August 6: Developing Stories
TRADE VEHICLE
IHC , the broad-based conglomerate controlled by UAE power broker Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, is expanding its financial services business by forming Rorix Holdings. The new company under the IHC umbrella will focus on finance, commodities trading and trade insurance. Through Rorix, IHC aims to accelerate trade volumes, attract foreign investment, and broaden economic partnerships, CEO Syed Basar Shueb said in a statement on Monday. The new firm will seek to capitalize on a flurry of free trade agreements the UAE has signed in the past three years with countries including India, Indonesia, Israel, Turkey and South Korea, he said.
PETROLEUM PAYOUT
Sliding oil profit hasn’t stopped Saudi aramco from paying a $31 billion dividend in the second quarter. The state-owned petroleum producer reported that net income fell 3.4% to $29.1 billion in the three-month period ended June 30 compared with a year earlier, attributing the slimmer profit to production cuts agreed upon by OPEC to stem oil price declines. Nevertheless, Aramco distributed the dividend, which is the lifeblood of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 plan to diversify the economy from dependence on oil and finance more than $1.5 trillion in megaprojects such as the Neom development on the kingdom’s Red Sea coast. Shares of Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, have declined 19% this year, underperforming rivals such as Exxon Mobil and Shell.