The Egyptian stock exchange generated better returns than any other regional bourse in 2014 as the economy entered a new phase of growth spurred by aid from the Arabian Gulf.
Most Middle East stock markets collapsed in December amid a plunge in crude oil, but Egypt is a net oil importer and is set to benefit from the lower prices.
The most populous Arab nation is also on the cusp of an economic comeback. Following years of dismal growth amid political chaos in which the country has had two presidents in as many years, it is now on the path to recovery with the IMF forecasting 3.5 per cent GDP growth next year from 2.2 per cent this year.
Since being elected in May, the president, Abdel Fattah El Sisi, has started to take steps to reduce state expenditure by cutting energy subsidies – huge discounts on petroleum products that have weighed down the government’s finances for decades.
All this has cheered investors who helped boost the value of the EGX30 index by 32 per cent this year. That makes it not only the best performer in the Middle East but the fourth-best performer in the world after indexes in China, Venezuela and Pakistan. But elsewhere in the region, volatility erased many of the gains seen earlier in the year as oil dropped by almost half, heading for its biggest decline since 2008.
“2015 will be the actual implementation of economic reforms in Egypt, the actual announcements by companies investing in the country, when we start to see some of the unemployment numbers come down, and then the economic summit that is due to take place in March,” said Sherif Salem, a portfolio manager at Invest AD, an Abu Dhabi-based asset manager, referring to an investment conference during which it is expected foreign investment will be pledged.
“Providing that everything goes well with the economic changes and improvements, I think we should see a positive return in 2015,” he added.
Elsewhere in the region, the big bourses of the Gulf may have started the year with a bang but they pared those gains as the plummeting value of oil took its toll on the price of listed companies across the region.
The QE Index in Qatar led the gainers in the Gulf, rising 18 per cent. Bahrain followed with 14 per cent. The Dubai Financial Market finished 12 per cent higher, while the Abu Dhabi measure rose 5.5 per cent. However, Saudi Arabia, with the biggest market capitalisation in the Gulf, finished 2.4 per cent lower over the year.
Despite the sharp drops in December, many investors have not written off the region’s prospects.
“I think the UAE has the fiscal buffers, they have accumulated reserves, done the right things in the good days to be weathering this decline in oil revenues quite well,” said John Sfakianakis, the Riyadh-based director for the GCC at Ashmore Group, an emerging market asset manager headquartered in London.
Among the UAE’s listed companies on MSCI’s emerging markets index, the construction company Arabtec stood out as the big stock story of 2014. Markets were sent into free fall when fund managers and retail investors were left in the dark over June following the resignation of Arabtec’s chief executive Hasan Ismaik, and Aabar subsequently boosted its stake in the builder.
Despite the controversy that surrounded the lack of disclosure over the sale of the stake, the stock still returned a gain of almost 43 per cent for the year – the best of the nine UAE companies in the index. That is even after the company’s stock rose as high as Dh7.74 before closing the year at Dh2.93.
Insurers, however, did not fare that well as increased competition among them hurt profit margins, with seven insurers dropping heavily in 2014. The declines for insurers were led by Takaful House and Islamic Arab Insurance in Dubai, which fell 52 per cent and 43 per cent, respectively.
mkassem@thenational.ae
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
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
Last 10 NBA champions
2017: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-1
2016: Cleveland bt Golden State 4-3
2015: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-2
2014: San Antonio bt Miami 4-1
2013: Miami bt San Antonio 4-3
2012: Miami bt Oklahoma City 4-1
2011: Dallas bt Miami 4-2
2010: Los Angeles Lakers bt Boston 4-3
2009: Los Angeles Lakers bt Orlando 4-1
2008: Boston bt Los Angeles Lakers 4-2
if you go
The flights
Air France offer flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Cayenne, connecting in Paris from Dh7,300.
The tour
Cox & Kings (coxandkings.com) has a 14-night Hidden Guianas tour of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. It includes accommodation, domestic flights, transfers, a local tour manager and guided sightseeing. Contact for price.
Where to Find Me by Alba Arikha
Alma Books
Petrarch: Everywhere a Wanderer
Christopher Celenza,
Reaktion Books
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sav%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Purvi%20Munot%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24750%2C000%20as%20of%20March%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital
Which products are to be taxed?
To be taxed:
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
Products excluded from the ‘sweetened drink’ category would contain at least 75 per cent milk in a ready-to-drink form or as a milk substitute, baby formula, follow-up formula or baby food, beverages consumed for medicinal use and special dietary needs determined as per GCC Standardisation Organisation rules
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Scorebox
Dubai Hurricanes 31 Dubai Sports City Eagles 22
Hurricanes
Tries: Finck, Powell, Jordan, Roderick, Heathcote
Cons: Tredray 2, Powell
Eagles
Tries: O’Driscoll 2, Ives
Cons: Carey 2
Pens: Carey
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 1 (Fernandes pen 2') Tottenham Hotspur 6 (Ndombele 4', Son 7' & 37' Kane (30' & pen 79, Aurier 51')
Man of the match Son Heung-min (Tottenham)
