Saudi increased oil exports as Opec discussed output cuts January 18, 2015 Saudi Arabia’s oil exports rose to a seven-month high in November, the same month that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) decided to keep production levels unchanged in the face of falling oil prices. According to the statistics provider Joint Organisations Data Initiative, Saudi exports rose to 7.3m barrels a day, up from [...]
Rocky year ahead for flotations as market uncertainty reigns January 5, 2015 THE GENERAL Election in the UK and turmoil abroad could shake the equity capital markets in 2015, JP Morgan’s regional boss told City A.M. Vis Raghavan expects some flotations to take off strongly in any case, but predicts more marginal firms to either hold off floats or cut the price of their stock when volatility strikes. “You [...]
Security threats mapped: Here are the riskiest countries to do business in December 18, 2014 In recent years, the government has become increasingly keen to encourage UK businesses to trade with developing economies – but with the world still reeling after two major terror attacks in a single week, how safe is it to do business abroad? Risk consultancy Control Risks has put together a map showing the world's most [...]
Saudi’s quiet political revolution: How the kingdom saved itself from disaster May 4, 2015 “The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” – Mark Twain While all eyes are understandably on the climax of the most fascinating British election in a generation, an equally important political outcome has quietly been reached in far-away Arabia. There, the Saudi royal family – the House of Saud – has managed [...]
Investec Comment: How cheap oil is boosting small businesses April 12, 2015 THE extraordinary decline in the price of oil has been one of the most important economic stories of the past year. Brent Crude fell from over $110 per barrel in June 2014 to below $50 in January 2015, slumping to multi-year lows. Prices have increased marginally since then, but with factors like the interim deal [...]
What will happen to the world in 2015? Here are eight great changes that will take place this year January 2, 2015 The last 12 months have left behind a big pile of problems for the world to deal with in 2015. The militant group Islamic State has taken over large swathes of the Middle East and now poses a greater threat to the West than any power since the Soviet Union, while the deadly Ebola virus [...]
The oil war has begun: The Saudis are using crude tools to hobble their rivals November 30, 2014 “Paranoia is knowing all the facts.” – Woody Allen Venezuelan foreign minister Rafael Ramirez certainly believes in my Saudi oil conspiracy theory. With his horribly-run country requiring a break-even oil price of at least $121 per barrel to balance its budget, and with the global price of crude already down 30 per cent since July [...]
Wall St inches up while oil price dips 2pc – New York Report January 20, 2015 THE AMERICAN equities joined the positive trend worldwide yesterday, with Wall Street reversing early losses and the dollar rising one percent against the Japanese yen, as diminishing global growth prospects bolstered hopes for central bank stimulus. Crude oil prices fell nearly two per cent after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its 2015 global economic [...]
BNP Paribas braced for US fine of up to $5bn over Iran sanctions May 21, 2014 FRENCH bank BNP Paribas could be hit by a fine of as much as $5bn (£3bn) for breaking US sanctions, it emerged yesterday. The lender is in negotiations with regulators including the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) and has set aside $1.1bn to cover the bill – but has also warned the sum [...]
Scientists say Regin is one of the most sophisticated pieces of malware ever found November 24, 2014 Cyber security firm Symantec says it's just discovered the most sophisticated piece of malware – that's malicious software – it's ever seen. The company, which has dubbed it "Regin", said that once it infects a computer, it can take screenshots, steal passwords and even recover deleted files. That makes it even more sophisticated than Stuxnet, [...]