Qatar Insurance Company (QIC), the leading risk cover provider in Qatar and the Middle East and North Africa region, has registered a 14% year-on-year growth in gross written premiums to QR6.24bn in the first half (H1) of this year.

Qatar Chamber will organise a business trip to Izmir on August 3 and 4 in response to an invitation from Turkey’s Ministry and Economy and the Turkish Exporters Assembly, it was announced yesterday.

Firming up oil prices benefit local lenders

Qatar Industrial Manufacturing Company (QIMC) has reported a 16.6% year-on-year increase in net profit to QR113.43mn in the first six months of this year.

Qatar abandoning the US dollar peg is “highly unlikely”, NBK Economic Research noted, and said the “authorities are steadfast in their commitment to the peg with more than enough resources to defend it.”

The rapid development of new and innovative financial technologies will clearly have a disruptive impact on Islamic finance in the foreseeable future since they, among many other things, also open completely new avenues for participation banking for investors.

Kuwait Finance House, the Gulf’s 10th-largest lender, is considering expanding into China and Egypt as the region’s banking sector nears saturation, its chief executive officer said.

General Motors Co yesterday reported a better-than-expected quarterly net profit, helped by cost cuts, and promised to cut production in the second half to curtail its burgeoning US inventory of unsold vehicles.

Europe’s main stock markets rose yesterday, with miners boosted by high copper prices and as investors welcomed Greece’s return to international debt markets, dealers said.

Royal Dutch Shell and SoftBank are among several global groups considering bidding for Equis Energy, Asia’s largest independent renewable energy producer valued at up to $5bn, sources familiar with the matter said.

Saudi Arabia wants to do more to boost crude oil prices by taking a razor to its exports, but the kingdom is already doing much of the heavy lifting in Asia, where it is surrendering market share in the world’s top importing region.

Indonesia needs about $500bn over the next five years to build roads, ports and bridges and should remove hurdles to encourage greater private sector investment, World Bank president Jim Yong Kim said.