Thursday, May 2, 2019Sha’baan 27, 1440 AH

BUSINESSGULF TIMES

Abdulaziz al-Malki gets Al-Attiyah award for ‘Advancement of Qatar Energy Industry’By Pratap JohnBusiness Editor

Qatar’s ambassador to Italy Abdulaziz bin Ahmed al-Malki was selected as the 2019 winner of the Abdullah

Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Energy Award for Lifetime Achievement for the ‘Ad-vancement of the Qatar Energy Industry’ presented at a gala awards dinner at Sheraton Grand Doha last night.

Al-Malki was one of seven distinguished individuals recognised for exemplary careers in the energy industry, which also included Dr Mohamed Hamad al-Rumhy, Oman’s Minis-ter of Oil and Gas, who was awarded for the ‘Advancement of Producer-Consumer Dia-logue,’ and Dr Zhengrong Shi, founder of Sun-tech Power, selected for the ‘Advancement of Renewable Energy’.

“I am honoured to receive the award for the ‘Advancement of Qatar’s Energy Industry’ and to celebrate the occasion with HE al-At-tiyah himself. It is with deep gratitude that I accept this accolade from a gentleman whom I admire tremendously and who has played a pivotal role in my professional career,” al-Malki said.

The foundation’s annual honorary award for Advancement of International Energy Pol-icy and Diplomacy was given to Fu Chengyu, former chairman of the Sinopec Group.

The Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah In-ternational Energy Awards are the foremost honour to recognise individuals for their lifetime achievements in the global energy industry.

This year’s awards were supported by Qa-

tar Petroleum, ExxonMobil, Shell, North Oil Company, Dolphin Energy, Qatar Airways and Total.

The nominees are voted on by an interna-tional selection committee, a group of re-nowned fi gures, who are invited to reward candidates for an outstanding record of ac-complishment in their sector and for mak-ing an exceptional impact on the industry through distinct personal achievements and engagement. The nominees are evaluated in four areas: Impact, innovation, long-term vi-sion and leadership.

“HE al-Malki has spent his career in service of the State of Qatar. He was my right hand man as director of my offi ce while I was Minister of Energy and Industry. His talents of manage-ment and diplomacy were instrumental in the journey to our success in placing Qatar as the leader of the global LNG market. Moreover, HE al-Malki’s intricate involvement in the COP18 2012 Conference in Doha, which set the world on a pathway to today’s Paris Climate Agree-ment, was equally critical,” commented HE Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah.

Other winners of the 2019 Award were Kenneth B Medlock III, senior director at the Center for Energy Studies at the Baker Insti-tute, who received the accolade for ‘Advance-ment of Education for Future Energy Leaders’ and Diane Munro, editor-in-chief at Argus Media, recognised for ‘Advancement of Inter-national Energy Journalism’.

A new category introduced by the Founda-tion this year – for the ‘Advancement of Gas Exporting Countries Forum’ was awarded to GECF secretary general, Dr Yury Sentyurin.

Gulf Times was a media partner of the event.More pictures on Page 12

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IRAN CRISIS | Page 2

HE Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah and other dignitaries with the winners of the Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Energy Awards in seven categories, at a gala dinner held at the Sheraton Grand Doha last night. PICTURE: Noushad Thekkayil

BUSINESS

Gulf Times Thursday, May 2, 20192

Opec’s volatile politics lead to steady oil production in AprilBloombergLondon

The volatile politics of Opec nations meant that oil production from the group held steady last month, as losses in some members were off set by gains in others.Iran’s output slumped once again as the US government moved to tighten sanctions, while Libya’s rose as it revived its biggest oil field following local unrest, according to a Bloomberg survey of off icials, analysts and ship-tracking data.The 14 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 30.3mn barrels a day in April, 25,000 a day more than in March, the survey showed. The group and its allies have been keeping supply restrained since the start of the year to prevent a

glut, and continued with the eff ort last month. Oil prices hit a six-month high of more than $75 a barrel in London last week, as the strategy by some members of the group to reduce supply is compounded by unintended output losses and risks in others.Saudi Arabia trimmed output further even as President Donald Trump tightened his crackdown on Iran. Although Trump said Riyadh and its partners are prepared to off set lost Iranian supplies, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih has signalled the country won’t rush to open the taps.American penalties for nations dealing with Iran widened from yesterday, when exemptions that currently allow several countries to keep purchasing Iranian crude expire. The survey showed the toll this is taking on the Islamic republic’s production, which fell by 80,000 barrels a day to 2.63mn a day.

Angolan output also fell in April, by 60,000 barrels a day to 1.38mn, the lowest in Bloomberg data extending back to 2007. Though the African nation is starting a new facility, Kaombo, the initial gains are being erased by ongoing natural declines at other fields, according to consultant JBC Energy GmbH.Off setting these losses was a recovery in Libya, which restored output at its Sharara oilfield despite a new wave of political instability. Production rose by 90,000 barrels a day to 1.19mn a day. As military strongman Khalifa Haftar continues his campaign to take the capital, reportedly with the blessing of the White House, analysts are doubtful about how long the improvement in supplies can endure.Another political crisis is flaring in member nation Venezuela, where the political opposition launched

an uprising against President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday with the endorsement of the US government. Though the attempt appeared to falter, the Latin American country’s production is already at the lowest in more than a decade and remains vulnerable to further unrest.Despite output disruptions across Opec, Saudi Arabia has signalled it will likely keep supply restrained. Energy Minister al-Falih told news agency RIA Novosti this week that the producer group and its partners may extend their pact to restrain production when it expires in June. The kingdom reduced output by 30,000 barrels a day to 9.79mn a day last month, the survey showed.The key members of the Opec coalition will meet for a review of global markets in Jeddah later this month, before ministers settle on policy for the second half of the year in late June.

Trump steps seen deepening economic pain aff ecting IranBloombergDubai

In the 40 years of Iran’s Islamic Republic, 2019 is shaping up to be among the worst for an economy

that’s weathered wars, sanctions and oil slumps.

Even before the US decided to tighten oil sanctions against Iran last week, the rial currency had lost two thirds of its value against the dollar, and the International Monetary Fund expected gross domestic product to shrink 6%.

To put the damage in perspective, the only times the economy suff ered from a deeper recession were during the war with Iraq and the oil-price slump in the 1980s, and the height of past US sanctions in 2012.

Infl ation could reach an average of 50%, the highest level since 1980, a senior IMF offi cial said on Sunday. The grim statistics are on a par with crisis-hit Sudan, and only Venezue-la and Zimbabwe – two countries caught up in political turmoil – are expected to fare worse, IMF estimates show.

“We are in uncharted territory,” said Cyrus Razzaghi, president of Tehran-based business consultancy Ara Enterprise, which works with foreign investors. “There was revo-lution, war. There have been previ-ous sanctions, but never before was there so much pressure economi-cally and internationally on the country.”

The crisis will heap further pres-sure on Iranian offi cials locked in a showdown with US President Donald Trump and his allies in the Middle East. While Trump has vowed to roll back what he calls Iran’s destabilising presence in the region, critics of his policy say it will empower hardliners over the moderate politicians who fa-voured ending the country’s interna-tional isolation by forging better ties with the West.

Trump pulled the US out of the 2015 nuclear accord with Iran and re-imposed sanctions before the econo-

my could fully recover from punitive measures under the Obama and Bush administrations. While President Hassan Rouhani succeeded in taming infl ation, his government struggled to overhaul the country’s banks and create enough jobs.

In its latest move, the US termi-nated waivers allowing a handful of countries to buy Iranian crude in an eff ort to reduce Iran’s critical oil ex-ports to zero.

The overall cost to the economy will depend on how far Iran’s exports

actually fall, Jihad Azour, head of the Middle East and central Asia depart-ment at the IMF, said in an interview. “We need to have more clarity on what zero means,” he said.

China, India and Turkey – all ma-jor buyers of Iranian crude under the waiver system – have signalled they are protesting the cuts. Iran says eliminating all its crude exports will be impossible.

Further turmoil could send do-mestic prices higher. “It’s clear that the situation is expected to deterio-

rate,” Azour said. Authorities are dis-tributing subsidised food to protect the poorest citizens, while shortages of medicine have been reported.

Razzaghi said his discussions with senior Iranian offi cials showed that they had planned for various sce-narios.

Forecasts released before the US decision show Iran’s GDP set to con-tract 6% this year from 4% in 2018. The oil price Iran needs to balance its budget was forecast to jump to $125.6 a barrel from $113.8 in 2018 and $64.8

the previous year. Brent crude was trading at over $71 on Monday.

Azour said Iran should take steps to alleviate short-term economic pain, including bringing the offi cial ex-change rate in line with market forces and addressing weaknesses in the fi nancial system by complying with anti-money laundering and terror-ism fi nancing laws.

Authorities also need to “fi x or ex-pand their social protection mecha-nisms to address the additional vul-nerabilities” for the poor, he said.

What oil at $100 would mean for the world economyBloombergHong Kong/Singapore

Surging crude prices are posing another headwind for the world economy after President Donald Trump’s “zero” pledge on Iran oil sales.Brent crude has risen about 33% this year and is close to the highest in six months. While higher prices due to strong demand typically reflects a robust world economy, a shock from constrained supply is a negative.Much will depend on how sustained the spike proves to be. Exporting nations will enjoy a boost to corporate and government revenues, while consuming nations will bear the cost at the pump, potentially fanning inflation and hurting demand. Ultimately, there comes a point where higher prices may be damaging to everyone.

1. What does it mean for global growth?

The impact will vary. Rising oil prices will hurt household income and spending and it could accelerate inflation. As the world’s biggest importer of oil, China is vulnerable, and many countries in Europe also rely on imported energy. Seasonal eff ects will also impact. With the Northern Hemisphere summer approaching, consumers can switch energy sources and scale back usage. A slowing

world economy will also hurt demand and by extension keep a lid on prices.

2. How can the world economy absorb oil at $100?

For a sustained hit to growth, economists say oil would need to hold above $100. It also depends on dollar strength or weakness, given crude is priced in greenbacks. Analysis by Oxford Economics found that Brent at $100 per barrel by the end of 2019 means the level of global gross domestic product would be 0.6% lower than currently projected by end-2020, with inflation on average 0.7 percentage points higher.“We see increased risks of significantly higher oil prices,” Oxford economists John Payne and Gabriel Sterne wrote in a note. “In the short-run, it is likely the supply impact will be off set by higher production elsewhere, but the market is tightening and all it would take is one more shock to supply and oil could reach $100.”

3. How will Iran and Trump impact the market?

An upending of global oil trade around the Iran-Trump spat could continue to have a sizeable impact on financial markets, as the aff ected supply is as much as 800,000 barrels a day. Uncertainties around availability have already whipsawed oil markets. And the political sensitivities of these developments have other markets bracing for volatility.

Trump has pledged to help, alongside Saudi Arabia and the UAE, those needing to shift orders from Iran to another supplier. But US claims that its domestic supply can help off set the loss are a high bar to meet, given that the daily American output for similar crude is about a quarter of Iran’s.

4. Who wins from higher oil prices?

Emerging economies dominate the list of oil-producing nations which is why they’re aff ected more than developed ones. The increase in revenues will help to repair budgets and current account deficits, allowing governments to increase spending that will spur investment.

5. Who loses?

Those emerging economies nursing current account and fiscal deficits run the risk of large capital outflows and weaker currencies, which in turn would spark inflation. That in turn will force governments and central banks to weigh up their options: hike interest rates even as growth slows or ride it out and risk capital flight. Nomura’s losers list includes Turkey, Ukraine and India.

6. What does it mean for the world’s biggest economy?

While US oil producers try to take advantage of any sales boost from customers moving away from Iran, the broader US economy won’t

necessarily see benefits with oil price tags as high as $100 a barrel.It would be a squeeze on American consumers that are the backbone of still-steady economic growth. Prices at the gas pump already have risen more than 7% this month to $2.89 a gallon, which could weigh on retail sales that jumped in March by the most since 2017.And if things go awry in global oil markets, there’s risk that political blame shifts back to the US for the sanctions, which could mean backlash via investment or other channels that threatens economic stability.

7. Will it lead to higher infl ation around the world?

Because energy features prominently in consumer price gauges, policy makers look to core indexes that remove volatile components. If the run-up in prices proves to be substantial, and sustained, those costs will filter through to transportation and utilities.

8. What does it mean for central banks?

Led by the Federal Reserve, central banks around the world have taken a dovish tilt as the absence of inflation allows policy makers to shift their focus to slowing growth. That’s unlikely to quickly change. The International Monetary Fund this month lowered its global growth forecast and said the world is in a “delicate moment.”

US sanctions will damage oil market stability, says IranReutersGeneva

US sanctions against Iran’s oil in-dustry will damage the stability of global oil markets, a senior Iranian

offi cial was quoted as saying on Monday.“These sanctions are an example of

America’s bullying reaction to the change of the balance of power in the world,” Amir Hossein Zamaninia, a deputy oil minister, said in a report carried by the oil ministry’s news website SHANA.

US sanctions make life more diffi cult for ordinary Iranians but the Islamic Republic will get through them, Zamaninia said.

Oil prices hit their highest level since November last week after Washington an-nounced all waivers on imports of sanc-tions-hit Iranian oil would end this week, pressuring importers to stop buying from Tehran and further tightening global sup-ply.

The US demanded last week that buy-ers of Iranian oil stop purchases by May 1 or face sanctions, ending six months of waivers which allowed Iran’s eight biggest buyers, most of them in Asia, to continue importing limited volumes.

The White House said after its Iran move it was working with Saudi Arabia and the UAE to ensure oil markets were “adequate-ly supplied” but traders worried about tight supplies.

Other countries can not fi ll Iran’s place in the oil market, Zamaninia said, accord-ing to SHANA.

“This idea that some countries can fi ll the empty place of Iran’s oil in the market is incorrect from diff erent aspects, including a technical and political view,” Zamaninia said.

Iran’s oil minister Bijan Zanganeh said last week that Saudi Arabia and UAE over-state their oil capacity.

Separately, Zamaninia said the Gulf can only remain an international route for transferring oil if all countries are able to use it.

The commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ navy said last week that Iran would close the strategic Strait of Hormuz if Te-hran is barred from using it.

Opec’s 14 members pumped 30.3mn barrels a day in April, 25,000 a day more than in March, according to a Bloomberg survey

Surging crude prices are posing another headwind for the world economy aft er US President Donald Trump’s “zero” pledge on Iran oil sales

Visitors walk past a displayed gas equipment during the 24th International Oil, Gas, Refining & Petrochemical Exhibition at Tehran Permanent Fairground in Tehran yesterday. The US has terminated waivers allowing a handful of countries to buy Iranian crude in an eff ort to reduce Iran’s critical oil exports to zero.

BUSINESS3Gulf Times

Thursday, May 2, 2019

ReutersBeijing

China and the United States held “productive” trade talks in Bei-jing yesterday and will continue

discussions in Washington next week, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, as the two try to end their trade war.

Mnuchin, along with US Trade Rep-resentative Robert Lighthizer, held a day of discussions, before Chinese Vice Premier Liu He goes to Washington next week for another round of talks in what could be the end game for negotiations.

“Ambassador Lighthizer and I just concluded productive meetings with China’s Vice Premier Liu He.

We will continue our talks in Wash-ington next week,” Mnuchin wrote on his Twitter account.

He gave no details.The three men appeared before cam-

eras at the end of their talks at a state guest house in Beijing, chatting amiably amongst themselves but did not speak to reporters.

China’s offi cial Xinhua news agency, in a brief report, simply noted that the latest talks had taken place and that the next rounds of talks would take place in Washington next week as planned.

Liu had entertained his US guests on Tuesday night just after they arrived in the Chinese capital.

“We did. We had a nice working din-ner, thank you,” Mnuchin told report-ers at his Beijing hotel earlier yesterday, when asked if he had met with Liu on Tuesday. He did not elaborate.

Beijing and Washington have cited progress on issues including intellectual property and forced technology transfer to help end a confl ict marked by tit-for-tat tariff s that have cost both sides bil-lions of dollars, disrupted supply chains and roiled fi nancial markets.

But US offi cials say privately that an enforcement mechanism for a deal and timelines for lifting tariff s are sticking points.

Chinese offi cials have also acknowl-edged that they view the enforcement mechanism as crucial, but say that it

must work two ways and cannot put restraints only on China. In Washing-ton, people familiar with the talks say that the question of whether and when US tariff s on $250bn worth of Chinese goods will be removed will probably be among the last issues to be resolved. US

President Donald Trump has said that he may keep some tariff s on Chinese goods for a “substantial period”.

The United States has also been pressing China to further open up its market to US fi rms. China has repeat-edly pledged to continue reforms and

make it easier for foreign companies to operate in the country.

In comments published in Wednes-day, China’s top banking and insurance regulator said the government would further open up its banking and insur-ance sectors.

China and US hold ‘productive’trade talks in Beijing: Mnuchin

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He (right), US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (centre) and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer pose before they proceed to their meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing yesterday. “Lighthizer and I just concluded productive meetings with China’s Vice Premier Liu He. We will continue our talks in Washington next week,” Mnuchin wrote on his Twitter account.

Pakistan says hopeful of success in IMF talksInternewsIslamabad

Adviser to Pakistan Prime Minister on Finance, Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh yesterday said the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a proposed bailout package will continue during the next few days, and that Pakistan is hopeful of success in the talks with the global lender.Pakistan and the IMF held an important meeting in the federal capital earlier yesterday.The Pakistani delegation was led by Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, and included three additional secretaries and a senior joint secretary from the finance ministry.Secretaries from the Power Division, Petroleum Division, and the chairmen of the FBR and Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan also participated in the talks.In a brief conversation with journalists following the conclusion of today’s talks, Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said initial negotiations were held with the IMF team, which was also briefed on the economic reforms.The visiting IMF delegation, which arrived in Islamabad on Monday, is expected to conclude the technical details of the proposed loan by May 6.The proposed bailout package is expected to range between $7bn-$8bn.According to sources, today’s round of talks focused on briefing the IMF team on the tax amnesty scheme by the Federal Board of Revenue, privatisation programme, power and gas tariff s, and the government’s policies.Prime Minister Imran Khan had met IMF managing director Christine Lagarde on Friday on the sidelines of the second Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China.During the meeting, the two sides had agreed on the importance of the IMF programme for the country and reviewed the relationship between Pakistan and the global lender.Khan had identified areas of reforms and initiatives being undertaken by his government to stabilise the economy, control inflation and achieve fiscal balance.The two parties had also agreed on the need for a social safety net for vulnerable groups of the society.After the meeting, Lagarde, in a social media post, had said that she was glad to meet the Pakistani premier in a meeting where a comprehensive policy package was discussed to alleviate the country’s economy.“We discussed prospects for a comprehensive policy package and international financial support to help stabilise the economy of Pakistan, and also the need to strengthen governance and protect the poor,” she had said.

Pakistan bullish on oil, gas discovery at Kekra-1

InternewsIslamabad

Pakistan is expecting discovery of oil and gas reserves in ultra-deep wa-ters off shore Karachi as the drilling

at Kekra-1 has almost reached its climax, an offi cial said.

“There is an optimistic prospect of fi nding energy resources at Kekra-1,” the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Petroleum Nadeem Babar said.

He was talking to a delegation, headed by Alex Volkov, chairman of Liquefi ed Natural Gas (LNG) Market Development at Exxon Mobil.

Led by US oil and gas company Exxon Mobil, a consortium consisting of Ital-ian ENI, Oil and Gas Development Com-pany and Pakistan Petroleum Limited is currently conducting off shore drilling at the block. The joint venture of Indus-G block spud an exploratory well namely Kekra-1 – in ultra-deep water on 13 Janu-ary, 2019. The well will be drilled up to the total depth of 5,660 metres in ultra deep waters, which is currently at 4,810 metres.

“Drilling has been entered in the phase where it will be easy to estimate that there is any oil or gas,” an offi cial statement said.

Minister for Petroleum Omar Ayub Khan said the government would give all assistance to international investment. The government will defend free and safe investment in the country.

The minister said employment would

be generated after exploration. Irtiza Syed, president of Exxon Mobil said the Exxon Mobil is interested in drilling of more off -shore blocks and in LNG imports into the country. The company could also help in making of environmental friendly policy for off shore drilling. The entry of Exxon Mobil in Pakistan is a positive signal for the exploration and production sector of the country.

The petroleum division of ministry of energy has already drafted Pakistan Off -shore (Exploration and Production) Rules 2019 and Model Production Sharing Agreement 2019, which will be submitted to the cabinet for approval.

The government has already waived du-ties and taxes on import of drilling equip-ment to encourage indigenous exploration and production of energy resources as the country is confronted with widening gap in energy demand and supply.

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Author-ity (Ogra) said the gap between the supply and demand is expected to increase to the tune of 4,600mn metric cubic feet / day in FY2022/23 and 6,700 mmcfd by the FY2027/28.

The country currently produces around 4,000 mmcfd of natural gas – account-ing for 48% share in the primary energy mix against demand of more than 6,000 mmcfd. The demand-supply gap of gas during FY2017/18 was 1,447 mmcfd.

The gap is expected to rise to 3,720 mmcfd in the next fi scal year starting from July 2019.

Plunging Australia houseprices fuel talk of rate cutAFPSydney

Australian property prices fell faster in

the past year than at any time since the

global financial crisis, a closely watched

report said yesterday, fuelling specula-

tion of a pre-election interest rate cut.

House prices continued to tumble

across the country in April, with Sydney

declining 11.8% over the past 12 months

and Melbourne falling 12.6%, according

to leading property analyst CoreLogic.

While the slide slowed in April from

the month before — raising hopes that

the market may be reaching its nadir

— analysts warned of knock-on eff ects

across the economy.

“Ongoing home price falls will

depress consumer spending,” said AMP

Capital chief economist Shane Oliver.

The Australian economy grew just

0.2% in the last three months of 2018,

wage growth has remained soft and

inflation has come in below the central

bank’s target.

Taken alongside the decline in the

housing market, analysts are predicting

up to two quarter-point rate cuts this

year.

The first rate may come as early as

next week, ahead of a May 18 election

being fought over economic manage-

ment and housing aff ordability.

“An earlier rate cut in May could bring

forward the bottom in house prices as

in the last two cycles they bottomed

around four months after the first cut,”

Oliver added.

Stewardship of the economy has

been at the centre of a bitter election

campaign with Prime Minister Scott

Morrison warning voters it could col-

lapse should the centre-left opposition

Labor party be elected.

But any rate cut could undermine

Morrison’s claim that the economy is

chugging along perfectly well. Opposi-

tion leader Bill Shorten has been target-

ing voter discontent with low wage

growth, promising to address a housing

aff ordability crisis for young voters with

restrictions on long-held tax incentives

for property investors.

The cooling housing market has

weighed on the profits of Australia’s

ANZ bank, which yesterday posted

a 5% slide in half yearly net profit to

Aus$3.2bn (US$2.25bn).

A residential building under construction stands in the Green Square area of Sydney. Australian property prices fell faster in the past year than at any time since the global financial crisis, a closely watched report said yesterday.

Australia iron ore exports rebound in April, but not enough

By Clyde RussellLaunceston, Australia

Australia’s iron ore exports rebounded in April after

being hit by a cyclone the prior month, but the surge in

shipments wasn’t enough to off set declining volumes

from Brazil in the wake of January’s tailings dam

disaster.

Australian exports were about 69.1mn tonnes in

April, according to preliminary figures compiled by

Refinitiv, based on vessel-tracking and port data.

This was up 20% from 57.5mn tonnes in March,

when shipments were disrupted by Tropical Cyclone

Veronica, which closed ports and impeded mining

operations in Western Australia state.

Brazil’s exports volumes have been slipping since

top miner Vale was forced to close several mines in the

wake of the collapse of a tailings dam at its Brumad-

inho mine in late January, which left more than 300

people dead or missing. Brazilian shipments of the

steel-making ingredient fell sharply to 24.9mn tonnes

in February from 30.1mn tonnes in January, the last

month unaff ected by the dam burst.

Exports slipped again to 23.5mn tonnes in March,

and fell another 20% to just 18.7mn tonnes in April, the

lowest monthly total since Refinitiv starting compiling

data in January 2015. In the first four months of 2019,

Brazilian exports were 97.2mn tonnes, down from

111.9mn in the same period in 2018.

For Australia, exports in the first four months were

259mn tonnes, down from 280mn for the same period

a year earlier, hurt mainly by a 13.3mn tonne drop in

March.

Taken together, the total drop from the world’s top

two shippers of iron ore in the first four months of 2019

is 35.7mn tonnes, a significant hit to global supply.

It’s therefore little wonder that spot iron ore prices

have surged, and remained at elevated levels in recent

weeks. Ore with 62% iron content delivered to China,

as assessed by Argus Media, was at $94.85 a tonne on

Tuesday, the last day of April.

The price has now posted gains for five straight

months, but the big kick up came in late January/early

February, after the Brazil dam disaster, when prices

jumped 20% between January 25, the day of the burst,

and February 11, when they closed at $90.75 a tonne.

The Singapore Exchange futures curve has also

shifted into a steeper backwardation since the Brazil

dam collapse, with higher prices for prompt contracts

indicating a tighter spot market.

As of the close on April 30, the front-month contract

was trading at a 5% premium to the third month, up

from a 3% premium the day of the Brazil incident.

Like many major commodities, iron ore usually

trades in backwardation.

The data on export volumes from Australia and Bra-

zil, coupled with the price action, speaks to a sudden

tightening of the market for seaborne iron ore.

What it doesn’t show is how likely this is to continue.

The rebound in Australian exports in April likely

shows that the cyclone disruption is over, and ship-

ments will at least return to the recent monthly

average, if not improve slightly, if the major companies

are able to run their operations harder to make up for

some lost ground.

The bigger question mark is Brazil, where it seems

less likely that it can recover the tonnes lost so far.

Vale said on March 28 it expects to sell 75mn tonnes

less iron ore and pellets this year, down 20% from 2018.

Given there isn’t much spare capacity in Australia,

or in number three exporter South Africa, it’s diff icult

to see where these lost tonnes can be made up, other

than at the margins by smaller exporters such as India

and Iran, and by the use of port inventories in China.

Clyde Russell is a columnist for Reuters. The

opinions expressed here are those of the author.

BUSINESS

Gulf Times Thursday, May 2, 20194

ReutersWashington

US manufacturing activity slowed more than expected in April amid a sharp drop in orders and

construction spending fell in March, suggesting a moderation in economic growth.

While other data yesterday showed private employers hired the most work-ers in nine month in April, the surge in job growth was likely driven by techni-cal factors.

The mixed reports came as Federal Reserve offi cials were wrapping up a two-day meeting.

The Fed in March suspended a three-year policy tightening campaign.

With the economy appearing to slow and infl ation muted, the US central bank is expected to reaffi rm its decision to halt further interest rate increases this year.

The Fed raised borrowing costs four times in 2018.

The Institute for Supply Manage-ment said its index of national factory activity fell to a reading of 52.8 in April from 55.3 in March.

A reading above 50 indicates growth in the manufacturing sector, which ac-counts for about 12% of the US econo-my.

The ISM’s new orders sub-index dropped 5.7 points to a reading of 51.7 last month.

A measure of export orders also fell and factories reported a decline in hir-ing, with a measure of manufacturing employment falling to 52.4 from 57.5 in March. That suggests manufacturing payrolls remained weak in April after they dropped in March for the fi rst time since July 2017.

Separately yesterday, the ADP Na-tional Employment Report showed pri-vate payrolls increased by 275,000 jobs in April, the biggest rise since July 2018 and exceeding economists’ expecta-tions for a gain of 180,000 jobs.

That followed 151,000 positions cre-ated in March.

The ADP fi gures came ahead of the Labor Department’s more compre-hensive employment report on Friday, which includes both public-and pri-vate-sector employment.

The ADP report, which is jointly de-veloped with Moody’s Analytics, has a poor record predicting the private pay-rolls component of the government’s

employment report. Moody’s Analytics said the private job count in April was likely overstated by technical factors.

Economists polled by Reuters are looking for private payroll employment to have grown by 180,000 jobs in April, slightly down from 182,000 the month before.

Total nonfarm employment is ex-pected to have increased by 185,000 jobs after rising by 196,000 in March.

Job growth has slowed from last year’s 223,000 monthly average pace as workers become more scarce.

The pace of job gains, however, re-mains above the roughly 100,000 per month needed to keep up with growth in the working age population.

The unemployment rate is forecast

unchanged at 3.8% in April. The dollar was trading lower against a basket of currencies, while Treasury prices rose.

In a third report, the Commerce De-partment said construction spending decreased 0.9%.

Data for February was revised to show construction outlays rising 0.7 instead of increasing 1% as previously reported.

Construction spending data for Jan-uary was also revised lower to account for additional projects identifi ed as eli-gible for inclusion in the series.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast construction spending edging up 0.1% in March.

Construction spending dropped 0.8% on a year-on-year basis in March.

March’s weak construction spending

as well as downward revisions to Janu-ary and February outlays suggest the government’s initial estimate of fi rst-quarter gross domestic product pub-lished last week could be revised lower.

Increased state and local government spending on roads and highways helped to lift GDP growth to a 3.2% annualised rate in the fi rst quarter, according to the advance estimate.

The economy grew at a 2.2% pace in the October-December period.

In March, investment in public con-struction projects fell 1.3% after rising 3.2% in the prior month.

Spending on state and local govern-ment construction projects dropped 1.1% after advancing 3.4% in February.

Outlays on federal government con-

struction projects tumbled 2.7% after increasing 1.4% in February.

Spending on private construction projects dropped 0.7% in March to the lowest level since August 2017, after slipping 0.2% in the prior month.

Private construction outlays have now declined for three straight months.

Investment in private residential projects plunged 1.8% to the lowest level since December 2016, after falling 0.4% in February.

The housing market has struggled, with spending on homebuilding con-tracting for fi ve straight quarters.

Spending on private nonresidential structures, which includes manufac-turing and power plants, rose 0.5% in March after climbing 0.1% in February.

US economy appearing toslow; labour market strong

People walk pass the Fearless Girl Statue in front of the New York Stock Exchange located at Wall Street. US manufacturing activity slowed more than expected in April amid a sharp drop in orders and construction spending fell in March, suggesting a moderation in economic growth.

Fed keeps interest rates steady as the US economy motors along

ReutersWashington

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady yesterday as policymakers took heart in continued US job gains and economic growth and held out hope that weak inflation will edge higher.“The labour market remains strong...economic activity rose at a solid rate” in recent weeks, the US central bank said in a policy statement a day after President Donald Trump called on the Fed to cut rates by a full percentage point and take other steps to stimulate the economy.Fed policymakers said the economy was in good shape as it stands, with ongoing job and economic growth, and an eventual rise in inflation, still “the most likely outcomes” as the US expansion nears its 10-year mark.At its two-day meeting, the Fed also trimmed the amount of interest it pays banks on excess reserves to 2.35% from 2.40% in an eff ort to ensure its key overnight lending rate, the federal funds rate, remains within the current target band.The chief concern flagged in the policy statement is the currently “muted” level of inflation, which continues to fall short of the Fed’s 2% target.The statement suggested that a recent decline in inflation may be more persistent than expected, and was no longer to be blamed simply on falling energy prices.The most recent data showed inflation running at around a 1.5% annualised rate, which would be a problem if it meant that households and businesses had doubts about the economy’s strength and were less willing to spend and invest.Between that and a weaker global economy, the Fed reiterated it would be “patient” in deciding on any further changes to its overnight benchmark lending rate, which it left in a range of 2.25% to 2.50%.There was no indication in the Fed’s policy statement yesterday that either a rate cut or hike is in the offing anytime soon as policymakers weigh ongoing economic growth and low unemployment against the tepid rate of price increases.The Fed raised rates four times in 2018 and, as late as December, had anticipated further rises in borrowing costs this year.Early this year it halted the tightening campaign on concerns about weak data in the US and abroad.The federal funds rate is the amount banks charge each other for overnight loans, and is the rate the Fed targets as its main way of controlling other borrowing costs in the economy.It neared the upper end of the target range last week, prompting the change in the interest paid on excess reserves.

Facebook overhauls design as it pivots to private messagingReutersSan Jose

Facebook Inc debuted an over-haul of its core social network on Tuesday, taking its fi rst concrete

steps to refashion itself into a private messaging and e-commerce company as it tries to move past scandals while tapping new revenue sources.

Chief executive Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a fresh design for the world’s biggest social network that de-empha-sised its News Feed.

It also ditched the signature blue banner that has been on the app since its launch.

The new design showcases Face-book’s messaging app, online market-place and video-on-demand site, while giving greater prominence to the popu-lar photo-driven Stories feature.

The company also rolled out features aimed at encouraging users to interact with their close social circle as well as with businesses, such as a “Secret Crush” option for Facebook Dating and a tool for appointment booking.

“As the world gets bigger and more connected, we need that sense of inti-

macy more than ever. That’s why I be-lieve that the future is private.

This is the next chapter for our serv-ices,” said Zuckerberg, speaking at Fa-cebook’s annual F8 conference, where the company gives developers a peek at product releases.

Investors greeted the announce-ments, mostly launching lower-margin businesses, with a lukewarm response.

Facebook shares ended down 0.7% on Tuesday.

Zuckerberg in March promised changes to the advertising-driven so-

cial media company, which has come under regulatory scrutiny over propa-ganda on its platform and violations of users’ data privacy.

He identifi ed private messaging, short-lasting stories and small groups as the fastest-growing areas of online communication.

In the last three years, the number of people using Facebook’s WhatsApp has almost doubled. Building up those more intimate and encrypted forms of communication could also reduce pressure on Facebook to clean up mis-information and abusive content.

In the wake of its scandals, the com-pany has spent heavily on tools to catch banned material. The social media company is now working on “Light-Speed” in order to make its Messenger app smaller and faster.

Facebook will also introduce a desk-top version of Messenger for Mac and Windows and launch a feature called “Product Catalogue” for WhatsApp Business. The desktop app will be available this fall.

Later this week, Facebook will run a test in Canada for a major change to its Instagram app that would remove the number of likes on photos as well as

video views from users’ feeds, perma-link pages and profi les.

Facebook had delayed rolling out certain products at last year’s F8 event, which came soon after revelations it inappropriately shared information belonging to 87mn users with British political consulting fi rm Cambridge Analytica.

“I know that we don’t exactly have the strongest reputation on privacy right now, to put it lightly,” Zuckerberg said.

Other Facebook executives intro-duced changes within the Messenger and Instagram apps aimed at helping businesses connect with customers, including appointment booking and a tool to lure customers into direct con-versations with companies via ads.

The online ad market is largely dom-inated by Facebook and Alphabet Inc’s Google.

But the fi eld is more diverse for mes-saging, e-commerce and payments, with big players like Amazon.com Inc, Microsoft Corp and eBay Inc as well as fast-growing Silicon Valley unicorns like workplace messaging app Slack and video conferencing service Zoom Video Communications Inc.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg delivers the opening keynote introducing new Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram privacy features at the Facebook F8 Conference at McEnery Convention Centre in San Jose.

Gas tax for infrastructure sparks fears of political backlashBloombergWashington

Democrats and Republicans are quick to

talk up a bipartisan infrastructure deal.

Yet neither party wants to take the politi-

cal risk of paying for it when all options

are toxic – including the obvious choice of

raising the national gas tax.

Increasing the gas tax is so politically

fraught that it hasn’t been touched in

26 years and it didn’t even come up at

a meeting at the White House Tuesday

between President Donald Trump, House

Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority

Leader Chuck Schumer to discuss an

infrastructure plan.

Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi fol-

lowing a meeting with Donald Trump at

the White House on April 30.

While they agreed broadly on the need

to upgrade roads, bridges and airports,

they put off for three weeks the tougher

conversation about coming up with ways

to fund an estimated $2tn in public works.

Taxes on fuel in the US are among the

lowest in the developed world, at 18.4

cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.4

cents per gallon for diesel, and infrastruc-

ture advocates see raising the levies for

the first time since 1993 as the best short-

term option to generate needed revenue.

Still, a measure that would dispropor-

tionately aff ect poor and rural drivers

raises opposition at all levels of the politi-

cal spectrum. It’s also created strange

bedfellows – aligning members of the

conservative House Freedom Caucus,

born from the Tea Party movement, and

progressives such as Senator Elizabeth

Warren of Massachusetts, a Democratic

presidential candidate.

“Working people who have got to get

to their job, get their kid to a medical ap-

pointment, shouldn’t get hit again when

multinationals are enjoying their big tax

breaks and causing much of the wear

and tear to the road,’’ said Ron Wyden of

Oregon, the top Democrat on the Senate

Finance Committee, who was at the

meeting.

Roll-back cuts

Some Democrats, including Wyden and

Schumer, have said they’d only consider

increasing the gas tax if it’s paired with

a roll-back of tax cuts that benefited the

rich in the 2017 tax overhaul. The 2018

Senate Democratic infrastructure plan

called for raising taxes on top earners and

Corps. Even though Trump campaigned

on a promise to invest at least $1tn in

infrastructure, the plan he released last

year included only $200bn over a decade

– mostly in incentives to spur investments

by states, localities and the private sector.

Democrats said after their meeting

with Trump on Tuesday that he off ered no

plan for financing infrastructure projects.

They said they won’t make any off ers and

will wait for the White House to make its

proposal in three weeks. Democrats said

Trump indicated he’s soured on a public-

private approach.

The White House statement after the

meeting made no mention of an amount

an amount or where the money would

come from.

While Trump has said he’s eager to

work with Congress on infrastructure,

Democrats say Republicans won’t go

along unless the president publicly

endorses a plan – especially if it includes a

tax increase.

Closed-door meeting

Lawmakers who attended a closed-

door meeting with Trump a year ago said

he told them then that he’d support a

25-cent-per-gallon increase in the gas tax

and take the political heat. But Republican

congressional leaders were opposed, and

Trump never backed the idea publicly.

Now Trump’s signalling that he’s unlike-

ly to support a gas-tax increase. In a tweet

last Friday, he said the fuel tax in Califor-

nia “is causing big problems on pricing for

that state” and “speak to your governor

about reducing.” California approved a

12-cent-per-gallon increase in 2017 to help

pay for road and bridge projects, and

voters defeated a Republican-led ballot

measure to repeal it last November.

Asked by reporters on Tuesday wheth-

er Trump would raise the federal gas tax

to help pay for an infrastructure package,

White House adviser Kellyanne Conway

said “this president is the president who

lowers taxes.”

Michael Ireland, the president and chief

executive off icer of the Portland Cement

Association, said, “They’re all afraid to go

first.”

Zad Holding CoWidam Food CoVodafone Qatar

United Development CoSalam International Investme

Qatar & Oman Investment CoQatar Navigation

Qatar National Cement CoQatar National Bank

Qatar Islamic InsuranceQatar Industrial Manufactur

Qatar International IslamicQatari Investors Group

Qatar Islamic BankQatar Gas Transport(Nakilat)Qatar General Insurance & ReQatar German Co For Medical

Qatar Fuel QscQatar First Bank

Qatar Electricity & Water CoQatar Exchange Index Etf

Qatar Cinema & Film DistribAl Rayan Qatar Etf

Qatar Insurance CoOoredoo Qpsc

National LeasingMazaya Qatar Real Estate Dev

Mesaieed Petrochemical HoldiAl Meera Consumer Goods Co

Medicare GroupMannai Corporation Qsc

Masraf Al RayanAl Khalij Commercial Bank

Industries QatarIslamic Holding Group

Investment Holding GroupGulf Warehousing Company

Gulf International ServicesEzdan Holding Group

Doha Insurance CoDoha Bank Qpsc

Dlala HoldingCommercial Bank Pqsc

Barwa Real Estate CoAl Khaleej Takaful Group

Aamal CoAl Ahli Bank

121.00

59.25

7.73

13.35

5.02

5.85

67.50

66.50

194.50

54.88

38.40

69.01

23.78

169.88

21.33

40.02

6.00

201.00

4.95

167.67

103.00

19.53

25.00

38.98

64.90

8.25

7.84

19.62

144.00

62.00

43.50

36.30

11.80

121.50

22.12

5.92

46.49

16.20

10.50

11.99

22.29

10.34

50.50

34.88

15.30

8.90

30.00

0.41

0.00

0.13

-1.11

1.41

-0.68

-0.15

-1.90

-0.76

3.43

-0.75

-0.13

0.34

1.91

-0.42

0.00

-0.99

0.00

-0.20

0.41

0.00

0.00

0.00

1.70

-0.15

-0.48

-0.63

-0.76

0.70

-0.80

-2.25

0.00

0.00

0.41

-1.12

9.83

2.15

2.40

-1.96

2.48

2.72

1.37

-0.79

0.49

-0.84

-1.11

0.00

2,638

26,405

2,857,872

802,534

341,878

4,654

2,084

10,887

215,527

1,093

5,633

34,716

13,697

10,847

82,860

-

11,154

15,447

896,616

3,462

-

-

-

27,218

6,358

93,197

62,143

186,351

1,642

7,666

11,964

103,081

36,567

75,630

59,316

1,948,374

19,560

1,055,986

231,870

966

516,903

46,365

124,378

77,582

182,820

606,969

4,400

QATAR

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

KUWAIT

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

OMAN

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

KUWAIT

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

KUWAIT

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

LATEST MARKET CLOSING FIGURES

Oman Oil Marketing CompanyOman National Engineering An

Oman Investment & FinanceOman Intl Marketing

Oman Flour MillsOman Fisheries Co

Oman Europe Foods IndustriesOman Education & Training In

Oman ChromiteOman Chlorine

Oman Ceramic CompanyOman Cement Co

Oman Cables IndustryOman & Emirates Inv(Om)50%

Natl Aluminium ProductsNational Real Estate Develop

National PharmaceuticalNational Mineral Water

National Life & General InsuNational Gas Co

National Finance CoNational Detergent Co Saog

National Biscuit IndustriesNational Bank Of Oman Saog

Muscat Thread Mills CoMuscat Insurance Co Saog

Muscat Gases Company SaogMuscat Finance

Muscat City Desalination CoMajan Glass Company

Majan CollegeHsbc Bank Oman

Hotels Management Co InternaGulf Stone

Gulf Mushroom CompanyGulf Investments Services

Gulf Invest. Serv. Pref-SharGulf International Chemicals

Gulf Hotels (Oman) Co LtdGlobal Fin Investment

Galfar Engineering&ContractGalfar Engineering -Prefer

Financial Services Co.Financial Corp/The

Dhofar TourismDhofar Poultry

Dhofar Intl DevelopmentDhofar Insurance

Dhofar Generating Co SaocDhofar Fisheries & Food Indu

Dhofar CattlefeedDhofar Beverages Co

Construction Materials IndComputer Stationery Inds

Bankmuscat SaogSohar International Bank

Bank NizwaBank Dhofar Saog-Rts

Bank Dhofar SaogArabia Falcon Insurance Co

Aloula CoAl-Omaniya Financial Service

Al-Hassan Engineering CoAl-Fajar Al-Alamia Co

Al-Anwar Ceramic Tiles CoAl Suwadi Power

Al Sharqiya Invest HoldingAl Maha Petroleum Products M

Al Maha Ceramics Co SaocAl Madina Takaful Co Saoc

Al Madina Investment CoAl Kamil Power Co

Al Jazerah Services -PfdAl Jazeera Steel Products Co

Al Jazeera ServicesAl Izz Islamic Bank

Al Buraimi HotelAl Batinah PowerAl Batinah Hotels

Al Batinah Dev & InvAl Anwar Holdings Saog

Al Ahlia Insurance Co SaocAhli Bank

Acwa Power Barka SaogAbrasives Manufacturing Co S

A’saff a Foods Saog0Man Oil Marketing Co-Pref

1.07

0.16

0.08

0.52

0.53

0.06

1.00

0.23

3.64

0.40

0.42

0.24

0.90

0.08

0.34

5.00

0.00

0.09

0.29

0.20

0.14

0.70

3.92

0.16

0.08

0.91

0.16

0.07

0.11

0.18

0.18

0.12

1.25

0.12

0.31

0.06

0.11

0.14

9.50

0.08

0.08

0.39

0.18

0.10

0.49

0.18

0.30

0.17

0.19

1.28

0.10

0.26

0.06

0.26

0.41

0.11

0.09

0.00

0.14

0.11

0.53

0.12

0.02

0.75

0.10

0.08

0.08

0.83

0.19

0.09

0.03

0.38

0.55

0.27

0.12

0.08

0.88

0.08

1.13

0.08

0.09

0.36

0.12

0.66

0.05

0.60

0.25

0.00

0.00

1.22

0.00

0.00

-3.17

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

-1.23

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.50

1.80

1.14

0.00

4.55

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

-1.14

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

1.11

0.00

0.84

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

-

-

375,000

-

-

585,230

-

-

-

-

-

121,268

-

30,031

-

-

-

-

-

50,000

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

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-

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50,000

-

-

-

-

765,030

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

560

-

-

-

233,669

160,000

60,119

-

3,938,675

-

-

-

-

-

51,727

207

100,000

-

235

200,000

104,818

-

-

-

10,000

-

-

20,697

-

-

267,636

-

196,029

-

-

-

-

Gulf Petroleum InvestmentMabanee Co Sakc

Inovest Co BscAl-Deera Holding CoMena Real Estate Co

Amar Finance & Leasing CoUnited Projects For Aviation

National Consumer Holding CoAmwal International InvestmeEquipment Holding Co K.S.C.C

Arkan Al Kuwait Real EstateGfh Financial Group Bsc

Energy House Holding Co KscpKuwait Co For Process PlantAl Maidan Dental Clinic Co KNational Shooting CompanyAl-Ahleia Insurance Co Sakp

Wethaq Takaful Insurance CoSalbookh Trading Co Kscp

Aqar Real Estate InvestmentsHayat Communications

Soor Fuel Marketing Co KscTamkeen Holding Co

Burgan Co For Well DrillingKuwait Resorts Co KsccOula Fuel Marketing Co

Palms Agro Production CoMubarrad Holding Co Ksc

Shuaiba Industrial CoAan Digital Services Co

First Takaful Insurance CoKuwaiti Syrian Holding Co

National Cleaning CompanyUnited Real Estate Company

AgilityKuwait & Middle East Fin Inv

Fujairah Cement IndustriesLivestock Transport & Tradng

International Resorts CoNational Industries Grp Hold

Warba Insurance CoFirst Dubai Real Estate Deve

Al Arabi Group Holding CoMobile Telecommunications Co

Eff ect Real Estate CoTamdeen Real Estate Co KscAl Mudon Intl Real Estate Co

Kuwait Cement Co KscSharjah Cement & Indus Devel

Kuwait Portland Cement CoEducational Holding Group

Asiya Capital Investments CoKuwait Investment Co

Burgan BankKuwait Projects Co Holdings

Al Madina For Finance And InKuwait Insurance Co

Al Masaken Intl Real EstateIntl Financial Advisors

First Investment Co KsccAl Mal Investment Company

Bayan Investment Co KsccEgypt Kuwait Holding Co Sae

Coast Investment DevelopmentPrivatization Holding Compan

Injazzat Real State CompanyKuwait Cable Vision Sak

Sanam Real Estate Co KsccIthmaar Holding Bsc

Aviation Lease And Finance CArzan Financial Group For Fi

Ajwan Gulf Real Estate CoKuwait Business Town Real Es

Future Kid Entertainment AndSpecialities Group Holding C

Abyaar Real Eastate DevelopmKgl Logistics Company Kscc

Combined Group ContractingJiyad Holding Co Ksc

Boubyan Intl Industries HoldGulf Investment House Ksc

Boubyan Bank K.S.CAhli United Bank B.S.C

Osos Holding Group CoAl-Eid Food Ksc

Qurain Petrochemical IndustrEkttitab Holding Co Sak

Real Estate Trade Centers CoAcico Industries Co Kscc

27.60

645.00

72.80

15.60

39.50

30.80

455.00

30.00

87.30

26.00

80.00

74.00

33.00

230.00

1,260.00

13.80

407.00

31.00

48.20

60.00

45.00

117.00

11.80

90.00

56.70

117.00

40.00

62.50

180.00

13.20

44.90

50.00

70.00

61.00

728.00

50.00

56.00

198.00

20.20

217.00

66.60

34.90

90.00

465.00

23.00

300.00

20.50

301.00

72.00

1,330.00

315.00

35.90

128.00

325.00

212.00

21.50

395.00

70.00

23.60

38.30

17.50

42.20

426.00

38.00

58.40

84.50

25.50

45.40

22.30

274.00

31.80

13.70

43.50

98.00

70.00

14.30

42.50

235.00

56.90

0.00

59.80

537.00

254.00

100.00

48.00

389.00

19.00

29.00

152.00

0.36

3.20

-9.90

1.96

0.51

0.00

8.33

0.00

20.91

1.56

0.00

-1.20

-1.79

-2.95

0.00

-0.72

0.00

-1.59

-1.63

0.00

48.51

0.00

0.00

0.00

-0.18

0.00

0.00

0.81

0.00

-2.94

0.00

-9.09

0.00

0.00

-0.27

0.00

0.00

-1.00

-0.49

-0.91

2.46

0.00

-0.99

0.65

0.00

0.00

-6.82

0.33

0.00

2.31

0.00

-0.28

0.79

-0.91

-0.47

-0.46

0.00

0.00

4.89

-0.52

2.94

0.00

-6.37

-5.00

-0.85

0.00

2.00

0.00

0.00

2.62

-0.31

-3.52

0.00

-2.00

0.00

0.00

0.24

1.73

-1.04

0.00

-0.83

-1.29

0.40

-4.76

-18.92

-0.51

0.53

0.00

4.11

5,300

2,924,012

155,837

1,510

708,650

-

10

-

2,200

20,000

980

456,902

101,250

18,998

-

23,504

-

3,500

129,635

-

8,500

29,550

-

-

22,667

24,394

-

40,000

-

621,758

-

71,350

2,084

-

1,007,499

-

-

10,051

9,910

6,009,258

500

40,530

3,200

1,085,695

-

-

1,010

1,306

-

83

-

19,186

576,635

177,104

125,892

6,467,216

-

-

1,365,371

3,378,261

18,545

-

8,389

180,370

160,001

-

5,000

-

-

272,159

561,734

992,044

-

7,499

317,820

515,010

1,123,916

40,127

803,601

-

30,127

840,827

1,713,115

428,000

1,664

477,458

100,028

-

75,010

Kipco Asset Management CoNational Petroleum Services

Alimtiaz Investment GroupRas Al Khaimah White Cement

Kuwait Reinsurance Co KscKuwait & Gulf Link Transport

Humansoft Holding Co KscAutomated Systems Co Kscc

Metal & Recycling CoGulf Franchising Holding Co

Al-Enma’a Real Estate CoNational Mobile Telecommuni

Unicap Investment And FinancAl Salam Group Holding Co

Al Aman Investment CompanyMashaer Holding Co Ksc

Manazel HoldingTijara And Real Estate Inves

Jazeera Airways Co KscCommercial Real Estate Co

National International CoTaameer Real Estate Invest C

Gulf Cement CoHeavy Engineering And Ship B

National Real Estate CoAl Safat Energy Holding Comp

Kuwait National Cinema CoDanah Alsafat Foodstuff Co

Independent Petroleum GroupKuwait Real Estate Co Ksc

Salhia Real Estate Co KscGulf Cable & Electrical Ind

Kuwait Finance HouseGulf North Africa Holding Co

Hilal Cement CoOsoul Investment Kscc

Gulf Insurance Group KscUmm Al Qaiwain General Inves

Aayan Leasing & InvestmentAlrai Media Group Co KscNational Investments CoCommercial Facilities CoYiaco Medical Co. K.S.C.C

Munshaat Real Estate ProjectNoor Financial Investment Co

Al Tamdeen Investment CoCredit Rating & Collection

Ifa Hotels & Resorts Co. K.SSokouk Holding Co Sak

Warba Bank KscpViva Kuwait Telecom Co

Mezzan Holding Co Kscc

72.00

1,000.00

130.00

78.00

132.00

83.80

3,300.00

80.50

30.00

59.00

41.30

680.00

65.10

37.00

61.90

70.00

28.00

50.00

865.00

83.60

69.10

27.50

65.60

390.00

78.40

25.00

910.00

33.50

416.00

71.60

350.00

377.00

0.00

54.30

121.00

57.80

625.00

58.70

47.30

45.50

117.00

198.00

66.50

89.00

87.50

300.00

23.00

64.90

35.70

240.00

803.00

500.00

-8.28

0.00

-0.76

0.00

0.00

-0.24

-0.87

-10.56

33.33

0.00

-3.50

-1.31

-1.36

0.27

-0.16

-0.71

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.72

-1.29

-8.64

0.00

-0.51

-1.26

-15.25

0.00

0.30

0.24

-0.42

6.71

-0.26

0.00

0.00

0.00

-3.67

2.46

0.00

-3.27

5.81

-0.85

1.02

0.00

0.00

1.86

-10.45

0.00

-1.67

-2.72

0.00

0.12

-1.96

10,020

-

546,501

-

-

5,001

79,144

20,253

7,000

-

1,159,475

7,385

48,050

20,260

91,993

512,828

-

-

108,621

100,058

21,043

3,044,650

-

198,037

1,058,301

899,980

-

66,151

15,000

831,368

5,000

84,154

-

-

-

5,030

10

-

6,360,812

550

1,234,425

98,575

-

12,000

391,530

1,750,964

-

13,044

362,600

479,120

12,462

90,591

OMAN

Company Name % Chg Volume

Voltamp Energy SaogVision Insurance Saoc

United Power/Energy Co- PrefUnited Power Co Saog

United Finance CoUbar Hotels & Resorts

Takaful OmanTaageer FinanceSweets Of OmanSohar Power Co

Smn Power Holding SaogShell Oman Marketing - Pref

Shell Oman MarketingSharqiyah Desalination Co Sa

Sembcorp Salalah Power & WatSalalah Port Services

Salalah Mills CoSalalah Beach Resort Saog

Sahara HospitalityRenaissance Services Saog

Raysut Cement CoPhoenix Power Co Saoc

Packaging Co LtdOoredoo

OminvestOman United Insurance Co

Oman Telecommunications CoOman Refreshment Co

Oman Qatar Insurance CoOman Packaging

0.18

0.12

1.00

2.97

0.08

0.13

0.13

0.10

0.55

0.11

0.12

1.05

1.07

0.30

0.12

0.60

0.58

1.38

3.09

0.50

0.33

0.09

2.21

0.50

0.32

0.25

0.59

1.66

0.09

0.27

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

-0.83

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

-0.79

0.00

0.00

0.00

-0.40

0.00

0.00

-0.34

0.00

0.00

0.00

-

-

-

-

-

-

5,000

-

-

-

-

-

-

10

76,252

-

-

-

-

304,582

2,000

200,000

-

10,000

-

-

19,424

388

-

-

Sultan Center Food ProductsKuwait Foundry Co Sak

Kuwait Financial Centre SakAjial Real Estate Entmt

Kuwait Finance & InvestmentNational Industries Co Ksc

Kuwait Real Estate Holding CSecurities House/The

Boubyan Petrochemicals CoAl Ahli Bank Of Kuwait

Ahli United Bank (Almutahed)National Bank Of Kuwait

Commercial Bank Of KuwaitKuwait International Bank

Gulf BankAl-Massaleh Real Estate Co

Al Arabiya Real Estate CoKuwait Remal Real Estate Co

A’ayan Real Estate Co SakInvestors Holding Group Co.K

Al-Mazaya Holding CoAl-Madar Finance & Invt Co

0.00

0.80

0.00

3.70

3.80

1.65

8.70

0.78

0.54

0.00

0.66

-0.32

5.30

-1.06

1.32

0.00

0.00

-0.57

-2.40

-1.85

0.67

0.00

10,000

12,750

-

70,000

54,500

25,000

80,450

1,955,410

69,049

-

146,193

3,739,496

5,020

4,437,119

6,166,034

-

3,320

292,400

110,500

2,639,893

1,219,510

434,010

57.00

251.00

86.00

140.00

41.00

185.00

30.00

51.70

925.00

320.00

306.00

927.00

556.00

280.00

308.00

37.00

30.90

35.00

65.10

10.60

60.50

160.00

Veteran hedge fund manager loads up bearish bets on India rallyBloombergMumbai

The rally that’s lifted India’s $2.2tn stock market to a record has prompted a vet-

eran hedge fund manager to load up on bearish wagers in a fund launched two months ago.

“As there appears nothing fun-damental underpinning this year’s rally we have remained maximum net short on a portfolio level,” Vijay Krishna Kumar, head of liquid alter-natives investment at IDFC Asset Management Co, said in an inter-view in Mumbai.

India this month became the fi rst among stock markets valued at more than a $1tn to hit a new peak this year as foreigners ploughed almost $10bn into local shares in 2019, the most among major Asian markets. A bulk of the infl ow is due to the “catch-up trade” after the country sat out a regional rally ear-lier this year, Kumar said.

While expectations that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will win a second term in the ongoing elec-tions and bets that company earn-ings will recover added legs to the rally, headwinds are stacking up fast. The surge in prices of crude oil – India’s top import – is combining with a slowdown in investment and consumption, all of which threat-en to put the brakes on growth in the world’s fastest-growing major economy.

“We are faced with worsening fundamentals and high valuations that have already priced in a rosy scenario,” said Kumar, who has two decades of investment experience.

Kumar, who began managing long-short strategies at London-

based AGRA India Fund in 2006, joins other participants including Kotak Institutional Equities advis-ing caution.

For Kotak, the rally has made stocks expensive and there’s a risk that the company earnings esti-mates will be reduced if slowdown in the economy gathers pace, ana-lysts led by Sanjeev Prasad wrote in a recent note.

The IDFC India Equity Hedge

Tactical Fund is betting on the stock-market swings amplifying in the run up to the election results on May 23, with the India NSE Vola-tility Index reaching as high as 30, Kumar said. That level was last seen months after Modi swept to pow-er in May 2014, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

India equity hedge funds that follow a long-short strategy rose an average 5% this year after los-

ing about 9.6% in 2018, according to Eurekahedge Pte estimates. The funds’ best performance in the past 15 years were during election years of 2009 and 2014, with annual gains of about 50%, the data shows. Ku-mar’s fund, that was targeting about 10bn rupees at the time of launch two months ago, didn’t disclose its assets under management.

Equities have priced in the pos-sibility of the ruling party forming

the next government with a reduced majority. A surprise victory for op-position parties could lead to an ad-verse reaction, Kumar said.

“Even if the current government comes back to power, as some ex-pect, we’re expecting a draw down of as much as 5% post results,” he said. “The markets are underpric-ing the risk of an adverse election outcome of the ruling coalition not getting a majority.”

A man walks past the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) logo displayed outside the building’s lobby in Mumbai. India this month became the first among stock markets valued at more than a $1tn to hit a new peak this year as foreigners ploughed almost $10bn into local shares in 2019, the most among major Asian markets.

Lt Price

Buy dollars in May? A decade of history argues it’s a wise moveBloombergNew York

Dollar bulls may have a fourth straight month of gains to look forward to.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index strengthened in 8 of the last 10 years in May, by an average of 1.5 percent, making it the strong-est month of the year. Credit seasonally stronger US economic data for the pattern, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. There’s evidence for that in Citigroup Inc’s US economic surprise index, which tends to decline in the fi rst quarter before rebounding in the second half of the year.

“May typically tends to be supportive of broad dollar strength,” JPMorgan analysts including Daniel Hui and Meera Chandan wrote in a note last week. “This dynamic could prevail on mar-gin and is worth monitoring.”

The greenback has rallied against most of its Group-of-10 peers in 2019, and the Bloomberg dollar index touched its highest level of the year last week amid signs that the American economy was outperforming its global counterparts.

The US currency is little changed in early trade yesterday, after sinking on Tuesday as stronger-than-expected European data dented the diver-gence narrative.

The greenback’s seasonal bid is particularly strong against the euro, which has weakened by an average of 1.8 percent in May over the past 10 years. That record tends to coincide with an up-tick in turbulence – 3-month euro-dollar implied volatility has risen in 8 of the past 10 years in May, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Citigroup recommended last week that clients enter short euro-dollar wagers targeting a drop to $1.10 over the next month, from about $1.1230 currently. The bank’s analysts listed the common currency’s seasonal bias as part of their rationale.

“It’s hard to say if it holds from year to year, but it’s a tailwind to our trade,” North American Group-of-10 currency strategy head Calvin Tse said in an e-mail on Tuesday.

BUSINESS5Gulf Times

Thursday, May 2, 2019

Oil fi rms and exporters dragLondon’s FTSE 100, whileSainsbury’s, LSE outshineReutersLondon

London’s FTSE 100 dipped to a one-month low yesterday as oil majors dived after US inventories

bulked up and a rise in pound knocked exporters, but gains in Sainsbury’s and LSE following upbeat results helped cushion the fall.

The FTSE 100 ended 0.4% lower and the more domestically-focused FTSE 250 inched down 0.1%.

Shell shed 1.4% to a month low and BP gave up 2.1%, as crude prices weakened after US oil inventories rose more-than-expected with output reaching a new record of 12.3mn bar-rels per day.

As sterling rose to multi-week highs with lingering hopes of progress in cross-party Brexit talks and ahead of Bank of England interest rate meet-ing today, exporter companies bore the brunt as much of their revenue is earned in dollars.

British American Tobacco, Astra-Zeneca, GlaxoSmithKline were among the biggest drags.

Contrary to the mood in Britain, the S&P 500 index notched a fresh record high on the Wall Street as gains in Apple after forecast-beating results thrust up technology stocks.

Among big fallers on UK’s blue-chip index was Takeaway group Just Eat with a near 3% drop after JP Morgan

called European rivals Delivery Hero and Takeaway.com more attractive.

Education group Pearson lost 2.1% after news of a planned merger be-tween Cengage and McGraw Hill, with Liberum analysts calling the planned deal a “major headache” for Pearson.

However, earnings reports boosted many blue-chips.

Sainsbury’s jumped 4.3% after the supermarket group’s underlying full-year profi t beat market estimates and it said it would accelerate investment in its store estate and technology.

London Stock Exchange climbed 3.4% after it reported higher quarterly income, as its clearing and informa-tion services businesses grew strongly against what it called a challenging market backdrop.

Meanwhile, the pound hit a two-week high yesterday as investors sensed in comments by Prime Minister Theresa May signs of progress in Brexit talks between the British government and the main opposition party.

Sterling neared $1.31 after May said her plan to negotiate a customs ar-rangement with the EU was similar to that of the Labour Party and called for an end to uncertainty.

The pound was one of the only ma-jor currencies to move yesterday with markets in Asia and in much of Europe closed for holidays, keeping trade sub-dued.

The British currency has stuck with-in a range of $1.28-1.30 since Britain

pushed its scheduled departure from the European Union back from March until October 31.

It remains unclear when, how or even if Brexit will happen.

British newspapers reported on Tuesday that May wants Brexit talks with Labour, aimed at breaking an im-passe in parliament over the terms of departure from the EU, to conclude by the middle of next week and that bu-oyed sterling.

The pound rose 0.4% to $1.3085 and was fl at against the euro at 85.95 pence.

Overall volatility in the currency markets remained near fi ve-year lows.

Despite the pound’s gains against the dollar, net positions by hedge funds in sterling slipped back into negative territory, according to the latest data.

Lloyds rose 1.6% after it cut its tar-get for its Common Equity Tier 1 ratio – a closely watched measure of balance sheet strength, with Goodbody analyst John Cronin saying that meant more headroom for distribution to investors.

But that was not enough to keep the main bourse out of the red, as a surprise fall in United States construction spend-ing in April also weighed on the index.

Markets also awaited the US Federal Reserve’s policy statement scheduled for later in the day and chairman Jer-ome Powell’s press conference shortly afterwards.

Overall trading volumes were slim as many markets elsewhere in Europe were closed for a May 1 public holiday.

Apple IncAmerican Express Co

Boeing Co/TheCaterpillar Inc

Cisco Systems IncChevron Corp

Walt Disney Co/TheDowdupont Inc

Goldman Sachs Group IncHome Depot Inc

Intl Business Machines CorpIntel Corp

Johnson & JohnsonJpmorgan Chase & Co

Coca-Cola Co/TheMcdonald’s Corp

3M CoMerck & Co. Inc.

Microsoft CorpNike Inc -Cl B

Pfizer IncProcter & Gamble Co/The

Travelers Cos Inc/TheUnitedhealth Group Inc

United Technologies CorpVisa Inc-Class A Shares

Verizon Communications IncWalgreens Boots Alliance Inc

Walmart IncExxon Mobil Corp

214.10

117.59

379.57

138.35

56.09

118.87

137.08

38.02

204.38

200.61

141.18

51.36

141.57

115.48

48.97

194.86

187.10

79.19

129.59

86.82

40.68

105.76

143.42

233.28

142.05

164.30

57.10

53.94

102.12

79.50

6.69

0.31

0.50

-0.77

0.25

-0.99

0.08

-1.12

-0.75

-1.52

0.65

0.63

0.26

-0.49

-0.18

-1.37

-1.27

0.61

-0.77

-1.15

0.17

-0.68

-0.23

0.09

-0.39

-0.08

-0.16

0.69

-0.70

-0.97

9,305,622

145,700

268,592

223,276

1,906,034

461,067

644,904

801,964

113,623

288,125

186,780

1,885,849

353,503

890,759

745,710

296,116

244,918

871,580

2,378,742

548,035

1,414,648

574,288

88,358

293,804

162,641

386,683

886,751

615,632

373,546

967,175

DJIA

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

Anglo American PlcAssociated British Foods Plc

Admiral Group PlcAshtead Group Plc

Antofagasta PlcAuto Trader Group Plc

Aviva PlcAstrazeneca PlcBae Systems Plc

Barclays PlcBritish American Tobacco Plc

Barratt Developments PlcBhp Group Plc

Berkeley Group Holdings/TheBritish Land Co Plc

Bunzl PlcBp Plc

Burberry Group PlcBt Group Plc

Coca-Cola Hbc Ag-DiCarnival PlcCentrica Plc

Compass Group PlcCroda International Plc

Crh PlcDcc Plc

Diageo PlcDirect Line Insurance Group

Evraz PlcExperian Plc

Easyjet PlcFerguson Plc

Fresnillo PlcGlencore Plc

Glaxosmithkline PlcGvc Holdings Plc

Hikma Pharmaceuticals PlcHargreaves Lansdown Plc

Halma PlcHsbc Holdings Plc

Hiscox LtdIntl Consolidated Airline-Di

Intercontinental Hotels Grou3I Group Plc

Imperial Brands PlcInforma Plc

Intertek Group PlcItv Plc

Johnson Matthey PlcKingfisher Plc

Land Securities Group PlcLegal & General Group PlcLloyds Banking Group Plc

London Stock Exchange GroupMicro Focus International

Marks & Spencer Group PlcMondi Plc

Melrose Industries PlcWm Morrison Supermarkets

National Grid PlcNmc Health Plc

Next PlcOcado Group Plc

Paddy Power Betfair PlcPrudential Plc

Persimmon PlcPearson Plc

Reckitt Benckiser Group PlcRoyal Bank Of Scotland Group

Royal Dutch Shell Plc-A ShsRoyal Dutch Shell Plc-B Shs

Relx PlcRio Tinto Plc

Rightmove PlcRolls-Royce Holdings PlcRsa Insurance Group Plc

Rentokil Initial PlcSainsbury (J) Plc

Schroders PlcSage Group Plc/The

Segro PlcSmurfit Kappa Group Plc

Standard Life Aberdeen PlcDs Smith Plc

Smiths Group PlcScottish Mortgage Inv Tr Plc

Smith & Nephew PlcSpirax-Sarco Engineering Plc

Sse PlcStandard Chartered Plc

St James’s Place PlcSevern Trent Plc

Tesco PlcTui Ag-Di

Taylor Wimpey PlcUnilever Plc

United Utilities Group PlcVodafone Group Plc

John Wood Group PlcWpp Plc

Whitbread Plc

1,973.20

2,541.00

2,208.00

2,114.00

888.20

570.60

430.90

5,644.00

491.90

163.54

2,927.50

606.00

1,798.00

3,780.00

597.60

2,280.00

552.00

2,008.00

229.00

2,724.00

4,120.00

105.05

1,738.00

5,136.00

2,588.00

6,830.00

3,231.00

328.10

625.00

2,215.00

1,176.50

5,424.00

748.00

301.80

1,559.80

649.60

1,761.00

2,292.00

1,796.50

664.90

1,695.00

548.40

5,055.00

1,073.50

2,410.00

777.80

5,338.00

135.55

3,327.00

266.20

923.20

279.00

63.60

5,186.00

1,839.60

290.10

1,675.00

200.20

217.50

827.20

2,871.00

5,822.00

1,378.00

6,766.00

1,744.00

2,222.00

812.40

6,130.00

239.20

2,413.50

2,429.00

1,759.00

4,438.50

535.30

915.80

542.80

388.20

231.20

3,165.00

726.00

673.40

2,260.00

278.10

362.20

1,521.50

528.50

1,475.00

8,145.00

1,143.50

711.20

1,125.00

2,015.00

250.80

869.80

183.10

4,630.00

817.00

141.14

469.00

968.80

4,575.00

-0.41

-0.70

0.18

-0.38

-2.18

0.92

0.33

-1.43

-0.43

-0.45

-2.09

0.70

-0.63

0.64

0.61

-1.26

-1.25

-0.45

-0.02

-0.62

2.11

-1.13

-0.29

-0.87

1.09

-0.26

-0.08

-0.39

-0.41

-0.45

1.12

-0.29

-0.11

-0.84

-0.86

-0.49

-0.25

1.55

-0.17

-0.33

1.25

1.48

1.75

0.28

-1.07

-0.15

-0.22

-0.80

-0.30

0.80

0.02

0.29

1.65

3.43

-5.07

1.47

-0.33

-0.99

0.74

-1.06

1.74

0.97

1.14

4.28

0.52

-0.63

-2.14

-1.08

-0.17

-1.49

-1.44

0.00

-0.59

-0.98

0.13

0.15

-0.46

3.91

-0.06

0.08

-0.74

0.67

-0.29

1.46

-0.07

0.48

-0.37

-1.27

-0.09

1.60

0.31

-1.03

0.40

1.87

0.94

-0.59

-1.42

-0.61

-0.32

1.30

2.58

1,052,027

274,107

195,925

626,023

2,206,100

1,200,687

2,837,949

1,265,480

2,036,039

15,616,108

2,031,524

997,510

3,239,596

116,307

1,037,789

458,514

9,697,566

256,641

5,920,472

218,026

458,940

11,266,684

1,377,009

108,079

1,371,770

44,115

2,081,681

818,652

902,374

348,408

691,801

185,267

697,818

12,579,553

5,760,652

1,839,626

358,919

358,757

539,953

6,629,801

448,532

1,718,590

422,461

1,362,693

796,640

407,804

56,554

3,564,676

174,391

2,100,960

428,363

5,908,016

87,529,699

440,415

903,885

2,580,724

306,544

2,530,802

2,584,251

2,749,264

485,449

218,591

1,614,687

168,966

3,600,226

519,404

2,091,507

719,560

7,799,233

1,993,112

1,581,381

1,127,789

1,052,849

848,154

1,513,761

1,630,648

2,205,895

14,141,202

95,310

643,140

730,728

132,298

2,949,957

2,368,073

180,188

2,031,048

975,993

103,035

611,139

4,049,554

1,789,189

754,397

12,320,415

2,303,080

4,940,645

1,780,684

987,388

35,911,058

1,323,181

2,312,453

916,738

FTSE 100

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

Hitachi LtdTakeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd

Jfe Holdings IncSumitomo Corp

Canon IncNintendo Co Ltd

Eisai Co LtdIsuzu Motors Ltd

Unicharm CorpShin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd

Smc CorpMitsubishi Corp

Asahi Group Holdings LtdKeyence Corp

Nidec CorpNomura Holdings Inc

Daiichi Sankyo Co LtdSubaru Corp

Ntt Docomo Inc

3,689.00

4,112.00

1,905.00

1,589.50

3,089.00

38,000.00

6,454.00

1,595.50

3,649.00

10,430.00

46,060.00

3,056.00

4,829.00

69,120.00

15,785.00

417.80

5,481.00

2,720.50

2,410.50

0.60

-1.46

-0.57

-0.25

0.16

-1.32

-0.84

1.40

0.00

-0.43

1.21

1.16

-0.39

-0.76

0.38

0.24

5.91

-1.02

0.77

3,435,200

6,542,700

2,384,900

3,232,100

3,893,200

4,716,900

856,900

1,684,900

990,300

1,368,300

371,700

3,835,500

1,062,500

549,800

1,112,200

21,107,500

3,360,800

1,831,600

6,703,300

TOKYO

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

Sumitomo Realty & DevelopmenSumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd

Orix CorpDaiwa Securities Group Inc

Softbank Group CorpMizuho Financial Group Inc

Central Japan Railway CoNitori Holdings Co Ltd

T&D Holdings IncToyota Motor Corp

Hoya CorpSumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdin

Japan Tobacco IncOsaka Gas Co Ltd

Sumitomo Electric IndustriesOno Pharmaceutical Co Ltd

Ajinomoto Co IncMitsui Fudosan Co Ltd

Daikin Industries LtdToray Industries Inc

Bridgestone CorpSony Corp

Astellas Pharma IncJxtg Holdings Inc

Nippon Steel CorpSuzuki Motor Corp

Nippon Telegraph & TelephoneSompo Holdings Inc

Daiwa House Industry Co LtdKomatsu Ltd

West Japan Railway CoMurata Manufacturing Co Ltd

Kansai Electric Power Co IncDenso Corp

Dai-Ichi Life Holdings IncMazda Motor Corp

Mitsui & Co LtdKao Corp

Sekisui House LtdOriental Land Co Ltd

Secom Co LtdTokio Marine Holdings Inc

Aeon Co LtdFanuc Corp

Daito Trust Construct Co LtdOtsuka Holdings Co Ltd

Resona Holdings IncAsahi Kasei Corp

Kirin Holdings Co LtdMitsubishi Ufj Financial Gro

Marubeni CorpMitsubishi Chemical Holdings

Fast Retailing Co LtdMs&Ad Insurance Group Holdin

Kubota CorpSeven & I Holdings Co Ltd

Inpex CorpSumitomo Mitsui Financial Gr

Ana Holdings IncMitsubishi Electric Corp

Honda Motor Co LtdTokyo Gas Co Ltd

Tokyo Electron LtdPanasonic Corp

Fujitsu LtdEast Japan Railway Co

Itochu CorpFujifilm Holdings Corp

Yamato Holdings Co LtdChubu Electric Power Co Inc

Mitsubishi Estate Co LtdMitsubishi Heavy Industries

Shiseido Co LtdShionogi & Co Ltd

Recruit Holdings Co LtdJapan Airlines Co Ltd

Nitto Denko CorpKddi Corp

Rakuten IncKyocera Corp

Nissan Motor Co Ltd

4,103.00

3,479.00

1,571.50

515.10

11,555.00

173.50

23,895.00

13,250.00

1,196.50

6,905.00

7,815.00

3,864.00

2,576.00

2,055.00

1,474.50

2,079.50

1,792.50

2,567.00

14,100.00

758.00

4,406.00

5,212.00

1,509.00

540.70

1,980.50

5,065.00

4,616.00

4,161.00

3,111.00

2,852.00

8,262.00

5,960.00

1,345.50

4,853.00

1,595.00

1,315.50

1,794.00

8,557.00

1,792.00

12,270.00

9,338.00

5,602.00

2,054.50

20,775.00

14,865.00

3,969.00

469.70

1,143.00

2,519.50

549.90

795.10

789.10

64,260.00

3,438.00

1,683.00

3,859.00

1,081.00

4,021.00

3,888.00

1,582.00

3,101.00

2,827.00

17,645.00

1,021.00

8,135.00

10,465.00

2,000.00

5,184.00

2,412.50

1,616.00

1,875.50

4,621.00

8,718.00

6,476.00

3,329.00

3,729.00

5,990.00

2,540.50

1,235.00

7,190.00

893.30

-0.17

-0.43

0.70

-0.81

-0.26

0.29

-3.38

-1.38

-1.77

0.06

2.37

-0.13

-0.06

-0.68

-1.47

0.80

-0.14

-0.25

2.58

0.46

0.30

-0.86

1.86

-1.66

-0.63

-1.90

0.04

-0.86

-0.99

0.53

-0.49

-0.43

-1.97

-1.90

-0.99

-0.64

0.59

-0.31

0.39

-2.81

0.13

-0.11

0.10

-2.69

-2.65

0.61

-0.63

0.62

0.12

0.09

0.09

-0.87

0.19

-0.15

-0.27

0.94

0.98

-0.22

-1.27

3.84

-0.13

1.78

-1.15

-0.24

1.38

1.41

-0.02

-1.29

-1.39

0.75

-0.50

0.98

1.25

0.78

1.19

0.11

0.96

1.54

1.40

4.90

0.49

TOKYO

Company Name Lt Price % Chg

Ck Hutchison Holdings LtdHang Lung Properties Ltd

Ck Infrastructure Holdings LHengan Intl Group Co Ltd

China Shenhua Energy Co-HCspc Pharmaceutical Group Lt

Hang Seng Bank LtdChina Resources Land Ltd

Ck Asset Holdings LtdSino Biopharmaceutical

Henderson Land DevelopmentAia Group Ltd

Ind & Comm Bk Of China-HWant Want China Holdings Ltd

Sun Hung Kai PropertiesNew World Development

Geely Automobile Holdings LtSwire Pacific Ltd - Cl A

Sands China LtdWharf Real Estate Investment

Clp Holdings LtdCountry Garden Holdings Co

Aac Technologies Holdings InShenzhou International GroupPing An Insurance Group Co-H

China Mengniu Dairy CoSunny Optical Tech

Boc Hong Kong Holdings LtdChina Life Insurance Co-H

Citic LtdGalaxy Entertainment Group L

Wh Group Ltd

82.40

18.44

63.70

69.15

17.34

15.12

206.00

34.15

63.00

7.54

48.30

79.95

5.89

6.22

135.40

12.98

15.74

99.30

43.10

60.10

88.95

12.64

50.70

105.30

94.45

29.00

95.65

35.10

22.20

11.42

58.65

9.30

-0.78

-0.43

-0.23

-1.78

-1.59

-0.79

0.39

-1.73

-1.10

-0.53

-0.82

-0.44

-0.34

-0.32

-0.59

-0.92

-1.75

-0.90

-1.93

-1.96

-1.06

-0.47

-3.61

-0.38

0.11

-0.68

-1.59

-0.85

0.00

-0.70

-3.06

5.44

4,634,966

2,939,126

1,037,824

2,341,113

21,635,975

20,502,910

1,234,886

10,134,371

9,716,643

20,124,788

5,369,454

11,663,902

158,759,016

5,626,657

3,033,404

14,408,097

39,594,800

957,893

14,379,278

1,989,230

2,418,667

21,066,779

12,673,107

1,995,563

31,189,989

6,744,638

4,467,682

8,299,328

35,175,754

13,313,070

14,598,886

97,927,995

HONG KONG

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

Hong Kong & China GasBank Of Communications Co-HChina Petroleum & Chemical-HHong Kong Exchanges & Clear

Bank Of China Ltd-HHsbc Holdings Plc

Power Assets Holdings LtdMtr Corp

China Overseas Land & InvestTencent Holdings Ltd

China Unicom Hong Kong LtdLink Reit

Sino Land CoChina Resources Power Holdin

Petrochina Co Ltd-HCnooc Ltd

China Construction Bank-HChina Mobile Ltd

18.72

6.61

6.03

272.00

3.74

67.70

54.70

46.70

29.35

388.00

9.31

91.50

13.80

10.98

4.98

14.18

6.93

74.75

-0.95

-1.49

0.50

-0.66

-0.80

0.37

-0.55

-0.64

-0.84

-0.67

-1.38

-2.35

-0.72

-1.79

-1.58

-3.41

-0.86

-0.53

10,570,756

27,399,125

112,623,257

2,682,273

218,667,163

12,370,354

2,709,670

1,764,166

8,261,558

9,657,162

25,124,423

5,127,845

9,477,786

11,761,193

107,122,905

53,800,219

174,526,577

16,169,188

HONG KONG

Company Name Lt Price % Chg Volume

Adani Ports And Special EconAsian Paints Ltd

Axis Bank LtdBajaj Finance Ltd

Bharti Airtel LtdBharti Infratel Ltd

Bajaj Auto LtdBajaj Finserv Ltd

Bharat Petroleum Corp LtdCipla Ltd

Coal India LtdDr. Reddy’s Laboratories

Eicher Motors LtdGail India Ltd

Grasim Industries LtdHcl Technologies Ltd

Housing Development FinanceHdfc Bank Limited

Hero Motocorp LtdHindalco Industries Ltd

Hindustan Petroleum CorpHindustan Unilever Ltd

Icici Bank LtdIndiabulls Housing Finance L

Indusind Bank LtdInfosys Ltd

Indian Oil Corp LtdItc Ltd

Jsw Steel LtdKotak Mahindra Bank Ltd

Larsen & Toubro LtdMahindra & Mahindra Ltd

Maruti Suzuki India LtdNtpc Ltd

Oil & Natural Gas Corp LtdPower Grid Corp Of India Ltd

Reliance Industries LtdState Bank Of India

Sun Pharmaceutical IndusTata Steel Ltd

Tata Consultancy Svcs LtdTech Mahindra Ltd

Titan Co LtdTata Motors Ltd

Upl LtdUltratech Cement Ltd

Vedanta LtdWipro Ltd

Yes Bank LtdZee Entertainment Enterprise

392.80

1,463.15

766.85

3,095.95

320.30

262.55

2,984.10

7,520.45

379.85

565.00

252.15

2,933.75

20,368.30

355.95

901.20

1,183.35

1,995.05

2,317.45

2,511.85

206.05

291.25

1,757.70

407.50

695.45

1,606.50

751.35

158.05

301.35

308.35

1,386.55

1,348.55

645.30

6,666.40

134.05

169.20

186.40

1,392.80

309.95

457.65

557.20

2,260.35

836.10

1,158.55

214.30

969.15

4,616.80

166.85

298.55

168.00

432.60

0.27

0.99

0.91

-0.03

-1.58

-3.79

-1.99

-2.60

2.37

-0.52

0.66

1.43

0.19

0.72

-1.34

3.83

0.89

1.60

-3.54

2.44

2.95

0.59

0.07

-5.82

-5.44

1.81

3.40

-1.05

4.88

0.53

-0.71

-2.15

-2.58

-0.04

0.48

-2.31

0.00

-0.82

-1.39

2.19

0.97

1.56

1.85

-0.60

-0.12

0.15

-1.68

1.27

-29.17

3.57

SENSEX

Company Name Lt Price % Chg

WORLD INDICESIndices Lt Price Change

GCC INDICESIndices Lt Price Change

Dow Jones Indus. AvgS&P 500 Index

Nasdaq Composite IndexS&P/Tsx Composite Index

Mexico Bolsa IndexBrazil Bovespa Stock Idx

Ftse 100 IndexCac 40 Index

Dax IndexIbex 35 Tr

Nikkei 225Japan Topix

Hang Seng IndexAll Ordinaries Indx

Nzx All IndexBse Sensex 30 Index

Nse S&P Cnx Nifty IndexStraits Times Index

Karachi All Share IndexJakarta Composite Index

26,598.73

2,945.71

8,114.65

16,521.85

44,597.32

96,353.33

7,385.26

5,586.41

12,344.08

9,570.60

22,258.73

1,617.93

29,699.11

6,466.48

1,703.83

39,031.55

11,748.15

3,400.20

27,014.20

6,455.35

+5.82

-0.12

+19.27

-58.88

-359.41

+165.58

-32.96

+5.43

+16.06

+53.40

-48.85

-2.35

-193.70

+48.10

-8.61

-35.78

-6.50

-6.82

-62.44

+29.46

Doha Securities Market

Kuwait Stocks Exchange

Oman Stock Market

10,400.29

4,847.87

3,965.96

+23.49

+19.05

+20.32

“Information contained herein is believed to be reliable and had been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. The accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed. This publication is for providing information only and is not intended as an off er or solicitation for a purchase or sale of any of the financial instruments mentioned. Gulf Times and Doha Bank or any of their employees shall not be held accountable and will not accept any losses or liabilities for actions based on this data.”

1,414,900

1,661,400

3,991,000

7,458,100

4,430,300

77,014,200

574,300

462,200

2,614,100

3,999,400

1,286,000

860,400

4,198,500

2,262,500

2,452,500

1,203,600

1,816,200

2,851,400

1,279,700

3,483,500

1,916,900

5,976,100

7,323,800

19,823,500

2,682,700

2,545,500

3,671,100

1,109,700

2,950,700

5,275,500

568,100

2,916,800

5,316,400

3,852,300

6,044,600

2,710,000

7,266,800

1,969,500

1,909,100

1,308,000

434,200

1,699,600

2,548,600

1,430,600

404,900

1,125,200

10,168,200

3,466,100

1,559,200

47,322,800

5,579,100

6,530,800

612,100

1,031,900

2,839,300

3,797,000

4,239,200

3,470,300

1,846,700

9,584,600

3,315,900

2,067,100

1,561,600

6,082,300

980,800

1,291,400

9,640,800

1,858,000

2,043,900

1,860,200

4,955,000

991,400

2,086,900

705,800

4,112,800

1,791,500

1,067,600

7,980,600

15,253,700

2,641,800

16,644,900

2,502,107

1,525,776

12,434,805

900,968

6,026,790

9,291,803

654,107

253,399

9,814,929

1,914,026

6,190,464

601,275

65,090

4,601,141

1,444,739

4,155,200

3,675,345

3,134,209

1,634,120

8,879,385

9,806,887

1,171,594

19,375,553

12,985,688

5,059,803

9,920,046

14,156,261

11,163,210

12,707,875

6,210,573

1,905,624

5,042,085

1,640,025

7,527,996

9,844,317

8,038,675

10,217,019

18,178,758

6,586,352

14,258,161

3,488,395

2,783,771

1,469,889

21,289,116

1,876,948

653,730

11,940,661

7,339,917

217,219,923

8,420,428

Volume

Volume

Mike Coupe, CEO of Sainsbury’s, poses for a portrait at the company headquarters in London. Sainsbury’s shares jumped 4.3% yesterday after the supermarket group’s underlying full-year profit beat market estimates and it said it would accelerate investment in its store estate and technology.

BUSINESS

Gulf Times Thursday, May 2, 20196

BUSINESS9Gulf Times

Thursday, May 2, 2019

Apple tops forecasts as pivot to services shows progress

Apple delivered stronger-than-expected results on

Tuesday for the past quarter as gains in services

helped off set slumping iPhone sales, sparking a

rally in shares of the technology giant.

California-based Apple reported a 16% drop in prof-

its in the just-ended quarter to $11.6bn, as overall

revenues dipped 5% to $58bn.

Apple shares rallied 5% in after-hours trade, with

the results showing better-than-anticipated results

from its new products and services in the fiscal

second quarter to March 30.

“Our March quarter results show the continued

strength of our installed base of over 1.4bn active

devices, as we set an all-time record for services,

and the strong momentum of our wearables, home

and accessories category, which set a new March

quarter record,” said chief executive Tim Cook.

“We delivered our strongest iPad growth in six

years, and we are as excited as ever about our pipe-

line of innovative hardware, software and services.”

Apple has been scrambling to develop new revenue

streams amid stagnant growth and increased com-

petition in the smartphone market, which has been

the company’s main profit driver.

The latest quarterly results showed revenue from

iPhone sales slumped 17% to $31bn.

Apple has stopped reporting iPhone unit sales.

China-based Huawei outsold Apple’s iPhones in

the first quarter of this year, seizing the California

company’s second place spot in a tightening smart-

phone market dominated by Samsung, according

to Chinese-owned market tracker IDC.

Inmarsat

Inmarsat, the British satellite firm that agreed a

$3.4bn private-equity takeover in March, reported a

13% fall in quarterly earnings, hit by weak demand

from the shipping sector and a lower contribution

from partner Ligado.

Shareholders will vote on the off er from a consor-

tium of UK-based Apax Partners, US-based Warburg

Pincus and two Canadian pension funds on May 10.

The mobile satellite communications provider has

been selling in-flight Wi-Fi to airlines through its

aviation business, which cushioned some of the

blow from declines in its older products.

Chief Executive Rupert Pearce said after the results

on Wednesday he was taking action, including

bolstering its VSAT satellite technology introduced

earlier this year to stem a defection of its maritime

customers from legacy products.

“The mid-market is where we have our issues,”

he said in an interview. “It’s all about the extent to

which we can manage our own customer base to

our own VSAT products as opposed to losing them

to competing VSAT products.

“We didn’t do a good job of that in 2018...but we

began to take very aggressive action in the fourth

quarter and that has led to a very rapid diminution

in losses in Q1.”

Inmarsat reported earnings before interest, tax, de-

preciation and amortisation of $152.4mn and group

revenue of $346.9mn. Higher costs also ate into

Inmarsat’s profit. Total net operating costs rose to

$194.5mn from $170.5mn a year earlier in the three

months ended March 31.

CVS Health

CVS Health Corp beat estimates for quarterly earn-

ings yesterday and raised its full-year adjusted prof-

it forecast as it benefits from its $69bn purchase of

health insurer Aetna, sending its shares up 5%.

The company’s upbeat outlook could allay some

concerns about reimbursement pressures on the

sector, particularly after rival Walgreens Boots

Alliance last month spooked investors by cutting its

full-year profit forecast.

Revenue at CVS’s pharmacy benefit management

unit rose 3.1% to $33.56bn, aided by higher prices of

brand name drugs and also on increased phar-

macy claims. The drugstore chain operator and

pharmacy benefits manager said it earned $1.62 per

share excluding items, beating analysts’ average

estimate of $1.50 per share, according to IBES data

from Refinitiv.

CVS said it now expects adjusted profit per share

of $6.75 to $6.90 for the full year, compared with its

prior forecast of $6.68 to $6.88.

The company’s net income attributable to the

company rose to $1.42bn, or $1.09 per share, from

$998mn, or $0.98 per share, a year earlier.

Revenue rose 34.8% to $61.65bn.

Humana

Insurer Humana Inc reported a better-than-expect-

ed quarterly profit yesterday, on higher sales of its

government health plans for people older than 65

and the disabled.

Sales from the company’s retail unit, which includes

its Medicare plans, rose about 16% to $14.01bn, as

it added more members to its individual and group

Medicare Advantage plans and on higher premium

rates. The unit is also the biggest contributor to

revenue.

The company raised the lower end of its 2019

adjusted earnings forecast to between $17.25 and

$17.50 per share from its prior forecast of between

$17 and $17.50 per share. Humana said its net

income rose 15.3% to $566mn in the quarter ended

March 31. Excluding items, the company earned

$4.48 per share, beating the average analyst

estimate of $4.30 per share, according to IBES data

from Refinitiv. Total revenue rose 13% to $16.12bn,

above estimates of $15.78bn.

Amgen

Amgen Inc on Tuesday reported first-quarter

revenue that was unchanged from a year ago

as key drugs, including new migraine treatment

Aimovig and cholesterol fighter Repatha, face pric-

ing pressure. But the world’s largest biotechnology

company still raised the lower end of its full-year

earnings and sales forecasts as adjusted profit

topped expectations.

Excluding items, Amgen earned $3.56 per share,

topping analysts’ average expectations by 9 cents,

according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Quarterly revenue of $5.56bn showed no growth

but was in line with analyst estimates.

Share buybacks helped boost the EPS result, said

Jeff eries analyst Michael Yee.

“Many of their key growth products and legacy

products were a little bit light,” Yee said. “They

definitely have a lot of challenges, but first quarter

is always seasonally the weakest for Amgen.”

Aimovig sales of $59mn for the quarter were short

of the $83.3mn projected by analysts and down

from $95mn in the fourth quarter.

Repatha sales of $141mn also missed Wall Street

estimates of $158.7mn.

Advanced Micro Devices

US chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices Inc beat

Wall Street estimates for quarterly revenue and

profit on Tuesday, selling more chips used in data

centres and servers, and sending its shares up 6%

in after-market trading.

The results underscored AMD’s success in bolster-

ing its data centre and server sales with new

launches in the Ryzen and EPYC line of chips for

desktops and servers.

In contrast, larger rival Intel Corp last week

reported a drop in first-quarter data centre sales

as customers worked through stockpiles of chips

bought last year against the backdrop of the US-

China trade war.

AMD also forecast second-quarter revenue of about

$1.52bn, plus or minus $50mn, in line with analysts

expectations. “AMD’s in-line results and guidance

is very positive. Particularly compared with Intel’s

poor guidance last week,” said Kevin Cassidy, an

analyst with Stifel Nicolaus and Co. AMD’s first-

quarter revenue fell 22.7% to $1.27bn, but beat

analysts’ average estimate of $1.26bn, according to

IBES data from Refinitiv.

Revenue at the company’s enterprise, embedded

and semi-custom segment dropped 17% to $441mn,

but beat analysts’ estimate of $410.2mn, according

to FactSet. Net income fell to $16mn, or a penny per

share, in the three months ended March 30, from

$81mn, or 8 cents per share, a year earlier.

FireEye

Cyber security company FireEye Inc on Tuesday

forecast second-quarter revenue and billings

largely below Wall Street expectations as it expects

to close fewer large deals than it did a year ago,

sending its shares down 5% in after-hours trading.

The company had signed two deals worth $10mn

each in the first quarter and the second quarter of

2018, relatively rare for FireEye, chief financial of-

ficer Frank Verdecanna said on a post-earnings call.

“We do not expect any $10mn plus transactions in

the (current) quarter (of 2019),” Verdecanna added.

FireEye said it expects second-quarter billings in

the range of $205mn to $220mn, largely below

estimates of $215.2mn.

Analysts said rising competition is a threat for the

company’s on-demand security services.

“(FireEye’s) on-demand security services could

be impacted longer term by competitors add-

ing machine learning and automated response

technologies into their cybersecurity platforms,”

Morningstar analyst Mark Cash said.

Devon Energy

Devon Energy Corp on Tuesday raised its full-year

US oil production forecast and beat analysts’

estimates for quarterly profit, supported by higher

output from its operations in the Delaware basin.

The company said net production in the Delaware

basin surged 76% in the first quarter to 107,000

oil-equivalent barrels (boe) per day.

The Delaware basin of the oil-rich Permian shale

field is among the largest in the region.

The increase in production from the company’s

shale assets also prompted it to raise its 2019 US oil

output forecast.

The company now expects 2019 light-oil pro-

duction growth to reach 17%, a 200 basis point

improvement from its previous guidance.

The volume of crude being pumped out of Texas

has pushed the United States over the last decade

to become the world’s biggest oil producer last

year. Net loss attributable to Devon widened to

$317mn, or 74 cents per share, in the first quarter

ended March 31, from $197mn, or 38 cents per

share, a year earlier, primarily due to a $670mn

non-cash charge related to the company’s hedge

positions.

GlaxoSmithKline

GlaxoSmithKline Plc reported better-than-expected

first-quarter revenue and earnings yesterday, as

sales of the British drugmaker’s fast-growing shin-

gles vaccine surged another 60%.

Sales of Shingrix, the vaccine launched in 2017,

were £357mn in the first quarter, up 61.5% from a

fourth quarter in which they also doubled.

That pushed GSK’s turnover to £7.66bn ($10bn) in

the quarter from £7.22bn a year earlier and above a

company-provided consensus of analysts’ forecasts

of £7.56bn.

Adjusted operating profit was 30.1 pence per share

in the quarter versus expectations of 26.1 pence per

share. “We have made a strong start to 2019, which is

an important year of execution for GSK, with growth

in sales, operating margins and earnings per share

in Q1, in line with our expectations,” chief executive

Emma Walmsley said in a statement.

Since taking over in April 2017, Walmsley has been

streamlining GSK’s operations and spinning off or

selling units including its consumer health division

to focus on expanding its drug pipeline — notably for

cancer and HIV medicines — and developing vaccines.

The company, which backed its 2019 forecast of a

decline in adjusted earnings of 5% to 9%, said its

quarterly earnings were hurt by continuing price

pressure and other investments in promotional

product support, particularly for new launches.

CORPORATE RESULTS

Top Indian bourse fi ned $90mn forunfair market accessBloombergMumbai

India’s capital market regulator barred the nation’s biggest stock exchange from the securities market for a period of six months and ordered it to pay Rs6.25bn

($90mn) in fi nes after ruling that a high-frequency trad-ing fi rm benefi ted from unfair market access.

The Securities & Exchange Board of India said that the National Stock Exchange of India and its offi cials gave OPG Securities an advantage over other investors via its co-location services, which entails placing trad-ers’ servers next to the exchange’s, according to an or-der posted on Sebi’s website late Tuesday.

The fi ne, along with 12% interest from April 2014, will go toward the regulator’s Investor Protection and Education Fund. The exchange’s so-called tick-by-tick “architecture was prone to market abuse thereby com-promising market fairness and integrity, in that it pro-vided quicker order dissemination to those who man-aged to login early,” according to the Sebi ruling.

“That is, if one entity is ahead of the other while log-ging in the morning, it gets information ahead of the other throughout the day.” The regulator’s order will not aff ect the functioning of the exchange, the National Stock Exchange said in a statement yesterday. Normal trading in all the segments will continue from May 2, the bourse said, adding that trading operations were shut on May 1 due to a holiday.

The market regulator’s ruling in India, the biggest emerging market for computerised trades, echo com-plaints about how modern markets operate around the world. High-frequency and algorithmic traders have evolved into a dominant force in Indian markets, enabled by a race for speed between the nation’s top ex-changes that cut transaction times to fractions of a sec-ond. The ban on accessing capital markets will also de-lay NSE’s plan to sell shares in an initial public off ering.

Sebi also asked former NSE executives Ravi Narain and Chitra Ramakrishna to give back 25% of their sala-ries drawn in the past years. Narain will have to pay back a fourth of his salary drawn for fi nancial years starting April 2010 and ending March 2013, while Ramakrishna will return a portion of her salary for the fi nancial year to March 2014. The compensation clawed back will also go to Sebi’s investor fund.

“This order has no implication on trust that investors have on Indian markets,” Vikram Limaye, chief executive offi cer of NSE said in an interview to CNBC-TV18. “There is nothing in here that should cause any kind of confusion about trust in Indian markets, that is rock solid.”

Malaysia’s markets set for rebound: Ex-CIMB chiefBloombergKuala Lumpur

Malaysia’s stock market and cur-rency are set for a rebound from their slump following the elections

almost a year ago, said Nazir Razak, former chairman of Malaysia’s second-largest bank.

The country’s benchmark stock index slipped 11%, the most among Asia’s most ac-tively-traded stock markets, while the ring-git currency lost 4.5%.

The selloff came after Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad defeated Nazir’s older brother Najib Razak at the polls, which led to Malaysia’s fi rst change in government since its independence.

Following the elections, Najib has been put on trial for charges linked to his role in the troubled state fund 1MDB, while the leadership of various ministries, central bank and government-owned companies were changed.

Projects with foreign governments were also put on hold, though Mahathir recent-ly reinstated a number of infrastructure projects by Chinese companies.

“Investors don’t like short-term uncer-tainties,” Nazir, who started a private equity fund after a three-decade banking career, said in a Bloomberg Television interview on the sidelines on the Milken Institute global conference in Beverly Hills, California.

“After this fi rst year, the reality is setting in, the government is reviewing right and wrong decisions, and I’m quite hopeful that maybe the worst is over.”

He also said the ringgit is “oversold,” though Malaysia still needs the confi dence of the rating agencies, along with sound deci-sions by the government for the currency to recover.

Nazir, 52, left CIMB Group Holdings last year after nearly three decades. He helped start private equity fund Ikhlas Capital with partners he says have a century of experience

combined. “We just had our fi rst close,” he said of the fund, declining to provide details such as the amount raised. “For the moment, let’s just call it a startup.”

He established the fund because there’s a void in the private equity space in Southeast Asia, where the average annual deals are just starting to rise to the range of $10bn to $12bn, from $4bn to $6bn fi ve years ago, he said.

“It’s an industry that’s about to take off,” he said. “Then you’ve got this frus-tration with public markets by a lot of en-trepreneurs – they are not giving them the right valuations and there is a lot of com-pliance costs.”

Nazir’s partners at Ikhlas included Kenny Kim, who previously worked under him as chief fi nancial offi cer of CIMB, and Gita

Irawan Wirjawan, Indonesia’s former trade minister. Former Philippine fi nance secre-tary Cesar Purisima and David Heng, who resigned from his role as a senior managing director at Singapore’s Temasek Holdings in 2017, were also set to be part of the fund.

“We feel we have the edge in terms of be-ing indigenous,” Nazir said. “There aren’t many indigenous truly Asean funds.”

Traders and stock owners are seen on the floor of the RHB Investment Bank in Kuala Lumpur (file). Malaysia’s stock market and currency are set for a rebound from their slump following the elections almost a year ago, said Nazir Razak, former chairman of Malaysia’s second-largest bank.

Minister chairs Qatar delegation at GCC trade, industrial co-operation committees’ meetings

HE Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari, the Minister of Commerce and Industry, chaired Qatar’s delegation at 57th meeting of the Gulf Co-operation Council’s Trade Co-operation Committee, and the 45th meeting of the Industrial Co-operation Committee. The meetings, which kicked off yesterday in Oman, were preceded by preparatory meetings that brought together the Undersecretaries of the Ministries of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday in Muscat to discuss the working mechanisms within the framework of the GCC’s Ministerial Committees. The agenda of the Trade Co-operation Committee’s meeting featured a number of topics of common interest that were the focus of discussions and decision-making. Participating ministers discussed topics relating to e-commerce and eff orts to activate joint GCC action in the field of trade. In a bid to encourage new initiatives, the ministers also discussed entrepreneurial and innovative initiatives undertaken by small and medium sized enterprises across the GCC states, as well as eff orts to bolster the contribution of these enterprises to economic development, in addition to providing support and creating an attractive environment for these initiatives. In its 45th meeting, the Industrial Co-operation Committee discussed a number of issues of interest to the GCC’s industrial sector, particularly the diff iculties that the steel manufacturing sector is facing. In this context, the committee discussed the role of the Gulf Organisation for Industrial Consulting and its contribution to industrial development. The committee’s meeting also touched on the member states’ implementation of the rules for giving priority in government procurement to national products in GCC states. The committee also discussed the evaluation report on industrial conferences and related exhibitions. The ministers also discussed the amendments introduced to exempt industrial inputs from customs duties and developments relating to investigations into harmful practices, appeals and customs duties, a press release said yesterday.

7 startups selected to receive QDB’s smart funding of upto QR100,000 at Demo DayBy Santhosh V PerumalBusiness Reporter

As many as 12 projects — ranging from drones for refi nery inspection as well as public safety and secu-

rity agencies, online educational portal to apps for automobile repairs — yesterday sought seed capital from Qatar Develop-ment Bank (QDB) to better commercialise their ideas and capture more markets.

The 12 local startups competed to mark the culmination of the new wave of grad-uates from its transformational LeanStar-tup Programme (LSP).

These were showcased at the fi fth edition of Demo Day, organised by Qa-tar Business Incubation Center (QBIC), owned by QDB, where the developers and founders/co-founders extensively used artifi cial intelligence, Internet of Things and other technologies, indicating the scientifi c temperament among the bud-ding entrepreneurs.

Each of the projects, with clear idea

on their expected revenue streams, have the potential to value-add to the grow-ing economy of the country. The business ideas presented covered a variety of fi elds including e-Commerce, technology, lo-gistics, Ed-Tech and e-Sports.

Of the 12 projects, seven were adjudged winners, who will receive smart funding up to QR100,000 each, rent-free offi ce space for two years, in addition to con-tinuous coaching and mentoring to help support and grow their business.

The winners are Aytech, whose tech-nological solutions help public safety and security agencies increase their situ-ational awareness; Onjiz, an intelligent work management application; GBus, an app for school bus management; Not Busy Now solutions; Merwad (online designer shop), Qutsheet (construction industry related) and Print Le.

“The past 10 weeks have been a reward-ing experience for all the participants in QBIC’s latest wave. To succeed, entre-preneurs require passion and determina-tion to reach pivotal business growth and

we’re here to help them reach their poten-tial,” said Hamad bin Dashin al-Qahtani, general manager of QBIC.

Highlighting that throughout the past fi ve years, QBIC has helped grow and ac-celerate the businesses of tremendously talented entrepreneurs, he said, “I hope to see more aspiring entrepreneurs follow their lead in transforming ideas into real-ity.”

In the last fi ve years, QBIC has incubat-ed as many as 160 companies with total revenues exceeding QR55mn.

Qatar has been witnessing expanded database of successfully incubated com-panies, a senior offi cial of QDB said, add-ing it would go a long way in supporting the country’s diversifi cation eff orts.

In addition to its fl agship LSP, QBIC recently launched several specialised programmes, including the Lean Coach Programme, Lean Manufacturing Pro-gramme and Lean Fashion Programme.

As QBIC strives to expand entrepre-neurial fi elds, the recently launched Lean Fashion Programme — which will be de-

livered in both Doha and Milan, Italy — is created to equip designers and entrepre-neurs alike with a holistic understanding of conducting business in the fashion in-dustry.

QDB chief executive Abdulaziz bin Nasser al-Khalifa said its strategy has al-ways been to develop a proactive mindset for young nationals towards entrepre-neurship.

“It is no secret that the new genera-tions’ vision of Qatari entrepreneurs is different and that they are eager to join the entrepreneurial system by estab-lishing startups which are designed to succeed locally and internationally,” he said.

QBIC’s LSP is the most successful pro-gramme of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa region, empowering entre-preneurs by providing them with busi-ness tools, hands-on experience and ex-pert know-how to successfully bring their business ideas to life, in line with QBIC’s mission to develop Qatar’s next QR100mn companies.

QSTP extends partnership agreement with Cisco QatarQatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP), part of Qatar Foundation Research, Development, and Innovation (QF RDI), yesterday renewed its partnership agreement with Cisco Qatar for a further five years, with the aim of continuing both entities’ commitment to accelerating the pace of digital transformation in Qatar.The partnership was renewed by Yosouf Abdulrahman Saleh, executive director, QSTP; and Shane Heraty, general manager, Cisco Qatar; during a signing ceremony held at QSTP.On the occasion, Saleh said, “Our renewed partnership with Cisco Qatar allows us to further drive increased connectivity and build integrated networks that are able to adapt to the ever-changing global digital landscape.“Cisco Qatar has made invaluable contributions in support of achieving Qatar’s ICT objectives, and we are delighted to reaff irm our collective commitment to making great strides towards digital transformation in Qatar.”Through Cisco’s presence at QSTP, and its global leadership in the networking industry, the company strives to work closely with the Qatari government to help achieve a strong ICT future, built on a resilient and sustainable infrastructure.Heraty said, “Since the start of its Qatar operations in 2006, Cisco Qatar has worked strategically along with its channel partners to develop a secure, automated, and intelligent network for Qatar’s evolving digital landscape. Qatar is embracing the digital era, and its government has taken confident and impactful strides toward developing a sustainable and diversified

economy. We continue to support the government’s vision and offer our strategic service in that direction.”“Our customers have transitioned to a world where technology is not just enabling their strategy; it is actually helping define their strategy. The next decade is poised to usher-in the greatest technology expansion and most powerful digital disruptions we’ve seen, and Cisco is uniquely positioned to partner with our customers in enabling their digital businesses.”The extension of the collaboration between both entities will allow Cisco Qatar to continue its mission of bringing digital innovations to life through its five key pillars: reinventing the network; powering a multi-cloud world; unlocking the power of data; enabling employee and customer experience; and embedding security into the fabric of the network.Dr Richard O’Kennedy, vice-president (Research, Development and Innovation) Qatar Foundation said, “Cisco Qatar continues to play an integral role in helping to achieve Qatar’s digital objectives. QF RDI looks forward to continued collaborations with a global leader in ICT as we all work to enhance the interconnectivity of businesses, people and networks in Qatar and across the region.”For the past 10 years, QSTP has supported Cisco Qatar in expanding its regional presence and outreach. As a key tenant of QSTP’s Free Zone, Cisco Qatar has been able to leverage an extensive network of more than 140 partners to build a secure, intelligent platform for digital business in Qatar, and work within a hub of technology-based companies to drive innovation.

Dr Richard O’Kennedy, Yosouf Abdulrahman Saleh and Shane Heraty during the signing ceremony.

QP awards contracts for 8 drilling rigs for North Field expansion

Qatar Petroleum has awarded contracts for eight off shore jackup drilling rigs required for the North Field Expansion Project. The drilling rigs are planned to be mobilised and ready for drilling activities starting from January 2020, QP announced yesterday. Contracts for six of the eight rigs were awarded to Gulf Drilling International (GDI), while the contracts for the remaining two rigs were awarded to Northern Off shore Drilling Operations Limited, operating out of the United

States of America. The contracts are awarded for committed terms ranging from two to four years, with exercisable options to extend the drilling programme durations if required.The drilling programme planned for the eight rigs is a major component of the expansion project to increase Qatar’s LNG production capacity from 77mn tonnes per year (tpy) to 110mn tpy.The scope includes the drilling and completion of 80 new wells from eight wellhead platform locations. Contract awards for jacket fabrication were

already made earlier in April 2019.On the announcement, HE the Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad bin Sherida al-Kaabi, also the President & CEO of Qatar Petroleum, said, “This award package is the latest in a series of steps in Qatar Petroleum’s plan to execute the North Field Expansion project. We are pleased to have our National Drilling company GDI take part in this important project.”Al-Kaabi said, “This award is another important milestone towards delivering

on QP’s long term strategy of increasing Qatar’s LNG production capacity from 77mn tpy to 110mn tpy, which is progressing well and according to plan on all fronts.” Qatargas is entrusted with executing this mega-project on behalf of Qatar Petroleum. As the world’s premier LNG company, Qatargas has a well-proven track record of delivering such major projects and in operating various onshore and off shore facilities in the North Field with world class reliability and operational excellence.

Qatar’s startups celebrate their win at the QBIC Demo Day.

BUSINESS

Gulf Times Thursday, May 2, 201910

Trans-Atlantic aviation subsidy dispute deepensBy Pratap John

A trade war is not good news for the global economy and certainly not for the air transport industry, which now sees a trans-Atlantic subsidy dispute between two key markets — the US and European Union, deepening.The United States and Europe have been locked in a years-long spat over mutual claims of illegal aid to US planemaker Boeing and its European rival Airbus to help them gain advantage in the world jet business.Disputed aviation subsidies have become the bone of contention between the two sides, threatening both air freight and passenger segments in the busy trans-Atlantic air corridor.President Donald Trump’s recent threat to impose tariff s on $11bn worth of European Union products, including commercial aircraft, has apparently deepened a long-running trans-Atlantic subsidy row.The European Union is preparing retaliatory tariff s against the US over subsidies to Chicago-based planemaker Boeing; significantly escalating transatlantic trade tensions, soon after Washington vowed to hit the EU with duties over its support for Airbus.The two sets of punitive measures are the latest twists in a nearly 15-year-old dispute that the US and EU have fought at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), with each side accusing the other of illegally subsidising their main aircraft makers. The long-running trans-Atlantic trade wrangle over Airbus and Boeing stretches back nearly 15 years. Claims and counter-claims over alleged illegal aid given to the plane giants have been brought to the WTO, and many analysts say, both sides were seen breaking the rules. The US and Europe are already in the middle of a tense trade dispute. President Trump has long accused the bloc of taking advantage of the United States economically, and he had previously imposed steel and aluminium tariff s on the EU (in May last year) — a move which greatly angered the US allies.The Off ice of the US Trade Representative quoted by Bloomberg said that EU support for Airbus had caused “adverse eff ects” when announcing the new measures, which would target European goods including jetliners, cheese, wine and motorcycles.

The EU called the sum cited by the USTR “greatly exaggerated” and said preparations were underway to hit back. While the EU hasn’t disclosed the amount of American goods it would target, Airbus said the bloc would proceed with “far larger countermeasures” against the US.The heightened tensions come as the 28-nation EU works toward approving a mandate for the European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm, to negotiate cuts in industrial tariff s with the Trump administration. The new tensions may complicate those eff orts, which are part of European attempts to ward off American threats of separate duties on foreign autos and car parts, Bloomberg said.France’s finance minister Bruno Le Maire fears that an escalation in the subsidy row involving Airbus and Boeing, who now dominate the international market for passenger planes, will be senseless and serve only to benefit an emerging Chinese competitor. Commercial Aircraft

Corporation of China or COMAC is leading China’s push to become a global civil aerospace player. In November last year, the company and Russia’s United Aircraft Corp unveiled a life-sized model of a proposed widebody longhaul jet. In December 2018, COMAC’S C919 narrowbody passenger jet completed its first test flight, in hopes of eventually competing with Boeing’s 787 and Airbus’ A350 jets.The global market for widebody jets is estimated to be worth $2.5tn over the next two decades, according to Boeing, with the fleet size more than doubling to 9,180 jets.Widebodies account for around 20% of projected global jet deliveries over that period but almost 40% by value.According to International Air Transport Association (IATA) Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac, the rising tide of global protectionism resulting in trade wars was throttling the air cargo industry.“Nobody wins a trade war,” de Juniac

said and noted “We all do better when borders are open to people and to trade.“Governments need to realise the damage being done by protectionist measures,” De Juniac said and added, Cargo is in the doldrums” and that it was “diff icult to see an early turnaround” due to a weakening of order books, falling consumer confidence and trade tensions aff ecting the industry.Latin America was the only region in the world not to report a decrease in year-on-year air cargo demand growth, IATA’s latest data reveal.The US and Europe have previously had periodic uneasy truces over the Airbus-Boeing issue. With the WTO yet to make its final ruling on penalties, there is still an opportunity for the two sides to sit around the table, hammer out a solution, and ease the tension. And that will help the global air transport industry fly high.

Pratap John is Business Editorat Gulf Times.

BUSINESS11Gulf Times

Thursday, May 2, 2019AVIATION

Qatar is now using Syrian airspace

By Alex Macheras

While several airlines are set to resume flights to Syria, Doha-based Qatar Airways has emerged as the first foreign airline to begin using Syrian airspace for overflight. It’s the first time in almost a decade that an international carrier (other than Lebanon’s Middle East Airlines) has both obtained permission from the Syrian government and then exercised its new right to overfly Damascus. Some Qatar Airways flights from Beirut and Larnaca have now started to fly over Syrian airspace.Beirut and Larnaca are examples of two routes which require significant detours (and thus, more fuel) ever since the 2017 Saudi-led blockade banned Qatari jets from Saudi Arabia’s airspace, a violation of Saudi’s signed ICAO Chicago Convention.By crossing Syrian airspace, today’s Qatar Airways Boeing 787 flight from Beirut reached Doha after a flight time of 2 hours, 26 minutes — exactly one hour shorter than last week’s 3 hours 26 minutes flight which avoided Syria and flew the usual detour. Any fuel saving (no matter how small) on a commercial flight is positive for an airline, but a fuel saving of one hour’s worth of flight time is very significant.“The agreement came on the principle of reciprocity, as SyrianAir crosses Qatari airspace and never stopped flying to Doha throughout the war,” Transport Minister Ali Hammoud said.

The use of Syrian airspace would see “increased revenues in hard currency for the benefit of the Syrian state,” he added.In an exclusive interview with GCEO of Qatar Airways HE Akbar al-Baker, he recently told me “In terms of actually flying to Syria, we need to be comfortable that we can operate into the country. We are not the enemies of the Syrian people, and an airline serves the people. But we do have insurance requirements; our aircraft are leased for the time being because we have started to sell our jets to lessors, and therefore we still have some constraints from leasing companies with regards to operating to Syria”.In 2010, Damascus Airport scheduled around 400 weekly departures to over 50 international destinations. In the year prior to the civil war, the airport handled around 4.5mn passengers — and up until the war, was demonstrating promising year-on-year growth.With stabilisation back on the horizon, airlines are wasting no time in preparing to make their move back into the Syrian market, with both previous operators and newcomers expected to announce nonstop flights to the country.Despite Qatar Airways resuming use of Syria’s airspace, The US Department of Travel is continuing to specifically warn US citizens against flying on an airline that travels through Syrian airspace, and IATA (The International Air Transport Association), EASA (European Aviation Saftey Agency), among other regulators have warned airlines against flying over Syria, even at heights of 38,000ft. At present, Lebanon’s flag carrier, Middle East Airlines is the only non-Syrian/non-Iraqi carrier still flying over Syria (other than Qatar Airways) — but the airline does not land anywhere in the country.

The author is an aviation analyst. Twitter handle:@AlexInAir

Heathrow runway overcomes protestersBloombergLondon

London Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport, overcame an attempt by environmental groups to block construction of a third runway that it says is needed to boost flights and compete with rival hubs trying to steal its traff ic.Construction can go ahead after judges yesterday threw out lawsuits from Friends of the Earth, London Mayor Sadiq Khan and other groups seeking to challenge the UK government’s approval of the plan.Opponents alleged the proposal violated the UK’s climate change policy and didn’t take account of the Paris climate accord. But that agreement isn’t part of British law, even though the country has ratified it – and this posed an “overarching diff iculty” to the lawsuit, the three judges said.Though it can still be appealed, the

decision reduces the risks involved with a lawsuit that could’ve become a major stumbling block for the third runway plan. If the government had lost the case, it would’ve had to start the process again, potentially causing delays and uncertainty.“We understand that these claims involve underlying issues upon which the parties – and indeed many members of the public – hold strong and sincere views,” the judges said in the unanimous ruling.They added that the hearing had concerned only the legality and “not the merits” of a government policy statement that approved the expansion.Heathrow is “delighted,” a spokesman said. “The debate on Heathrow expansion has been had and won, not only in Parliament, but in the courts also.” It’s preparing to unveil a “masterplan” for the project in June, it confirmed in an earnings statement yesterday, including a detailed blueprint for the new landing strip and associated

physical infrastructure such as passenger terminals.Shares in International Consolidated Airlines Group SA, owner of British Airways, Heathrow’s biggest carrier, rose as much as 1.3% in the wake of the ruling.Transport secretary Chris Grayling said the court’s decision is “welcome” and Heathrow expansion “will provide a massive economic boost.” Virgin Atlantic, which operates most of its flights from Heathrow, said it will target a greater percentage of takeoff and landing slots. “Without the third runway, Virgin Atlantic cannot realise its ambition to become the UK’s second flag carrier,” the airline said.Appeals Plan B, one of the groups that challenged the expansion, expects to appeal the ruling. Friends of the Earth and Heathrow Hub, two other opponents, will consider doing so, they said in statements. London’s Deputy Mayor Shirley Rodrigues said Khan “stood up for Londoners” by

bringing the case, and hasn’t decided his next steps yet.After decades of delays tied to concerns about extra aircraft noise, increased pollution, the demolition of homes and the impact on roads, construction of the runway could begin as soon as 2021, off icials said last year. The new landing strip is expected to open in 2026, lifting annual capacity to 135mn travellers from 2018’s 80.1mn.The runway was approved by Parliament in June as part of a national policy statement, helping to minimise further procedural logjams, with planning authorities confined to considering elements of the proposal rather than whether it should be built at all.The airport operator has spent years trying to win permission to build the new runway. In 2018, it was only able to boost flight numbers 0.2% because of a shortage of slots.

An airplane prepares to land at Cointrin airport in Geneva. A trade war is not good news for the global economy and certainly not for the air transport industry, which now sees a trans-Atlantic subsidy dispute between two key markets — the US and European Union, deepening.

Passenger aircraft sit parked at London Heathrow airport. Europe’s busiest airport overcame an attempt by environmental groups to block construction of a third runway that it says is needed to boost flights and compete with rival hubs trying to steal its traff ic.

Qantas boss Alan Joyce commits to three more years at helmReutersSingapore

Qantas Airways CEO Alan Joyce has agreed to stay in his role for at least three more years, in a move that could allow him to oversee the airline’s launch of the world’s longest ever commercial flights between Sydney and London.The commitment from Joyce, 52, who has led the carrier since November 2008 and overseen a major financial turnaround, came as the airline announced changes in the roles of his direct reports, laying the groundwork for a potential internal successor.“What I’ve always said about my tenure is that I’ll stay for as long as the board and the shareholders want me and as long as I’m enjoying the job and feel I have more I can give to it,” Joyce said yesterday, after The Sydney Morning Herald reported his decision to stay on at the helm.“Qantas is an amazing company,” he said in a statement.“We celebrate 100 years next year and I’m really excited for what’s in the pipeline over the next few years.”Qantas hopes to order

jets capable of flying non-stop from Sydney to London later this year in preparation for flights in the year 2022 if it can gain approvals from pilots and Australia’s aviation regulator for the record-long journeys, Reuters reported yesterday.The airline, which has always promoted internal candidates to the CEO role, on Wednesday announced chief financial officer Tino La Spina would head its international business from October 1, replacing Alison Webster who resigned last month.The current chief customer officer, Vanessa Hudson, will replace La Spina.Jetstar Group CEO Gareth Evans, considered by analysts and investors as a favourite to replace Joyce, will remain in his current role heading the airline’s budget division.Qantas in February reported a 19% drop in first-half underlying profit before tax to A$780mn ($550mn) due to higher fuel prices, but said it expected a stronger second half based on solid forward bookings.The airline’s shares have fallen 1.6% since January.

BUSINESSThursday, May 2, 2019

GULF TIMES

Al-Attiyah International Energy Awards presented at gala event

Qatar’s ambassador to Italy Abdulaziz bin Ahmed al-Malki was selected as the 2019 winner of the Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Energy Award for Lifetime Achievement for the ‘Advancement of the Qatar Energy Industry’ presented at a gala awards dinner at Sheraton Grand Doha last night. Al-Malki was one of seven distinguished individuals recognised for exemplary careers in the energy industry, which also included Dr Mohamed Hamad al-Rumhy, Oman’s Minister of Oil and Gas, who was awarded for the ‘Advancement of Producer-Consumer Dialogue,’ and Dr Zhengrong Shi, founder of Suntech Power, selected for the ‘Advancement of Renewable Energy’. The foundation’s annual honorary award for Advancement of International Energy Policy and Diplomacy was given to Fu Chengyu, former chairman of the Sinopec Group. The Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Energy Awards are the foremost honour to recognise individuals for their lifetime achievements in the global energy industry. This year’s awards were supported by Qatar Petroleum, ExxonMobil, Shell, North Oil Company, Dolphin Energy, Qatar Airways and Total. Other winners of the 2019 Award were Kenneth B Medlock III, senior director at the Center for Energy Studies at the Baker Institute, who received the accolade for ‘Advancement of Education for Future Energy Leaders’ and Diane Munro, editor-in-chief at Argus Media, recognised for ‘Advancement of International Energy Journalism’. A new category introduced by the Foundation this year – for the ‘Advancement of Gas Exporting Countries Forum’ was awarded to GECF secretary-general, Dr Yury Sentyurin. Gulf Times was a media partner of the event. PICTURES: Noushad Thekkayil