Apicorp's headquarters in Al Khobar in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. The lender was established in 1975. Photo: Apicorp
Apicorp's headquarters in Al Khobar in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. The lender was established in 1975. Photo: Apicorp
Apicorp's headquarters in Al Khobar in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. The lender was established in 1975. Photo: Apicorp
Apicorp's headquarters in Al Khobar in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. The lender was established in 1975. Photo: Apicorp

Apicorp reports highest first-half profit yet as interest rates rise


Fareed Rahman
  • English
  • Arabic

The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation, a multilateral lender focused on the energy sector, reported its highest first-half profit yet while operating income grew as interest rates rose.

Apicorp’s total comprehensive income in the six months to the end of June rose by 87 per cent year-on-year to $108.7 million, the company said on Tuesday.

Net operating income increased 32 per cent annually to $129 million on “operations efficiencies, rising interest rate environment, and funding optimisation”, it said.

Total assets during the period grew by 10.3 per cent as a result of $600 million worth of long-term external funding taken in the first quarter of 2023 to replace aged borrowings in the fourth quarter of 2022.

“The first six months of the year saw Apicorp continue to strengthen its financial position with record results and notable achievements at the corporate and business unit levels,” Aabed Al Saadoun, undersecretary for oil and gas affairs at Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Energy and chairman of Apicorp, said.

“We look forward to continuing this robust momentum with more meaningful impact-driven investments which support the energy transition agenda of our member countries and the broader Mena region.”

Apicorp is owned by 10 members of the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries – Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Libya, Iraq, Qatar, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt and Syria.

The multilateral lender was established in 1975 to extend financial support to Arab countries in the energy sector.

Apicorp’s investment portfolio increased to $1.3 billion for the January-June period, from $1.2 billion, with the successful exit from Ashtead Technology “recording better-than-expected capital gains”, it said.

In July, Apicorp said it completed the sale of its equity investment in Ashtead, a provider of technologically-advanced subsea solutions, tools and systems to the construction and maintenance of offshore energy infrastructure. It made the investment in the company in 2016 along with UK-based private equity firm, Buckthorn Partners.

The lender's corporate banking portfolio grew 5 per cent year-on-year to $4.3 billion and net interest income rose 10 per cent to $45.9 million, benefitting from a favourable interest rate environment, it said.

Interest rates continued to climb globally as central banks raised interest rates to tame inflation, boosting the profit margin of lenders.

Apicorp’s treasury and capital markets portfolio increased by $1 billion annually to reach $3.9 billion, recording a net income of $11.9 million.

“Taking advantage of the favourable interest environment, we continued to optimise our business structure, operations, and expand our range of innovative impact-driven financial and investment solutions,” Khalid Al Ruwaigh, chief executive of Apicorp, said.

“Not only do we carefully observe the short-term results, but also we plan for the future of Apicorp, hence we have finalised our five-year corporate strategy and launched the rebranding exercise.

“In doing so, we strive to further cement our legacy as a leading enabler of a secure and sustainable energy future for the region.”

The%20specs
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Muguruza's singles career in stats

WTA titles 3

Prize money US$11,128,219 (Dh40,873,133.82)

Wins / losses 293 / 149

57%20Seconds
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Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser

Rating: 4.5/5

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The specs

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Power: Combined output 920hp

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Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic

Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km

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Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000

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Director: Mahdi Fleifel

Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa

Rating: 4.5/5

How to become a Boglehead

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•   Choose the right level of risk. Don't gamble by investing in get-rich-quick schemes or high-risk plays. Don't play it too safe, either, by leaving long-term savings in cash.

•   Diversify. Do not keep all your eggs in one basket. Spread your money between different companies, sectors, markets and asset classes such as bonds and property.

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•   Forget timing the market. Nobody knows where share prices will go next, so don't try to second-guess them.

•   Stick with it. Do not sell up in a market crash. Use the opportunity to invest more at the lower price.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Brief scoreline:

Liverpool 5

Keita 1', Mane 23', 66', Salah 45' 1, 83'

Huddersfield 0

The story in numbers

18

This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens

450,000

More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps

1.5 million

There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m

73

The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association

18,000

The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme

77,400

The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study

4,926

This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Always use only regulated platforms

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Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

FIXTURES

Fixtures for Round 15 (all times UAE)

Friday
Inter Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)
Saturday
Atalanta v Verona (6pm)
Udinese v Napoli (9pm)
Lazio v Juventus (11.45pm)
Sunday
Lecce v Genoa (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Cagliari (6pm)
SPAL v Brescia (6pm)
Torino v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Parma (9pm)
Bologna v AC Milan (11.45pm)

The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
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Ms Danial is a finance coach and former currency analyst who writes for Nasdaq. Her broad-strokes primer (2019) breaks down investing in cryptocurrency into baby steps, while explaining the terms and technologies involved.

Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this  book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.

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ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures

October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What the law says

Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.

“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.

“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”

If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.

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Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.

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Fuel economy, combined: 10.6L / 100km

Updated: September 05, 2023, 10:35 AM`