p22_Layout 1 - Kuwait Times

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2014
BUSINESS
Kuwait credit growth tops $7.7%
NBK ECONOMIC REPORT
KUWAIT: Total credit saw a relatively
large monthly gain in September, though
growth rose to 7.7percent y/y on a KD
418 million net gain in lending. Gains in
September were led by household credit
and lending for the purchase of securities. Money supply (M2) growth dropped
to its slowest pace in over two years, as
M2 shrank in September on declines in
KD time and FX deposits.
Household debt (personal facilities exsecurities) was up a strong KD 138 million, though growth continued to ease to
12.7percent y/y. Adjusting growth for the
Family Fund settlements reveals that the
sector continues to grow at a far healthier
pace, with growth accelerating since the
start of 2014.
Credit to non-bank financials saw its
largest monthly increase in five years as it
gained by KD 57 million. The sector,
which has been deleveraging since 2009,
News
i n
b r i e f
Saudi Oct non-oil
exports drop 12.4%
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s imports fell an annual
6.0 percent in October, while non-oil exports
dropped 12.4 percent, the steepest fall since
August 2012, data from the Central Department
of Statistics and Information showed yesterday.
Non-oil exports account for around 12 percent
of the overall exports of Saudi Arabia. The
world’s largest oil exporter does not release
complete trade data on a monthly basis. Trade
data are often revised by the statistics office.
Percentage changes are Reuters calculations
based on the official data. Analysts polled by
Reuters in September forecast Saudi Arabia’s
current account surplus would be 15.2 percent
of gross domestic product in 2014 and 11.5 percent in 2015.
CBQ names Macdonald
as deputy CEO
DUBAI: Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ), the
Gulf Arab state’s second-largest lender by
assets, has appointed Colin Macdonald as
deputy chief executive, the company said
yesterday. Macdonald has been an advisor to
CBQ’s chief executive since February, according to his LinkedIn profile. He was formerly
CEO of Dubai investment bank Shuaa Capital
and worked for the Netherlands’ ABN Amro
for more than a decade, his profile states.
Dubai Parks and Resorts
IPO oversubscribed
DUBAI: Dubai Parks and Resorts’ 2.5 billion
dirham ($689 million) initial public offer was many
times oversubscribed, the entertainment and
leisure company, which is building a $2.9 billion
amusement park complex in the emirate, said yesterday. The institutional tranche, which comprised
60 percent of the offer, was 65 times oversubscribed at the close, Dubai Parks and Resorts said
in an emailed statement. Interested investors
included sovereign wealth funds Kuwait
Investment Authority and Qatar Investment
Authority, it said. The remaining 40 percent of
shares were reserved for United Arab Emirates
investors and this part was 10 times oversubscribed. The UAE tranche comprised 10 percent
allocated to retail investors, which was 1.63 times
oversubscribed; 25 percent for wealthy individuals and institutions, nearly 14 times oversubscribed; and 5 percent for the UAE government’s
Emirates Investment Authority. Dubai Parks and
Resorts is to list its shares on the Dubai Financial
Market on Wednesday. The company is part of
Meraas Holding, owned by Dubai’s ruler Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum.
has seen credit shrink by 9.2percent y/y.
Deleveraging over the last 12 months has
been less aggressive than prior years.
Growth in non-financial business
credit remained steady at 7.0percent y/y
with a strong gain of KD 223 million,
though most of it stemmed from lending for the purchase of securities.
Securities lending gained by KD 144 million with growth rising to 7.2percent y/y.
Other sources of growth were trade, real
estate and industry, while some weakness came from a decline in the construction sector.
Private deposit growth thus far in
2014 has been largely absent, with
S e p te m b e r f u r t h e r a f f i r m i n g t h i s
trend. As a result, money supply (M2)
growth eased further in September to
4.3percent y/y, its slowest pace in over
two years. Private deposits declined by
KD 187 m i llio n, m o st o f it f ro m a
decline in foreign currency deposits
(KD 138 million).
A big part of the weakness in deposit
growth has come from time deposits,
which are down thus far in 2014.
Historically low interest rates have made
time deposits relatively less attractive.
September further confirmed this trend
with a large KD 481 million drop in KD
time deposits, most of it offset by an
increase in KD sight deposits. Average
customer deposit rates on dinar time
deposits were mostly unchanged. The
average rates on the 1-month, 3-month,
and 6-month time deposits changed by
1 to 2 basis points (bps) to 0.61percent,
0.78percent, 1.01percent. The 12-month
time deposit rate remained unchanged
at 1.21percent. KD interbank rates
edged higher on the month, with the 1month KIBOR offer rate rising by 3 bps
to 1.13percent.
Small Australia banks to gain as
bigger rivals face capital hikes
SYDNEY: Australia’s smaller banks stand to benefit from a government-backed financial sector
review that has recommended the nation’s big
lenders set aside more capital for their main
business of mortgages, in a move towards a level
playing field. The recommendation, if implemented, could help the smaller banks grab market share from the country’s ‘Big Four’ major
lenders for whom mortgages account for 40-60
percent of total loans.
It will also help make them more competitive by narrowing the gap between the majors
and their smaller peers on the capital set aside
against potential losses on mor tgages.
Australia’s major banks will need as much as
A$48 billion ($39.68 billion) after the financial
system inquir y (FSI) on Sunday called for
stronger capital for them to become among
the world’s safest lenders. Major banks currently, on average, keep aside 18 percent capital
against potential losses on home loans compared with 39 percent for smaller peers, helping the big banks produce better shareholder
returns. Under the proposed rules, though, the
majors will have to set aside 25 percent to 30
percent capital.
“It is pleasing the inquiry has acknowledged
the competitive gap enjoyed by the majors
needs to be closed and would like to see action
taken quickly to address this issue, before the
dominance of the Big Four is further entrenched.
If that happens, Australian consumers will ultimately be the losers,” Jon Sutton, acting CEO of
Bank of Queensland, said in a statement.
Recommendations by the inquiry, chaired by
David Murray, former head of Commonwealth
Bank of Australia, is open to consultation with
regulators and industr y until March 31.
Following the FSI report, brokerages including
Credit Suisse and Bell Potter upgraded ratings
on regional banks. Smaller banks Suncorp,
Bendigo & Adelaide Bank and MEBank praised
the inquiry’s effort to try and level the playing
field. Big banks have already warned that raising
capital requirements and mortgage risk weightings will lead to higher costs to consumers and
smaller dividends for shareholders. Credit Suisse
downgraded Australia and New Zealand
Banking Group while Morgan Stanley noted that
ANZ and National Australia Bank, with the lowest
tier-I ratios among the big banks, were the “most
vulnerable.”
“What Murray is trying to do is take away the
lopsided nature of allocation of capital from the
Big Four to the balance of the banking community,” said Mark Bouris, executive chairman of
Yellow Brick Road, a mortgage provider partowned by Macquarie Group Ltd. — Reuters
SYDNEY: People are reflected in the window as they walk past the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) boards showing the Australian
dollar has fallen to a four-and-a-half-year low after the release of very strong US employment growth figures, in Sydney yesterday. At
0700 AEDT on Monday, the local unit was trading at 82.96 US cents, down from 83.76 cents on Friday. — AFP
UAE aircraft parts maker
Strata sees revenue jump
ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi aircraft parts business Strata expects
revenue from existing operations to more than triple by 2020
and plans to open a second factory in the United Arab Emirates
in 2017, its chief executive said yesterday. Strata, the manufacturing arm of Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Aerospace, is the Gulf’s sole
aircraft parts maker and is aiming to join the ranks of the leading
global players with its planned expansion.
Revenue at Strata will top 300 million dirhams ($81.7 million)
this year, CEO Badr al-Olama said, adding that the company will
create at least 600 jobs when the second plant opens, nearly doubling its current workforce. “We will see revenues of 1 billion
dirhams by 2020 from plant one only,” Olama, who is also a senior
vice-president of Mubadala Aerospace, told reporters on the
sidelines of a conference. That forecast is based on Strata’s orders
and aircraft sales, Olama said. Strata builds components, including fuselages, for leading planemakers Airbus and Boeing among
others. Strata’s second factory will be located near its existing
plant in the desert oasis town of Al Ain but will be more automated and produce at least two or three product lines, Olama said.
The company is in talks with Boeing and Airbus to set up a facility
in either America or Europe, Olama added, pointing out that it it
needs to achieve netween $1 billion and $2 billion in annual sales
to be counted among the top three parts makers. “We are aiming
to achieve that after 2023,” he said. — Reuters
EXCHANGE RATES
Al-Muzaini Exchange Co.
ASIAN COUNTRIES
Japanese Yen
Indian Rupees
Pakistani Rupees
Srilankan Rupees
Nepali Rupees
Singapore Dollar
Hongkong Dollar
Bangladesh Taka
Philippine Peso
Thai Baht
Irani Riyal transfer
Irani Riyal cash
2.741
4.712
2.822
2.187
2.958
229.950
36.806
3.678
6.536
8.944
0.271
0.273
GCC COUNTRIES
Saudi Riyal
Qatari Riyal
Omani Riyal
Bahraini Dinar
UAE Dirham
76.097
78.408
741.290
757.940
77.714
UAE Exchange Centre WLL
COUNTRY
Australian Dollar
Canadian Dollar
Swiss Franc
Euro
US Dollar
Sterling Pound
Japanese Yen
Bangladesh Taka
Indian Rupee
Sri Lankan Rupee
Nepali Rupee
Pakistani Rupee
UAE Dirhams
Bahraini Dinar
Egyptian Pound
Jordanian Dinar
Omani Riyal
Qatari Riyal
Saudi Riyal
SELL DRAFT
243.04
266.74
316.40
378.88
284.65
476.10
2.79
3.678
4.711
2.186
2.942
2.796
77.57
757.62
39.81
405.12
740.27
78.60
76.04
SELL CASH
240.04
267.74
314.40
379.88
287.65
479.10
2.81
3.944
5.011
2.621
3.477
2.790
77.03
759.69
40.41
410.77
747.57
79.15
ARAB COUNTRIES
Egyptian Pound - Cash
Egyptian Pound - Transfer
Yemen Riyal/for 1000
Tunisian Dinar
Jordanian Dinar
Lebanese Lira/for 1000
Syrian Lira
Morocco Dirham
41.400
39.810
1.332
164.980
402.980
1.914
2.034
33.958
EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES
US Dollar Transfer
285.250
Euro
377.390
Sterling Pound
475.800
Canadian dollar
264.120
Turkish lira
131.860
Swiss Franc
313.460
Australian Dollar
268.140
US Dollar Buying
284.050
GOLD
20 Gram
10 Gram
5 Gram
245.000
124.000
64.000
Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd
Rate for Transfer
US Dollar
Canadian Dollar
Sterling Pound
Euro
Swiss Frank
Bahrain Dinar
UAE Dirhams
Qatari Riyals
Saudi Riyals
Jordanian Dinar
Egyptian Pound
Sri Lankan Rupees
Indian Rupees
Pakistani Rupees
Bangladesh Taka
Philippines Pesso
Cyprus pound
Japanese Yen
Syrian Pound
Nepalese Rupees
Selling Rate
285.000
263.455
473.415
379.460
312.305
758.565
78.020
79.160
76.265
402.555
39.805
2.190
4.718
2.815
3.678
6.511
700.020
3.740
2.860
3.895
Malaysian Ringgit
Chinese Yuan Renminbi
Thai Bhat
Turkish Lira
91.005
46.750
9.910
131.285
Bahrain Exchange Company
COUNTRY
Belgian Franc
British Pound
Czech Korune
Danish Krone
Euro
Norwegian Krone
Romanian Leu
Slovakia
Swedish Krona
Swiss Franc
Turkish Lira
Australian Dollar
New Zealand Dollar
America
Canadian Dollar
US Dollars
US Dollars Mint
Bangladesh Taka
Chinese Yuan
Hong Kong Dollar
Indian Rupee
Indonesian Rupiah
Japanese Yen
Kenyan Shilling
Korean Won
Malaysian Ringgit
Nepalese Rupee
Pakistan Rupee
Philippine Peso
Sierra Leone
Singapore Dollar
SELL CASH
Europe
0.007427
0.467076
0.005494
0.046258
0.369387
0.041981
0.085007
0.008227
0.036756
0.304349
0.131887
SELLDRAFT
0.008427
0.476076
0.017494
0.051258
0.377387
0.047181
0.085007
0.018227
0.041756
0.314549
0.138887
Australasia
0.258211
0.232233
0.269711
0.241733
0.257001
0.281500
0.282000
0.265501
0.286200
0.286200
Asia
0.003311
0.044976
0.034761
0.004515
0.000020
0.002658
0.003223
0.000271
0.087314
0.002945
0.002719
0.006424
0.000062
0.225066
0.003911
0.048476
0.037511
0.004916
0.000026
0.002838
0.003223
0.000286
0.093314
0.003116
0.002999
0.006704
0.000068
0.231066
South African Rand
Sri Lankan Rupee
Taiwan
Thai Baht
0.020703
0.001904
0.009434
0.008631
0.029203
0.002484
0.009614
0.009181
Bahraini Dinar
Egyptian Pound
Iranian Riyal
Iraqi Dinar
Jordanian Dinar
Kuwaiti Dinar
Lebanese Pound
Moroccan Dirhams
Nigerian Naira
Omani Riyal
Qatar Riyal
Saudi Riyal
Syrian Pound
Tunisian Dinar
Turkish Lira
UAE Dirhams
Yemeni Riyal
Arab
0.751103
0.037536
0.000079
0.000181
0.398703
1.000000
0.000138
0.023086
0.001156
0.735788
0.077737
0.075523
0.001772
0.161608
0.131887
0.076777
0.001288
0.759103
0.040636
0.000080
0.000241
0.406203
1.000000
0.000238
0.047086
0.017891
0.741468
0.078950
0.076223
0.001992
0.169608
0.138887
0.077926
0.001368
Al Mulla Exchange
CurrencyTransfer
US Dollar
Euro
Pound Sterling
Canadian Dollar
Indian Rupee
Egyptian Pound
Sri Lankan Rupee
Bangladesh Taka
Philippines Peso
Pakistan Rupee
Bahraini Dinar
UAE Dirham
Saudi Riyal
*Rates are subject to change
Rate (Per 1000)
281.450
391.650
474.850
257.050
4.643
39.640
2.154
3.618
6.302
2.874
749.550
76.650
75.175

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