ByDNB-ADMIN
Sunday, 15 January 2017
Published inJanuary 2017

Back

Hello,

CRIF – Dun & Bradstreet is pleased to bring to you the latest edition of our newsletter ‘CRIF Gulf Insights’ (CGI). CGI will keep you informed about the current trends in the GCC markets and highlight key events in the regional and global economy.

We look forward to your feedback at [email protected]

Happy Reading!

Best Regards,
CRIF Dun & Bradstreet Communications Team

Crif Gulf Insights 15.01.2017

CGI | Issue 52 | January 2017

Country Risk Update – Oman

Oman’s income and wealth are dependent on oil, the proceeds of which are invested heavily in infrastructure. The economy is weakening, although business performance is holding up. Growth will remain slow in the outlook period due to the drop in oil revenues. The government might have to raise greater levels of debt and reduce subsidies in order to ease pressure on the public accounts. The banking sector will function adequately, although liquidity is starting to tighten as deposits slow and government borrowing continues apace. Although the growth rate of household borrowing has been steadily slowing over the last few years, business borrowing has now picked up.

Business, Finance and Commodity News

Dubai records $70.5bn real estate deals during 2016

The head of Dubai Land Department (DLD) has predicted a rebound for the city’s real estate market this year, signaling an upward trend for sustained growth in the run-up to Expo 2020. He revealed in an annual report for 2016 that total real estate transactions in Dubai exceeded AED259 billion ($70.5 billion).
This was marginally down on the AED267 billion worth of deals seen in 2015 from a total of 63,719 transactions.

Dubai’s DIFC launches plan for MidEast’s first FinTech accelerator

Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Accenture, a global professional services company, has announced plans for the Middle East’s first FinTech accelerator.
Set to launch later in the first quarter of 2017, FinTech Hive at DIFC will bring cutting-edge financial services technology to the regional markets, while providing a platform that brings financial and technology firms together.

Qatar inflation rate falls to 2016 low in December

Qatar’s inflation rate fell to 1.8 percent in December, the lowest mark in 2016. Qatar’s Statistics Authority released the December consumer price data, showing the inflation rate fell from 2 percent in November and from 2.7 percent in December 2015. The figures showed that housing and utility costs rose 1.1 percent from a year earlier while food and beverage costs, which account for nearly 13 percent, sank 3.2 percent

Oman 2017 budget projects smaller deficit as govt plans tax hikes

Oman’s government released a 2017 budget plan that projected a smaller deficit but included fresh austerity steps and tight curbs on spending because of low oil prices, which are hurting state revenues. Government spending this year is projected to total OMR11.7bn ($30.4bn) and revenues OMR8.7bn, which would result in a deficit of OMR3bn, compared to government’s original 2016 budget plan of OMR11.9bn in spending, OMR8.6bn in revenues and a OMR3.3bn deficit.

Commodity Tracker

D&B Article of the Week

Infographic: The 2016 State of Enterprise Analytics

It’s a question more and more organizations are asking themselves as they struggle to transform their data into actionable insights in order to drive growth. And while businesses of all shapes and sizes inspire to be analytically driven, most are not sure what that looks like. We surveyed over 100 business leaders to understand the state of analytics maturity across today’s leading organizations and uncover some of the common challenges teams are facing in their quest to use data and analytics to deliver a competitive advantage.

CRIF Highlights

CRIF in the 2016 FinTech Forward Top 100 ranking
American Banker BAI ranked CRIF in its prestigious FinTech Forward Top 100 ranking of solution providers that derive more than one-third of their revenue from financial institutions.
This Top 100 ranking, which is based on 2015 revenues of hardware, software and IT services to financial institutions at worldwide level, provide validation for vendors in a highly competitive and regulated marketplace as well as highlight influencers that are shaping the industry.

Data Improvements in the Moroccan Market

Whether you need financial information, telephone numbers for a marketing campaign or principals and shareholder in order to assure compliance – we are able to deliver the right data elements! Due to important increase in demand for Financial Statements, Shareholders, Email Addresses and URLs, we are now able to provide you with principals for around 250,000 companies and Telephone Numbers from over 45,000 companies!

Upcoming Events this Week

ACFE Fraud Conference Middle East 2017
Jan 29 – Jan 31
Atlantis, The Palm

Arab Health 2017
Jan 30 – Feb 02
Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre

Reading Recommendation of the Week

Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations

In Thank You for Being Late, Thomas L. Friedman exposes the tectonic movements that are reshaping the world today and explains how to get the most out of them and cushion their worst impacts. How you understand the news, the work you do, the investments your employer has to make, and the moral and geopolitical choices countries have to navigate will all be refashioned by his original analysis.

Release Date:
November 22, 2016