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Dubai is top choice for international retailers - Retail - ArabianBusiness.com

Dubai is now the most sought after location for expansion for international big name retailers, alongside London, real estate analysts CB Richard Ellis said on Monday. CBRE's annual survey - which mapped the global footprint of 323 of the world's top retailers across 73 countries - found that Middle East markets were attracting an increasing number of big name retailers and are competing with established global retail centres.

Kuwait impasse blocks $111bn proposal, banker says - Politics & Economics - ArabianBusiness.com

Kuwait’s political turmoil and prevailing tension between the executive branch and legislators is thwarting the implementation of the country’s KD30.8bn ($111bn) development plan, said Hamad al-Marzouq, chairman of the Kuwait Banking Association.

Jazeera Airways expected to fly to Cairo in May - ArabianBusiness.com

Kuwait's low-cost carrier Jazeera Airways is expected to start flights to Egypt's capital in May and post a profit this year, the firm's chairman said.

Egypt freezes Saudi Arabian farm land deal

A decision by the Egyptian public prosecution to freeze a major agricultural deal from the Saudi Arabian group Kingdom Holding has put in stark relief the political risks of investing in the country after the revolution in which its president Hosni Mubarak was ousted. The deal involved the 1998 purchase of 100,000 feddans (42,000 hectares) of land in the Toshka area of Egypt that Kingdom Agricultural Development Company (Kadco) said would be developed into a vast agricultural project. The first two phases would involve investments of 650 million Egyptian pounds (Dh401.5m), the company said in 2007. It did not disclose the amount it paid for the land.

Saudi Arabia and China sign nuclear cooperation agreement

Saudi Arabia on Monday announced its plan to sign a nuclear cooperation agreement with China. The Cabinet said it has authorized Hashim Yamani, president of the King Abdullah City for Nuclear and Renewable Energy, to hold talks with Chinese officials to reach a deal for peaceful use of atomic energy. The new move comes after the Kingdom signed its first ever nuclear treaty with France in February. Yamani, who signed that agreement, said it would pave the way for the Kingdom's long-term plans to build power stations utilizing alternative energy sources to produce electricity and water.

Laser gun fired from US navy ship - BBC

The US Navy has fired a laser gun from one of its ships for the first time. Researchers used the high-energy laser (HEL) to disable a boat by setting fire to its engines off the coast of California. Similar systems had previously been tested on land, however moist sea air presented an extra challenge as it reduces a beam's power. The navy said that ship-borne lasers could eventually be used to protect vessels from small attack boats.

KISR signs contract for setting up water research center » Kuwait Times Website

He added such development effort will lead to building new commercial seawater desalination units of distinctive technical and economic efficiency in what contributes to increasing output, reducing costs, and securing the sustainability of water resources. KISR will open the door wide, through this center, before investing in water field along with developing water desalination systems and processing, he said, adding that the new center will be a point of attraction for world thinktanks and international institutes that share KISR its interest in the R and D field and technology transfer through a specialized scientific administration adopting updated awareness programs. 

Superbus set to go on trial in Abu Dhabi - Transport - ArabianBusiness.com

A superbus, capable of carrying 23 passengers at speeds of up to 250km per hour is to undergo tests in Abu Dhabi. The Superbus concept, which could cut the travel time between Abu Dhabi and Dubai to just 30 minutes, will be trialled by Abu Dhabi Department of Transport. The test drive will take place after the first prototype version of the Superbus makes its Middle East debut in Dubai at the UITP Mobility and City Transport Expo, starting on April 11. The electric-powered cross-over between a bus and a limousine is being presented to UAE Government authorities as the future of public transportation for business commuters and tourists. 

7,000 stage hunger strike in Israeli jail - Arab News

RAMALLAH: The Palestinian Minister of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Issa Qaraqi on Thursday said that around 7,000 Palestinian prisoners launched a one-day hunger strike to protest the Israeli Prison Service’s (IPS) treatment of them and their families. Qaraqi said the prisoners in all prisons and detention camps in Israel and West Bank began the strike against the “deliberate violation of their basic rights by the IPS.” He added that the IPS is barring Palestinian prisoners, and mainly those in solitary confinement, from family visits, access to education, telephones and satellite channels. The prison authority, the minister said, blocks the entry of clothes into prisons and imposes financial fines on prisoners. 

Kuwait cleans up its markets - Financial Times

Kuwait’s stock market may be one of the oldest and largest in the Arab world, but has long been synonymous with rampant market abuses such as insider trading and pump-and-dump trading by powerful merchant investors. That may be about to change. Spurred on by the financial crisis, which caused the exchange to shed almost two-thirds of its market capitalisation, Kuwait last year introduced a new regulatory framework, and this year established a dedicated Capital Markets Authority to enforce the new rulebook. 

Twitter Now a Source for Bernie Madoff-ish Investment Returns | Fast Company

Sprenger's analysis revealed a "striking co-ordination" between consensus opinions and news information disseminated over Twitter and conclusions and advice on stock prices made by professional analysts and institutions. In fact, by savvy use of Twitter-sourced company news and details of sales or purchases of stock by other investors, Sprenger calculated that during the six month period of his study an investor could have made a comfortable return of 15%. Not only is that remarkable, it's a figure that easily beats interest gained from almost any bank over the same period, and which may have high-paid analysts scratching their heads over their own average return rate. 

Gulf airlines could enter Saudi domestic market - Transport - ArabianBusiness.com

An advisory council in Saudi Arabia has called for a study on allowing Gulf airlines to fly domestic routes in the biggest Arab economy as the national carrier struggles to meet demand, a spokesman said. "The Shoura Council (recommended) a study on allowing some Gulf airline carriers to operate within the kingdom," Mohammed Almohanna, a council spokesman, told Reuters by telephone on Tuesday.