Malaysian Company Bioalpha Heading to Middle East

Datura stramonium: Herbal treatment for asthma

Managing director of Bioalpha Holdings Bhd announced that the health supplements company will be soon entering the Middle East market by mid-2015.

Bioalpha was listed for the first time on the Ace market of Bursa Malaysia on Tuesday. Hon Tian Kok, the managing director, announced after the company started trading that Bioalpha had signed a memorandum of understanding last year with the Fatima Group of the United Arab Emirates. The Fatima Group has more than 20 hypermarkets all over the UAE. With this much penetration they will be able to act as the distributor for Bioalpha’s products all over the country.

“We are now in the midst of registering our herbal products with the relevant department in Dubai and once approved, exports to the UAE will begin. Since Malaysia is seen as the global halal hub, we feel it is right for us to exploit this position and are currently working hand-in-hand with the government,” Hon said.

Bioalpha’s IPO offered 100 million new ordinary shares to the public at an issue price of 20 sen per share. The company’s market capitalization is estimated to be about RM 9.7 million.

The company manufactures health supplement products including processed herbs, functional foods, formulated ingredients, herbal and non-herbal supplements.

New Saudi King Greets Egypt’s Sisi at Airport

“Abdel Fattah el-Sisi” by Kremlin.ru.

In an unusual break of protocol, the new king of Saudi Arabia, Salman, met Egypt’s President Abdel Fatteh el Sisi at the airport when he arrived for high level meetings in Riyadh on Sunday, March 1. The unusual move was an expression of the King’s positive feelings towards Sisi particularly at a time when parts of the Arab media have questioned whether past close ties between the two countries will continue with the rein of the new King.

This is the first time since Salman’s rise to power that the two leaders have met for in-depth talks on regional issues. The talks are considered crucial in light of the growing turmoil in the region. The pair is expected to discuss security in the Red Sea as a result of political upheavals in Yemen. It is expected that other issues will be discussed with the aim of strengthening Arab and Sunni unity. Riyadh perceives threats coming not only from Iran, but also from Islamic State extremists.

John Kerry will also be in the region this week. The US Secretary of State is there to discuss finding a deal with Iran to curb their nuclear development program which Saudi Arabia sees as a threat from its main regional rival.

Royal Bank of Scotland Exiting Middle East

In the wake of one of the largest bailouts in British history, the Royal Bank of Scotland has decided to withdraw some of its business from the Middle East. RBS will be selling or closing its corporate debt and debt capital markets business as part of its latest efforts to shrink its global footprint, withdraw from emerging markets, and focus on its domestic business model.

The British government owns 81 percent of the lender. Media reports a month ago stated that most of the bank’s Asian corporate banking business was for sale. That news came on the heels of November’s revelation that the bank was examining its options for its holdings in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

“Part of the strategy set out by [chief executive] Ross McEwan in February 2014 was to make RBS a smaller, more focused bank. As part of that strategy, we have taken the decision to exit our corporate debt and debt capital markets business in the Middle East and Africa,” RBS said stated.

RBS has offices in Qatar and the UAE where they offer their corporate and institutional clients financing, risk management and other transactions.

Four ME Banks Offer Loan to Indian Jet Airways

Jet Airways-photo by BriYYZ

Four Middle East banks have joined together as a syndicate to offer a $150 million loan to India-based Jet Airways. The four banks in the consortium include: Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC, Commercial Bank International PJSC, Ahli United Bank B.S.C and Arab Banking Corporation B.S.C.

Jet Airways CEO Cramer Bell explained:

“It is time to re-energize and re-establish ourselves as the country’s leading full-service airline. We will continue to build on this strong foundation as part of our three-year turnaround plan. This syndicated loan facility will be instrumental in underpinning the airline on this progressive path.”

Prior to the $150 million loan agreement the Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways PJSC and Jet Air joined forces when Etihad invested in Jet Airways with a 24 percent equity stake and 50.1 percent share in Jet Privilege Limited.

“The partnership between the two airlines will be mutually beneficial across multiple areas including network growth, operational synergies, revenue enhancement and cost optimization,” the company said.

Duqm Refinery Construction Project Launched

Sohar Port in Oman

Jacobus Nieuwenhuijze, the official in charge of the construction of the planned Duqm refinery announced that the project should be completed by the end of 2019.

“Construction work will complete in fourth quarter of 2019,” stated Nieuwenhuijze about the refinery with is expected to have the ability to process 230,000 barrels of crude oil every day.

The project director made his remarks during a ceremony which was held at Knowledge Oasis Muscat. An agreement was signed during the proceedings in which the Duqm Refinery will be allowed to use a designated 900-hectare area to make field studies, preparation and clearance so that the project can commence. The agreement was made with the chairman of the Special Economic Zone Authority of Duqm (Sezad), and Eng Essam Al Zadjali, Duqm Refinery’s chairman and the chief executive officer of Oman Oil Company (OOC).

Chief executive of Sezad said that it is expected that the civil work can begin in either April or May of the coming year. After that the engineering, procurement and construction work will be able to go forward.

WEF Panel Discusses Economic Trends for 2015

Global economic trends were at the top of the agenda at this year’s World Economic Forum. Held in Dubai’s Madinat Jumeirah from November 9 until November 11, the summit brought together some of the world’s most notable leaders in the business and economic realm.

Majid Jafar at World Economic Forum

A panel discussion on global trends in 2015 offered a wide variety of perspectives from WEF’s Global Knowledge Networks. Included on the panel were Kuwaiti government minister Rola A. Dashti; CEO of Crescent Petroleum Majid Jafar; Kevin Rudd, former prime minister of Australia; Adam Posen, President of the Peterson Institute for International Economics; and Amina Mohammed, Special Adviser on Post-2015 Development Planning at the United Nations.

Majid Jafar, who also the vice-chairman of the WEF’s Global Agenda Council on Youth Unemployment as well as CEO of Crescent Petroleum, said that:

“On the one hand the government asked the private sector to create jobs, but if the governments are rising salaries or hiring more, the two are actually at odds.”

He added that it is necessary that there be collective action between governments and the private sector.

Amina Mohammed and Rola Dashti agreed that one thing the world is in dire need of is quality education, stating that regional countries are today living through a culture of credentials, but not of knowledge. Adam Posen focused his words on the problem and challenge of regional economies integrating into the global economic marketplace.

The annual summit addressed about 80 issues of international concern, bringing together over 1000 delegates and world leaders such as Al Gore, Gordon Brown and Jose Manuel Barroso.

Oman’s Insurance Industry Growing Apace

According to the Times of Oman the Capital Market Authority of Oman announced that the country’s insurance industry has posted a year-on-year growth of 8.8 percent for the first 6 months of 2014.

Unaudited figures showed a total volume of insurance premium sales totaling 226.8 million Omani rials ($589.2 million.) After reinsurance the total net earned premiums came to about OMR 122 ($317 million) compared to last year’s total of OMR 106 million ($276 million.)

Jother takes Best Company of the Year Award

Jothor, a student company from the Higher College of Technology in Oman, was the recipient of the coveted “Best Company of the Year 2014” award. The award was presented by Sharikati, under the auspices of Dr. Ahmed Mohammed Salem Al Futaisi, Minister of Transport and Communications, at the Sultan Qaboos University Cultural Centre in association with Oman Oil and Sultan Qaboos University.

Discarded date palm leaves can be recycled into soil

Eighteen students from different fields worked together to develop a form of artificial soil created from old date palm leaves. The leaves are shredded into a material that can be used either as fertilizer or for soil-free agriculture.

The executive director of Jother, Al Mutassim Said Al Harasi, said that,

“We developed a medium that works as an alternative to soil using farm residue by recycling it to start our business. We will use this prize money as capital for the next step in our business. Winning this competition justified all of our efforts and hard work as a team during these past few months.”

Airfares to India Dropping After Summer Vacation

Jet Airways lowering fares as summer season subsides

Jet Air has lowered their airfares to the most popular destinations as demand for tickets subsides with the summer. Air India is making their airline more attractive by allowing 40 kg of baggage per person.

“We slashed our fares to different Indian destinations, especially to Mumbai, Trivandrum and Kochi,” said Rias Kutteri, Country Manager of Jet Airways.

High fares have been coming under attack from non-resident Indians who have been forced to spend the money to travel back for summer vacations and Indian festivals. Riyas says airlines flying to India have been under pressure concerning airfares.

“It’s only during festivals and vacations that more people travel. These are the seasons when airlines increase fares to make more revenue. Even though the coming months will witness festival time in India, we are reducing the prices”, he said.

Inflation on the Rise in Oman

Cost of living in Oman on the rise

The Sultanate of Oman reported an increase in their rate of inflation by 1.21 percent through June 2014 as compared with the rate for the same time period in 2013. A decrease in the rate of inflation was seen in June 2014 when compared with the previous month, coming in at 0.07 percent less.

The information was supplied by the National Center for Statistics and Information, reporting on the latest Consumer Price Index.

The price for foods and drinks, which makes up about 24 percent of costs for families and individuals on average, went up by 2.20 percent during the 12-month period ending in June, 2014. Housing, utilities and fuel costs rose by 1.26 percent, while the price for education increased by 6.24 percent.

Health costs rose by 6.01 percent; communication expenses grew by 0.13 percent; home furnishings, household equipment and maintenance climbed by 7.37 percent.
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