Middle East

Riyadh, Sept 10: A third of middle-market Saudi businesses expect to grow by at least 10 percent this year and more than half will hire extra full-time staff, a new survey suggests. Saudi companies are significantly more optimistic about revenue growth than they were last year, according to the EY Growth Barometer, an annual survey of entrepreneurs’ and business leaders’ growth strategies produced

Dubai, Sept 9: As many as 20 products have been withdrawn from the local market during the last 8 months, announced the Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology as reported by Emarat Al Youm on Sunday. The withdrawn items include electronics, baby toys, drinking water, and cosmetics and personal care products, said Yousuf Al Saadi, director of technical legislations department. He

Abu Dhabi, Sep 8: The Philippine government will soon make an announcement on the decision of lifting the ban for recruiting new domestic workers in the UAE, according to the Philippine Ambassador to the UAE. Speaking to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of the Filipino Community Leadership Summit 2018 in Abu Dhabi on Friday, Hjayceelyn M. Quintana, the Philippine Ambassador to the UAE, said a

Dubai, Sept 6: A non-resident Indian sales executive of a prominent jewellery group died after falling from the rooftop of his residential building in Muhaisnah when he went to get sunlight due to vitamin D deficiency, a manager of the company said. Shafeer Abdul Salam, 32, who hailed from the south Indian state of Kerala, died on Sunday afternoon and his body was flown home on Tuesday night after

Saudi Arabia will punish online satire that "disrupts public order" with up to five years in prison, the public prosecutor said on Tuesday. "Producing and distributing content that ridicules, mocks, provokes and disrupts public order, religious values and public morals through social media ... will be considered a cybercrime punishable by a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of three

Damascus, Sep 5: Syrian air defence systems on Tuesday intercepted five missiles fired by Israeli fighter jets targeting various military sites in the Tartus and Hama provinces. A military source said that the jets entered Syrian airspace via Lebanon's capital city of Beirut, adding that the country's air defences downed five missiles and scrambled the hostile jets, reported the Syrian Arab News

Abu Dhabi, Sept 4: Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) said it is in early merger talks with Union National Bank and Al Hilal Bank, which could potentially form a lender with $113 billion (Dh 414.71 billion) in assets. Abu Dhabi has been revamping its economy and pressing ahead with consolidating state-owned entities after two years of low oil prices weighed heavily on its revenues. Two of Abu Dhabi

Jeddah, Sept 3: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture issued a temporary ban on importing living birds, hatching eggs and chicks from Malaysia. Head of the General Livestock Risk Assessment Department, Sanad Al-Harby, said the measure is to follow up on the state of veterinary health in countries around the world. The measure is also intended to study the warning letter

Damascus, Sept 2: The Syrian Army on Sunday said that the explosions at munitions dump in Mezzeh air base earlier in the day were caused by a short circuit, and not an Israeli missile attack targeted at the airbase situated in the west of Damascus. The statement from the army came after two explosions were heard at the airbase, China's state-run news agency, Xinhua, reported. Scores of activists

Riyadh, Sept 1: A Saudi official hinted Friday the kingdom was moving forward with a plan to dig a canal that would turn the neighbouring Qatari peninsula into an island, amid a diplomatic feud between the Gulf nations. "I am impatiently waiting for details on the implementation of the Salwa island project, a great, historic project that will change the geography of the region," Saud al-Qahtani, a