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Recovering Dubai faces billions of maturing debt

UAE. "There is a substantial amount of debt that is coming due in the next few years, and it will be important to manage pro-actively that process. Information and communication with potential market participants will be a key part of this." Read More | View Original Article

Gerhard Schubert: Equities - The great rotation

UAE. Stock market indices racing ahead but GDP figures do not support the euphoria and commodity outflows fuel the rally; Is there too much liquidity in the banking system? Read More | View Original Article

Audit quality - It's not (only) about the auditor

UAE. 'We all have a role to play ', says ACCA welcoming a proposed international framework for audit quality. "All the stakeholders in the corporate reporting supply chain have to pull together." Read More | View Original Article

Majid Al Futtaim proposed subordinated perpetual notes assigned 'BB+' issue rating

UAE. "We assess the proposed hybrid capital securities as having intermediate equity content, under our criteria," said Standard & Poor's Ratings Services. Read More | View Original Article

Mashreq launches new version of mobile banking application

UAE. Mashreq plans to tap the rising demand for banking services by mobile phone users with the launch of an enhanced version of its Mobile Banking Service called "Snapp". Read More | View Original Article

Arabtec Holding appoints David Doyle as Chief Risk Officer

UAE. He will lead a function focused on risk management and control to support the company's performance and reputation. Read More | View Original Article

UAE's non-oil producing private sector output levels and rate of job creation rise, reveals HSBC UAE PMI survey

UAE. While new orders continued to rise sharply, the rate of increase eased to the slowest in a year. Meanwhile, employment levels rose at the fastest pace in two years. Read More | View Original Article

Dubai, Qatar deserve MSCI upgrade, says investment firm

UAE. Dubai and Qatar deserve to be upgraded T. Rowe Price Group said, after the emirates failed to satisfy the index provider's requirements for four years. Read More | View Original Article

Saks shares rise on report it hired Goldman Sachs for strategic options

INTERNATIONAL. The luxury department store chain hired Goldman Sachs to explore strategic alternatives, including a possible sale, according to a source briefed on the matter. Read More | View Original Article

CSR increasingly more important in the Middle East

UAE. "We found 41% of participants indicated that CSR is reported directly to the CEO, which demonstrates the importance of CSR as an emerging business issue." Read More | View Original Article

AHAB responds to Sonecon's report and teleconference on managing defaults in Islamic Finance

INTERNATIONAL. Paid media stunt to attack Saudi regulators; Financial backers of the report are unknown; "We see this effort as an attempt by one or more international creditors to distort the history of this dispute." Read More | View Original Article

Egypt's reliance on central bank funding may add to inflationary pressures

EGYPT. The Egyptian government is facing an increasingly difficult set of economic circumstances that could raise inflationary pressures and lead to further social unrest, says a report by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services Read More | View Original Article

Raid on Bitcoin exchange over-the-top, says Warwick Business School Professor

INTERNATIONAL. Professor Jon Rushman has accused the US authorities of being "hysterical' after seizing the bank account of the world's biggest Bitcoin exchange and called for an "intelligent debate" about the future of virtual currency. Read More | View Original Article

JPMorgan shareholders keep Dimon chairman, CEO

INTERNATIONAL. JPMorgan Chase shareholders Tuesday voted down a shareholder proposal to split the chairman and chief executive roles, handing bank chief Jamie Dimon a big victory. Read More | View Original Article

Continued strong public spending expected to support non-oil growth in many oil producing countries

UAE. IMF Regional Economic Outlook Update looks at the implications of the economic roads ahead for the Middle East, North Africa. Afghanistan, and Pakistan (MENAP) region against the backdrop of complex political, social, and economic transitions. Read More | View Original Article