoJ may face heat for keeping the yen its yield targets any time soon. But if the up with the highs seen last But the sources say there was far more currency volatility was “undesirable”, export-reliant economy. weak with ultra-loose monetary easing external environment changes sharply, year. Futures in Mumbai have uncertainty than usual on the draft- language Japan had pushed for that al- Trump and his advisers have accused if it maintains its pledge to cap 10-year the BoJ may need to raise the (10-year climbed 11% in 2017 to Rs43,412 ing of the G20 communique because lows it some freedom to intervene in the countries like Germany and China of bond yields at 0% for too long. yield) target,” Watanabe said, adding a ($650) a kilogram, but are still of Trump’s confrontational rhetoric on currency market to stem yen spikes. keeping their currencies weak to gain a If global bond yields continue to rise, hike to 0.5% or 1% won’t be problem- about 10% short of levels in trade and currencies. Japan has not intervened in the cur- trade advantage. He also accused Japan of the BoJ may have to raise its 10-year atic. July. “Prices have not been able In its 2016 communique, the G20 rency market since 2011. using “money supply” to devalue its cur- yield target and allow Japanese long- Under a new policy framework adopt- to sustain at higher levels and agreed to “refrain from competitive de- But policymakers have frequently is- rency, raising concerns his criticism could term rates to track global market trends, ed in September, the BoJ now guides investors who currently hold valuations” or any targeting of exchange sued verbal warnings to markets against distract the Bank of Japan (BoJ) from its he said. short-term interest rates to minus 0.1% the metal will look to book rates for “competitive purposes.” pushing up the yen too much, fearful eff orts to spur growth. Watanabe said “I don’t think the BoJ needs to raise and the 10-year bond yield around 0%. profits if they go up further,” Sheth said. Silver is so ingrained in In- dian tradition that the country’s currency, the rupee, is named after ‘Rup,’ the Sanskrit word for silver. The metal is popular Didi to weigh raising billions in fresh capital in rural areas where it’s viewed as the poor man’s gold because it’s many times cheaper than its Bloomberg contend the fi rm has enough cash the fundraising, the people said. said. The company had previously hai, Didi said in October. While the fellow metal and women prefer Hong Kong given the $10bn it had amassed last The Beijing company, led by chief been aiming for an IPO in 2017, peo- national government has formally al- to wear it on their feet, keeping year and that raising more equity will executive offi cer Cheng Wei, has gone ple familiar with the matter said last lowed on-demand car sharing services gold for hands, neck and ears. only dilute existing shareholders, the through a tumultuous stretch af- year. In addition to Apple and Tencent, to exist, administrators at the provin- Farmers have been finding it idi Chuxing, the ride-hailing people said. Didi, with backing from ter fending off Uber’s incursion into Didi’s backers include China’s national cial level can set diff erent rules to pro- tough to buy bullion because of service that acquired Uber Apple Inc and Tencent Holdings Ltd, China last year. Chinese policy mak- sovereign wealth fund, Alibaba Group tect vested interests. Taxi licenses are lack of money. DTechnologies Inc’s China busi- hasn’t notifi ed some investors because ers legalised ride-sharing in the coun- Holding and DST Global. typically issued by local administra- “Silver or gold buying is a ness last year, has held informal talks it hasn’t decided whether to proceed, try, but imposed stringent rules that Didi has reigned supreme at home tions for a fee, according to the offi cial forced purchase for us as we with investors about raising billions the people said. have hampered expansion. Among the by off ering services including taxis, Xinhua News Agency. The rights are have to send our daughters to of dollars to buy more time to build a Sun Liang, a Didi spokeswoman, de- regulations, drivers are required to be private cars, limousines and bus serv- licensed to cab companies that then their in-laws house with good profi table business model, according nied the company is looking for more local residents to operate in large cit- ices. As it doesn’t charge taxi drivers sublease it to drivers, who in turn hand face,” said Samarpal Singh, a to people familiar with the matter. capital. “Didi has no such fundraising ies like Beijing and Shanghai, reducing any fees, the bulk of its revenue comes in a cut of their revenue. 50 year-old sugar cane farmer Didi’s investors, numbering more plans,” she said in an e-mail. the supply of cars that had been oper- from taking a commission from rides Leveraging its data from the 300mn from the northern Indian state than 100, are divided over whether Some investors have approached ated by rural workers seeking better in private cars and limos. users across some 400 cities in China, of Uttar Pradesh. “We barely more capital is needed now, said the Didi about investing more capital, pay. About two dozen cities across China Didi is racing against Alphabet Inc and have any savings as we don’t people, asking not to be named be- rather than the company taking the That has hampered Cheng’s ability have issued or are issuing new rules, Baidu Inc to develop driverless tech- get timely payments for our cause the matter is private. Fundrais- initiative, one of the people said. If it to make money. By raising additional most requiring such vehicles to be nology. Founder Cheng said in an in- crops and many farmers resort ing advocates argue more cash will goes ahead with a deal, Didi is likely funds, the company could buy more locally registered and feature higher- terview in September that one of the to taking loans from banks help Didi develop autonomous driv- to seek at least $3bn and is discussing time to develop its self-driving tech- quality standards and specifi cations. key reasons the company agreed to call for buying jewellery for their ing technology and create a lucrative whether it can hike its valuation, now nology and postpone an initial public A stipulation on minimum wheelbase a truce and acquire Uber’s China busi- children’s weddings.” platform for services amid tighter $34bn, another person said. Didi may off ering that would demand stronger width for example ruled out more than ness was to focus more attention on ride-hailing regulations. Sceptics ultimately decide not to proceed with fi nancial performance, the people 80% of the service’s cars in Shang- the battle in automated driving.

China bank regulator vows realty, Fewer workers, higher salaries: shadow banking crackdown

Japan Inc feels demographic pinch AFP lators. The 60-year-old led the China Con- Beijing struction Bank for a decade and was the head of the Forex administration before becom- Reuters rank-and-fi le workers see their base pay fl at- and sales climbed in the last nine months of ing the governor of the eastern province of Tokyo line, despite Prime Minister Shinzo Abe urging the fi nancial year – yet higher labour costs cut he newly appointed head of China’s Shandong in 2013. fi rms to lift wages to boost consumer spend- operating profi t for the period by 6.5%. “We banking watchdog said yesterday He said the CBRC was working on new ing – raising the prospect of an economy where simply can’t get adequate staffi ng,” said Yasuo The would crackdown on real estate rules to reduce risks in the booming asset sk the president of Japan’s largest day- costs rise but growth stagnates. Katayama, general secretary of the company’s speculation and the country’s shadow bank- management industry, tighten supervision care chain what his biggest headache For some companies, the labour crunch is 60,000-member union. “The company has said ing sector, promising an end to regulatory of banks’ risky wealth management products Ais, and Kazuhiro Ogita doesn’t hesitate: forcing them to adapt and become more pro- it will do something, but it hasn’t been enough. “chaos”. and curb the expansion of banks’ off -balance workers and wage costs. ductive. Manufacturers are using more automa- We need the management to reconsider the par- The primary mission of banks must be to sheet business. Not enough of one, too much of the other. tion and robots, and construction companies cel volume.” “support the real economy”, Guo Shuqing – “Banks, trusts, fund-management fi rms, Unable to hire enough employees to staff its and convenience stores are hiring more foreign Hardest hit are small and medium-sized who was appointed president of the China brokerages and insurers all have asset-man- nurseries at a time of strong demand, JP-Hold- workers, from a restricted pool. businesses, which have less cash to invest. Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) agement operations, but because they have ings Inc is paying more overtime and bringing in These aren’t options for all companies. Two-thirds of companies with 100-300 em- three days ago – said at a high-profi le press diff erent regulators and are subject to diff er- part-time workers to fi ll shifts. JP-Holdings needs qualifi ed teachers who ployees said they are facing labour shortages, up conference in Beijing. ent rules, there’s been some chaos,” he said. That’s eating into its bottom line – a trend have passed rigorous exams in Japanese. from 59% a year ago, according to a survey by “Commercial banks must... tackle zombie “We’re working on a joint regulation to set seen across Japan’s labour intensive industries, The resulting impact on costs has prompted the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry. companies, which are the crux of the prob- basic standards that every institution can from delivery companies to restaurants and the company to slash its operating profi t fore- But even businesses like Japan Post, the pri- lem, and actively explore ways to tackle debt follow.” even the 400,000-employee strong postal sys- cast for the year through March by a third, to vatised postal system, are struggling. problems,” he said. He also said he aimed to target real es- tem. Average pay for temporary workers in Ja- ¥1.05bn ($9.3mn) versus ¥1.8bn a year earlier. “You ask the head of any company these days He was referring to heavily-indebted, tate bubbles, after an infl ux of low cost pan’s three biggest cities in December rose 2.1% “We can’t rely on robots to care for chil- what their No 1 problem is, and it’s labour short- overcapacity state-owned companies which cash pushed real estate speculation to new from a year earlier to ¥1,006 ($8.83) per hour dren,” Ogita said. “We have more space – we age and higher (wage) costs,” said CEO Masat- survive on rolling credit from banks. heights. The average price for a square meter – a fi fth monthly record. Pay for forklift drivers just don’t have the teachers to fi ll them. It’s sugu Nagato. “We have 400,000 employees, so The loans come partly because of pressure of land jumped 49 % in southern Shenzhen jumped 13.8% and hotel clerks rose 4%. a lost business opportunity for us.” Delivery this is a huge problem for us.” Operating profi t at from local governments, which fear social province, and 38% in eastern Nanjing last According to Reuters’ analysis of the fi nancial service Yamato Holdings Co, known in Japan Japan Post’s postal and logistics businesses fell problems if such companies collapse and year. results at 193 major companies, labour costs as a for its black cat logo, is also scrambling, even by more than half to ¥2.1bn for the nine months leave huge numbers of employees jobless. Real estate loans soared to 5tn yuans portion of overall sales are at their highest level while off ering higher wages. Thanks to the in- through December, as labour costs and pension Guo also warned of the dangers of real es- ($72bn) in 2016, representing some 45% of in at least fi ve years. This is happening even as ternet shopping boom, Yamato’s parcel volume changes took a bite. tate bubbles, pledging action against specu- total bank debt. Gulf Times Friday, March 3, 2017 5 BUSINESS Infl ation spike puts central banks in SE Asia on watch

Bloomberg Kamath: The New Development Singapore Bank will raise funds by issuing rupee-denominated bonds in India. fter more than a year of disinfl a- tion, price pressures are quickly Amounting across Southeast Asia as fuel costs rise, putting central banks on watch after years of policy easing. ‘Brics bank In Malaysia, consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in almost a year in Janu- ary and economists see that as clos- set to lend ing the door on another interest-rate cut this year even though the economy could do with more stimulus. From Sin- up to $3bn gapore to Thailand, central banks are bracing for faster infl ation. The recent spike has been mainly this year’ caused by oil prices, which have surged 25% in the past six months. In a region where countries like Indonesia have Reuters been prone to high infl ation in the past, Beijing and currencies are vulnerable - notably in Malaysia - central banks will need to monitor closely for any signs that rising he development bank set fuel costs are spreading more broadly to up by the Brics group of prices in the economy. Temerging economies will “The obvious risk is that complacen- aim to lend $2.5bn to $3bn this cy leads central banks to miss infl ation year, its president KV Kamath pressure spreading to the spending- told the state-owned China driven CPI components, forcing more Daily newspaper, nearly double aggressive rate hikes and greater growth the amount the bank loaned last slowdowns down the road,” said Timo- year. thy Condon, head of Asian research at The New Development Bank ING Groep NV in Singapore. (NDB) set up by the Brics – Bra- The pick-up in infl ation isn’t unique zil, Russia, India, China and to Southeast Asia as higher commodity South Africa – will raise funds prices drive up costs across Asia. Chi- by issuing rupee-denominated na’s factory prices have snapped years bonds in India, the newspaper of defl ation, with some analysts saying said, after it issued yuan-de- this is the hidden side of the global re- nominated bonds in China last fl ation trade. year. For now, core measures of infl ation in In Malaysia, consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in almost a year in January and economists see that as closing the door on another interest-rate cut this year even The bank has approved seven Southeast Asia - which exclude volatile though the economy could do with more stimulus. From Singapore to Thailand, central banks are bracing for faster inflation. projects, Kamath said, accord- items such as energy and food costs - ing to the China Daily, and wel- remain contained, taking the pressure 3% yesterday, in line with the forecasts terest-rate cut in July last year, Moham- ning at the fastest pace in two years and the economies in Southeast Asia are comes China’s modern-day off central banks to take immediate of all but one of the 17 economists sur- ed Faiz is predicting the central bank the currency is the worst performer in growing below par, which supports calls “Silk Road” initiative – also action to tighten policy. In Malaysia, veyed by Bloomberg. Bank Negara Ma- will be on hold for the rest of the year. Asia this year, down 1.1% against the for more policy easing. Growth in Ma- known as the “One Belt, One where infl ation reached 3.2% in Janu- laysia said headline infl ation will remain “We do not expect BNM to react to dollar. laysia slowed to 4.2% last year from 5% Road” initiative – to open up ary, the core measure was at 2.3%. The “relatively high” in the fi rst half of the these spikes in headline CPI and rather “The Philippines has been seeing in 2015, while Indonesia’s economy ex- new land and sea routes around government’s projection is for headline year and then moderate, while core in- focus on measures of core infl ation,” he strong growth, so greater scope for panded 5% in 2016, below the govern- the world for Chinese goods. infl ation to average 2% to 3% this year. fl ation is expected to “increase modest- said. infl ation pass-through,” said Khoon ment’s goal of 7%. “We see it as something that “We’ve had a big swing from really ly.” The outlook for infl ation is depend- Malaysia’s ringgit was little changed Goh, the Singapore-based head of Asia “The infl ation outlook across the re- will clearly spur economic activ- depressed numbers,” said Sean Callow, ent on global oil prices, which remain at 4.45 against the dollar as of 5 pm in research at Australia & New Zealand gion is one that things will start picking ity in the region, and we think a senior strategist at Westpac Banking uncertain, it said. Kuala Lumpur, taking its decline in the Banking Group Ltd. up,” said Rahul Bajoria, an economist the programme is going to suc- Corp in Sydney. “Until there’s evidence Infl ation will probably accelerate past month to 0.6%. In Singapore, consumer prices rose at Barclays Plc in Singapore. “What we ceed,” Kamath said. that core infl ation is on the rise and to 4% in February, and average 3.5% The Philippines, which had the fast- for a second month in January after al- need to watch is second-round impacts China will host a “One Belt, wages up with it, I don’t think we’re go- this year, up from a previous forecast est economic expansion in Southeast most two years of declines, while a gov- of higher fuel infl ation and the core in- One Road” summit – its key dip- ing to have any infl ation dynamic going of 2.5%, according to Mohamed Faiz Asia last year, may be the fi rst country ernment report on Wednesday showed fl ation” measures, he said. “If that was lomatic event for 2017 – in May on in the region.” Nagutha, an economist with Merrill in the region to tighten monetary policy a surprise slowdown in Thailand’s in- to start picking up, then I think we’ll see and leaders from about 20 coun- Malaysia’s central bank kept its Lynch Asia Pacifi c Ltd in Hong Kong. this year, according to economists sur- fl ation in February to 1.4%. central banks becoming a bit more cau- tries have already confi rmed benchmark interest rate unchanged at After surprising the market with an in- veyed by Bloomberg. Infl ation is run- Aside from the Philippines, most of tious about the infl ation outlook.” their participation.

New risks loom for China local debt, now in dollars WeWork deal to help SoftBank Bloomberg China, are risks that hang over the Beijing exchange rate. Another potential complication for China’s local authorities is the Just when it looked like Chinese lo- move by central government policy Group expand business in US cal government financing troubles makers to rein in leverage on the were a thing of the past, a new risk domestic front. That priority, which is looming. has driven the People’s Bank of Reuters The vehicles that grew to China to boost money-market inter- New York gargantuan size during the previ- est rates in recent months, may be ous Communist leadership team’s aff irmed in the annual gathering of all-out drive for growth have been the National People’s Congress that urgeoning interest and investment steadily addressed by current kicks off March 5, according to Mor- in fl exible workspaces is pushing a President Xi Jinping’s lieutenants, gan Stanley economists including Bsmall corner of the commercial real largely through a Beijing-led bond Robin Xing and Jenny Zheng. estate market into the corporate main- swap programme. Now, units set China’s Ministry of Finance has stream, and drawing one top executive up by local authorities to fund con- used restrictive language lately from Asia to help expand his company’s struction projects are selling debt with regard to LGFVs, which ran US operations. outside the country - in dollars. up 1.9tn yuan ($276bn) of local Media reports say Japan’s SoftBank While issuance is still small, it’s bonds last year, bringing their Group Corp, with expertise in informa- surging. A record $12.3bn in such total outstanding debt to 5.6tn tion technology and telecommunica- dollar bonds was sold last year, yuan. The ministry said last month tions, is close to investing more than $3bn with more on tap in 2017, making that local governments shouldn’t in the US offi ce-sharing upstart WeWork. local financing vehicles a rival for provide guarantees for financing This would mark a major vote of confi - property developers as top Chinese vehicle debt. Local conditions are dence in the business and the sector over- issuers of US currency debt. The tightening: yield premiums on five- all. Servcorp, an Australia-based rival to obvious problem: the funding vehi- year notes issued by LGFVs over WeWork, believes the market is ripe for cles don’t typically have dollar rev- comparable sovereign debt have expansion and is sending its chief oper- enue to draw on for debt servicing, risen to the highest since July 2015. ating offi cer to New York with a goal of which raises repayment dangers if And issuers have found it harder to doubling US operations, 22 locations, in China’s yuan keeps depreciating - a sell on the home front - leading to about fi ve years. risk highlighted by the potential a second straight month of maturi- “WeWork has really brought into the for accelerated Federal Reserve ties outstripping corporate bond spotlight the fact that the fl exible work- tightening. sales in January, only the second space is a fantastic solution, particularly “Plans to roll over or refinance time that’s happened in 15 years. for start-ups,” said Marcus Moufarrige, when the bonds mature may be “The tightening environment in COO and the founder’s son of Sydney- too optimistic,” said Christopher the onshore market is likely to drive based Servcorp, a leader in serviced of- Lee, a Hong Kong-based managing more LGFVs to the off shore dollar fi ce space and meeting rooms in Asia, the director of corporate ratings at bond market this year,” said Angus Middle East and Australia. S&P Global Ratings. “The funding To, deputy head of research at ICBC Moufarrige said in a telephone inter- Miguel McKelvey, WeWork co-founder and chief creative off icer, poses outside WeWork Hong Kong flagship location. Media window could close any time if International Research Ltd in Hong view he would relocate to the United reports say Japan’s SoftBank, with expertise in information technology and telecommunications, is close to investing more than the market volatility rises, or dollar Kong. The yuan’s decline itself has States by the end of the month. $3bn in the US off ice-sharing upstart. rates surge, or there are unexpect- increased the appeal for China- Servcorp has 155 locations in 54 cities ed credit events.” based investors of buying dollar across the globe, while WeWork has 154 hurdles, along with lack of a unique tech- Commercial real estate brokers say Servcorp has an edge with its global foot- S&P predicts the local govern- debt, through wealth management locations in 36 cities. nological edge that the Japanese compa- shared offi ce space accounts for at least print and a telecommunications network ment financing vehicles will sell products - something that’s given Their styles diff er, with WeWork ny typically seeks. 2% of the New York offi ce market, the that connects all its sites on a seamless 20% to 30% more of dollar bonds local government financing vehi- geared to millennials and Servcorp serv- The ease of working at home or while largest in the United States, but others platform. in 2017. “As the tenors of the bonds cles a ready source of demand. ing the professional business class. on the road through smart phones and put it higher. He called the United States the com- are mostly three years, the real test Yet emerging risks are prompt- CNBC on Monday cited a source who Internet access has put pressure on com- Amol Sarva, chief executive and co- pany’s biggest opportunity. will come in 2018, when the first ing some fund managers, including said SoftBank was close to a $3bn invest- panies and landlords to increase work- founder of Knotel, said real estate usually WeWork’s rapid expansion, and its wave of LGFVs are due for repay- domestic ones, to turn away from ment in seven-year-old WeWork. place amenities, but has not diminished involves risky lease commitments, a rea- reliance on start-ups as customers, has ment,” said Lee. the market, with Lu Congfan at HFT On January 30, the Wall Street Journal the role of the offi ce, experts say. son he took a page from the hotel indus- raised the question of what happens While currency forecasters on Investment Management Co saying cited sources saying the Japanese fi rm Investors have taken notice. try to sign management agreements with when the economy softens. average see the yuan dropping they have little exposure and Darryl was “weighing an investment of well over Knotel, a two-year-old start-up, last landlords to avoid that liability. WeWork reports it has increased the less than 4% this year, according to Flint, founder and chief investment $1 bn.” A deal with SoftBank would likely week raised $25mn in venture capital and Sarva said it was suicidal to enter the number of larger companies that rent a Bloomberg survey, the prospect manager at Double Haven Capital help WeWork jump through the hoops in September 2016 Industrious, consid- real estate business with a business – co- space from it. for Federal Reserve rate hikes, HK Ltd, considering shorting the involved in entering the Japanese market. ered the second-largest US co-working working – that is deeply cyclical. Servcorp appeals to established com- along with capital outflows from notes. However, the company’s fi nancial re- operator with 18 sites, raised $37mn in His agreements are partnerships that panies, and Knotel aspires to that clien- straints as reported last year may pose funding, according to Crunchbase. share revenue, he said. Moufarrige said tele as well. Gulf Times 6 Friday, March 3, 2017 BUSINESS

Most Asia stocks chase Wall Street rally Heavy selling pressure

AFP Hong Kong

Asian markets mostly advanced yesterday, picking up the baton subdues Indian equities from record performances in New York and Europe where IANS traders cheered upbeat US Mumbai economic data and Donald Trump’s conciliatory speech to Congress. ndian equities markets were sub- The US president’s much- dued yesterday as heavy selling anticipated address on Ipressure was witnessed in banking, Tuesday, while lacking details, healthcare, and oil and gas stocks. was broadly welcomed as he The key indices closed with losses of promised a trillion-dollar infra- half a per cent each, despite a strong ru- structure splurge and tax cuts – pee and infl ow of foreign funds. music to bullish investors’ ears. The wider 51-scrip Nifty of the Na- Global equity markets have tional Stock Exchange (NSE) slipped thundered along since Trump’s by 46.05 points or 0.51% to 8,899.75 November election win as deal- points. ers bet his policies would light a The barometer 30-scrip sensitive in- fire under the US economy. dex (Sensex) of the BSE, which opened The fact that he did away at 29,117.38 points, closed at 28,839.79 with the bellicose rhetoric of points – down 144.70 points or 0.50% the past made him appear more from the previous close at 28,984.49 presidential, according to some points. The Sensex touched a high of observers. 29,145.62 points and a low of 28,784.31 “Markets have voted again points during the intra-day trade. and it’s clear they liked the ver- The BSE market breadth was skewed sion of Donald Trump that they in favour of the bears – with 1,930 de- saw yesterday,” Greg McKenna, clines and 957 advances. chief market strategist at CFD In terms of the broader markets, and FX provider AxiTrader, said the BSE mid-cap fell by 1.41% and the in a note. small-cap index was down by 1.30%. “While there was little addi- On Wednesday, positive domestic tional specificity – the so-called macro-economic data, fi rm global cues meat on the bone – the presi- and upbeat quarterly automobile sales dent’s tone echoed the one that results lifted the benchmark indices. ignited the initial Trumponom- The NSE Nifty rose by 66.20 points ics rally during his acceptance or 0.75% to close at 8,945.80 points. speech on election night back The BSE Sensex was up by 241.17 points in November.” or 0.84% at 28,984.49 points. The optimism continued into “Markets corrected sharply yester- Asia, with Tokyo rallying 0.9% day after the rally seen in the previous at 19,564.80 thanks to a drop session weighed by profi t booking after in the yen and Sydney added hitting a fresh 52-week high in open- more than 1%. ing trade. The broader markets were Seoul put on 0.5% and also weak with the Nifty mid-cap and Singapore jumped 0.4%, while small-cap indices falling over 1.5%,” Wellington, Taipei, Manila and Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at Jakarta all posted healthy gains. HDFC Securities, told IANS. A bank executive counts new 2000 Indian rupee notes at a bank in Srinagar. The currency appreciated by 12-13 paise to 66.70-71 yesterday against a US dollar from its However, Shanghai eased Other market observers pointed out previous close of 66.83 to a greenback. 0.5% and Hong Kong reversed that investors turned cautious before early gains of more than 1% to the release of ‘US Bureau of Labour Sta- cance, especially given the impending in March. A hike in the US interest rates mode ahead of electoral outcome as well foreign funds provided some support to end 0.2% lower. tistics’ report on the non-farm payrolls rate hike scenario in March. The US can potentially drive away Foreign Port- as US Fed rate decision next week,” said the benchmark indices. “The overwhelming feel- which is a key data to gauge the likeli- Fed’s recently released FOMC (Federal folio Investors (FPIs) from emerging Anand James, chief market strategist, The rupee appreciated by 12-13 paise ing is positive,” Karl Goody, hood of next US rate hike. Open Market Committee) minutes had markets such as India. Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services. to 66.70-71 against a US dollar from its a private wealth manager at The payroll data assumes signifi - indicated chances of an early rate hike “Markets have retracted to a risk-off However, a strong rupee and infl ow of previous close of 66.83 to a greenback. Shaw and Partners in Sydney, told Bloomberg News. “There’s a huge thirst and ultra-high de- mand from people with money trying to find a home. This is going to continue.” The dollar built on Wednes- IPO values Snap at twice Facebook’s sales multiple day’s advance after Federal Re- serve governor Lael Brainard, usually considered a dove, said Bloomberg patrick, chief executive offi cer of 50% in the fourth quarter for cial media site had an impressive she supported the case for an New York Techonomy Media. the fi rst time since at least 2014 debut, then proceeded to stum- interest rate hike “soon”. Snap raised $3.4bn in its IPO, - and inch closer to profi tability. ble as user growth slowed. That came a day after two pricing shares above the mar- Facebook, with about 1.2bn Snap faces what those com- regional Fed presidents said nap Inc, maker of the dis- keted range, in the biggest social- active daily users on its fl agship panies faced, with one proven they saw a strong case for appearing photo app de- media IPO since Twitter more platform and 1.2bn on its mes- product to date under its belt. tighter borrowing costs, while Spendent upon the fi ckle than three years ago. It’s also the saging tool WhatsApp, trades at The Los Angeles-based com- Fed boss Janet Yellen is due to favour of the millennial demo- fi rst tech company to list in the a multiple of about 10.5 times pany off ered the shares in its IPO give a speech today. graphic, is going public at a valu- US this year. “There is a huge revenue estimates for this year. for $14 to $16 each. Orders for The greenback pushed ation at least twice as expensive amount of people who really just Facebook’s Instagram intro- the off ering were concentrated above 114 yen for the first as Facebook Inc, and four times want to get in on the hot new duced a video-reel feature - sim- at about $17 to $18 a share, peo- time in two weeks on growing more costly than Twitter Inc. thing, who see this as the fi rst op- ilar to Snapchat’s stories - that ple familiar with the process said expectations of a rate increase Snap sold 200mn shares in portunity of its type in a number already has 150mn daily users. Tuesday. Demand outpaced the this month. its initial public off ering at $17 of years,” Kirkpatrick said in an That’s in line with Snap’s daily number of shares being off ered “Investors were sponging each, according to a statement interview on Bloomberg TV. Still, active count of about 158mn. by a multiple of 10, people famil- up the plethora of suggestive on Wednesday. At that price, “they’ve got some serious work While Facebook’s shares lan- iar with the situation said. Fed commentary overnight, it has a market value of about to do to actually make a real busi- guished for more than a year af- Including unexercised stock President Trump’s State of the $20bn, based on 1.16bn shares ness that makes profi ts.” ter its IPO, the stock surged once options and other convertibles Union speech, and a profu- outstanding after the IPO. That Snap, which posted a net the company’s strategy of bet- for a total of 1.39bn fully diluted sion of economic data,” said implies a multiple of about 21.4 loss last year of $515mn, even as ting on mobile software started shares, Snap would have a fully Stephen Innes, a senior trader times EMarketer’s estimate for revenue climbed almost seven- to pay off and revenue and profi t diluted value of about $23.6bn, at OANDA, adding that a Fed Signage for Snap Inc, parent company of Snapchat, is displayed Snap’s 2017 advertising sales. fold, has some things to prove. exceeded estimates. Twitter, according to a person with move was odds-on and the dol- on monitors on the floor of New York Stock Exchange before the It’s a “nosebleed” valuation, It needs to continue to increase with more than 300mn month- knowledge of the matter, who lar would likely hit 115 yen. opening bell yesterday. Snap priced its initial public off ering at but “there’s a nosebleed’s worth revenue per user, address slower ly active users, comes in at 4.8 asked not to be identifi ed be- $17 a share on Wednesday. of demand,” said David Kirk- user growth - which fell below times projected revenue. The so- cause the information is private. US stock investors say don’t worry, be happy EM shares hit one-week high Reuters April 16 referendum approaches. London President Tayyip Erdogan strongly Reuters tax reform, deregulation... then I think the markets tion and the elevated valuation leave stock investors criticised national daily Hurriyet this week, New York continue to rally, but if none of that happens people exposed. “Expectations today are quite optimistic sending its shares and those of its parent start to take risk off the table,” said Northern Trust relative to the likelihood of delays, friction and more The Turkish lira fell more than 1% company tumbling. chief investment offi cer Bob Browne, who is over- negative off sets than the market is currently pricing yesterday, underperforming emerging Hurriyet and Dogus shares rebounded he latest leg of the relentless rally in US stocks weight US equities. in,” wrote the BAML analysts. market peers on back of dollar strength, yesterday by as much as 4.5% after the since Donald Trump was elected president Equities are surely richly priced. The lack of detail on Trump’s speech on Tuesday Syria-related security worries and fears of paper said it had appointed a new editor- Thas all the hallmarks of being driven more Since the 12% advance on the S&P 500 since the regarding tax reform concerned some investors. more discord between the government in-chief. by sentiment than sense, but that doesn’t mean the November 8 election, investors are now paying $18 Scott Clemons, chief investment strategist at and media. “Consensus is Erdogan wins (the refer- ride is over, although it could well be a bumpier one for every $1 in expected earnings over the next 12 Brown Brothers Harriman in New York, said tax Wall Street gains overnight briefly lifted endum) and... markets stabilise thereafter from here. months – the highest forward price-to-earnings reform got “really, really short airtime” and it ap- MSCI’s emerging markets index towards as the regime looks to get back to business The US stock market, which has been hitting new valuation in 13 years according to Thomson Reuters peared to be a “secondary priority.” one-week highs. The lira hit its weakest as usual,” said BlueBay strategist Tim Ash, highs almost every day, is more expensive than it has Datastream. But Clemons said any market pullback on that since February 15 after the dollar firmed to who suggested however that investors been since 2004. Still, large investors such as Warren Buff ett are front would be short-lived because of the expected seven-week highs. could “take money off the table in the run Trump’s address on Tuesday to Congress sparked optimistic. strength in corporate earnings. Investors eyed a US Federal Reserve up to the vote.” another buying frenzy, as the reset in the president’s Buff ett told CNBC earlier this week that the US Earnings for the S&P are expected to rise more rate rise in March after governor Lael Turkish five-year credit default swaps often bombastic tone to an uncombative stance ig- stock market was cheap with interest rates at cur- than 10% over the full year, according to Thomson Brainard, who is usually perceived as do- were trading at 244 basis points, according nited investor optimism – even though his speech rent levels, although he conceded that US shares Reuters I/B/E/S data. vish, said it could be “appropriate soon” to to Markit data, hovering near a two-week was light on details of waited-for initiatives. could conceivably “go down 20% tomorrow.” But that number has been trending lower. remove “additional accommodation”. high hit on Wednesday. Growing expectations of faster interest rate rises But Buff ett said he was “baffl ed” about who For the current quarter, analysts see earnings ris- “Given the sizeable current account Other emerging currencies also slipped, at the Federal Reserve helped fuel the rally, with would buy a 30-year bond at current yields. ing 10.6%, down from an 18% estimate in April and deficit, Turkey is vulnerable to a stronger with the South African rand down 0.8%, bank shares leading Wednesday’s gains. Rich valuations are not a sell signal in themselves, a 13.8% gain seen in January. dollar and tighter monetary policy in the the Russian rouble down 0.4%, and the The stocks rally since November has been driven since in the later stages of a bull market – which can With Trump’s speech light on details, the market US – they have sizeable dollar debt and Mexican peso down 0.6%. by an expectation that Trump’s push for deregula- last years – “corporate earnings are cyclically el- focused on the growing expectations that the Feder- that is unnerving investors,” said Jakob The Kazakhstan tenge weakened 0.5%, tion tied to increased infrastructure spending and evated and the multiple that the market assigns to al Reserve will hike interest rates sooner and maybe Christensen, head of emerging markets also pressured by oil prices dipping back corporate tax cuts will jolt economic growth – and those earnings is often elevated as well,” according more times this year than previously thought. research at Danske Bank. towards $56 a barrel. company earnings. to a note from analysts at Bank of America/Merrill Investors now see a 65% chance that the Fed will But politics also weighed, as the Turkish But Ukraine’s hryvnia bucked the trend, However, investors caution that the tough job Lynch on Wednesday. move to raise rates later this month, up from 35% on army and allied Syrian rebels attacked vil- firming 0.5% against the dollar ahead of a is now to come: pushing promised policy changes The BAML analysts raised their year-end target Tuesday. lages held by US-allied militias in northern central bank rate setting meeting yester- through Congress, which has proven less than easy for the S&P to 2,450, or about 2% above the current But higher rates, which buoyed investor optimism Syria on Wednesday, an escalation of day. Equities were weighed down by Hong even on issues Republicans agree on such as repeal- level, noting that they expect the benchmark to slide because a March rate hike would signal policymak- Turkey’s military campaign there. Kong though most other bourses rose, ing Obamacare. “If Trump delivers on some mile- below 2,230 at one point before 2018. ers’ growing confi dence in the economy, would be a Domestic risks are also on the rise as an including Turkey, which hit two-year highs. stones that are relatively meaningful – corporate Even so, the high expectations on policy execu- double-edged sword for equity investors. Gulf Times Friday, March 3, 2017 7 BUSINESS

SAUDI ARABIA KUWAIT OMAN

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

Saudi Re For Cooperative Rei 8.33 -0.72 1,492,886 Boubyan Intl Industries Hold 23.00 -2.13 1,462,495 Areej Vegetable Oils Saoc 4.05 0.00 - Solidarity Saudi Takaful Co 9.26 0.65 905,635 Gulf Investment House Ksc 44.00 -2.22 4,298,456 Aloula Co 0.53 0.00 - Amana Cooperative Insurance 19.15 -1.49 1,046,074 Boubyan Bank K.S.C 430.00 1.18 407,831 Al-Omaniya Financial Service 0.29 0.00 - Alabdullatif Industrial Inv 14.97 1.15 296,702 Ahli United Bank B.S.C 240.00 -1.64 3,772,552 Al-Hassan Engineering Co 0.06 0.00 - Saudi Printing & Packaging C 17.51 3.79 2,327,352 Osos Holding Group Co 198.00 5.32 685,717 Al-Fajar Al-Alamia Co 0.75 0.00 - Sanad Cooperative Insurance 15.23 0.00 - Al-Eid Food Ksc 86.00 0.00 20 Al-Anwar Ceramic Tiles Co 0.17 1.23 87,262 Saudi Paper Manufacturing Co 10.15 2.01 4,681,393 Qurain Petrochemical Industr 325.00 0.00 478,365 Al Suwadi Power 0.20 0.00 107,184 Alinma Bank 14.66 -0.07 22,694,006 Advanced Technology Co 0.00 0.00 - Al Shurooq Inv Ser 1.04 0.00 - Almarai Co 68.75 0.00 158,944 Ekttitab Holding Co Sak 44.50 0.00 736,210 Al Sharqiya Invest Holding 0.13 0.76 42,200 Falcom Saudi Equity Etf 27.60 0.73 110,160 Kout Food Group Ksc 0.00 0.00 - Al Maha Petroleum Products M 1.57 0.00 - QATAR United International Transpo 28.42 2.97 910,565 Real Estate Trade Centers Co 43.00 -4.44 1,991,500 Al Maha Ceramics Co Saoc 0.48 0.00 - Hsbc Amanah Saudi 20 Etf 27.70 0.00 - Acico Industries Co Kscc 305.00 -1.61 1,006,240 Al Madina Takaful Co Saoc 0.10 -1.01 2,888,686 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Saudi International Petroche 17.83 0.73 1,077,198 Kipco Asset Management Co 85.00 -3.41 60,000 Al Madina Investment Co 0.07 -2.86 1,780,100 Falcom Petrochemical Etf 26.70 0.00 - National Petroleum Services 1,240.00 8.77 270,060 Al Kamil Power Co 0.31 0.00 - Zad Holding Co 85.10 0.00 - Saudi United Cooperative Ins 27.58 0.04 205,901 Alimtiaz Investment Co Kscc 178.00 4.71 17,313,139 Al Jazerah Services -Pfd 0.55 0.00 - Widam Food Co 65.80 -0.30 12,950 Bank Al-Jazira 13.51 0.45 1,762,923 Ras Al Khaimah White Cement 100.00 0.00 73,117 Al Jazeera Steel Products Co 0.25 0.00 - Vodafone Qatar 9.25 0.11 1,972,404 Al Rajhi Bank 63.75 0.09 1,779,270 Kuwait Reinsurance Co Ksc 186.00 0.00 6,025 Al Jazeera Services 0.20 1.03 82,000 United Development Co 21.89 0.23 284,895 Samba Financial Group 21.51 -0.19 1,188,316 Kuwait & Gulf Link Transport 64.00 -3.03 519,056 Al Izz Islamic Bank 0.07 -1.39 58,172 Salam International Investme 10.99 0.37 186,720 United Electronics Co 27.30 1.71 60,434 Human Soft Holding Co Ksc 3,000.00 -0.66 12,140 Al Buraimi Hotel 0.88 0.00 - Qatar & Oman Investment Co 10.49 1.55 22,208 Allied Cooperative Insurance 16.27 -0.18 276,443 Automated Systems Co Kscc 290.00 -4.92 2,350 Al Batinah Power 0.20 0.00 55,073 Qatar Navigation 86.00 -2.16 81,015 Malath Cooperative & Reinsur 8.47 -0.94 553,607 Metal & Recycling Co 89.00 0.00 10,100 Al Batinah Hotels 1.13 0.00 - Qatar National Cement Co 94.30 0.00 - Alinma Tokio Marine 18.57 -0.05 383,506 Gulf Franchising Holding Co 51.00 -1.92 290,703 Al Batinah Dev & Inv 0.10 0.00 485,368 Qatar National Bank 150.70 -1.50 235,593 Arabian Shield Cooperative 63.05 -0.79 193,886 Al-Enma’a Real Estate Co 47.00 2.17 111,100 Al Anwar Holdings Saog 0.19 1.04 663,012 Qatar Islamic Insurance 68.50 1.33 371,710 Savola 37.62 1.13 269,263 National Mobile Telecommuni 1,220.00 0.00 3,056 Ahli Bank 0.20 0.00 200,000 Qatar Industrial Manufactur 48.40 0.52 7,174 Wafrah For Industry And Deve 24.58 1.24 538,806 Al Bareeq Holding Co Kscc 0.00 0.00 - Acwa Power Barka Saog 0.72 0.00 50,000 Qatar International Islamic 69.20 -0.43 140,273 Fitaihi Holding Group 13.00 0.08 331,587 Housing Finance Co Sak 0.00 0.00 - Abrasives Manufacturing Co S 0.05 0.00 - Qatari Investors Group 57.60 -1.20 213,493 Tourism Enterprise Co/ Shams 32.53 1.15 418,024 Al Salam Group Holding Co 57.00 -1.72 999,532 A’saff a Foods Saog 0.80 0.00 - Qatar Islamic Bank 101.90 -0.20 129,993 Sahara Petrochemical Co 15.58 0.19 816,304 United Foodstuff Industries 0.00 0.00 - 0Man Oil Marketing Co-Pref 0.25 0.00 - Qatar Gas Transport(Nakilat) 23.48 -0.04 542,764 Herfy Food Services Co 82.19 0.54 74,022 Al Aman Investment Company 53.00 0.00 466,194 Qatar General Insurance & Re 41.00 0.37 1,005 Mashaer Holdings Co Ksc 0.00 0.00 - Qatar German Co For Medical 9.87 0.71 12,827 Manazel Holding 46.00 1.10 14,674,420 Qatar Fuel Qsc 158.60 -1.25 169,238 Mushrif Trading & Contractin 0.00 0.00 - Qatar First Bank 9.85 1.34 730,317 KUWAIT Tijara And Real Estate Inves 62.00 1.64 34,980 Qatar Electricity & Water Co 229.90 -0.04 19,740 Kuwait Building Materials 160.00 -5.88 347,500 Qatar Cinema & Film Distrib 29.70 0.00 - Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Jazeera Airways Co Ksc 590.00 0.00 77,443 Qatar Insurance Co 74.00 0.27 56,648 Commercial Real Estate Co 85.00 1.19 310,708 Ooredoo Qsc 107.80 0.47 41,942 Securities Group Co 99.00 0.00 58 Future Communications Co 0.00 0.00 - National Leasing 16.90 0.96 2,237,619 Sultan Center Food Products 75.00 0.00 72,000 National International Co 74.00 0.00 1,726,000 Mazaya Qatar Real Estate Dev 14.15 -0.35 589,969 Kuwait Foundry Co Sak 315.00 0.00 14,831 Taameer Real Estate Invest C 33.00 1.54 1,210,389 UAE Mesaieed Petrochemical Holdi 15.75 0.32 153,239 Kuwait Financial Centre Sak 90.00 0.00 100,000 Gulf Cement Co 89.00 1.14 288,000 Company Name Al Meera Consumer Goods Co 179.80 -1.15 22,816 Ajial Real Estate Entmt 180.00 -1.10 39,916 Heavy Engineering And Ship B 228.00 4.59 387 Lt Price % Chg Volume Medicare Group 82.40 2.36 451,217 Gulf Glass Manuf Co -Kscc 325.00 0.00 25,302 Refrigeration Industries & S 300.00 0.00 1,040,798 Mannai Corporation Qsc 84.00 1.20 19,320 Kuwait Finance & Investment 46.50 -5.10 300,096 National Real Estate Co 104.00 0.00 1,089,871 Waha Capital Pjsc 2.20 0.00 3,195,560 Masraf Al Rayan 40.75 -0.12 202,632 National Industries Co Ksc 204.00 -3.77 28,306 Al Safat Energy Holding Comp 52.00 -1.89 2,863,731 United Insurance Company 2.00 0.00 - Al Khalij Commercial Bank 15.03 -0.60 55,884 Kuwait Real Estate Holding C 46.00 3.37 9,550 Kuwait National Cinema Co 1,500.00 1.35 10 United Arab Bank Pjsc 1.67 0.00 - Industries Qatar 115.40 0.09 292,607 Securities House/The 52.00 0.00 2,907,152 Danah Alsafat Foodstuff Co 97.00 5.43 13,049,668 Union National Bank/Abu Dhab 4.31 0.00 134,453 Islamic Holding Group 62.30 1.96 81,696 Boubyan Petrochemicals Co 570.00 0.00 102,102 Independent Petroleum Group 445.00 0.00 39,601 Union Insurance Co 1.86 0.00 - Gulf Warehousing Company 55.30 -0.54 67,892 Al Ahli Bank Of Kuwait 305.00 0.00 19,796 Kuwait Real Estate Co Ksc 73.00 1.39 2,102,754 Union Cement Co 1.18 0.00 - Gulf International Services 29.00 0.00 82,993 Ahli United Bank (Almutahed) 450.00 2.27 35,600 Salhia Real Estate Co Ksc 390.00 0.00 1,000 Umm Al Qaiwain Cement Indust 1.05 0.00 - Ezdan Holding Group 15.58 0.91 2,290,042 National Bank Of Kuwait 760.00 2.70 1,273,664 Gulf Cable & Electrical Ind 560.00 3.70 122,248 Sharjah Islamic Bank 1.60 1.27 190,143 Doha Insurance Co 17.95 0.00 - Commercial Bank Of Kuwait 430.00 0.00 16,473 Al Nawadi Holding Co Ksc 0.00 0.00 - Sharjah Insurance Company 3.85 0.00 - Doha Bank Qsc 39.00 -1.14 458,448 Kuwait International Bank 244.00 0.83 877,736 Kuwait Finance House 610.00 0.00 1,196,820 Sharjah Group 1.50 0.00 - Dlala Holding 20.75 2.67 136,287 Gulf Bank 248.00 0.00 951,523 Gulf North Africa Holding Co 43.50 0.00 917,724 Sharjah Cement & Indus Devel 1.03 0.98 19,070 Commercial Bank Qsc 31.80 0.32 139,341 Al-Massaleh Real Estate Co 49.00 1.03 10,000 Hilal Cement Co 178.00 0.00 20 Ras Al-Khaimah National Insu 4.10 0.00 - Barwa Real Estate Co 39.70 0.00 1,125,162 Al Arabiya Real Estate Co 43.00 -1.15 2,453,329 Osoul Investment Kscc 70.00 -5.41 201,490 Ras Al Khaimah White Cement 1.20 0.00 - Al Khaleej Takaful Group 20.85 3.22 33,579 Kuwait Remal Real Estate Co 70.00 -1.41 2,848,970 Gulf Insurance Group Ksc 600.00 0.00 30,000 Ras Al Khaimah Ceramics 2.31 -1.70 21,238 Aamal Co 15.10 -2.58 383,343 Alkout Industrial Projects C 700.00 0.00 3,800 Kuwait Food Co (Americana) 2,620.00 0.00 8,236 Ras Al Khaimah Cement Co Psc 0.90 0.00 884,744 A’ayan Real Estate Co Sak 80.00 6.67 973,143 Umm Al Qaiwain Cement Indust 0.00 0.00 - Ras Al Khaima Poultry 2.80 0.00 - Investors Holding Group Co.K 30.00 5.26 34,918,656 Aayan Leasing & Investment 46.50 1.09 6,334,996 Rak Properties 0.77 1.32 6,389,039 Al-Mazaya Holding Co 128.00 0.00 1,922,401 Ooredoo Qsc 104.00 0.48 250 SAUDI ARABIA Al-Madar Finance & Invt Co 0.00 0.00 - Oman & Emirates Inv(Emir)50% 1.05 0.00 - Gulf Petroleum Investment 50.00 1.01 3,093,105 Nbad Oneshare Msci Uae Ucits 6.26 0.00 - National Takaful Company 6.35 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Mabanee Co Sakc 840.00 1.20 415,566 OMAN 0.67 61,937 City Group 600.00 0.00 - National Marine Dredging Co 5.00 0.00 - National Investor Co/The 0.52 0.00 - United Wire Factories Compan 24.30 1.25 114,340 Inovest Co Bsc 102.00 -1.92 1,500,827 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Etihad Etisalat Co 21.96 2.66 1,830,463 Kuwait Gypsum Manufacturing 95.00 0.00 6,645 National Corp Tourism & Hote 2.90 0.00 331,500 Dar Al Arkan Real Estate Dev 6.06 1.85 40,628,545 Al-Deera Holding Co 39.00 0.00 560,000 Voltamp Energy Saog 0.53 1.15 57,014 National Bank Of Umm Al Qaiw 3.00 0.00 - Saudi Hollandi Bank 0.00 0.00 - Alshamel International Hold 385.00 0.00 10 United Power/Energy Co- Pref 1.00 0.00 - National Bank Of Ras Al-Khai 4.90 0.00 - Rabigh Refining And Petroche 13.69 2.47 6,837,452 Mena Real Estate Co 32.00 0.00 2,237,801 United Power Co Saog 3.40 0.00 - National Bank Of Fujairah 3.50 0.00 - Banque Saudi Fransi 23.96 0.59 525,036 National Slaughter House 59.00 0.00 20 United Finance Co 0.16 0.00 - National Bank Of Abu Dhabi 10.70 0.47 1,860,840 Saudi Enaya Cooperative Insu 17.62 0.40 1,120,591 Amar Finance & Leasing Co 51.00 0.00 29,000 Ubar Hotels & Resorts 0.13 0.00 - Methaq Takaful Insurance 0.90 0.00 648,584 Mediterranean & Gulf Insuran 24.52 0.00 344,683 United Projects For Aviation 830.00 0.00 1,218 Takaful Oman 0.18 0.00 - Manazel Real Estate Pjsc 0.62 -1.59 4,367,320 Saudi British Bank 20.78 -0.10 716,580 National Consumer Holding Co 50.00 0.00 3,001 Taageer Finance 0.14 0.75 75,000 Invest Bank 2.30 11.11 1,248,558 Mohammad Al Mojil Group Co 12.55 0.00 - Amwal International Investme 44.00 6.02 5,358,642 Sweets Of Oman 1.34 0.00 - Intl Fish Farming Co Pjsc 1.92 -1.03 1,615,040 Red Sea International Co 27.03 2.89 232,238 Jeeran Holdings 70.00 1.45 151,465 Sohar Power Co 0.22 0.00 2,295 Insurance House 0.83 0.00 - Takween Advanced Industries 13.02 1.80 3,229,805 Equipment Holding Co K.S.C.C 58.00 -1.69 1,007,183 Sohar Poultry 0.21 0.00 - Gulf Pharmaceutical Ind Psc 2.19 1.86 11,000 Sabb Takaful 28.60 0.39 286,868 Nafais Holding 220.00 0.00 20 Smn Power Holding Saog 0.70 0.00 - Gulf Medical Projects 3.19 0.00 - Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co 70.85 0.14 81,028 Safwan Trading & Contracting 410.00 0.00 200 Shell Oman Marketing - Pref 1.05 0.00 - Gulf Cement Co 1.12 0.00 - National Gypsum 14.12 0.57 362,835 Arkan Al Kuwait Real Estate 84.00 0.00 90,000 Shell Oman Marketing 2.00 0.00 9,965 Fujairah Cement Industries 0.99 0.00 - Saudi Ceramic Co 29.99 1.01 105,455 Gfh Financial Group Bsc 242.00 4.37 1,984,896 Sharqiyah Desalination Co Sa 4.50 0.00 - Fujairah Building Industries 1.56 0.00 - National Gas & Industrializa 36.78 1.13 85,681 Energy House Holding Co Kscp 43.50 6.10 198,600 Sembcorp Salalah Power & Wat 0.25 0.00 40,000 Foodco Holding Pjsc 6.40 0.00 - Saudi Pharmaceutical Industr 37.00 0.43 40,995 Kuwait Slaughter House Co 184.00 -3.16 50 Salalah Port Services 0.63 0.00 - First Gulf Bank 13.90 0.00 3,943,400 Thimar 38.70 0.89 835,985 Kuwait Co For Process Plant 190.00 -3.06 4,082 Salalah Mills Co 1.48 0.00 - Finance House 1.74 0.00 - National Industrialization C 17.33 0.23 1,685,084 Al Maidan Dental Clinic Co K 1,220.00 0.00 10 Salalah Beach Resort Saog 1.38 0.00 - Eshraq Properties Co Pjsc 1.17 1.74 54,553,633 Saudi Transport And Investme 55.93 0.41 134,132 National Ranges Company 31.50 3.28 2,297,865 Sahara Hospitality 2.50 0.00 - Emirates Telecom Group Co 17.65 0.28 1,204,434 Saudi Electricity Co 24.36 1.80 2,138,747 Al-Themar Real International 90.00 0.00 200,000 Renaissance Services Saog 0.25 1.60 132,170 Emirates Insurance Co. (Psc) 5.98 0.00 - Saudi Arabia Refineries Co 36.22 0.70 228,234 Al-Ahleia Insurance Co Sakp 500.00 0.00 5,000 Raysut Cement Co 1.44 0.00 - Emirates Driving Company 8.80 0.00 - Arriyadh Development Company 21.27 0.09 257,563 Wethaq Takaful Insurance Co 48.50 -6.73 215,450 Port Service Corporation 0.31 -1.28 549,901 Dana Gas 0.45 0.00 21,789,180 Al-Baha Development & Invest 13.50 0.00 - Salbookh Trading Co Kscp 74.00 0.00 306,120 Phoenix Power Co Saoc 0.15 0.00 209,496 Commercial Bank Internationa 1.98 0.00 - Saudi Research And Marketing 28.64 3.21 1,069,854 Aqar Real Estate Investments 80.00 0.00 225,902 Packaging Co Ltd 2.21 0.00 - Bank Of Sharjah 1.40 0.00 16,000 Aldrees Petroleum And Transp 37.64 1.29 133,891 Hayat Communications 77.00 -6.10 214,190 Ooredoo 0.59 3.16 1,729,079 Axa Green Crescent Insurance 0.72 0.00 - Saudi Vitrified Clay Pipe Co 56.83 -0.28 125,268 Kuwait Packing Materials Mfg 0.00 0.00 - Ominvest 0.53 0.00 - Arkan Building Materials Co 0.79 0.00 2,026,338 Jarir Marketing Co 131.33 1.88 482,119 Soor Fuel Marketing Co Ksc 132.00 0.00 30,567 Oman United Insurance Co 0.40 0.50 11,670 Alkhaleej Investment 1.15 0.00 - Arab National Bank 20.25 0.00 515,329 Alargan International Real 200.00 0.00 20 Oman Textile Holding Co Saog 0.60 0.00 - Aldar Properties Pjsc 2.40 0.42 5,845,041 Yanbu National Petrochemical 56.49 0.27 113,358 Burgan Co For Well Drilling 85.00 6.25 516,000 Oman Telecommunications Co 1.39 1.47 338,170 Al Wathba National Insurance 12.75 0.00 - Arabian Cement 38.90 0.73 307,179 Kuwait Resorts Co Kscc 87.00 0.00 184,620 Oman Refreshment Co 2.16 0.00 - Al Khazna Insurance Co 0.43 -4.44 529,640 Middle East Specialized Cabl 8.42 0.72 1,545,281 Oula Fuel Marketing Co 130.00 0.00 105,050 Oman Packaging 0.30 0.00 - Al Fujairah National Insuran 300.00 0.00 - Al Khaleej Training And Educ 18.81 0.00 251,859 Palms Agro Production Co 100.00 0.00 2,487 Oman Orix Leasing Co. 0.14 0.00 48,731 Al Dhafra Insurance Co. P.S. 3.95 0.00 22,279 Al Sagr Co-Operative Insuran 42.66 -0.86 931,019 Ikarus Petroleum Industries 33.00 0.00 5,366,944 Oman Oil Marketing Company 1.85 0.00 - Al Buhaira National Insuranc 2.16 -9.62 43,813 Trade Union Cooperative Insu 19.50 -0.76 282,340 Mubarrad Transport Co 75.00 4.17 1,576,622 Oman National Engineering An 0.16 0.62 113,956 Al Ain Ahlia Ins. Co. 55.00 0.00 - Arabia Insurance Cooperative 13.34 -0.67 553,092 Al Mowasat Health Care Co 350.00 0.00 20 Oman Investment & Finance 0.23 1.79 1,958,151 Agthia Group Pjsc 6.46 0.31 16,876 Saudi Chemical Company 35.23 -0.93 125,391 Shuaiba Industrial Co 420.00 0.00 11,440 Oman Intl Marketing 0.52 0.00 - Abu Dhabi Ship Building Co 2.89 0.00 - Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair & C 32.57 7.14 1,647,681 Hits Telecom Holding 52.00 0.00 1,196,836 Oman Hotels & Tourism Co 0.40 0.00 - Abu Dhabi Natl Co For Buildi 0.65 8.33 47,564 Bupa Arabia For Cooperative 127.68 0.33 166,553 First Takaful Insurance Co 62.00 -1.59 459,654 Oman Foods International 0.00 0.00 - Abu Dhabi National Takaful C 4.50 0.00 - Wafa Insurance 18.70 2.07 1,576,304 Kuwaiti Syrian Holding Co 45.50 -3.19 2,947,803 Oman Flour Mills 0.82 0.00 1,000 Abu Dhabi National Insurance 2.79 0.00 3,889 Jabal Omar Development Co 66.76 1.15 176,482 National Cleaning Company 54.00 1.89 375,001 Oman Fisheries Co 0.18 3.51 5,203,804 Abu Dhabi National Hotels 3.00 0.33 105,700 Saudi Basic Industries Corp 97.15 0.29 4,972,109 Eyas For High & Technical Ed 0.00 0.00 - Oman Fiber Optics 4.57 0.00 - Abu Dhabi National Energy Co 0.47 0.00 88,721 Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co 8.40 1.20 4,373,709 United Real Estate Company 97.00 -1.02 145,334 Oman Europe Foods Industries 1.00 0.00 - Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank 3.96 2.06 1,619,419 Etihad Atheeb Telecommunicat 3.72 0.27 1,352,923 Agility 590.00 1.72 185,118 Oman Education & Training In 0.13 0.00 - Co For Cooperative Insurance 121.19 1.75 238,299 Kuwait & Middle East Fin Inv 34.00 3.03 788,584 Oman Chromite 3.64 0.00 - National Petrochemical Co 20.77 1.81 70,686 Fujairah Cement Industries 88.00 0.00 156,000 Oman Chlorine 0.49 0.00 - BAHRAIN Gulf Union Cooperative Insur 13.04 0.31 781,131 Livestock Transport & Tradng 246.00 4.24 1,041,101 Oman Ceramic Company 0.42 0.00 - Gulf General Cooperative Ins 18.90 0.00 490,156 International Resorts Co 36.00 -1.37 3,335,010 Oman Cement Co 0.50 0.00 - Basic Chemical Industries 24.53 0.74 138,399 National Industries Grp Hold 146.00 -1.35 987,432 Oman Cables Industry 1.61 0.00 - Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Saudi Steel Pipe Co 0.96 Marine Services Co Ksc 1.75 17.97 83,479 58.00 90,100 Oman Agricultural Dev 0.00 0.00 - Zain Bahrain Bscc 0.10 0.00 455,209 Buruj Cooperative Insurance -0.09 Warba Insurance Co 0.00 32.61 943,541 104.00 820 Oman & Emirates Inv(Om)50% 0.15 0.00 - United Paper Industries Bsc 0.00 0.00 - Mouwasat Medical Services Co 0.52 Kuwait United Poultry Co 0.00 140.75 3,612 180.00 35,652 Natl Aluminium Products 0.18 0.00 1,000 United Gulf Investment Corp 0.00 0.00 - Southern Province Cement Co -0.69 First Dubai Real Estate Deve -4.84 69.02 16,404 59.00 4,969,575 National Securities 0.10 0.00 - United Gulf Bank 0.39 0.00 38,013 Maadaniyah 0.73 Al Arabi Group Holding Co -1.23 23.55 342,723 80.00 90,000 National Real Estate Develop 5.00 0.00 - Trafco Group Bsc 0.23 0.00 16,322 Yamama Cement Co 0.16 Kuwait Hotels Sak 0.00 19.03 118,115 250.00 14,205 National Pharmaceutical 0.11 0.00 - Takaful International Co 0.00 0.00 - Jazan Development Co 2.19 Mobile Telecommunications Co 0.00 13.52 4,282,506 475.00 341,705 National Mineral Water 0.05 0.00 - Taib Bank -$Us 0.00 0.00 - Zamil Industrial Investment 1.00 Al Safat Real Estate Co 0.00 30.16 30,516 0.00 - National Hospitality Institu 0.00 0.00 - Seef Properties 0.23 0.00 46,500 Alujain Corporation (Alco) 0.19 Tamdeen Real Estate Co Ksc 0.00 21.03 1,337,491 450.00 1,736 National Gas Co 0.52 0.00 20,000 Securities & Investment Co 0.00 0.00 - Tabuk Agricultural Developme 0.94 Al Mudon Intl Real Estate Co -3.19 11.83 1,824,065 45.50 10,584,348 National Finance Co 0.16 0.00 - National Hotels Co 0.00 0.00 - United Co-Operative Assuranc 0.07 Kuwait Cement Co Ksc 0.00 14.73 773,408 490.00 468 National Detergent Co Saog 0.70 0.00 - National Bank Of Bahrain Bsc 0.75 0.00 6,600 Qassim Cement/The -0.85 Sharjah Cement & Indus Devel 0.00 58.00 43,075 88.00 129,600 National Biscuit Industries 3.75 0.00 - Nass Corp Bsc 0.11 3.70 306,600 Saudi Advanced Industries 1.40 Kuwait Portland Cement Co 0.00 13.79 817,938 1,100.00 6,040 National Bank Of Oman Saog 0.25 0.00 170,861 Khaleeji Commercial Bank 0.10 -1.90 60,508 Kingdom Holding Co -0.45 Educational Holding Group 0.00 11.10 517,865 204.00 505 Muscat Thread Mills Co 0.09 0.00 - Ithmaar Holding Bsc 0.18 -2.70 311,000 Saudi Arabian Amiantit Co 0.14 Bahrain Kuwait Insurance 0.00 7.21 790,278 0.00 - Muscat National Holding 1.78 0.00 - Investcorp Bank -$Us 8.50 0.00 5,000 Al Jouf Agriculture Developm 0.78 Asiya Capital Investments Co 1.35 33.72 35,243 37.50 20,100 Muscat Gases Company Saog 0.58 0.00 600 Inovest Co Bsc 0.28 0.00 1,203,896 Saudi Industrial Development 2.80 Kuwait Investment Co -1.01 12.85 2,906,278 98.00 174,608 Muscat Finance 0.14 0.00 15,000 Gulf Monetary Group 0.00 0.00 - Bishah Agriculture 0.00 Burgan Bank 3.13 69.75 - 330.00 4,051,690 Majan Glass Company 0.19 0.00 - Gulf Hotel Group B.S.C 0.61 0.00 20,616 Riyad Bank 0.00 Kuwait Projects Co Holdings 0.00 10.70 2,042,276 500.00 344,552 Majan College 0.51 0.00 - Gfh Financial Group Bsc 0.79 4.41 656,770 The National Agriculture Dev 0.17 Al Madina For Finance And In 0.00 23.79 459,924 55.00 1,440,000 Hsbc Bank Oman 0.13 0.78 519,499 Esterad Investment Co B.S.C. 0.15 0.00 22,442 Halwani Bros Co -0.87 Kuwait Insurance Co 0.00 57.25 59,043 310.00 41,989 Hotels Management Co Interna 1.25 0.00 - Delmon Poultry Co 0.32 0.00 13,944 Arabian Pipes Co 0.43 Al Masaken Intl Real Estate -5.06 16.49 80,816 75.00 500 Gulf Stone 0.12 0.00 - Bmmi Bsc 0.82 0.00 30,000 Eastern Province Cement Co 0.00 Intl Financial Advisors -4.55 30.10 17,400 42.00 13,838,592 Gulf Plastic Industries Co 0.00 0.00 - Bmb Investment Bank 0.00 0.00 - Al Gassim Investment Holding 0.00 First Investment Co Kscc 0.00 0.00 - 53.00 1,533,672 Gulf Mushroom Company 0.34 0.00 - Bbk Bsc 0.40 0.51 40,279 Filing & Packing Materials M 1.15 Al Mal In 0.00 35.23 260,801 vestment Company 24.50 2,485,197 Gulf Investments Services 0.12 0.00 - Bankmuscat Saog 0.00 0.00 - Saudi Cable Co 0.00 2.17 5.75 - Bayan Investment Co Kscc 47.00 1,590,669 Gulf Invest. Serv. Pref-Shar 0.11 0.00 - Banader Hotels Co 0.00 0.00 - Tihama Advertising & Public 1.08 2.15 23.44 1,717,051 Egypt Kuwait Holding Co Sae 190.00 8,000 Gulf International Chemicals 0.28 -0.35 45,932 Bahrain Tourism Co ` 0.00 - Saudi Investment Bank/The 0.00 0.00 13.95 36,108 Coast Investment Development 48.50 1,686,600 Gulf Hotels (Oman) Co Ltd 10.50 0.00 - Bahrain Telecom Co 0.28 0.00 93,508 Astra Industrial Group 3.23 0.00 16.61 240,079 Privatization Holding Compan 53.00 931,409 Global Fin Investment 0.17 0.00 - Bahrain Ship Repair & Engin 0.00 0.00 - Saudi Public Transport Co -0.13 0.00 15.78 932,257 Kuwait Medical Services Co 0.00 - Galfar Engineering&Contract 0.09 -1.08 426,293 Bahrain National Holding 0.42 0.00 24,442 Taiba Holding Co 0.00 1.10 41.00 26,725 Injazzat Real State Company 92.00 310,996 Galfar Engineering -Prefer 0.39 0.00 - Bahrain Kuwait Insurance 0.00 0.00 - Saudi Industrial Export Co 0.50 -5.88 34.03 450,864 Kuwait Cable Vision Sak 24.00 399,293 Financial Services Co. 0.17 0.00 - Bahrain Islamic Bank 0.13 0.00 30,727 Saudi Real Estate Co -0.33 6.12 21.43 877,988 Sanam Real Estate Co Kscc 52.00 7,633 Financial Corp/The 0.10 0.00 - Bahrain Flour Mills Co 0.00 0.00 - Saudia Dairy & Foodstuff Co -0.28 0.00 125.54 10,835 Ithmaar Holding Bsc 56.00 20,406,682 Dhofar University 1.49 0.00 - Bahrain Family Leisure Co 0.00 0.00 - National Shipping Co Of/The 1.05 0.00 36.41 618,734 Aviation Lease And Finance C 250.00 70,000 Dhofar Tourism 0.49 0.00 - Bahrain Duty Free Complex 0.84 0.00 3,500 Methanol Chemicals Co 0.13 -2.44 7.52 1,905,359 Arzan Financial Group For Fi 40.00 446,827 Dhofar Poultry 0.18 0.00 - Bahrain Commercial Facilitie 0.71 0.00 50,000 Ace Arabia Cooperative Insur -0.04 -4.11 49.40 191,877 Ajwan Gulf Real Estate Co 70.00 10,000 Dhofar Intl Development 0.36 0.00 - Bahrain Cinema Co 1.30 0.00 5,000 Mobile Telecommunications Co 0.11 0.00 8.90 3,253,747 Kuwait Business Town Real Es 54.00 1,884,995 Dhofar Insurance 0.21 0.00 - Bahrain Car Park Co 0.00 0.00 - Saudi Arabian Coop Ins Co 0.33 0.00 21.38 278,786 Future Kid Entertainment And 124.00 20 Dhofar Fisheries & Food Indu 1.28 0.00 - Arab Insurance Group(Bsc)-$ 0.41 0.00 5,634 Axa Cooperative Insurance 0.74 0.00 19.12 755,992 Specialities Group Holding C 88.00 200,800 Dhofar Cattlefeed 0.22 0.00 - Arab Banking Corp Bsc-$Us 0.37 0.00 38,000 Alsorayai Group 0.43 1.54 11.56 453,121 Abyaar Real Eastate Developm 33.00 29,383,941 Dhofar Beverages Co 0.26 0.00 - Aluminium Bahrain Bsc 0.29 0.00 500,000 Weqaya For Takaful Insurance 0.00 0.00 19.39 - Dar Al Thuraya Real Estate C 150.00 20 Construction Materials Ind 0.03 0.00 - Albaraka Banking Group 0.50 0.00 56,952 Bank Albilad 0.22 0.00 18.49 653,646 Al-Dar National Real Estate 0.00 - Computer Stationery Inds 0.26 0.00 - Al-Salam Bank 0.12 0.87 30,000 Al-Hassan G.I. Shaker Co 0.46 0.00 15.32 416,170 Kgl Logistics Company Kscc 71.00 403,550 Bankmuscat Saog 0.48 -0.42 794,400 Al-Ahlia Insurance Co 0.00 0.00 - Wataniya Insurance Co 2.06 0.00 30.17 637,270 Combined Group Contracting 500.00 19,980 Bank Sohar 0.16 0.65 16,033 Ahli United Bank B.S.C 0.78 -0.64 325,000 Abdullah Al Othaim Markets 102.25 0.00 53,239 Zima Holding Co Ksc 63.00 1.61 855,771 Bank Nizwa 0.09 -1.10 1,800,057 Hail Cement 11.66 0.09 376,212 Qurain Holding Co 0.00 0.00 - Bank Dhofar Saog 0.25 0.00 1,169 LATEST MARKET CLOSING FIGURES Gulf Times 8 Friday, March 3, 2017 BUSINESS

DJIA WORLD INDICES Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Indices Lt Price Change Dow Jones Indus. Avg 21,066.62 -48.93 Apple Inc 139.76 -0.02 7,596,903 S&P 500 Index 2,389.42 -6.54 Microsoft Corp 64.13 -1.25 6,772,591 Nasdaq Composite Index 5,875.41 -28.62 Exxon Mobil Corp 84.01 1.19 5,802,384 S&P/Tsx Composite Index 15,610.07 +10.39 Johnson & Johnson 123.79 -0.06 1,696,334 Mexico Bolsa Index 47,074.29 -379.86 General Electric Co 30.05 -0.46 6,869,176 Brazil Bovespa Stock Idx 65,863.91 -1,124.97 Jpmorgan Chase & Co 92.67 -0.99 5,795,691 Ftse 100 Index 7,386.85 +3.95 Procter & Gamble Co/The 91.33 -0.36 1,377,287 Cac 40 Index 4,968.43 +7.60 Wal-Mart Stores Inc 70.53 0.11 2,392,520 Dax Index 12,063.83 -3.36 Verizon Communications Inc 49.84 0.06 1,959,102 Ibex 35 Tr 9,740.70 -10.80 Pfizer Inc 34.51 0.26 7,284,644 Nikkei 225 19,564.80 +171.26 Visa Inc-Class A Shares 88.20 -0.89 1,788,609 Japan Topix 1,564.69 +11.60 Chevron Corp 114.02 0.12 1,442,723 Hang Seng Index 23,728.07 -48.42 Coca-Cola Co/The 42.22 0.14 3,267,158 All Ordinaries Indx 5,820.66 +69.81 Intel Corp 35.95 0.07 6,029,161 Nzx All Index 1,332.77 +3.57 Merck & Co. Inc. 66.11 -0.15 3,105,050 Bse Sensex 30 Index 28,839.79 -144.70 Cisco Systems Inc 34.27 -0.49 4,069,013 Nse S&P Cnx Nifty Index 8,899.75 -46.05 Home Depot Inc 147.53 0.58 1,141,020 Straits Times Index 3,136.48 +13.71 Intl Business Machines Corp 180.43 -0.84 636,645 Karachi All Share Index 33,554.75 +371.44 Walt Disney Co/The 110.86 -0.16 1,482,268 Jakarta Composite Index 5,408.25 +45.20 Unitedhealth Group Inc 167.38 -0.33 335,668 3M Co 189.72 -0.07 431,012 Mcdonald’s Corp 128.83 -0.17 1,305,884 Nike Inc -Cl B 57.97 0.03 1,830,040 TOKYO United Technologies Corp 113.46 -0.19 623,228 Boeing Co/The 184.57 0.36 1,440,158 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Goldman Sachs Group Inc 251.59 -0.44 1,026,907 Rakuten Inc 1,094.50 -2.19 13,128,700 American Express Co 80.77 -1.41 1,184,786 Kyocera Corp 6,450.00 2.12 1,399,500 Du Pont (E.I.) De Nemours 79.67 -0.05 492,695 Nissan Motor Co Ltd 1,124.00 0.31 12,341,900 Caterpillar Inc 97.85 -0.74 1,025,479 Hitachi Ltd 634.20 0.52 18,984,000 Travelers Cos Inc/The 124.64 -0.28 446,501 Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 5,293.00 -0.40 2,159,200 Jfe Holdings Inc 2,173.50 1.02 3,418,800 Ana Holdings Inc 339.30 0.74 12,728,000 FTSE 100 Mitsubishi Electric Corp 1,690.00 0.57 5,087,800 Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Gr 4,467.00 0.74 7,166,700 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Honda Motor Co Ltd 3,543.00 0.62 6,180,100 Fast Retailing Co Ltd 36,500.00 1.00 626,200 Wpp Plc 1,905.00 -0.83 2,716,322 Ms&Ad Insurance Group Holdin 3,862.00 0.31 1,881,300 Worldpay Group Plc 272.50 -0.37 2,648,539 Kubota Corp 1,849.50 0.98 3,465,000 Wolseley Plc 5,025.00 -1.28 466,520 A visitor passes a sign inside the main atrium of the London Stock Exchange Group headquarters. The FTSE 100 was flat at Seven & I Holdings Co Ltd 4,458.00 0.09 2,166,100 Wm Morrison Supermarkets 244.30 -0.04 3,510,908 7,382.35 points at close yesterday. Inpex Corp 1,121.50 -0.13 6,153,500 Whitbread Plc 3,838.00 -0.62 283,816 Resona Holdings Inc 638.70 1.32 15,288,000 Vodafone Group Plc 202.85 0.15 37,439,065 Asahi Kasei Corp 1,115.50 1.18 3,666,000 United Utilities Group Plc 985.50 1.23 888,981 Kirin Holdings Co Ltd 1,981.50 1.12 2,222,400 Unilever Plc 3,844.50 -0.52 2,460,776 Marubeni Corp 740.10 0.57 7,683,900 Tui Ag-Di 1,149.00 0.35 452,370 Mitsubishi Ufj Financial Gro 763.00 1.98 130,673,500 Travis Perkins Plc 1,471.00 -6.01 4,810,534 Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings 883.80 0.65 6,340,500 Tesco Plc 189.00 -0.60 11,399,312 Fanuc Corp 22,625.00 0.29 985,700 European stock markets Taylor Wimpey Plc 185.30 -0.22 16,838,322 Daito Trust Construct Co Ltd 16,005.00 1.88 549,400 Standard Life Plc 371.00 -0.11 2,401,715 Otsuka Holdings Co Ltd 5,199.00 0.48 1,468,000 Standard Chartered Plc 742.00 -0.87 5,030,825 Oriental Land Co Ltd 6,354.00 0.32 512,100 St James’s Place Plc 1,082.00 0.56 604,972 Sekisui House Ltd 1,820.00 0.83 2,287,100 Sse Plc 1,540.00 0.65 1,314,179 Secom Co Ltd 8,357.00 0.63 577,000 Smith & Nephew Plc 1,221.00 -0.25 1,730,094 Tokio Marine Holdings Inc 5,027.00 0.58 3,088,600 still in Wall Street’s thrall Sky Plc 999.00 0.05 3,982,047 Aeon Co Ltd 1,688.50 -0.06 1,850,200 Shire Plc 5,029.00 1.60 1,661,087 Mitsui & Co Ltd 1,733.50 -0.17 5,262,400 Severn Trent Plc 2,366.00 1.59 430,567 “The Dow Jones reaching a historic the icing on the cake,” Erlam said. “Not Kao Corp 5,927.00 1.06 1,812,100 AFP Schroders Plc 3,068.00 -1.86 396,004 21,000 and with all the attention on the only is March now on the table, in many Dai-Ichi Life Holdings Inc 2,256.50 4.01 11,685,600 London Sainsbury (J) Plc 264.80 -1.34 4,798,269 Mazda Motor Corp 1,627.50 -1.30 9,851,400 Snap IPO, equity markets have taken people’s eyes it’s the base case scenario Sage Group Plc/The 659.00 0.53 1,880,931 Komatsu Ltd 2,859.00 2.16 4,276,700 a bit of a breather,” London Capital which is a massive change from even a Sabmiller Plc 0.00 0.00 - West Japan Railway Co 7,517.00 0.39 619,500 uropean stock markets were little Group analyst, Jasper Lawler. week ago.” Rsa Insurance Group Plc 592.00 -1.91 2,062,063 Murata Manufacturing Co Ltd 16,610.00 0.64 842,100 Royal Mail Plc 403.20 -0.93 2,925,710 changed to slightly lower yester- Mike van Dulken of Accendo Mar- Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brain- Kansai Electric Power Co Inc 1,260.50 0.52 2,207,300 Royal Dutch Shell Plc-B Shs 2,231.50 0.18 2,544,195 day as investors paused for breath kets said that “with markets having ard, usually considered a dove, said she Denso Corp 5,067.00 1.18 1,486,800 E Royal Dutch Shell Plc-A Shs 2,130.00 0.31 10,439,859 following strong gains earlier this week, rallied so hard, and so close to record supported the case for an interest rate Sompo Holdings Inc 4,294.00 0.66 1,509,000 Royal Bank Of Scotland Group 245.50 0.66 13,849,923 Daiwa House Industry Co Ltd 3,151.00 0.74 1,291,800 traders said. highs, investors are perhaps also wait- hike “soon”. Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc 775.00 -0.96 4,055,152 Jx Holdings Inc 546.20 0.42 10,578,200 European bourses closely tracked ing to see how ravenous the appetite is That came a day after two regional Rio Tinto Plc 3,371.00 -1.03 2,998,216 Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Meta 2,849.00 1.59 3,310,400 Wall Street, where share prices fell for shares in Snap.” Fed presidents said they saw a strong Rexam Plc 0.00 0.00 - Suzuki Motor Corp 4,541.00 2.25 1,718,800 Relx Plc 1,533.00 0.86 2,219,248 back slightly, a day after clocking up Snap Inc priced its IPO at $17 a share case for tighter borrowing costs, while Nippon Telegraph & Telephone 4,839.00 0.56 3,837,700 Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc 7,347.00 -0.05 562,413 their biggest daily gains of the year so to raise $3.4bn and give the California Fed boss Janet Yellen is due to give a Ajinomoto Co Inc 2,263.50 -0.33 2,268,300 Randgold Resources Ltd 7,400.00 -0.34 507,246 far. startup a hefty valuation of $24bn. speech Friday. Mitsui Fudosan Co Ltd 2,614.50 1.87 6,529,000 Prudential Plc 1,638.00 -0.61 2,511,706 London’s FTSE 100 was fl at at It’s the largest US tech fi rm to make In Europe, dealers tracked data Ono Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 2,527.50 0.88 3,222,100 Provident Financial Plc 2,931.00 -0.71 300,253 Daikin Industries Ltd 10,960.00 1.01 1,039,100 7,382.35 points, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 was a market debut since Facebook in 2012. showing eurozone infl ation had in Feb- Persimmon Plc 2,112.00 -1.77 1,168,378 Bank Of Yokohama Ltd/The 0.00 0.00 - down 0.1% at 12,059.57 points, Paris’ In early trade, the shares jumped ruary hit the European Central Bank’s Pearson Plc 688.00 0.88 3,883,848 Toray Industries Inc 1,009.50 0.30 7,979,000 CAC 40 was fl at at 4,963.80 points, more than 40%. 2.0% target for the fi rst time since 2013 Paddy Power Betfair Plc 8,885.00 -0.17 57,321 Astellas Pharma Inc 1,539.50 0.82 8,139,600 Old Mutual Plc 221.40 1.10 5,818,919 while the Euro Stoxx 50 was down 0.1% Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said in- as its massive economic stimulus ap- Bridgestone Corp 4,535.00 0.42 2,438,200 Next Plc 3,940.00 -1.57 403,172 at 3,384.71 points at close. vestors were waiting for more hints at peared to be fi nally paying off . Sony Corp 3,583.00 1.53 5,829,100 National Grid Plc 981.30 0.86 5,086,046 The main focus of attention was the future interest rates moves. Unemployment in the 19-country Hoya Corp 5,246.00 1.75 1,417,300 Mondi Plc 1,927.00 1.10 877,595 initial public off ering of Snap Inc, the “The language from the Fed has be- single currency area in January mean- Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdin 4,132.00 1.40 2,071,300 Merlin Entertainment 487.30 -2.01 2,877,634 Japan Tobacco Inc 3,776.00 -0.63 3,691,700 parent company of the instant messag- come far more hawkish over the last while was 9.6%, unchanged from De- Mediclinic International Plc 743.00 -0.20 734,217 Osaka Gas Co Ltd 440.00 0.66 4,469,000 ing service Snapchat, which observers couple of weeks and yesterday’s com- cember but holding at its lowest rate Marks & Spencer Group Plc 332.40 -1.60 4,820,771 Sumitomo Electric Industries 1,876.00 1.16 2,580,600 said could be the hottest new listing ments from Lael Brainard — arguably since May 2009, the Eurostat statistics London Stock Exchange Group 3,139.00 -0.06 437,454 Daiwa Securities Group Inc 734.90 1.59 9,391,000 Lloyds Banking Group Plc 68.90 0.09 161,016,069 this year. the most dovish policy maker — was service said. Softbank Group Corp 8,579.00 -0.05 6,060,000 Legal & General Group Plc 252.30 0.24 9,769,048 Mizuho Financial Group Inc 213.30 1.33 203,061,600 Land Securities Group Plc 1,055.00 -1.22 822,332 Nomura Holdings Inc 753.10 1.51 22,754,400 Kingfisher Plc 332.70 0.33 6,649,328 HONG KONG HONG KONG Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd 2,635.00 1.74 1,947,200 Johnson Matthey Plc 3,092.00 0.19 251,049 Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd 4,391.00 1.06 5,411,300 Itv Plc 204.90 -3.21 15,122,742 Ntt Docomo Inc 2,683.00 -0.19 4,407,700 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Intu Properties Plc 283.60 -0.77 2,203,030 Sumitomo Realty & Developmen 3,119.00 -0.26 2,812,000 Intl Consolidated Airline-Di 545.50 -0.82 5,235,319 Aluminum Corp Of China Ltd-H 4.20 0.96 72,422,481 Hong Kong & China Gas 15.18 1.34 14,764,923 Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd 1,610.50 2.64 4,243,000 Intertek Group Plc 3,590.00 0.22 216,638 Bank Of East Asia Ltd 32.25 -1.83 2,413,522 Hong Kong Exchanges & Clear 192.00 -0.78 5,286,808 Orix Corp 1,774.50 1.28 7,691,600 Intercontinental Hotels Grou 3,866.00 0.08 356,102 Bank Of China Ltd-H 3.86 -1.03 386,037,682 Hsbc Holdings Plc 63.55 1.03 33,820,385 Asahi Group Holdings Ltd 4,040.00 1.03 1,939,100 Inmarsat Plc 701.00 0.29 1,876,651 Bank Of Communications Co-H 6.14 -0.16 22,567,239 Hutchison Whampoa Ltd 0.00 0.00 - Keyence Corp 44,640.00 1.45 284,600 Informa Plc 679.50 0.30 732,047 Belle International Holdings 5.29 -0.56 23,195,208 Ind & Comm Bk Of China-H 5.01 -0.60 358,840,582 Nidec Corp 10,665.00 0.19 712,700 Imperial Brands Plc 3,839.50 0.08 1,316,347 Boc Hong Kong Holdings Ltd 31.10 0.00 12,514,581 Li & Fung Ltd 3.40 -0.58 48,657,112 Isuzu Motors Ltd 1,584.00 2.76 3,439,000 Hsbc Holdings Plc 665.60 0.48 20,881,945 Cathay Pacific Airways 11.42 0.71 6,689,036 Mtr Corp 41.60 -0.72 4,480,924 Unicharm Corp 2,580.50 0.53 1,701,900 Hargreaves Lansdown Plc 1,335.00 0.00 381,236 Ck Hutchison Holdings Ltd 96.20 -0.10 6,224,875 New World Development 10.16 -0.39 18,328,044 Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd 9,893.00 0.44 1,345,200 Hammerson Plc 585.50 -0.76 1,410,709 China Coal Energy Co-H 4.09 -0.49 8,799,000 Petrochina Co Ltd-H 5.86 0.51 139,305,963 Smc Corp 32,470.00 0.00 427,000 Glencore Plc 335.60 -0.64 28,806,675 China Construction Bank-H 6.26 -1.26 408,505,671 Ping An Insurance Group Co-H 41.25 -0.12 21,680,251 Mitsubishi Corp 2,561.00 0.06 5,319,900 Glaxosmithkline Plc 1,671.00 0.27 4,592,618 China Life Insurance Co-H 23.65 0.21 33,254,523 Power Assets Holdings Ltd 69.15 -0.79 3,695,088 Nintendo Co Ltd 22,875.00 -1.76 2,038,100 Gkn Plc 376.40 1.48 6,015,129 China Merchants Port Holding 21.55 -0.46 1,926,683 Sino Land Co 13.80 1.62 11,167,600 Eisai Co Ltd 6,404.00 0.80 939,700 Fresnillo Plc 1,461.00 -0.81 832,386 China Mobile Ltd 85.35 -0.35 20,446,512 Sun Hung Kai Properties 114.30 -1.12 5,804,929 Sumitomo Corp 1,529.00 0.33 4,399,400 Experian Plc 1,615.00 -0.25 857,728 China Overseas Land & Invest 23.60 -0.42 12,502,596 Swire Pacific Ltd - Cl A 80.70 0.62 1,419,691 Canon Inc 3,335.00 1.31 3,739,300 Easyjet Plc 960.00 0.21 1,707,690 China Petroleum & Chemical-H 5.98 0.17 70,775,108 Tencent Holdings Ltd 206.40 -0.19 15,808,759 Japan Airlines Co Ltd 3,723.00 0.27 1,476,100 Dixons Carphone Plc 299.80 -3.29 3,251,208 China Resources Beer Holdin 17.90 1.13 3,258,863 Wharf Holdings Ltd 62.40 -0.64 4,074,848 Direct Line Insurance Group 347.00 -0.77 2,732,710 China Resources Land Ltd 20.85 -0.24 10,198,607 China Resources Power Holdin 14.32 0.14 6,968,009 Diageo Plc 2,286.50 0.29 2,317,823 SENSEX Dcc Plc 7,000.00 2.04 563,311 China Shenhua Energy Co-H 16.10 0.00 10,243,195 GCC INDICES Crh Plc 2,846.00 -0.28 1,546,153 China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd 9.38 -0.53 32,860,827 Compass Group Plc 1,506.00 0.80 1,573,989 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Citic Ltd 11.10 -0.54 9,757,408 Indices Lt Price Change Coca-Cola Hbc Ag-Di 1,947.00 0.21 317,238 Clp Holdings Ltd 79.75 0.06 2,957,738 Doha Securities Market Zee Entertainment Enterprise 501.65 -0.94 1,306,897 10,721.15 -30.95 Centrica Plc 226.40 0.85 13,984,288 Cnooc Ltd 9.17 0.88 95,165,640 Saudi Tadawul Yes Bank Ltd 1,424.70 -2.06 1,582,912 7,016.66 +50.13 Carnival Plc 4,463.00 0.20 398,260 Cosco Shipping Ports Ltd 8.37 -1.30 1,861,772 Kuwait Stocks Exchange Wipro Ltd 490.20 0.34 1,095,521 6,767.04 +27.31 Capita Plc 519.00 -8.14 8,198,053 Esprit Holdings Ltd 7.18 -0.83 4,863,684 Bahrain Stock Exchage Vedanta Ltd 270.90 2.03 21,609,049 1,341.54 -2.62 Burberry Group Plc 1,767.00 -0.28 1,278,351 Fih Mobile Ltd 3.05 -2.24 13,777,537 Oman Stock Market Ultratech Cement Ltd 3,817.80 2.32 1,052,758 5,815.06 +23.94 Bunzl Plc 2,332.00 -0.13 558,742 Hang Lung Properties Ltd 19.78 0.92 5,126,778 Abudhabi Stock Market Tech Mahindra Ltd 499.90 0.03 2,478,426 4,596.39 +26.86 Bt Group Plc 335.95 2.28 21,573,752 Hang Seng Bank Ltd 161.00 0.00 1,288,561 Dubai Financial Market Tata Steel Ltd 494.65 -1.14 6,563,002 3,583.66 -37.02 British Land Co Plc 619.50 -0.40 2,093,079 Henderson Land Development 45.65 0.33 3,216,469 Tata Power Co Ltd 81.05 -1.10 2,312,927 British American Tobacco Plc 5,159.00 -0.04 1,337,372 Tata Motors Ltd 461.70 2.73 14,717,424 Bp Plc 465.30 0.15 26,300,467 Tata Consultancy Svcs Ltd 2,501.45 0.88 882,548 Bhp Billiton Plc 1,349.00 -0.33 7,291,258 Sun Pharmaceutical Indus 676.15 -2.66 5,537,148 Berkeley Group Holdings/The 2,917.00 -3.06 659,702 “Information contained herein is believed to be reliable and had been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. The State Bank Of India 267.30 -1.64 15,351,335 Barratt Developments Plc 525.00 -0.38 4,517,699 Reliance Industries Ltd 1,236.75 0.18 4,539,929 accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed. This publication is for providing information only and is not intended Barclays Plc 230.15 -1.18 43,831,856 Punjab National Bank 139.25 -2.38 6,473,317 as an off er or solicitation for a purchase or sale of any of the financial instruments mentioned. Gulf Times and Doha Bank Bae Systems Plc 649.50 1.72 6,884,970 Power Grid Corp Of India Ltd 189.75 -1.51 6,158,440 or any of their employees shall not be held accountable and will not accept any losses or liabilities for actions based on Babcock Intl Group Plc 931.50 -0.53 875,330 Oil & Natural Gas Corp Ltd 192.70 -0.59 7,260,561 this data.” Aviva Plc 504.50 -0.49 5,441,637 Ntpc Ltd 155.95 -2.50 13,998,217 Astrazeneca Plc 4,740.00 1.36 1,625,480 Maruti Suzuki India Ltd 5,918.75 -0.01 502,729 Associated British Foods Plc 2,594.00 -0.92 489,702 Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd 1,325.00 -1.76 859,470 Ashtead Group Plc 1,736.00 -0.86 1,561,629 Lupin Ltd 1,460.90 -0.61 1,673,129 CURRENCIES Arm Holdings Plc 0.00 0.00 - Larsen & Toubro Ltd 1,473.95 -0.15 1,408,613 DOLLAR QATAR RIYAL SAUDI RIYAL UAE DIRHAMS BAHRAINI KUWAITI Antofagasta Plc 830.00 -0.90 1,518,764 DINAR DINAR Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd 816.15 -0.97 4,546,257 Anglo American Plc 1,285.00 -1.91 3,482,280 Itc Ltd 264.75 -1.40 10,755,800 Admiral Group Plc 1,817.00 -0.16 484,375 Infosys Ltd 1,023.30 -0.18 1,570,467 3I Group Plc 698.00 -1.69 679,563 Indusind Bank Ltd 1,306.45 -1.49 660,368 Idea Cellular Ltd 109.60 -3.22 23,086,942 Icici Bank Ltd 278.65 -0.16 20,133,160 TOKYO Housing Development Finance 1,399.00 -0.11 2,764,700 Hindustan Unilever Ltd 877.50 0.23 1,273,721 Hindalco Industries Ltd 189.45 0.11 25,163,666 Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume Hero Motocorp Ltd 3,229.30 1.61 700,170 East Japan Railway Co 10,195.00 0.00 998,800 Hdfc Bank Limited 1,380.10 -0.83 1,828,962 Itochu Corp 1,651.50 0.46 5,732,000 Hcl Technologies Ltd 843.75 -0.63 903,560 Fujifilm Holdings Corp 4,433.00 1.09 1,371,200 Grasim Industries Ltd 995.10 -1.05 943,431 Yamato Holdings Co Ltd 2,546.00 2.25 2,727,100 Gail India Ltd 501.60 -0.94 3,671,105 Chubu Electric Power Co Inc 1,492.50 0.95 2,026,200 Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories 2,870.50 -1.81 449,570 Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd 2,227.50 1.02 4,324,000 Coal India Ltd 321.40 0.37 4,227,431 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries 449.60 0.60 19,149,000 Cipla Ltd 589.25 0.50 1,621,552 Toshiba Corp 217.20 2.70 151,162,000 Cairn India Ltd 295.80 1.46 2,670,200 Shiseido Co Ltd 3,043.00 -0.85 2,246,200 Bosch Ltd 21,608.25 0.44 19,609 Shionogi & Co Ltd 5,655.00 1.18 966,300 Bharti Airtel Ltd 356.85 -1.63 4,426,672 Tokyo Gas Co Ltd 520.10 1.17 5,875,000 Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd 635.15 -3.68 6,300,445 Tokyo Electron Ltd 11,735.00 2.85 1,072,200 Bharat Heavy Electricals 158.20 -1.28 7,262,351 Panasonic Corp 1,271.50 0.51 8,669,700 Bank Of Baroda 161.60 -2.27 8,886,822 Fujitsu Ltd 655.90 -0.53 14,317,000 Bajaj Auto Ltd 2,832.05 2.28 740,724 Central Japan Railway Co 18,605.00 0.57 355,300 Axis Bank Ltd 506.30 -1.38 7,522,798 T&D Holdings Inc 1,809.00 2.26 3,952,500 Asian Paints Ltd 1,028.75 -0.39 1,138,514 Toyota Motor Corp 6,470.00 0.06 7,074,100 Ambuja Cements Ltd 228.60 -0.11 2,132,234 Kddi Corp 2,971.00 -0.18 6,268,900 Adani Ports And Special Econ 293.85 -2.86 2,830,051 Nitto Denko Corp 9,714.00 0.75 1,116,700 Acc Ltd 1,407.85 -0.08 434,334

Gulf Times 10 Friday, March 3, 2017 BUSINESS London seen attracting more super-rich even as Brexit bites

Bloomberg following the introduction of anti-money a growing list of new arrivals.” and Sydney will advance, according to the industries in these countries is expected Constraints include “a combination Geneva laundering checks in 2014. Only 215 Newcomers see the UK as the domi- report. to help boost private wealth for a 48% of rising taxes and higher state-pension wealthy people were granted such visas, nant centre for business and financial The number of ultra-high-net-worth global increase in people with $1bn or obligations and public healthcare costs, according to data published last week by services in Europe, as well as being the individuals globally rose to more than more in net assets. and the loss of high-skilled jobs to Asia,” The super-rich will continue to flock to the UK government. only English-speaking major economy in 193,000 in 2016, helped by stock-market Asian cities led by Pune, Ho Chi Minh Amoils said in the report. London, despite the political and eco- New York retains the top spot world- the region, according to the report. Tradi- gains. It will exceed 275,000 by 2026, City, Hyderabad and Bangalore are ex- The super-rich population in Nigeria fell nomic concerns around the UK’s intention wide as expectations for US economic tional links with the US, Canada, Australia advancing most swiftly in Vietnam, Sri pected to be among those with the most 20% in 2016 due to “economic and politi- to leave the European Union, according growth override a period of uncertainty and New Zealand will strengthen after Lanka, India and China, according to the rapid ultra-wealthy population growth cal tensions” and isn’t expected to grow in to a report published on Wednesday by as the Trump presidency takes shape, ac- Brexit, it showed. report. over the next 10 years. At the same time, the next 10 years. property broker Knight Frank LLP. cording to the Knight Frank report, which London nonetheless languished in China will grow even more rapidly if it Mumbai will probably join Shanghai, Ultra-wealthy migrants are expected to The number of ultra-wealthy people — cited research by Johannesburg-based 92nd place in Knight Frank’s ranking of creates more high-tech companies such Beijing, Singapore and Hong Kong in the cluster around at least half a dozen “safe those with $30mn or more who private consultancy New World Wealth. luxury residential market performance in- as Huawei Technologies Co, Amoils said in top 10 locations for the super-rich. haven” jurisdictions such as the United Arab banks such as UBS Group and Citigroup “The forthcoming Brexit process will cluded in the report. Prices slid by 6.3% in a separate e-mail. Not all regions are expected to show Emirates, Monaco, Israel and Canada, lured love to court — living in the UK capital is not result in an outflow of wealthy individ- 2016, mainly due to tax changes, although The number of billionaires will soar to such stellar growth rates. The ultra- by fiscal and political stability and a better expected to climb by 30% to 6,058 over uals from the UK,” Andrew Amoils, head of sales volumes increased and sentiment 3,000 over the next 10 years as faster- wealthy populations of Germany, France, quality of life, according to the report. the next decade, the report showed. research at New World Wealth, said in the improved at the end of the year, Knight growing economies such as China and Italy and Spain will have lacklustre growth, The Ras Al Akhdar development in the That may ease doubts about the city’s report. “Rather, it will mean that existing Frank said. Prime residential prices will India create new wealth, the report with some aff luent individuals expected UAE’s Abu Dhabi, for example, is already appeal stemming from an 80% slump in high-net-worth individuals will be more remain unchanged in 2017, while the cost showed. The development of high-tech, to leave continental Europe, according to home to almost 400 ultra-high-net-worth applications for investor visas last year, likely to remain and indeed to be joined by of properties in cities such as Shanghai financial services, media and healthcare the report. individuals, Knight Frank said.

World’s biggest banks fi ned Euro-area infl ation hits 2% $321bn since fi nancial crisis

Bloomberg as ECB debates its policy London anks globally have paid Bloomberg agency Eurostat said in a separate re- $321bn in fi nes since 2008 Madrid lease yesterday. Bfor an abundance of regu- Back in January, Draghi pointed to a latory failings from money laun- new set of criteria arguing that the re- dering to market manipulation uro-area infl ation accelerated turn to the ECB’s infl ation goal must be and terrorist fi nancing, accord- to the fastest pace since Janu- durable, self-sustained and represent- ing to data from Boston Consult- Eary 2013, providing fresh argu- ative of the euro area as whole. On that ing Group. ments to those calling for an exit from basis, the ECB may well look through That tally is set to increase in the European Central Bank’s monetary the recent surge in prices because of the coming years as European stimulus programme. the energy-cost eff ect. and Asian regulators catch up Consumer prices rose 2% in Febru- The ECB’s latest projections fore- with their more aggressive US ary from a year earlier, the European see an average infl ation rate of 1.3% peers, who have levied the ma- Union’s statistics agency in Luxem- this year, before accelerating to 1.5% jority of charges to date, BCG bourg said yesterday. That matched in 2018. The central bank will update said in its seventh annual study the median estimate of 47 analysts sur- those forecasts on March 9 after a of the industry published yes- veyed by Bloomberg. The rate was 1.8% meeting of its Governing Council. terday. Banks paid $42bn in fi nes in January. Jens Weidmann became the fi rst in 2016 alone, a 68% rise on the Rising oil prices have been pushing policy maker to provide clues on how previous year, the data showed. up infl ation across the euro area, in- much the European Central Bank may “As conduct-based regulations cluding in Germany, its largest econo- raise its infl ation forecast next week. evolve, fi nes and penalties, along my, Spain and Italy. “Infl ation this year is likely to be with related legal and litigation In a sign of further increases ahead, well in excess of the fi gure projected expenses, will remain a cost of producer-price growth jumped to the to date,” the Governing Council mem- doing business,” analysts led by highest in almost fi ve years, rising 3.5% ber said on Wednesday in a speech in Gerold Grasshoff wrote. “Manag- in January on annual basis and exceed- Ljubljana, Slovenia. The projection for ing those costs will continue to be ing the median estimate of a 3.2% in- Germany could be raised by half a per- a major task for banks.” crease in a Bloomberg News survey. centage point “and this might also be The era of ever-increasing Meanwhile, the euro area’s core in- the case for the euro area as a whole,” regulatory requirements is here fl ation, which strips out volatile ele- he said. to stay, BCG said, despite Presi- ments such as energy was unchanged ECB’s Draghi has repeatedly said dent Donald Trump’s pledge to for the third consecutive month in Feb- the risks to the economic outlook for roll back the 2010 Dodd-Frank ruary at 0.9%. the 19-nation euro area remain tilted Act that reshaped US banking “The focus remains on core infl a- to the downside due to external issues in the aftermath of the collapse tion, which isn’t looking great,” said including the agenda of US President of Lehman Brothers Holdings. Frederik Ducrozet, senior economist Donald Trump and the impact of Prime The number of rule changes that at Banque Pictet & Cie in Geneva. “It’s Minister Theresa May’s plan to take the banks must track on a daily basis stable at best and as long as this re- fl ation indicators highlights the chal- upward in line with the central bank’s fi cials including ECB President Mario UK out of the EU. Elections this year has tripled since 2011, to an av- mains the case, there is no reason to lenges facing the ECB in choosing the goal of a rate below but close to 2%, Draghi. The euro-area unemployment in euro-area core member states of erage of 200 revisions a day, ac- even think about a policy change.” right amount of monetary stimulus. the persistent weakness of core in- was unchanged at 9.6% in January, France, Germany and the Netherlands cording to the report. The divergence between the two in- While headline infl ation is moving fl ation is a source of concern for of- the lowest since May 2009, statistics add to the uncertainty. “Regulation must be consid- ered a permanent rise in sea level — not just a fl owing tide that will ebb or even a cresting tsunami that will recede,” the authors wrote. “We expect this theme to ECB probe of bank models seen easing impact of Basel revamp hold despite recent political de- velopments in the US.” Bloomberg Committee’s revision of the post-crisis capital models than they would following the Basel At issue in the Basel Committee talks is a so- Almost 10 years after the on- Vienna framework, which would hit the bloc’s banks Committee’s new rules, the Frankfurt-based called output floor, a blunt check on how much set of the fi nancial crisis, the harder than their peers in the US By standardising central bank could justify the lower capital lower banks’ estimates of risk can be compared banking industry still hasn’t the approach to models across the euro area requirements that would result, the analysts with those produced by standard formulas set completely recovered from the The European Central Bank’s plan to scrutinise and making them more precise, the ECB’s model wrote. by regulators. Under a compromise proposal losses it suff ered by one meas- the complex mathematical models banks use review could give EU lawmakers some leeway “There can be conflicts when TRIM-approved risk floated in early December, modelled results ure, BCG said. to measure asset risk could allow lawmakers to when they decide how to apply the global weightings are lower than those implied” by the can’t drop below 75% of the result yielded by While fi nance fi rms created neutralise the impact of global capital standards standards in the bloc. Basel Committee’s proposed rules, the analysts the standardised approach. The floor would so-called economic profi t of lambasted by the euro area’s biggest lenders, The ECB review could be used to justify giving wrote, using the acronym for the ECB’s targeted phase in from 55% in 2021 to the full 75% in €159bn ($167bn) in 2015, a fi fth according to analysts at Barclays. the Basel Committee’s standards a “limited legal review of internal models. “But in our view, it’s just 2025. annual increase, the industry re- The ECB has undertaken a “targeted review” of so- standing in Europe,” Barclays analysts Mike possible that this conflict is deliberate. A rejection “The best outcome for the ECB may be only a mains €9bn in the red on a cu- called internal models with the goal of reducing Harrison and Alessia Magni wrote in a March 1 of risk-weight floors is more credible if the ECB modest impact to risk weightings at a handful of mulative basis for the years 2009 the “inconsistencies and unwarranted variability” note. “One approach here would be for European has reviewed, and can vouch for, the models.” banks,” the analysts wrote. to 2015, the data show. BCG cal- of banks’ calculations, which are used to set regulators to make clear that the overarching TRIM is one of the ECB’s biggest supervisory “If the TRIM project leads to next-to-no changes culated economic profi t by taking capital requirements. At the global level, the Basel spirit of Basel IV is being adhered to (i.e. ‘risk projects since the asset-quality review and stress in bank risk weightings, the exercise will not a bank’s operating results and in- Committee on Banking Supervision is currently weightings must be credible’), but the binding test it conducted before starting work in 2014. It look credible,” they wrote. “But if widespread corporating its cost of capital. discussing curbs on models to address the same constraint on risk weights is governed” by the ECB covers 68 banks in 15 countries, will consume 15% gaming of the system is uncovered, questions European lenders haven’t problem. review. of the supervisory budget and is set to require are likely to be asked about how closely and posted an annual economic European Union banks and regulators have In this way, even if banks came up with lower 6,000 person-weeks of work until completed in effectively the ECB has been monitoring banks profi t during that time, while US mounted a muscular dissent against the Basel risk weights for their assets using ECB-approved 2019. since 2014.” fi rms have been in the black for the last three years. Credit Suisse CFO sees bank’s growth slowing capital build

Bloomberg which may take on more risk this year fi t company strategy. Under pressure can actually release from the SRU re- opportunity to exercise one of these where to put it to work.” The SRU un- Zurich to benefi t from the “buoyant” US mar- from stricter post-crisis rules, chief mains important but will be declining options.” wound 191,000 external derivative ket, he said. executive offi cer Tidjane Thiam has as the remaining asset balance reduc- Mathers also expects risk to increase trades last year. Assets offl oaded in- Credit Suisse is examining a broad scaled back in investment banking to es,” the CFO said. “Clearly, that is a nice in the Swiss business, in international clude a credit default swap portfolio redit Suisse Group’s push to ex- range of options for achieving its capi- free up capital for expanding in wealth problem to have.” wealth management and in Asian pri- — insurance contracts that pay out if a pand in some areas of trading tal goals, he said. While preparations management. Global markets, the trading unit vate banking as the bank continues to borrower defaults — sold to Citigroup Cand across its wealth manage- remain on track for selling part of its While other executives spent last where surprise losses threw the bank open its pockets to ultra-rich clients. and $3.1bn in loans acquired by a UK ment businesses will make it harder to Swiss business in an initial public of- year investing in new assets, Mathers into turmoil a year ago, is close to the Net interest income from lending ac- pension plan. build up capital buff ers at the same pace fering this year, other solutions may had the less glorious task of ditching lower end of its targeted range for risk tivity rose 26% in the international Analysts at UBS Group AG led by as last year, chief fi nancial offi cer David now be possible, he said. The bank had old ones. That included fi nding buy- and is unlikely to be a source of fur- wealth management division, 16% in Daniele Brupbacher said last month Mathers said. a common equity Tier 1 ratio of 11.6%, ers for complicated investment bank- ther reduction in risk-weighted assets, Asia-Pacifi c and 8% in Switzerland last that a share sale by Credit Suisse itself After selling billions in unwanted up from 11.4% at the start of 2016, and ing products and risky loans that don’t Mathers said. Trading has been strong year, he said. could be an alternative as the bank’s assets last year, the bank entered 2017 is targeting a CET1 ratio of above 13% justify the reserves required to cover both in global markets and in the advi- Credit Suisse has also committed stock has recovered from a record low with a bigger capital ratio than analysts after 2018. potential losses. sory business, which is part of the in- $600mn in capital to expand its busi- last July. Shares have gained more expected, even though the year ended The bigger buff er “gives us exibil-fl The resolution unit still houses vestment banking and capital markets ness in Saudi Arabia, where an applica- than 50% since then, giving the bank in a loss stemming in large part from ity,” the CFO said an in interview in Zu- $44bn of risk-weighted assets after unit. tion for a full banking license is pend- a market value of about 33bn francs a $5.3bn legal settlement. Improving rich. Thanks to the progress on capital, releasing $29bn last year, exceeding its “Credit Suisse needs to build capi- ing, people familiar with the matter ($32.6bn). on the capital performance this year “we can decide if and when the IPO can target by about $11bn, Mathers said. tal for growth, for regulatory head- have said. Mathers didn’t comment on The bank would need a “strong and presents a challenge because Credit be done.” About half the remaining risk is op- winds and to resume normal service of the matter. clear justifi cation” to tap shareholders Suisse has fewer assets to offl oad at a Mathers, 51, wears two hats at Cred- erational and can’t be wound down by cash dividends,” said Kinner Lakhani, “Credit Suisse still doesn’t have when the feedback is for just the op- time when some businesses need more it Suisse. Besides overseeing its fi - selling off securities because it refl ects a London-based analyst at Deutsche too much capital,” said Daniel Regli, posite, Mathers said. People are saying, reserves to backstop growth, Mathers nances, he’s responsible for shrinking potential lawsuits or the danger of sys- Bank who rates the stock hold. “But an analyst at MainFirst in Zurich who “you guys can now take your time and said in an interview in Zurich. its strategic resolution unit, a dump- tems malfunctioning. the bank has options and a relatively does not yet have a rating on the bank. you’re not under pressure. And I think Those include the trading unit, ing ground for assets that no longer “The amount of capital Credit Suisse strong start to the year may provide an “They certainly need to decide wisely that’s true.” Gulf Times Friday, March 3, 2017 11 BUSINESS

CORPORATE RESULTS Russia’s Sberbank records record 2016 profit after strong Q4

Full-year pretax profit and earnings per share were premium financing and ancillary products. It has ahead of expectations, prompting Richards to made headway in a competitive sector by focusing reiterate his ‘overweight’ rating and 3,200 pence on selling motor insurance via price comparison price target. websites. The company’s relative performance gave a more The company, which mainly operates in the UK mo- positive steer to future growth, with 74% of its tor market, said operating profit rose to £132.1mn funds outperforming on a three-year basis, an im- ($162.18mn) for the year ended December 31, after portant track record for many of the advisors who taking account of the discount rate charge. pick funds in which to allocate money. Gross written premiums rose by 25% to £769mn, The group said full-year pretax profit for 2016 rose with active customer policies rising by 15% to 5% to 618.1mn pounds and beat a consensus esti- 2.35mn. mate of 611.7mn, Reuters data showed. It said it was on track to meet or beat its initial Net inflows over the year were £1.1bn, as demand public off ering targets and introduced new targets from institutional clients off set outflows from retail for 2019, including increasing customer policies to clients and wealth management. 3mn, compared with a target of 2.5mn by the end Acquisitions added a further £6.7bn. of 2017. The group’s net operating revenue margin, exclud- The discount rate change should support Hastings’ ing performance fees, fell to 46 basis points from business model in comparison with other insur- 49, partly as a result of fee pressure from investors ers as it would encourage more switching, RBC against a backdrop of weak average industry analysts said in a note, reiterating their “perform” returns. rating on the stock. Hastings said it would pay a final dividend of 6.6 Capita pence per share and total dividend of 9.9 pence. Capita’s CEO Andy Parker resigned yesterday, after Anheuser-Busch InBev the British outsourcing group reported a bigger than expected drop in profits and said it would take Top global brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev, which until 2018 before it could return to growth. makes Budweiser, Corona and Stella Artois, said Parker said 2016 had been a “challenging year and yesterday profits were sharply down following Capita delivered a disappointing performance”. “a diff icult year”, notably in Brazil, one of its most Capita, which specialises in providing IT-enabled important markets. business services to banks and investors, the Net profit fell 43% to $4.85bn at the Belgium-based National Health Service, retailers and utilities, has brewer following “a diff icult year” in which the issued a string of profit warnings in the last year as group completed its the mega-takeover of rival Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, said yesterday tured entity’s pre-tax profit after the transaction. while sales advanced to €1.17bn from 1.16bn, it said clients delay awarding major deals in the wake of SABMiller. it made a record net profit of 541.9bn roubles JD.com will maintain an option to convert that in a statement. Britain’s vote to leave the European Union. “When we do not meet our objectives, we take ($9.3bn) last year after a strong fourth quarter that back to a 40% equity stake should the regulatory “The decrease was due to major price erosions It reported a 19% fall in its underlying pre-tax profit responsibility for it. Performance has been disap- exceeded analysts’ forecasts. environment change. in most markets and the depreciation of certain to £475.3mn ($585mn) in 2016, missing the recently pointing in 2016, and as a result, most of the execu- State-controlled Sberbank has consistently outper- JD.com’s net loss fell to 1.67bn yuan, from 7.63bn Eastern and Central European currencies,” the reduced target for at least £515mn. tive board of management will not receive bonuses formed during Russia’s economic crisis, increasing yuan a year earlier. company said. The company is pressing ahead with a decision this year,” it said. its dominance of the country’s banking sector by That translates to a net loss of 1.26 yuan ($0.18) per Krka, with a market capitalisation of €1.71bn, said to sell its prized asset management services arm The brewer put the slide down to “higher net winning business from rivals. American depository share, compared to a loss of in November it expected its profit to rise in 2017 on Capita Asset Services, with the sale expected to be finance costs and unfavourable currency transla- It racked up record profits despite being one of 5.57 yuan a year earlier. sales of €1.2bn. completed in the second half of the year, Parker tion”. several large Russian state banks subject to West- Sales in Russia, Krka’s largest market, increased 1% said. “A challenging environment in Brazil has put pres- ern sanctions over Moscow’s role in the Ukraine SNC-Lavalin to €225.8mn, although were up 13% in roubles. He told Reuters in an interview that dividends were sure on the consumer and impacted our results,” it conflict, something that restricts its access to sustainable and a rights issue was not a necessity. said, indicating that revenues had been hit by lower international capital markets. Canada’s SNC-Lavalin Group reported a better-than- JCDecaux The business strategy, which was decided by the beer sales in the crisis-hit country, while costs rose “Sberbank emerged from the crisis stronger than expected quarterly profit and forecast a higher board and not by the CEO, would remain un- due to the devaluation of the real. before,” Sberbank CEO German Gref said in a state- adjusted profit for 2017 from its core engineering French outdoor advertising company JCDecaux changed, he said. Without laying out specific objectives for 2017, ment. and construction business. yesterday reported a smaller than expected drop in The total dividend payout for 2016 was maintained the group expressed confidence about the future The bank said it had made 141.8bn roubles of net The company said it expects a 2017 adjusted profit full-year operating profit, helping to send its shares at 31.7 pence a share. thanks to its tie with SABMiller, saying the integra- profit in the fourth quarter, versus analysts’ expec- of C$1.70-C$2.00 per share from its core business, to an eight-month high. But analysts said the company’s direction would tion process was “well under way.” tations of 117bn roubles of profit. compared with the C$1.51 it reported for 2016. The family-run company, which generates around continue to be questioned, as it reported a marked Ebitda, a key measure of operating performance, That was almost twice the amount of profit Sber- “We expect to benefit from our recent restructuring half its revenue in China, France and the UK, has slowdown in its contract wins last year, securing remained stable throughout the year (-0.1%) at bank made in the final three months of 2015, helped savings,” CEO Neil Bruce said in a statement. been battling an economic slowdown in China as 1.3bn pounds worth of new work in 2016, compared $16.75bn due to a “very weak result in Brazil in the by a smaller than expected provision charge. Last year, the company undertook a sweeping well as uncertainty linked to the French presidential with £1.8bn in 2015. second half,” it said. In the fourth quarter, Sberbank’s return on equity cost-cutting program in a bid to boost margins in elections and Brexit. Capita is trying to become “leaner and simpler”, Revenues rose 4.4% to $45.52bn. — a measure of profitability — was at 20.4%, little the core business. The company reported a 7-percent decrease in after years in which acquisitions were the main changed from the previous quarter. The company said yesterday that total selling, full year adjusted operating profit to €646.5mn driver of revenue and its structure was considered Merlin Entertainments Its net interest margin rose to 6.1% from 5.8% in the general and administrative expenses fell by ($681mn), ahead of analysts’ expectations due to a by many analysts to have become unwieldy. third quarter, while its cost of risk fell to 1.2% from C$99mn ($74mn) in 2016, compared with its target better-than-expected performance by the transport Meanwhile a “comprehensive and detailed” review Britain’s Merlin Entertainments, operator of tourist 2.1%. of C$100mn. division. and overhaul of contract profitability was being attractions such as Madame Tussauds waxworks Sberbank holds around a third of total banking sec- Excluding items, the company earned 49 Canadian The transport division reported full year adjusted undertaken, management told an analysts’ pres- and Legoland, on Tuesday reported a 3.4% rise in tor deposits in Russia, meaning it is less dependent cents per share in the fourth quarter ended De- operating profit of €182.0mn, down 9.7%. entation. 2016 pre-tax profit and said it remained confident it on more costly central bank financing than other cember The drop was less than analysts had predicted Its gearing of net debt to adjusted core earnings could deliver a good year ahead. Russian banks. 31. due to the ramp up of airport contracts in North (EBITDA) stood at 2.9 times at the end of last year, The world’s second-biggest visitor attractions Its pricing power on loans is also unmatched, mean- Analysts on average had expected a profit of 47 America. which the company said was within its relevant group behind Walt Disney said it made a pre- ing it is in a strong position to defend its market Canadian cents per share, according to Thomson Jeff eries analysts, which have a “hold” rating on the ratios. tax profit of £277mn ($340mn), compared with share and revenues. Reuters I/B/E/S. stock, said that the “slightly negative” first quarter Capita said Parker, who joined Capita in 2001 and analysts’ average forecast of £273mn and £250mn Montreal, Quebec-based SNC’s revenue fell 16.4% to adjusted organic revenue growth target was better became CEO three years ago, will leave the com- made in 2015. Aldermore C$2.21bn, below analysts’ estimate of $C2.40bn. than their own expectations. pany later this year after helping the board to find “As we move into 2017, with ongoing volatility in a SNC also raised its quarterly dividend by 5% to 27.3 Overall the company said its profitability was af- a successor. number of our markets and continued cost pres- Aldermore Group reported a 34% jump in full-year Canadian cents per share. fected by integration costs related to its acquisition sures, we will increase our focus on cost eff iciency profit as the British bank issued more mortgages of CEMUSA, an outdoor advertising group with op- MTN Group and productivity,” CEO Nick Varney said. and loans to homeowners as well as small and Deutsche Telekom erations in Spain, the United States, Brazil and Italy, “We continue to be excited about the long term medium enterprises. as well as the contract structure of its advertising Africa’s biggest mobile phone operator MTN growth opportunities for Merlin. Whilst we are The bank, founded in 2009 by former Barclays Deutsche Telekom forecast its core profit growth franchise with Transport for London (TfL). Group swung to its first annual loss in two decades planning prudently, we remain confident of a good executive Phillip Monks with backing from AnaCap, would halve this year as earnings engine T-Mobile yesterday, hit by a regulatory fine in Nigeria and performance in the year ahead.” said underlying pretax profit rose to £133mn US slows, strengthening the case for a US mobile Travis Perkins unfavourable currency moves but its shares soared ($163mn) for the year ended December 31, from merger that Deutsche Telekom has long desired. after it kept a dividend. Evonik £99mn a year earlier. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation Travis Perkins, Britain’s biggest supplier of building MTN agreed to pay a fine of 330bn naira ($1.1bn), Loan originations — the process by which a bor- and amortisation (EBITDA) are expected to rise by materials, warned of rising costs and pressure on reduced from $5.2bn, in June last year after a German diversified chemicals maker Evonik yester- rower applies for a new loan — grew 24% to £3.2bn just under 4% to around 22.2bn euros ($23.4bn) discretionary spending as it delivered a 67% slump prolonged legal battle to end a dispute in Nigeria day reported a 13% decline in adjusted core profit from the previous year, resulting in a total loan in 2017, below the average estimate of 22.7bn in a in 2016 profit, sending its shares down 8%. over missing a deadline to cut off unregistered SIM for the fourth quarter due to lower prices for its growth of 22% at £7.5bn, Aldermore said. Reuters poll. The group’s customers include local authorities, cards. poultry feed ingredients and absorbent materials “We were able to deliver such a strong perform- T-Mobile US, where Deutsche Telekom has been big building firms, traders such as plumbers and The fine by Nigeria, MTN’s most lucrative but for diapers. ance despite the uncertainty presented by the UK’s reaping the rewards of 20bn euros in investments kitchen fitters and regular consumers, with its increasingly problematic market, wiped 10.5bn Quarterly earnings before interest, taxes, deprecia- referendum on EU membership,” Aldermore chief over the past three years, is expected to see its fortunes closely tied to housing transactions and rand ($768mn) — 500 cents per share — from the tion and amortisation (EBITDA), adjusted for one- executive Phillip Monks said in a statement. adjusted EBITDA growth rate slow to 7% this year consumer confidence. firms 2016 headline earnings, South Africa’s main off s, fell to €437mn ($460mn), slightly ahead of the “While the full political and economic implica- from 29% in 2016, the German group said yester- The group, which has over 20 businesses including measure of profit. average analyst estimate of €432mn. tions of this decision are as yet unknown, the UK day. Travis Perkins, Wickes, BSS, Toolstation and Tile MTN said its headline loss came in at 1.4bn rand In the year-earlier period, the feed ingredients busi- economy has remained resilient to date, and we CEO Tim Hoettges reaff irmed that Deutsche Giant, mostly blamed its poorly performing plumb- ($108mn), or 77 cents per share last year, with ness was bolstered by rivals’ production outages. continue to closely monitor our operating environ- Telekom was keen to participate in consolidation in ing and heating business for a raft of exceptional headline earnings of 13.6bn rand, or 746 cents per Evonik said it was aiming for €2.2bn to €2.4bn in ment for any change,” he added. the US market. charges that pulled down profits. share, in 2015. 2017 adjusted EBITDA, up from €2.17bn in 2016. T-Mobile US has in the past tried to merge with Travis Perkins booked an exceptional non-cash MTN woes in Africa’s most populous nation and The company, which also makes clear acrylic JD.com AT&T and with Sprint. impairment charge of £235mn ($289mn) against biggest economy still persist, with the company sheet and rubber chemicals, said it expected price T-Mobile US, once the smallest US player, overtook goodwill and intangible and tangible assets. facing an investigation by Nigerian lawmakers for declines for its feed ingredients, which are sulfur- JD.com, China’s second biggest e-commerce firm, Sprint to become number three behind Verizon in An exceptional charge of £57mn was also taken allegedly illegally repatriating $14bn between 2006 containing amino acids mainly used for poultry, “to said fourth-quarter revenue jumped 47% from a 2015 thanks to a mix of marketing, creative custom- to cover the cost of closing underperforming and 2016. level out going into 2017”. year earlier driven by strong sales during holiday er contracts and network quality improvements. branches and a restructuring of its supply chain MTN has denied any wrongdoing. At the beginning of the year, Evonik wrapped up shopping events at the end of last year. Meantime, Deutsche Telekom has returned to and central operations. Founded with Pretoria’s help after the end of white the acquisition of Air Products’ specialty additives The firm also announced it had reached an agree- growth in the mature German market, its current in- Those changes were announced in October when rule in 1994, MTN is seen as one of post-apartheid division for $3.8bn, a maker of ingredients for ment to dissolve its equity stake in finance business vestment focus, where it competes with Telefonica Travis Perkins also warned of the hit to profits and South Africa’s biggest commercial successes but insulation foams, sun lotion and coatings, to reduce JD Finance, which is expected to be completed in Deutschland, Vodafone, and a host of smaller kicked off a review of the plumbing and heating clashes with regulators in recent years have ex- dependence on the volatile animal feed business. mid-2017. mobile and cable providers. business. posed governance issues and hobbled growth. Revenue for the three months to end-December Deutsche Telekom is making the most of its large The charges meant the group’s pretax profit fell to MTN, which has operations in Iran, said it expects Adecco came in at 80.3bn yuan ($11.67bn), beating JD’s fixed and mobile networks as well as TV content £73mn in the year to December 31, 2016. to add 8.3mn new users in the 2017 financial year, forecast of 75-77.5bn yuan and up from 54.6bn yuan deals to sell bundled packages that are more Adjusted operating profit was 409mn pounds, a document handed out at its results presentation Adecco reported better-than-expected fourth-quar- in the previous year. expensive than single services and tend to keep broadly in line with analysts’ expectations but down showed. ter earnings yesterday and said it saw strengthened JD expects revenue to fall to between 72.3bn customers more loyal. from £413mn in 2015. The firm said its total subscribers increased by 3.3% hiring momentum across Europe. and 74.3bn yuan in the first quarter, a seasonal Adjusted EBITDA in Germany rose 3% in the fourth Revenue increased 4.6% to £6.22bn. or 7.7mn to 240mn in the year to end-December. The world’s largest provider of temporary staff slowdown marked by the absence of larger holiday quarter and 0.1% over the year to €8.8bn. said net profit rose 17% for the three months ended shopping events. Group EBITDA growth was driven once again by Schroders Hastings Group December 31 to €216mn ($227.5mn), beating the The firm’s core gross merchandise volume, a meas- T-Mobile US, which reported results two weeks ago. average estimate of €182mn in a Reuters poll. ure of overall sales volume for products on their Mobile service revenues in Germany slipped 0.3% British asset manager Schroders reported sharp British insurer Hastings Group Holdings yesterday Revenue grew 5% when adjusted for currency platform excluding Paipai.com, rose 46% to 209.7bn in the quarter, compared with a 2.8% decline at outflows by clients in the fourth quarter, taking the reported a 5% jump in 2016 operating profit, as it swings and acquisitions to €5.87bn, just ahead of yuan from the year earlier. Telefonica and no change at Vodafone. gloss off forecast-beating annual profit and hitting increased customer numbers and market share, but the poll average of €5.82bn. JD.com competes directly with Tmall.com, the Sales and profit fell in the rest of Europe as Deut- its shares. a charge for a rule change on payments on certain Adecco’s sales performance marked an accelera- business-to-consumer platform run by Chinese sche Telekom spent aggressively on marketing Clients pulled £2bn ($2.5bn) in the final three claims ate into profits. tion from the 3% rate for the previous three months Internet firm Alibaba Group Holding. amid tough competition in countries such as months of 2016, which proved a tough year for Hastings said its results included a one-off pre-tax amid an improving situation in its biggest market, In a call with investors CEO Richard Liu said the Austria, the Netherlands and Poland. many asset managers given a volatile market charge of £20mn ($24.55mn) after Britain’s justice France, as well as a turnaround in Germany. company had protections in place for competitive Ailing IT services unit T-Systems reported a 21% backdrop, with rivals Aberdeen Asset Management ministry this week changed the rate for calculating France’s 9% revenue growth when adjusted for pricing, and said price wars were ultimately good drop in adjusted EBITDA as it set aside provisions and Henderson Group also suff ering outflows late lump sum payments for personal injury claims. trading days was driven especially by strong auto- for the company. of about 100mn euros for two legacy outsourcing in the year. This is expected to lead to sharp increases in the motive hiring, while Britain, Germany, Austria and JD said it agreed on March 1 to move ahead with contracts. The scale of withdrawals surprised analysts, given payouts. Switzerland also showed improvements. the reorganisation of its financial business, making The German operator expects a further writedown consensus forecasts had been for the company Consultants PwC said insurance premiums were Revenues from its second-biggest market, North the unit a fully Chinese-owned entity, which is a li- after the first quarter, during which BT uncovered to take in an extra 300mn pounds in the fourth likely to rise by £50-75 on an average policy after America, showed modest improvement, turning censing requirement for managing certain financial an accounting scandal at its Italian operations that quarter, Cenkos analyst Rae Maile said in a note to the discount rate was cut to -0.75% from 2.5%, with around a third-quarter fall to mark 1% adjusted products in the country. wiped another £8bn ($9.8bn) off its value. clients. young drivers likely to be most aff ected. growth in the last three months of the year. JD.com, which owns 68.6% of the unit prior to the Some analysts, though, were positive on the out- Hastings has already increased its premiums as For January and February, the Zurich-based deal, will sell 28.6% of the unit for approximately Krka look and the company lifted its full-year dividend by a result of the discount rate cut, Hoff man said, company said overall group revenues had risen 14.3bn yuan in cash, the company said. 7% after its total assets hit a record high £397.1bn, though he Decemberined to disclose the size of the between 4 and 5% after factoring out the impact JD.com chairman Richard Liu will acquire a stake Generic drug producer Krka, Slovenia’s largest up 27% over 2016. increases. from currency, acquisitions and the number of of about 4.3% in the reorganised unit and obtain a listed company, reported a 31.5% fall in 2016 group They were helped by a 42bn pound currency boost Hastings, which listed on the London Stock working days. majority of voting rights. net profit yesterday despite a rise in sales. after Britain’s vote to leave the European Union Exchange in 2015, off ers private car insurance, But the group maintained a cautious tone for the In return JD.com will receive 40% of the restruc- Net profit fell to €108.4mn ($114.1mn) from 158.2mn sent sterling tumbling. home insurance, motorbike and van insurance and future. Friday, March 3, 2017 GULF TIMES BUSINESS Synchronised global growth easing the burden on US economy

Bloomberg reflects optimism that the global economy No Group of 20 economy is expected gauge for February beat expectations The Spanish fourth-quarter expansion of robust, and may be taking a hit just as Hong Kong has really picked up pace.” to post a decline in output this year, ac- amid a rebound in producer prices, giving 0.7% was driven by increased household monetary policy begins tightening. For A synchronized expansion means the cording to Bloomberg economist surveys. room for policy makers to focus on reining consumption and exports, data released example, President Mario Draghi’s line global economy doesn’t need to rely as If confirmed by data, it would be the first in excessive lending. yesterday showed. that the European Central Bank will see This year is shaping up to be the most much on the US for growth, which could time since 2010 without a contraction. In South Korean exports rose for a To be sure, there are plenty of risks through a short-lived spike in prices may synchronised for global growth since the ease the upward pressure on the dollar. fact, 12 G-20 economies are expected to fourth month in February, fuelled by to the outlook, starting with a series of come under further pressure in inflation- immediate aftermath of the last reces- Faster growth around the world also see growth accelerate or stay the same in sales of semiconductors and petroleum European elections that will see gains by averse Germany and elsewhere as the sion, in a development that could ease the should help to narrow US trade deficits 2017, which would be the most since 2010. products, not to mention a surge in parties who want to potentially scrap the economy continues to beat expectations. burden on the US as the world’s economic that along with a weaker dollar could de- Chetan Ahya, global co-head of Chinese demand for cosmetics. In Japan, euro. First to the polls will be Netherlands, Back across the Atlantic, slower spend- engine. fuse some of the rising trade tensions that economics and chief Asia economist at corporate profits hit another record followed by Germany, France and possibly ing by US consumers and on construction From robust Chinese factory data to have emerged under President Donald Morgan Stanley in Hong Kong, says this while growth in Australia exceeded pro- Italy. In all those countries, populist parties prompted some economists to lower faster inflation in Germany, just about all Trump. year is shaping up as the first synchro- jections. Data late on Tuesday from India are set to make inroads, threatening to first- quarter growth estimates, suggesting major economies are running at a decent And there is evidence that momen- nous acceleration in both developed and was also more upbeat than economists reopen the debate about the future of America’s expansion isn’t as fast as the clip, if not accelerating. tum is gathering in much of the world. emerging markets since 2010. had anticipated. the euro. Brexit negotiations that the UK post-election surge in consumer and busi- Look no further than the latest purchas- Economic confidence in the euro area is “With the headwinds from emerging “It certainly looks to be synchronised government plans to trigger by the end of ness sentiment would suggest. ing managers index data, according to stronger than it has been since before the markets abating, a synchronous recovery — but not just in North Asia,” said Shane March also add to potential pitfalls. It’s not all upside in Asia either. Some Reinhard Cluse, chief European economist debt crisis in 2011, and while unemploy- in global growth is now under way and Oliver, Sydney-based head of investment “Cyclical indicators have been very of the data there is being given a gloss by at UBS Group in London. ment remains double the US level, it has should bring about faster reflation too,” strategy at AMP Capital Investors, which strong so far and export countries have weaker comparisons from a year earlier. The Institute for Supply Management’s been falling faster than anticipated. Asia’s according to Ahya. “As a result, developed manages about $127bn. “It’s pretty much a received a boost by external conditions,” And heightened trade tensions between US factory index climbed to 57.7 in Febru- trade recovery is being driven by looser market central banks’ policy cycle is now global phenomenon and has been under- said Simon Wells, chief European econo- the US and China could slow the region’s ary, the sixth straight advance, while data monetary policy and China’s stimulus that shifting, with the risks tilted towards a way since around mid-last-year.” mist at HSBC Holdings in London. “But recovery. US Commerce Secretary Wilbur also show euro-area manufacturing accel- was rolled out last year amid fears of a tighter policy stance, keeping upward The euro region’s economy too contin- there is a lot of political uncertainty that Ross on Tuesday promised tougher erating for a sixth month in February and sharp slowdown. pressures on core bond yields.” ued to surprise on Wednesday. Factory may deter a large turnaround for invest- enforcement of existing trade rules with China’s off icial factory gauge firming. Spreads between 10-year bonds and Signs of that momentum were evident activity rose to the highest level in almost ment and without it we remain cautious China and other nations. “There is clearly hope of better syn- two-year bonds are about the same in on Wednesday with data showing some of six years, driven not only by Germany, that this is really a turning point.” Either way, a global economy that is tak- chronised growth worldwide,” Cluse said. both the euro area and the US. That’s the the region’s biggest economies are gain- the region’s economic powerhouse, but Consumers who have been driving the ing a bigger share of growth couldn’t have “The acceleration in manufacturing PMIs first time that’s happened since 2012. ing traction. China’s off icial manufacturing also by strong readings in Italy and Spain. global expansion to date also may be less come at a better time.

AmEx, stung Jobless claims near 44-year-low by Sapphire, sweetens perks with in US as labour market tightens Uber credit Weekly jobless claims drop 19,000; four-week average of claims fall Bloomberg 6,250; continuing claims increase New York 3,000

Reuters merican Express Co is es- Washington calating the rewards war Afor premium credit cards, off ering Platinum customers he number of Americans fi ling $200 of free Uber rides while for unemployment benefi ts fell raising the annual fee. Tto near a 44-year-low last week, Redesigned in stainless steel, pointing to further tightening of the la- the card will cost new holders bour market even as economic growth $550 starting on March 30, a $100 appears to have remained moderate in increase that will take eff ect for the fi rst quarter. existing users when they renew The stronger labour market com- after September 1. It’s the fi rst bined with rising infl ation could push fee hike in more than a decade, the Federal Reserve to raise interest according to Janey Whiteside, rates this month. AmEx’s senior vice-president for Initial claims for state unemploy- global charge products, benefi ts ment benefi ts dropped 19,000 to a sea- and services. But AmEx, led by sonally adjusted 223,000 for the week Chairman and chief executive ended February 25, the lowest level offi cer Ken Chenault, is provid- since March 1973, the Labour Depart- ing more sweeteners. In addition ment said yesterday. to the credit for Uber Technolo- Data for the prior week was revised gies’ car-hailing service, users to show 2,000 fewer applications re- will be able to earn fi ve-times ceived than previously reported. rewards points at eligible ho- It was the 104th straight week that tels booked through the lender’s claims remained below 300,000, a website. And AmEx is expanding threshold associated with a healthy la- its collection of airport lounges. bour market. That is the longest stretch “We’ve worked to refi ne and since 1970, when the labour market evolve the card,” Whiteside said was much smaller. in an interview. “We’re really re- It is now at or close to full employ- defi ning the playing fi eld here.” ment, with an unemployment rate of The largest US credit-card is- 4.8%. suer by purchases is under pres- Economists polled by Reuters had sure to defend its dominance. Ri- forecast new claims for unemployment val JPMorgan Chase & Co made benefi ts dipping to 243,000 in the lat- a splash in August with a Sap- est week. phire Reserve card featuring an Financial markets are already pricing initial sign-up bonus of 100,000 in a rate hike at the Fed’s March 14-15 points, drawing so many appli- policy meeting. A job seeker (right) speaks with a representative at the Laconia Job & Resource Fair, hosted by the New Hampshire Employment Security, at Belknap Mall in Belmont, cants it temporarily ran out of US stock index futures rose after the New Hampshire. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 223,000 for the week ended February 25, the lowest level since materials to mint it. Earlier this data yesterday. March 1973, the US Labour Department said yesterday. week, AmEx consumer services The US dollar also fi rmed against a chief Doug Buckminster called basket of currencies, while prices for through January, the biggest gain since of claims, considered a better measure after slowing in the fi nal three months in the week ended February 18. The the off er “a full-frontal assault” US government debt fell. October 2012. The PCE price index in- of labour market trends as it irons out of 2016. four-week average of the so-called on the Platinum portfolio, not- A survey from the US central bank on creased 1.6% in December. week-to-week volatility, fell 6,250 to The Atlanta Fed is forecasting fi rst- continuing claims edged up 750 to ing that attrition temporarily in- Wednesday showed the labour market The core PCE, the Fed’s preferred 234,250 last week, the lowest reading quarter gross domestic product rising 2.07mn. creased among those holders af- remained tight in early 2017, with some infl ation measure, increased 1.7%, still since April 1973. at a 1.8% annualised rate. The continuing claims data covered ter the Sapphire Reserve’s debut. of the Fed’s districts reporting “widen- below its 2% target. Data this week showed tepid growth The economy grew at a 1.9% pace in the survey week for February’s unem- Still, Whiteside said AmEx’s ing” labour shortages. A Labour Department analyst said in consumer spending in January, weak the fourth quarter. ployment rate. changes are a response to cus- The government reported on there were no special factors infl uenc- equipment and construction spending, Thursday’s claims report also The four-week moving average of tomer feedback, not to competi- Wednesday that the personal con- ing last week’s claims data. and a wider goods trade defi cit, sug- showed the number of people still re- claims fell 21,500 between the January tors. The company declined to sumption expenditures (PCE) price Only claims for Oklahoma were esti- gesting the economy struggled to gain ceiving benefits after an initial week and February survey periods, suggest- specify the new Platinum card’s index jumped 1.9% in the 12 months mated. The four-week moving average momentum early in the fi rst quarter of aid increased 3,000 to 2.07mn ing an improvement in the jobless rate. sign-up bonus. If Trump spoils privacy pact, we’ll pull it, EU offi cial warns

Bloomberg ess personal data from billing details to the extent consistent with applicable to immediately comment other than to would also put at risk the possibilities Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, France’s Luxembourg messaging platforms. law, ensure that their privacy poli- highlight Ross’s statements. The De- for business to operate as normal,” said data privacy regulator, said she was At the end of March — the exact date cies exclude persons who are not US partment of Justice didn’t respond to a Albrecht. “As soon as it’s clear that any hopeful that President Trump’s back- still has to be fi nalised — the former citizens” from the US Privacy Act request for comment. orders will change the legal protec- ground in commerce would mean he era Jourova spent months Czech regional development minister “regarding personally identifiable in- Still, “the disruptive political style tions for Europeans in the US system, will be keen to preserve the pact. working with the Obama ad- will travel to Washington to meet with formation.” of the new US administration fi lls any- the already widely criticised Privacy “US economic interests behind the Vministration on a deal to protect the administration of new US President In a letter to Jourova’s offi ce dated one working in the fi eld of privacy with Shield, from a European perspective, shield are considerable too, so I think Europeans from digital surveillance by Donald Trump on the privacy shield. February 22, the Department of Justice concern,” said Johannes Caspar, one of cannot be upheld. It’s a very fragile that Mr Trump, who is a businessman US spies. With a new occupant now in Jourova said she’s hopeful she won’t assured the EU of the US’s continued Germany’s most outspoken data pro- thing,” he said. after all, isn’t completely oblivious to the White House, the EU’s privacy czar have to suspend the pact, but conced- commitment to the Privacy Shield. tection commissioners. The EU-US Privacy Shield was en- what’s at risk,” said Falque-Pierrotin, says she’s prepared to rip up the pact ed that Trump’s unpredictability has The letter was written by Bruce “You don’t need to gaze into a crystal acted in July, months after both sides who’s also the head of the group of EU if the Americans don’t adhere to its raised concern among European regu- Swartz, deputy assistant attorney ball to see that the air surrounding the were forced back to the drawing board privacy watchdogs. terms. lators. general, who told Jourova that the US Privacy Shield is becoming thinner,” when the bloc’s top court annulled a If the shield is abandoned, compa- “If there is a signifi cant change, we “Unpredictability is a problem if you government “looks forward to work- said Caspar, who is the Hamburg pri- “safe-harbor” accord dating back to nies that transfer data as part of their will suspend” the accord, Jourova, the need to trust something,” Jourova said, ing closely with the commission in the vacy regulator. 2000 for failing to off er suffi cient safe- day-to-day business would be thrown European Union’s justice commission- adding that she remains “vigilant” weeks and months ahead to protect What the last few weeks have shown guards. The new deal seeks to address back into the legal limbo they were in er, said in a Bloomberg interview. “I will about the government’s stance. The EU the privacy and security” of US and EU is that “everything is possible now,” concerns that American spies had un- before the deal, forcing them to re- not hesitate to do it. There’s too much “expects continuity” and “I will want citizens. according to Jan Philipp Albrecht, the fettered access to European citizens’ vert to other, less straightforward data at stake.” reconfi rmation and reassurances when Wilbur Ross, the new Secretary of European Parliament’s chief negotiator private data. transfer tools. The pact, clinched last year, was I will go to Washington.” Commerce, off ered some words of en- on stricter EU privacy rules. The bloc’s One upcoming test of whether the “I don’t think it’s the aim of anyone meant to keep data fl owing across the In a sign of rising concern, the com- couragement when he addressed De- new data protection rules will from US has stuck to its commitments will in the EU, whether in the European Atlantic while ensuring that Europeans mission on February 7 sought clari- partment of Commerce staff March 1, May 2018 give European data watch- be an annual joint review with the US Commission, in the Parliament or in enjoyed safeguards from the snooping fi cation from the US that EU citizens saying that “we must build on the hard dogs the power to fi ne companies as Department of Commerce. the member states, to cause disrup- by American security services. The Pri- wouldn’t be aff ected by a January 25 ex- work that many of you have done in much as 4% of their global annual sales While Jourova raised the possibil- tion to companies,” said Albrecht. “But vacy Shield plugged holes that led EU ecutive order by Trump on Enhancing supporting Privacy Shield.” for violations. ity of pulling the deal, she fi rst pledged there are certain actions, if Trump or judges to overturn a previous accord Public Safety in the Interior of the US. Tim Truman, a spokesman for the US “There are some really dangerous to “engage in dialog” if there are signs his administration take them, that will dating back to 2000, and was greeted One section in the presidential or- Department of Commerce’s Interna- announcements around that would that “somebody isn’t doing what he is leave the EU with no alternative than to with relief by US companies that proc- der said that US “agencies shall, to tional Trade Administration, declined endanger cooperation, but which committed to do.” take clear actions.”