A high profile Russian delegation, led by senior government officials and business leaders including a Russian tycoon, is in Sharjah to explore enhanced trade and investment opportunities with their counterparts in the GCC. The delegation, including several high-ranking ministers, senior officials, owners & CEOs of major Russian companies including the Chairman of Russian conglomerate Sistema, is in the country to take part in the three-... Read more »

The who’s who of the GCC and Russian government and business community will address the inaugural Russia-GCC Business Forum that will be held at Expo Centre Sharjah from December 17 to 19, 2012.
By bringing together personalities who wield considerable power and influence in their respective industries and sphere of activity, the Russia-GCC Business Forum aiMs. to become an effective and prestigious platform to boost bilateral tra... Read more »

EU leaders offered Egypt more than a billion euros in aid and better trade terms as President Mohamed Morsi flew in for his first visit to Europe pledging to support democratic values and freedoms. The lightning trip, followed by a visit to Rome, came amid violent anti-US protests over a film deemed insulting to Islam that led to the killing of four US officials in the Libyan city of Benghazi."Attacks such as these cannot be justified, r... Read more »

Computer systems at energy firm RasGas have been taken offline by a computer virus only days after a similar attack on oil giant Aramco. The attacks come as security experts warn of efforts by malicious hackers to target the oil and energy industry. The attack forced the Qatar-based RasGas firm to shut down its website and email systems. RasGas, one of the world's largest producers of liquid petroleum gas, said production was not hit by ... Read more »

Egypt has asked the International Monetary Fund for a $4.8bn (£3bn) loan to help revive its struggling economy. The request was made during talks in Cairo between President Mohammed Mursi and IMF chief Christine Lagarde. Ms Lagarde said the IMF would respond quickly, while Prime Minister Hisham Qandil said he hoped the deal could be finalised before the end of the year. It is needed to cover budget deficits resulting from shrinking touri... Read more »

The presidents of Sudan and South Sudan are to have a discussion in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on a deepening crisis over sharing their oil wealth. When South Sudan became the independent state last July, Sudan lost most of its oil fields. But the export pipelines go through Sudan, which has seized some $815m in oil revenue, accusing the south of not paying transit fees. South Sudan last week said it reduced oil production, accusing Sudan of "stealin... Read more »

Although it has managed to avoid the popular uprisings that have rocked other Arab nations, Jordan is facing high unemployment as it struggles to define its economic policy. On Sunday Central Bank governor Fares Sharaf was dismissed over accusations by Prime Minister Maaruf Bakhit that he took "unilateral" decisions and publicly opposed the government efforts to save economy. "It's not the first time the government has sacked an official for his or her opin... Read more »

Tunisian PM Beji Caid Essebsi yesterday painted a bleak picture of the national economy. According to him the key reason for that repeated strikes that have stopped the operation several firms. "The economic situation is very bad. Repeated sit-ins and strikes have stopped operations at several firms," middle-east-online.com quotes Essebsi as saying. He gave an example of a chemical complex in the southeastern town of Gabes where activity was disrupted for w... Read more »

According to Egypt’s Finance Minister Samir Radwan, the country has dropped plans to seek loans from the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. The decision was made after the planned deficit in the 2011-12 budget had been revised down from 11% to 8.6% of GDP. But an adviser told a news agency the decision had been partly a response to the "pressure of public opinion". In May Mr Radwan appealed to the IMF, telling the bbc.co.uk that the situation was "... Read more »

The emir of Qatar arrived in Madrid yesterday on a visit to invest ailing Spanish economy and to boost ties between the oil-rich Gulf state and Spain as well. After the arrival Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and his wife, Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, lunched with King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia at the royal palace of Zarazuela outside Madrid. Today he is to hold talks over lunch with Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, after which seve... Read more »