Qatar Telecom's
bond yields are set for the steepest monthly advance in almost two years as acquisitions by the Middle East's second-largest phone company by revenue erode its cash holdings.
The yield on the state-run company's 2016 bonds, which are rated at Moody's Investors Service's sixth-highest investment grade of A2, has risen 20 basis points this month and is headed for the biggest gain since February last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
That contrasts with little change for the HSBC/Nasdaq Dubai's Middle East Investment Grade US Dollar Sukuk/Bond Index.
Qatar Telecom, or Qtel, has spent US$3.27 billion this year boosting its stakes in mobile phone operators in Kuwait and Iraq.
Moody's said in June that investment in Kuwait's National Mobile Telecommunications Company, known as Wataniya, would "reduce Qtel's liquidity headroom" and was "credit negative".
The Qatari company is now looking "very closely" at Morocco, where a majority stake that France's Vivendi holds in Maroc Telecom "might be in play", Qtel's chief strategy officer Jeremy Sell said last month.
"Although the acquisition-related discussions are still in early stages, if the deal goes through, Qtel's cash cushion and finances would come under severe pressure," said Hemant Dharnidharka, the head of credit research at SJS Markets in Bangalore.
Qtel, the region's second-largest phone business after Saudi Telecom, posted a 31 per cent drop in cash and near cash items to 16.4 billion riyals in the third quarter, the first annual decline for the three-month period since at least 2005, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
The telecoms company has $4.36bn of bonds and loans due in the next three years, the data shows.
The Doha-based company's 3.375 per cent notes due in October 2016 yielded 2.16 per cent yesterday, compared with 3.1 per cent on Tuesday for regional investment-grade debt.
Qtel benefits from its links to the Qatari government, which together with related state entities owns 69 per cent of the company.
Bio:
Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour
Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people
Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite food: Fish and vegetables
Favourite place to visit: London
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en