TAG-Org launches support service for Arab start-ups
Joining a growing group of organisations providing support to entrepreneurs in the Middle East region, Jordan-based international business consultancy Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAG-Org), has...
View ArticleTapping the UAE’s digital opportunities
Arabnet, the region’s hub for digital investment and innovation in the UAE, will host the ArabNet Digital Summit 2014 from June 3-5 at Atlantis the Palm, Dubai, to explore the latest opportunities...
View ArticleOSN to launch video streaming service in Middle East
Dubai-based OSN, one of the biggest pay TV operators in the region, will launch a video-on-demand service in the Middle East next week, looking to gain an advantage in a market where online piracy is...
View ArticleInvestors in Myanmar scared off by Buddhist nationalists
Myanmar’s rising Buddhist nationalism is taking an economic turn. Qatar’s Ooredoo, which is scheduled to launch its mobile-phone service in Myanmar this July, has been subject to a growing wave of...
View ArticleYoung UAE women encouraged to embrace ICT careers
Network giant Cisco through its UAE branch saw strong turnout on its annual “Girls in ICT Day” on May 8, with young women learning about innovative technology-related careers of tomorrow. The event is...
View ArticleMiddle East needs SME lending initiatives, says IMF
Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the Middle East and North Africa present a large, untapped market for financial institutions willing to help cover a funding gap estimated at $180...
View ArticleZain supports start-up scene in Jordan
When it comes to supporting entrepreneurship and youth employment in the Middle East and North Africa, Zain Jordan is taking a large step forward. Last fall, Zain announced the establishment of a...
View ArticleSingapore office rents poised to rise fastest in the world this year
A lack of office space could drive up rents at a faster pace in Singapore than anywhere else in the world this year, according to a report from property consultancy JLL. JLL analysts told The Straits...
View ArticleVietnam needs to work on friendly image, says minister
Vietnam must prove to international tourists that the country remains a safe and friendly destination to win back their trust amid this time of falling tourist numbers due to tension in the East...
View ArticleSociete Generale sets up sukuk programme in Malaysia
Societe Generale, France’s third-largest bank by assets, will set up a 1 billion ringgit ($311.3 million) multi-currency sukuk (Islamic bonds) programme in Malaysia, the second conventional bank to do...
View ArticleMyanmar, Cambodia seek investors to build up rice export industry
Two Southeast Asian countries not particularly known for large agricultural exports, Myanmar and Cambodia, have both declared that they want to participate in the global rice business by intensifying...
View ArticleUAE firm plans to build ‘Little Manila’ outlets across the Middle East
Dubai-based Al Ahli Holding Group has revealed plans to open no less than 20 Philippine-themed food and beverage outlets called “Little Manila” across the Middle East and beyond over the next five...
View ArticleThailand’s singing zebra doves can fetch more than $90,000
Among the most creative investment ideas of present days is certainly the zebra dove, a small bird native to Southeast Asia, which has become the center of a lucrative export business from Southern...
View ArticleSlowing remittance growth from Filipino workers cause for concern
Slowing growth of remittances sent by Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to their home country have alerted economists that there might be a sustained weakness in these important cash transfers as long...
View ArticleThailand remains attractive for property buyers despite military rule
Despite its current political and economic troubles, Thailand remains an attractive location for property investors, new data compiled by Global Property Guide, a popular web portal focusing on...
View ArticleFour Thai hotel groups expanding in the Middle East
With tourism on their home turf slowing, four Thai hotel companies are now expanding in the Middle East to tap the high-end hospitality market there. One of Thailand’s largest hotel operators, Centara...
View ArticleAsian, Asia-Pacific carriers dominate list of world’s top 10 airlines
Frequent flyers might be interested to know which the world’s top 10 airlines are in terms of safety, comfort and innovation, as well as the best in selected categories such as “best business class”,...
View ArticleCambodia aims at becoming hub for dental tourism
Being aware that medical tourism is a success story in Southeast Asia, Cambodia has embarked on a particular segment of this business: Dental care. And since a bunch of specialised clinics opened in...
View ArticleIndonesia seeks Mideast tourists and investors, but confines destinations
As part of an overall tourism offensive, Indonesia plans to increase the number of well-spending visitors from the Middle East and, at the same time, invites investors from the Gulf to take part in...
View ArticleFive reasons Middle Easterners are looking to ASEAN
Over the past decade, ties between the Middle East and Southeast Asia have strengthened significantly, which has led to an influx of tourists from the Gulf. By Cooper Philip Temple In 2013, based on a...
View ArticlePhilippines prepares to get hit by “economic bomb” in Middle East
Philippine President Benigno Aquino III held an emergency meeting with cabinet members and officials of the country’s Department of Foreign Affairs on January 6 as concerns mount in Manila over the...
View ArticlePhilippines stops sending workers to Qatar, fearing food riots
The Philippines on June 6 blocked the deployment of new overseas workers to Qatar as the gas-rich Gulf state started grappling with a diplomatic crisis after its neighbours cut ties with Doha. Labour...
View ArticleBrain drain from Southeast Asia growing constraint for economic growth
Young well educated people leaving their home countries in Southeast Asia to pursue a better career in a well-salaried job in richer countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and...
View ArticleVietnam to cooperate with Qatar in food security
Vietnam and Qatar have decided to work closer in the field of food security as the Middle East country is looking for new import sources and food trading partners in the wake of continued tensions with...
View ArticleDuterte: OFW ban could be expanded to other countries
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on February 22 he would extend his ban on sending workers to Kuwait to include other countries if investigations showed Filipinos were being seriously abused...
View ArticlePhilippines, Kuwait draft labour protection agreement, ban remains
The Philippines and Kuwait agreed on a draft migrant labour protection pact March 16, Manila’s labour secretary said, after talks set off by maid abuses, one apparent murder and workers’ suicides in...
View ArticleInterview with Malaysia Prime Minister (Transcript)
Transcript of full interview with Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad Firoz: Our first question is about the “New Malaysia.” You’ve fought very, very hard for this New Malaysia, and there...
View ArticleMalaysian’s don’t want another national car – Dr. M disappointed
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad showed disappointment in a blog post after many Malaysians seem to reject his idea of introducing a new national car besides the existing Proton and Perodua...
View ArticlePhilippines could lose $1.5 billion in remittances from cash-strapped Gulf...
Around 80,000 to 100,000 jobs for Oversea Filipino Workers, or OFWs, among them 30,000 household service workers, could be lost due to the precarious financial situation of Saudi Arabia and other...
View ArticlePhilippines readies to pull out its citizens from Middle East amid growing...
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the military to prepare its air and naval assets to help evacuate Filipinos in the Middle East in case open hostilities between the US and Iran erupt...
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