Fitch Ratings said it had a negative outlook for the Gulf Co-operation Council in 2018 amid heightened geopolitical risks and the inability of some oil exporters to adjust the new oil price reality.
"Budget deficits will persist across the GCC and will stay in double digits in Bahrain and Oman, despite the price recovery," Fitch said.
"For the majority of sovereigns, fiscal break-even oil prices are still considerably above current or expected actual oil prices. This is resulting in worsening sovereign debt and external asset ratios."
The rating agency said that it expects that GCC countries will sell US$110 billion of debt in local and foreign markets in and will draw down about $50bn from wealth funds and external reserves in 2018.
Three of 13 Middle East and North Africa sovereigns are on a negative outlook at Fitch and none are on a positive one.
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Read More:
Arabian Gulf states to tap debt markets, drawdown funds to the tune of $160bn in 2018, Fitch says
Bahrain forecasts 3.1% growth for 2017, yet debt challenges remain
Low oil price has taught GCC states fiscal prudence
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The rating agency said that the GCC had lost some of its reputation for stability in a conflict riven-region. Fitch said it didn't expect a quick resolution to the dispute some Gulf nations have with Qatar.
While Fitch said it expected growth of 4 per cent to 5 per cent in Egypt and Ras Al Khaimah and 3 per cent in Morocco, it forecasts growth elsewhere to be closer to 2 per cent.
Separately, Sami Al Qamzi, director general of Dubai Economy, was cited in the official news agency WAM as saying that he expected the emirate's economy to grow 3.2 per cent this year, 3.5 per cent in 2018 and 3.7 per cent in 2019.
About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Where to buy art books in the UAE
There are a number of speciality art bookshops in the UAE.
In Dubai, The Lighthouse at Dubai Design District has a wonderfully curated selection of art and design books. Alserkal Avenue runs a pop-up shop at their A4 space, and host the art-book fair Fully Booked during Art Week in March. The Third Line, also in Alserkal Avenue, has a strong book-publishing arm and sells copies at its gallery. Kinokuniya, at Dubai Mall, has some good offerings within its broad selection, and you never know what you will find at the House of Prose in Jumeirah. Finally, all of Gulf Photo Plus’s photo books are available for sale at their show.
In Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi has a beautiful selection of catalogues and art books, and Magrudy’s – across the Emirates, but particularly at their NYU Abu Dhabi site – has a great selection in art, fiction and cultural theory.
In Sharjah, the Sharjah Art Museum sells catalogues and art books at its museum shop, and the Sharjah Art Foundation has a bookshop that offers reads on art, theory and cultural history.
Small Victories: The True Story of Faith No More by Adrian Harte
Jawbone Press
Ad Astra
Director: James Gray
Stars: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones
Five out of five stars
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
