http://www.zawya.com/middle-east/countries/bahrainen-usCopyright 2012 Zawya Ltd. All rights reserved.Wed, 02 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT5014476http://www.zawya.com/middle-east/countries/bahrainhttp://www.zawya.com/images/newsletter_zawya_logo.gifhttp://www.zawya.com/story/BahrainThai_inks_MoUs_on_culture_food_and_tourism-24by7_150520120946047/His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa the Prime Minister met in Gudaibiya Palace in the presence of Prime Minister of the friendly Kingdom of Thailand Her Excellency Mrs. Yingluck Shinawatra with the Thai businessmen’s delegation accompanying Her Exellency the Prime Minister of Thailand.Wed, 16 May 2012 10:37:00 GMT24X7 News 24by7_150520120946047Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/BNH_Group_reports_217m_profits_for_Q1-24by7_150520121137056/Bahrain National Holding Company (BNH – the parent company of bni and bnl) has announced a net profit of $2.17 million for the first quarter ended 31 March 2012; against $2.81 million for the same period last year.Wed, 16 May 2012 10:36:38 GMT24X7 News 24by7_150520121137056Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/UAE_accounts_for_31_of_GCC_banking_assets-ZAWYA20120516040329/The UAE banks have the largest share of banking assets in the GCC that rose by 8.9% in 2011 to USD 1.46 trillion, equivalent to 106% of regional gross domestic product, or GDP. Wed, 16 May 2012 06:58:05 GMTKhaleej Times ZAWYA20120516040329Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/بيت_التمويل_الخليجي_يحقق_ربحا_صافيا_بقيمة_مليون_دولار_أمريكي-ZAWYA20120515140222/صرح السيد هشام الريس، الرئيس التنفيذي بالإنابة بقوله:"نحن سعداء بما حققه البنك من نتائج مالية خلال الربع الأول من عام 2012، والتي جاءت نتيجة للجهود الجادة التي بذلت لإعادة توجيه إستراتيجية أعمال البنك بما يحقق القيمة الاكبر للمساهمين.Wed, 16 May 2012 05:41:39 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120515140222Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/AM_Ratings_assigns_preliminary_AA1s_rating_to_Gulf_Sukuk_I_Companys_Sukuk_Wakalah_Programme-ZAWYA20120515094450/RAM Ratings has assigned a preliminary AA1(s) rating to Gulf Sukuk I Company BSC's proposed up to RM3.5 billion Sukuk Wakalah Medium-Term Note Programme and AA1/P1 financial institution ratings to Bahrain-based Gulf International Bank BSC.Tue, 15 May 2012 14:44:03 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120515094450Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Venture_Capital_Bank_reports_net_profit_of_USD8m_for_first_quarter_2012-ZAWYA20120515103532/Bahrain-based regional Islamic investment bank, Venture Capital Bank (VCBank), announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2012. Tue, 15 May 2012 14:41:07 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120515103532Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/CBB_Sukuk_AlIjara_Oversubscribed-ZAWYA20120515114017/The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) announces that the monthly issue of the short-term Islamic leasing bonds, Sukuk Al-Ijara, has been oversubscribed by 175%.Tue, 15 May 2012 12:52:01 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120515114017Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GCC_to_further_discuss_union_proposal-ZAWYA20120515050433/Leaders agreed to allow more time for further discussions over a proposal to turn the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council into a union, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said after a GCC leaders' summit.Tue, 15 May 2012 10:47:12 GMTThe Saudi Gazette ZAWYA20120515050433Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Notice_of_merger_of_Bahraini_Saudi_Bank_BSC_with_AlSalam_BankBahrain_BSC-ZAWYA20120515063221/Pursuant to the resolution of Bahraini Saudi Bank BSC shareholders in their Extraordinary General Assembly meeting to merge its business with Al-Salam Bank-Bahrain BSC, and the resolution of ASBB's Extraordinary General Assembly meeting approving the merger with BSB, ASBB notifies that the merger has been completed. Tue, 15 May 2012 10:31:02 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120515063221Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Bahrain_based_SULB_secures_373m_loan_facility-24by7_150520120838042/Bahrain-based SULB, the region’s first fully integrated steel sections and beams producer, marked the official signing of a $373million loan agreement between the company and BNP Paribas and Société Générale (SGCIB).Tue, 15 May 2012 10:06:12 GMT24X7 News 24by7_150520120838042Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GFH_reports_1m_profit_for_Q1-24by7_150520120839043/Gulf Finance House (GFH) has announced its financial results for the first quarter ending 31st March, 2012, recording a net profit of $1million with total income for the period recorded at $12.9 million resulting primarily from management fees and restructuring of debt.Tue, 15 May 2012 09:10:14 GMT24X7 News 24by7_150520120839043Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/BMI_Middle_East_and_Africa_Food_and_Drink_May12-pdf_150512090206/BMI’s Middle East and North Africa (MENA) ratings assess a market’s attractiveness to industry investors in comparison with its peers. The reward part of the rating takes into account market size, current consumption levels, future industry growth prospects (based on our five-year industry forecasts), market fragmentation (with greater fragmentation indicating higher opportunities) and the size of the youth population. Meanwhile, the risk part of the rating takes into account the legislative environment, the level of development of the organised retail sector (with higher development leading to lower risks), as well as relevant aspects of the economic and political environment.Tue, 15 May 2012 08:58:00 GMTBusiness Monitor International Limited pdf_150512090206Subscriptionhttp://www.zawya.com/story/BMI_Middle_East_and_Africa_Automotives_May12-pdf_150512085748/Ford Motor has reported growth of 37% year-on-year (y-o-y) for the markets of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), easily outpacing the 9% growth posted by its global operations in the same period. Growth of 60% and 50% in the UAE and Saudi Arabia is very much in line with BMI's view that these countries will be the local safe havens for carmakers amid regional tension. However, growth of 55% in Bahrain suggests that Ford has weathered the ongoing political crisis in the country well.Tue, 15 May 2012 08:55:00 GMTBusiness Monitor International Limited pdf_150512085748Subscriptionhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GFH_posts_USD1m_net_profit_in_Q1-ZAWYA20120515045141/Gulf Finance House (GFH) recorded a net profit of USD 1 million in the first quarter of this year, with total income of USD 12.9 million resulting primarily from management fees and restructuring of debt, the bank said Monday in a statement.Tue, 15 May 2012 08:34:58 GMTThe Saudi Gazette ZAWYA20120515045141Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/إندماج_البنك_البحريني_السعودي_في_مصرف_السلامالبحرين-ZAWYA20120515070920/اعتبارا من تاريخ 25 ابريل 2012 أصبح مصرف السلام-البحرين المالك المطلق لأصول البنك البحريني السعودي بالكامل وحل محله في جميع الحقوق والالتزامات. Tue, 15 May 2012 08:27:05 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120515070920Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Pure_Gold_revenue_climbs_20_in_Q1-ZAWYA20120515043337/Pure Gold Jewellers announced that its first-quarter revenue increased 20% compared to the corresponding period last year, with 28% due to higher volume sales in diamond jewellery and around 19% attributed to gold jewellery sales. Tue, 15 May 2012 07:11:41 GMTKhaleej Times ZAWYA20120515043337Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Iranian_parliament_condemns_idea_of_BahrainSaudi_union-ZAWYA20120515035031/TEHRAN - One hundred and ninety Iranian MPs issued a statement on Sunday strongly condemning the decision made by Persian Gulf Arab states to discuss a proposal for a closer political union that could begin with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Tue, 15 May 2012 06:38:10 GMTTehran Times ZAWYA20120515035031Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Nass_Corporation_reports_BD2m_profit_in_Q1-24by7_140520121112058/Bahrain-based regional construction giant, Nass Corporation, reported a net profit of BD1.938 million for the first quarter of 2012, a slightly higher than BD1.827 million for the same period last year.Tue, 15 May 2012 06:12:43 GMT24X7 News 24by7_140520121112058Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Ithmaar_Bank_in_the_red_at_end_of_Q1-24by7_140520121112059/Ithmaar Bank, a Bahrain-based Islamic retail bank, reported a net loss of $0.5 million, compared to a net profit of $4.8million in the same period last year, despite a net operating profit of $4.4million, before impairment provisions and taxation, compared to a net operating loss of $2.8million in the same period last year.Tue, 15 May 2012 06:12:04 GMT24X7 News 24by7_140520121112059Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Seef_Properties_net_profit_up_20_to_BD166m-24by7_140520121109058/Seef Properties said that its board approved a progressive record of 20% increase in its first quarter net profits reaching BD1.66 million compared to BD1.38 million for the same period last year.Tue, 15 May 2012 06:11:39 GMT24X7 News 24by7_140520121109058Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Bahrains_cabinet_endorses_50_cut_on_levy_for_SMEs-24by7_140520121121017/The Cabinet meeting chaired by His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa at Gudaibiya Palace decided to give 50% cut on LMRA monthly levy from BD10 to BD5 per month in Bahrain.Tue, 15 May 2012 06:10:41 GMT24X7 News 24by7_140520121121017Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GCC_warns_Iran_against_meddling-ZAWYA20120515031111/A consultative meeting of GCC leaders chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah agreed to give more time to work out details of the proposed Gulf Union. Tue, 15 May 2012 05:35:48 GMTArab News ZAWYA20120515031111Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GCC_assets_surge_USD456bn_in_2011-ZAWYA20120515030757/A surge in oil prices and region's crude production boosted the net foreign assets of Gulf hydrocarbon producers by a whopping USD456 billion in 2011 to record their biggest asset increase since they began exporting oil.Tue, 15 May 2012 05:28:34 GMTEmirates 24|7 ZAWYA20120515030757Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Saudi_FM_tells_Iran_to_keep_out_of_SaudiBahrain_affairs-ANA20120514T171033ZTYS98/Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said Monday that Iran should keep out of the kingdom's relations with Shiite-majority Bahrain, even if the two states decide to form a union.Tue, 15 May 2012 04:36:39 GMTAFP ANA20120514T171033ZTYS98Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Bahrain_to_enhance_economic_ties_with_Thailand-24by7_140520120859044/His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, who received at Al-Rawdha Palace Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, underscored the importance of exchanging business visits to bolster cooperation and strengthen bilateral relations, stressing the need for the private sector to benefit from their knowhow in setting up joint ventures.Mon, 14 May 2012 09:41:08 GMT24X7 News 24by7_140520120859044Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/CMH_pays_dividends_to_aircraft_leasing_Co_investors-24by7_140520120909045/Capital Management House (CMH), Bahrain based Islamic investment bank, has distributed the regular quarterly dividend, calculated at 10% per annum, to GCC investors of the bank’s Aircraft Leasing Investment Company for the first quarter of the year ended 31 March 2012.Mon, 14 May 2012 09:38:57 GMT24X7 News 24by7_140520120909045Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Gulf_union_to_top_summit_agenda-ZAWYA20120514031414/Foreign ministers of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) met here yesterday to draw up the agenda for the consultative meeting of the GCC heads of state.Mon, 14 May 2012 06:31:49 GMTArab News ZAWYA20120514031414Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Chinese_Co_to_build_Dragon_City_in_Bahrain-24by7_130520121659059/The economic powerhouse China and the Kingdom of Bahrain on Sunday signed an agreement to build a brand new Dragon City in Bahrain.Mon, 14 May 2012 05:38:52 GMT24X7 News 24by7_130520121659059Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Around_98_businesses_use_fixed_broadband_services_in_Bahrain-24by7_130520121700000/With all medium and large businesses in Bahrain having access to the internet, 98% of those businesses use a fixed line broadband service, according to Bahrain’s Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA), survey.Mon, 14 May 2012 05:37:59 GMT24X7 News 24by7_130520121700000Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Bahrain_PM_for_Gulf_union_opposition_wants_referendum-ANA20120513T145914ZTVD42/Bahrain's premier has backed Saudi Arabia's plan for the creation of a Gulf union, a report said, but the nation's Shiite opposition is demanding the proposal be put to a referendum.Mon, 14 May 2012 05:36:05 GMTAFP ANA20120513T145914ZTVD42Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/DM_announces_three_prestigious_projects_including_Dubai_Safari-ZAWYA20120513114746/Eng Hussain Nassir Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality, during a press conference held in municipality conference hall, has announced three prestigious projects approved by HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Minister of Finance and Chairman of Dubai MunicipalitySun, 13 May 2012 12:51:33 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120513114746Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/KFHBahrain_High_demand_for_Boyout_AlDiyar_villas-ZAWYA20120513120106/CEO of KFH-Bahrain Abdul Hakeem Al-Khayyat said that over 343 villas were marketed during the first day of reservation for the Boyout Al-Diyar villas project.Sun, 13 May 2012 12:42:30 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120513120106Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Batelco_drops_tower_sale_plan_eyes_infrastructure_sharing__CEO-ZW20120513000067/Bahrain Telecommunications Co., or Batelco, the Arab Gulf country's biggest telco, has dropped plans to sell its towers as various sale-and-lease-back proposals did not create sufficient long-term economic value, and instead will focus on sharing infrastructure with other telecom operators in a bid to cut costs, the group's top executive said.Sun, 13 May 2012 12:20:56 GMTZawya Dow Jones News ZW20120513000067Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Royal_Jordanian_and_Gulf_Air_Enter_into_full_codeshare-ZAWYA20120513111057/Royal Jordanian and Gulf Air entered into a full code-share agreement to offer passengers 11-weekly flights between Amman, Jordan and Manama, Bahrain. Under the terms of the agreement, the flights will be operated by Gulf Air but marketed by both carriers.Sun, 13 May 2012 11:27:59 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120513111057Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/QNB_Group_Food_prices_are_high_globally_and_trending_up_in_the_GCC-ZAWYA20120513060841/Despite a slight easing in April, the price of food in global commodity markets remains near historic highs. In the GCC, retail food prices continue to trend upwards. QNB Group notes that the global food crisis that began in 2007 may be far from over.Sun, 13 May 2012 06:16:13 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120513060841Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GCC_eyes_high_commission_to_boost_integration-GN_12052012_130538/The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are expected to adopt tomorrow a proposal to establish a high commission to coordinate the decisions by the six member states, a Saudi daily reported.Sun, 13 May 2012 05:58:14 GMTGulf News GN_12052012_130538Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Gulf_leaders_to_mull_Saudibacked_union-ANA20120513T030713ZTUF51/Gulf leaders at a meeting in Riyadh on Monday will discuss a Saudi proposal to develop their six-nation council into a union, likely to start with the kingdom and unrest-hit Bahrain, officials said.Sun, 13 May 2012 04:53:59 GMTAFP ANA20120513T030713ZTUF51Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Gulf_leaders_to_discuss_BahrainSaudi_union_minister-ANA20120512T130852ZTTB38/Gulf leaders will discuss a proposal for a closer political union among them that could begin with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, the Bahraini information minister said.Sat, 12 May 2012 13:57:08 GMTAFP ANA20120512T130852ZTTB38Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/VIVA_Bahrain_launches_all_new_platinum_plan-ZAWYA20120512095056/VIVA Bahrain, announced its latest innovation as part of its efforts to enhance it's customers experience, the all new 'Platinum Plan; loaded with benefits and designed to give more flexibility and options to its high demanding clients.Sat, 12 May 2012 11:19:58 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120512095056Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Bahrain_plans_sovereign_bond-24by7_110520121539054/The Kingdom of Bahrain plans to launch a sovereign bond, according to a short statement issued by the Central Bank of Bahrain.Sat, 12 May 2012 08:22:41 GMT24X7 News 24by7_110520121539054Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Batelco_and_Gulf_Air_ink_agreement-24by7_110520121540054/Bahrain’s leading integrated communications services provider and Gulf Air, the Kingdom’s National airline, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will deliver great benefits to customers of both Bahraini companies.Sat, 12 May 2012 08:21:48 GMT24X7 News 24by7_110520121540054Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/GFH_hosts_investors_to_MEDZ_project_in_India-24by7_110520121558056/Senior management and key investors of Gulf Finance House BSC (GFH), the Bahrain-based Islamic investment bank, led by Acting Chief Executive Officer Hisham Alrayes, visited the Mumbai Economic Development Zone (MEDZ) project site in India.Sat, 12 May 2012 08:14:50 GMT24X7 News 24by7_110520121558056Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Indian_state_attracting_more_GCC_tourists-ZAWYA20120512040112/In a bid to attract holidaymakers here in the UAE, the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh launched a tourism campaign to increase its GCC market share.Sat, 12 May 2012 06:52:04 GMTKhaleej Times ZAWYA20120512040112Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/US_arms_sales_to_Bahrain_to_resume-20120511_13001_9034/The US is to resume selling arms to Bahrain a little more than a year after a harsh crackdown on anti-government protesters and despite continued claims of human rights abuses in the Gulf kingdom, which is a key US ally.Sat, 12 May 2012 05:43:51 GMTFinancial Times 20120511_13001_9034Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Common_GCC_market_likely_in_next_two_years_Official-ZAWYA20120511061916/The head of a visiting Saudi trade delegation says that he finds it strange that while the GCC leaders have given their go-ahead for businesses from one member state to have operations in all other states, the ministers and bureaucrats of these countries were stalling the process.Fri, 11 May 2012 10:48:15 GMTThe Peninsula ZAWYA20120511061916Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/Bahrain_okays_tough_law_against_assault_on_police-ZAWYA20120511054104/Bahrain's lower house has approved tougher punishments of five and seven years jail term for attacking police and military personnel.Fri, 11 May 2012 08:54:24 GMTKhaleej Times ZAWYA20120511054104Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/International_Power_to_sell_40_of_Hidd_Power_Company_for_USD113m-ZW20120511000090/International Power PLC (IPR.LN) announced that the sale of 40% of Hidd Power Company in Bahrain to Malakoff International Ltd for USD 113.4 million has been completed.Fri, 11 May 2012 06:23:38 GMTZawya Dow Jones News ZW20120511000090Openhttp://www.zawya.com/story/ABC_Islamic_Bank_announces_USD16m_net_profit_for_the_first_quarter_of_2012-ZAWYA20120510114431/ABC Islamic Bank announced a net profit of USD 1.6 million for the first quarter of 2012.Thu, 10 May 2012 13:27:58 GMTPress Release ZAWYA20120510114431Open