Oil price rout and Iran sanctions lifting send Middle East markets lower January 17, 2016 Middle East markets have fallen after the lifting of Iranian sanctions and the country's promise to resume crude oil exports. It stokes worries of the market's over supply which has already sent oil prices below $30. The Saudi Tadawul All Share Index fell 5.4 per cent to its lowest since March 2011. The Qatar Exchange, the second largest in the Gulf after [...]
Why oil and gas are big winners from Trump’s presidential victory November 10, 2016 The global financial markets began to crash last night as a Trump victory became more likely, although they regained ground as the results started to clear up. Nevertheless, to say that there is a lot of uncertainty about what happens next is a massive understatement. Asian markets plunged, commodity prices fell, and emerging market currencies [...]
Taking Trump literally: The chaotic US visa ban has revealed the new President to be incompetent or malevolent or both January 31, 2017 Peter Thiel, founder of Paypal and libertarian icon, told us last year to take Donald Trump “seriously but not literally”. Trump was playing to the gallery, Thiel suggested, and if elected would govern seriously and competently – and would quietly forget his more outlandish campaign promises. Naively, I and a few others started to hope [...]
CMS launches an office in Tehran, Iran, making it the first major international law firm to establish a base in the country February 2, 2016 An international law firm has journeyed to a place where few legal eagles have ventured before by setting up an office in Iran. CMS today revealed that it opened its office in the Iranian capital of Tehran yesterday, making it the first major international law firm to launch in the country. The legal firm first started eyeing [...]
Iran official says oil prices could fall as low as $25 by March this year January 8, 2016 An Iranian official has warned the price of oil could slump to $25 per barrel by March, once international sanctions over its alleged nuclear programme have been removed. Fereidun Fesharaki, a former oil adviser to the Iranian prime minister, told The Times that Brent crude, the international benchmark, could drop to between $25 to $30 [...]
Brent crude heads back towards $47 despite Saudi Arabia-Russia cooperation September 6, 2016 Brude crude turned lower this morning, despite yesterday's cooperation pledge by two of the world's biggest oil producers. Brent crude, the global benchmark, fell as much as 0.61 per cent to 47.34 per barrel in early morning trading. Its US counterpart, West Texas Intermediate, fared better swelling 1.35 per cent to $45.04. Read more: Experts warn North Sea corporation [...]
Remaining US sanctions putting insurance professionals off Iran, although the desire to do business in the country has increased since January February 15, 2016 The insurance industry is still feeling cautious about doing business in Iran because of lingering sanctions, according to a survey released today. The study, conducted by global law firm Clyde & Co, discovered that 85 per cent of London insurance professionals felt discouraged from doing deals with the country because of remaining US sanctions which make it near impossible [...]
Oil edges closer to $28 as Brent and WTI crude both drop thanks to end of Iran sanctions January 18, 2016 Oil investors were showing their nerves today, with the price of both Brent crude and WTI crude edging closer to $28, as sanctions against Iran were lifted, potentially adding millions of barrels of oil to an already oversupplied market. Brent, the global benchmark, dropped to $28.17 in early trading, while the US-focused WTI fell to $28.71. The [...]
Iran sanction changes: There are difficulties ahead, but Europe should stay optimistic December 16, 2015 Today, the international business community hit an inevitable speed-bump on the way towards sanctions relief for Iran. Following the test-firing missile by the Iranian government in October, a UN Security Council experts panel declared Resolution 1929 was violated because the missile was capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. While this has led many, including the [...]
Could the intensifying spat between Saudi Arabia and Iran erase recent falls in the oil price? January 6, 2016 Alastair McCaig, market analyst at IG, says Yes. Disagreements between Saudi Arabia and Iran are not unusual, and this latest scuffle has also drawn many of the other Opec nations into the fray. Considering the pressure that many of these nations have been under, with falling revenue streams due to the subdued price of oil, this [...]