Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday said indirect talks with the US through its intermediary Oman have stopped as Tehran "does not see a basis" for them amid wars and heightened tension in the region.
Oman is a frequent interlocutor between Iran and western nations, particularly the US, and has played a key role in indirect nuclear talks as well as prisoner swaps.
"We do not see a basis for these talks until we can overcome the current crisis and then we will decide whether to start working again or not," Mr Araghchi said in Muscat, Iran's Irna agency reported.
Mr Araghchi met Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam in Muscat as part of a visit to Oman, the latest in a series of diplomatic trips in the region following Israel's vow to retaliate against an Iranian missile attack two weeks ago. The Houthis have also launched attacks on Tel Aviv to which Israel responded by hitting Yemen's Hodeidah port, a lifeline for millions of Yemenis who require food and aid assistance.
Mr Araghchi also met Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi.
Last week, Oman and Iran held joint naval and land forces drills, aiming to enhance combat preparedness of the neighbours who share a maritime border along the Gulf of Oman.
“For the time being, the Muscat process is stopped because of special situation in the region," Mr Araghchi said, as fighting rages on in Gaza and Lebanon. Iran is also bracing for Israeli retaliation after the barrage of ballistic missiles Iran fired at the country in retaliation to a series of Israeli strikes on Lebanon that killed a large part of Hezbollah's leadership, as well as Iranian military commander Abbas Nilforoushan.
The US is Israel's close ally and major provider of military assistance while Iran backs Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, all of which are fighting Israel.
Iran has repeatedly accused the US of assisting Israel in committing genocide and war crimes in Gaza since the conflict began, and has described the October 7 attacks on Israel carried out by militant group Hamas as “a turning point in the history of the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people”.
Mr Araghchi said no message was sent to the US during his regional trip but that Iran's position has been relayed to the West.
"Our position is quite clear and we have repeated many times that we do not want war and conflict although we are fully prepared for it," Mr Araghchi said, in a message to the US and European countries. He stressed that diplomacy should be enough to prevent a war with Israel from taking place.
"The region is experiencing a state of alert and may be on the verge of large-scale conflicts, and diplomacy is the only way to prevent and avoid major crises," he said. He praised Oman's important role in resolving numerous issues through its mediation.
Under new President Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran has been indicating a will to return to negotiations with the US to revive a nuclear deal, leading to the lifting of sanctions. Tehran has been accused of enriching uranium to nearly weapons-grade levels since former US president Donald Trump pulled the US out of the deal in 2018.
Mr Araghchi said future decisions on whether to resume indirect talks with the US would be made "after further assessment", as a possible warming of ties between Iran and the West seem more distant than ever given the tension in the region. The EU on Monday imposed new sanctions on Iranian officials and groups accused of being involved in the transfer of missiles and drones for Russia to use in Ukraine.
The minister's regional trip began with a visit to Saudi Arabia last week where he met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He also travelled to Qatar and Iraq where discussions were also centred on the need to end the wars in Gaza and Lebanon.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
Scoreline
Australia 2-1 Thailand
Australia: Juric 69', Leckie 86'
Thailand: Pokklaw 82'
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The%20specs
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UAE players with central contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.
Manchester City (0) v Liverpool (3)
Uefa Champions League, quarter-final, second leg
Where: Etihad Stadium
When: Tuesday, 10.45pm
Live on beIN Sports HD
