Bahraini.TV

Bahrain: Strength in Diversity

Bahrain appears to have finished 2009 in better shape than many could have foreseen at the beginning of the year, and will be looking to 2010 with a confidence garnered from the solid performance of the country’s economy under pressure. There had been fears that Bahrain would be hard hit by the global crisis, especially [...]

Bahrain plans $2.65bn city

A company will be hired in the next few days to map out the BD1 billion ($2.65 billion) redevelopment of the Manama Central Market area into a city within a city.
The Manama Municipality and Municipal Council have already selected the company out of two bidders in the summer, but were not totally pleased with the [...]

Jazeera Airways cuts routes to lower costs

Kuwaiti low-cost carrier Jazeera Airways said on Wednesday it was cutting services on certain routes to weather difficult times with no improvement in sight next year.
The airline, which flies to 23 destinations, said it would stop flying regularly from Kuwait to the Egyptian Red Sea city of Hurghada, cancel its Mumbai route and delay earlier [...]

Bahrain’s ABC bank plans $1.1 bln capital increase

Bahrain-based Arab Banking Corporation ABCB.BH (ABC) said on Wednesday it plans to increase its capital by $1.11 billion to finance its Middle Eastern growth strategy and make acquisitions.
It said the capital injection from its existing shareholders would bring its capital to $3.11 billion.
“Expansion by way of an acquisition is also not excluded, as and when [...]

UAE-Bahraini joint committee meeting concluded

The UAE-Bahrain joint committee’s 6th meeting concluded today as UAE side was led by Foreign Minister H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, while his Bahraini counterpart H.E. Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa led his country’s side.
In the meeting’s concluding speech, Sheikh Abdullah affirmed the two countries’ willingness to step up cooperation [...]

Faisal private bank chief executive resigns

Faisal Private Bank’s Chief Executive Marco Rochat has resigned, effective from the end of 2009, a spokeswoman for the Geneva-based subsidiary of Bahrain-listed Ithmaar Bank ITHMR.BH said on Monday.
The resignation comes just days after news of problems with Faisal’s real estate portfolio which had led the bank to ask clients for cash injections or risk [...]

GCC states closer to achieving one currency

Gulf Arab oil exporters will move closer to a unified currency when their rulers meet on Monday in Kuwait, which promised to seek the return of the United Arab Emirates and Oman to the monetary union plan.
The UAE, the second largest Arab economy, dealt a serious blow to the union by pulling out in May [...]

Bahrain Gulf Air to shift to narrow-body planes

Carrier has up to 20 Boeings, 35 Airbus planes on order
Cannot say how many orders will be confirmed
To focus on shorter Middle East routes
Will cancel 15 routes, open 20 others

Bahrain’s state-owned carrier Gulf Air [GULF.UL] plans to shift its order book from wide-body to narrow-body planes and regional jets as it realigns its network to [...]

$25bn railway deal tomorrow

Qatar is set to sign a deal worth a whopping $25bn for an integrated railway project with German rail and logistics giant, Deutsche Bahn tomorrow.
The signing ceremony will be held at the Qatari headquarters. Wire agencies reporting from Germany said quoting the online edition of a newspaper Handelsblatt, that the two sides hope to sign [...]

Delays and lack of transparency holding back investors in Bahrain commercial property market

There are significant opportunities for investors in Bahrain’s commercial real estate sector, but the market is being held back by construction delays and problems with traffic access, according to a new report.
The building of the causeway between Bahrain and Qatar will link the two wealthiest nations in the Gulf region with Bahrain sandwiched in the [...]

Travails test Alba’s mettle

It has been a tough year for Alba. The 40-year-old Bahraini aluminium producer has endured a long corruption inquiry, a change of management, an extensive restructuring, job losses and whisperings of a possible privatisation.
Add to this the halving of aluminium prices in the past 12 months and the construction of at least four new smelters [...]

Cayman court freezes $9.2bn of Saad assets

A Cayman Islands court has frozen $9.2 billion of assets belonging to Saad Group, the Saudi Arabian investment firm at the centre of a financial storm, including some of its equity stakes outside the Gulf.
The ruling followed a complaint filed by Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers Company (AHAB), which is locked in a legal tussle [...]

Saudi Arabia’s Algosaibi Said to Owe $9.2 Billion to Banks

Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Brothers Co., the Saudi family holding company whose Bahraini bank has defaulted, owes 34.6 billion Saudi riyals ($9.2 billion) to more than 100 banks, two people familiar with the situation said.
The Algosaibi group held a meeting with creditors in Bahrain June 24 to ask for a grace period of 90 days [...]

Gulf best region in world to get rich

Gulf states are some of the most economically attractive destinations in the world to live, with four states ranked among the top 10 in a survey by HSBC published on Wednesday.
The survey asked 3,100 people worldwide about their salary, how it had improved on what they were paid in their home country, as well as [...]

Present Strength, Future Directions

Bahrain’s tourism industry looks set to consolidate its already strong position at the heart of the Kingdom’s economy, though there is some debate as to what direction the sector should take.
According to the latest study by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the sector will contribute around $1.7bn to Bahrain’s economy this year, representing [...]