BUSINESSMonday 11 June 2018

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Xi extolls free trade at Asia

meet in China

Japan is back in Malaysia amid doubts over Chinese funding

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: The Qatar Finance and Business Academy (QFBA), has announced the appointment of Dr Khalid Mohammed Al Horr (pictured) as the entity’s Chief Executive Officer.

Prior to joining the QFBA, Dr Al Horr served as Director of Higher Education at the Min-istry of Education and Higher Education where he was responsible for setting strategic goals and helping establish pol-icies, procedures, and pro-grammes to carry out.

Yousuf Mohamed Al Jaida, Chief Executive Officer, QFC Authority on the appointment said: “I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Khalid Mohammed Al Horr as Chief Executive Officer of the Qatar Finance and Business Academy (QFBA), and I am confident that his extensive experience will help us meet the QFC’s devel-opment goals aimed at helping youth education.”

Commenting on his appointment, Dr Al Horr said: “I am profoundly honoured to be working closely with a strong

and experienced senior man-agement and team to build on past successes and on the remarkable achievements of the Qatar Finance and Business Academy over the years.”

During his time at the Min-istry of Education and Higher education, Dr Al Horr managed the scholarships of almost 3,000 students in over 300 institutions across 20 countries. He also led the development of the Com-munity College of Qatar to offer bachelor degrees. As part of his role, he successfully negotiated with international counter

partners to renew their agree-ments with Qatar, such as the CAN-Q agreement, and Uni-versity of Calgary-Qatar agreement. Dr Khalid Al Horr received his Ph.D. in Management and Human Resource Management from the University of Leeds where he also received an MA in Human Resource Management.

Qatari economy enjoys reflationary updraft: QNBTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: The latest monthly indicators on trade and industrial prices show the Qatari economy benefiting from higher global hydrocarbon prices, ensuring that the already dwindling impact of the diplomatic rift on the economy recedes yet further, noted the QNB’s latest economic commentary on Qatari economy.

In particular, the latest monthly trade statistics show the goods trade surplus surged higher in April. In level terms, the surplus topped QR14.7bn.In percentage terms, the surplus was up a stunning 49 percent y-o-y versus April 2017.

The surpluses’ surge is a by-product of recovering, but still muted, import growth (up 3.1%) and, most importantly, a buoyant export performance due to higher hydrocarbon prices. In level terms, April’s exports were up more than QR5bn versus a year ago; a gain of more than 27 percent.

Inevitably, the export surge is driven by the dominant hydrocarbon sector, whose exports were up QR4.7bn versus last April so accounting for around 90 percent of exports’ total gain. Higher crude oil prices are helping drive the

improvement, adding around QR1bn on a year-on-year basis but, looking at the geographical split, suggests that booming LNG demand to Asia are the key driver.

Exports to Japan, the world’s largest LNG importer, were particularly strong in April; up nearly QR2bn versus last April. Japan’s export share accordingly jumped to 20 percent; up from 17 percent in March and 15 percent a year ago.

Japan has been at the forefront of LNG demand since the 1970s; making for

a relatively mature market. Nonetheless, its LNG imports, up 2.3 percent in 2017, posted their first annual rise in three years. While the eventual restarting of some of the country’s still mostly idling nuclear reactors could cap

medium-term demand, the strength of the April export numbers suggest Japan’s energy mix continues to pivot away from nuclear and coal and towards cleaner energies such as LNG.

Growth in LNG demand has more recently been dominated by China , whose imports soared by an extraor-dinary 49 percent in 2017, allowing to leapfrog South Korea as the world’s second largest LNG importer.

While China, along with India, can be expected to be the key driver of LNG demand over the medium term, its imports seemed to take a slight breather in April with its share of Qatari exports holding steady at 10 percent. Expect strong growth to resume soon.

Despite having been pushed in third position by China, South Korea is no slouch. Its LNG imports boomed by 10.8 percent in 2017 as its new environmen-tally-conscious prioritises LNG use. And Korea certainly sucked in more LNG

from Qatar in April with imports up around QR1.7bn year-on-year, lifting its export share to 17 percent.

Exports to India were surprisingly muted in April; down a touch in year-on-year terms. But, with Prime Min-ister Modi committing to lift LNG to 15% of the country’s energy mix (from under 7% currently) by 2020 and a swathe of new LNG import terminals under construction, Indian LNG demand looks set to boom over the next 12-24 months.

Further underscoring the boost to the economy from higher hydrocarbon prices was the April producer price index (PPI). This reported headline growth of 24.3% y-o-y in industrial prices with a 31.1% y-o-y gain in hydrocarbon prices doing the heavy lifting. Importantly, other manufac-turing prices were up a robust 12 percent y-o-y reflecting more broad-based industrial reflation in sectors such as chemicals.

CPI inflation edges down0.3% in May this yearTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar’s inflation, based on consumer price index (CPI) of May 2018 reached 108.20 (base year is 2013), showing a decrease of 0.3 percent, when compared to CPI of April 2018. The reason for the marginal decline in monthly inflation was attributed to the fall in prices of food items, housing, and util-ities services.

However, when compared on year-on-year basis (y-o-y) the CPI of May 2018 has increased by 0.5 percent against the CPI of May 2017, official data released by the Ministry of Development Planning and Sta-tistics (MDPS) show.

An analysis (on m-o-m basis) of CPI for May, 2018 com-pared with April, 2018 CPI, showed that there are five main groups, where respective indices in this month have decreased, namely: “Food and Beverages” by 1.5 percent, due to the Ramadan discounts on some of commodities, “Recre-ation and Culture” decreased by the same of percentage, “Housing, Water, Electricity and Gas” by 1.1 percent, “Miscella-neous Goods and Services” by 0.3 percent. “Furniture and Household Equipment” by 0.1 percent. An increase had just shown on “Transport” by 1.9 percent, and “Clothing and Footwear” by 0.1 percent. “Tobacco”, “Health”, “Commu-nication”, “Education”, and “Restaurants and Hotels” groups, have remained flat at the last month’s price level.

A comparison of the CPI,

May 2018 with the CPI, May 2017 (annual change/y-o-y), an increase has been recorded in the general index (CPI), by 0.5 percent. This y-o-y price increase is primarily due to the increasing prices seen in the eight groups, namely: “Transport” by 7.8 percent, “Clothing and Footwear” by 4.3 percent, “Health” by 3.4 percent, “Food and Beverages” by 1.8 percent, “Education” by 0.9 percent, and all of “Fur-niture and Household Equipment”, “Restaurants and Hotels”, and “Miscellaneous Goods and Services” are increased by 0.8 percent. Also there has been a decrease in price levels in three groups, namely: “Housing, Water, Elec-tricity and other Fuel” by 4.8 percent, “Recreation and Culture” by 2.4 percent, “Com-munication” by 1.0 percent. “Tobacco” prices remained at the same level.

For the month of May, 2018, noticed that the “Transport” had the highest positive contri-bution by 300.0 percent, fol-lowed by “Food and Beverages” and “Clothing and Footwear” by 50.0 percent each, “Fur-niture and Household Equipment”, “health”, and “Education” are contributed by 25.0 percent. On the negative direction, “Housing, Water, Electricity and other Fuel” had the highest negative contri-bution by -275.0 percent in the annual change of CPI, followed by “Recreation and Culture” with -75.0 percent of contri-bution, and “Communication” by -25.0 percent.

QC to issue companies’ directory in DecemberTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Chamber announced yesterday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with ‘Hawkama Center’ to prepare and issue its commercial and industrial directory 2018-2019.

Qatar Chamber’s directory includes lists of commercial and industrial companies operating in the country and registered at the chamber. It includes phone number, fax, address and all contact data.

The MoU was signed by Director General’s Assistant for Governmental and Interna-tional Relations at Qatar Chamber Ali bu Sherbak Al Mansouri and Chairman of Hawkama Center Mansour Ahmed Al Saadi.

Commenting on the signing ceremony, Al Mansouri called upon all companies operating in Qatar to register in the

directory which aims at facili-tating business environment and providing correct and accurate data about the private sector companies.

He noted that issuing the directory comes in the frame of the chamber’s plans to develop

and update services it provides to the Qatari private sector and its members, assuring that the number of companies regis-tered during the siege signifi-cantly increased.

On his part, Mansour Al Saadi said that Hawkama

Center is honoured to cooperate with Qatar Chamber in the issuance of its commercial and industrial directory which is an updated and inclusive data base for the private sector.

The directory will be issued in December 2018, he noted, saying” It will be available in hard copy and in PDF format in the directory’s website.

It also will be available in mobile applications and tablet devices for easy reach to all data and information about com-mercial and industrial com-panies in Qatar.

Al Saadi said that the center will harness its potentials and experience in collecting, indexing, designing and printing to produce a distinct directory.

The Hawkama Center is a Doha-based well-known center whose activities involve publi-cations, organizing conferences and PR services.

Director General’s Assistant for Governmental and International Relations at Qatar Chamber, Ali bu Sherbak Al Mansouri and Chairman of Hawkama Center, Mansour Ahmed Al Saadi, signing the MoU.

QFBA appoints Dr Al Horr as CEO

18 MONDAY 11 JUNE 2018BUSINESS

9,224.74 -17.56 PTS0.19%

QSE FTSE100 DOW BRENT7,681.07 -23.33 PTS0.30%

25,316.53 +75.12 PTS0.30% Dow & Brent before going to press

$65.74 -0.21

MarketWatch

Trump trade fury torpedoes G7 summitAFP

QUEBEC CITY: The G7 summit ended in farce and a renewed threat of global trade war as US President Donald Trump abruptly rejected the text of a consensus statement and bitterly insulted the Canadian host.

Just minutes after a joint communique Saturday that had been approved by the leaders of the Group of Seven allies was pub-lished in Canada’s summit host city Quebec, Trump launched a Twitter broadside from aboard Air Force One.

The US leader left the meeting early en route for Singapore and a historic nuclear summit with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, only to take exception to comments made by Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a news conference.

“Based on Justin’s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our US farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our US Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the US Market!” Trump tweeted.

“PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that ... he ‘will not be pushed around.’ Very dishonest & weak.”

Earlier, Trudeau had told reporters that Trump’s decision to invoke national security to justify US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports was “kind of insulting” to Canadian veterans who had stood by their US allies in

conflicts dating back to World War I. “Canadians are polite and reasonable

but we will also not be pushed around,” he said. Trudeau said he had told Trump “it would be with regret but it would be with absolute clarity and firmness that we move forward with retaliatory measures on July 1, applying equivalent tariffs to the ones that the Americans have unjustly applied to us.”

After Trump’s angry tweets, Trudeau’s office issued a brief response: “We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the G7 summit. The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn’t said before -- both in public, and in private conversations with the President.”

The outburst against Trudeau, and by association the other G7 members, is only the latest incident in which Trump has clashed with America’s closest allies, even as he has had warm words for autocrats like Kim and Russia’s Vladimir Putin.

French President Emmanuel Macron’s office reacted Sunday by saying that “inter-national cooperation cannot be dictated by fits of anger and throwaway remarks”.

Reneging on the commitments agreed in the communique showed “incoherence and inconsistency”, it said in a statement.

Shortly after Trump tweeted, respected Republican Senator John McCain responded.

“To our allies: bipartisan majorities of Americans remain pro-free trade, pro-glo-balization & supportive of alliances based on 70 years of shared values. Americans stand with you, even if our president

doesn’t,” he tweeted. Russian President Vladimir Putin, in

China on Sunday for a summit with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, dismissed G7 calls for Moscow to stop what the group described as attempts to undermine democracy and support for the Syrian regime. “I believe it’s necessary to stop this creative babbling and shift to concrete issues related to real cooperation,” Putin told reporters.

The G7 also endorsed Britain’s accu-sation that Moscow was behind the poisoning attack in England on former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter - but Putin said they had “again” failed to provide evi-dence that Russia was behind the attack.

Russia was kicked out of the group in response to its 2014 annexation of Crimea. Trump earlier said that the club would be better off if it brought Russia back.

When Trump left Quebec it was thought that a compromise had been reached, despite the tension and determination of European leaders Macron and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to push back on Trump’s assault on the world trade system.

Officials from European delegations quickly leaked copies of the joint statement, and it was published online moments before Trump tweeted. On board Air Force One an AFP reporter was told that Trump had approved the agreement, only to be told later of the tweets. A senior US administration official said that Trump had been angered by Trudeau’s comments.

US tariffs threat a headache for foreign carmakersAFP

NEW YORK: US President Donald Trump’s renewed threat to impose tariffs on auto imports will hit foreign auto-makers that export a large number of vehicles to the US market, but many also manu-facture cars domestically.

After yanking his endorsement of a joint statement at the G7 summit in Canada, Trump tweeted that his administration taking a “look at Tariffs on automo-biles flooding the US market.”

Most of these brands, such as Mercedes and BMW as well as Nissan, Honda and Volkswagen, have at least one auto plant on US soil, where they employ tens of thou-sands of workers.

These automakers have invested billions of dollars in their US facilities. Toyota and Mazda announced at the start of the year plans to build a $1.6bn joint facility in Alabama that will be capable of producing 300,000 vehicles a year.

Volvo Cars, which plans to open a plant in South Carolina by the end of the year, has warned that new import duties would affect its investment plans.

US auto market - In 2017, about 17.2 million vehicles were sold in the United States, according to AutoData, which compiles figures from man-ufacturers and dealers.

LONDON: The pound could be in for a wild ride as the UK’s Brexit bill goes to a vote in Parliament. Traders will be watching for signs of what kind of Brexit UK lawmakers will decide on, as well as how Prime Minister Theresa May is faring, with the pound set to sell off if her leadership looks to be under threat. Investors also have to weigh up UK data, with production, jobs and inflation all due this week.

“We’ve got the most important data of the month squeezed into the same week as the politics,” said Jane Foley, head of foreign-exchange strategy at Rabobank. “In terms of the pol-itics, if anything I’d expect sterling to be on the back foot.”

The premium that traders demand to insure against one-week volatility in sterling rose to its highest in almost four months on Thursday, ahead of the June 12 vote in the House of Commons. Yet strategists said they were surprised it wasn’t higher. This could be because a lot of investors are “sidelined”, opting to wait for a clearer path before betting on the pound, said Rabobank’s Foley. This means the currency’s reaction to political headlines could be more muted than expected, she said. After May wrangled with her cabinet over Brexit policy, she has to get her Brexit law through Parliament, but opposition Labour party lawmakers are also divided on the approach.

After roller-coaster week, May faces Brexit showdownAFP

LONDON: After a rollercoaster week of Brexit rows within her government and with Brussels, British Prime Minister Theresa May will tomorrow seek to avoid another setback in a long-awaited showdown with parliament.

MPs in the House of Commons will vote on a string of amendments to a key piece of Brexit legislation that could force the government’s hand in the negotiations with the European Union.

Over 12 hours of debate on tomorrow and Wednesday, May will seek to overturn changes made by the unelected House of Lords to the EU (With-drawal) Bill, which sets the legal framework for Brexit.

Flashpoints include pro-posals to increase the power of parliament to decide on the final Brexit deal, and others seeking to keep Britain closely aligned with the EU’s economy after it leaves the bloc.

May this weekend said the Lords had gone “far beyond” their scrutiny role in trying to amend the bill to “tie the gov-ernment’s hands in the negoti-ations”, and urged MPs to overturn the changes.

The Conservative gov-ernment is seeking to overturn 14 of the 15 Lords amendments and appears confident of success on most of them.

One in danger of not being overturned is the so-called

meaningful vote amendment, which would give parliament the power to decide what to do if it rejects the final Brexit deal.

The government may also lose a vote on membership of the EU’s customs union, but this may not have much practical impact due to the way it is drafted. Another on joining the European Economic Area (EEA) — the single market — will likely fall because the main opposition Labour party opposes it.

The very fact that such dis-cussions are being held, however, is viewed by those who favour a “softer” Brexit that momentum is on their side.

They point out that talk of staying economically aligned to the EU was widely dismissed just a year ago.

Eurosceptics who want a clean break with the EU, in which Britain has its own inde-pendent trade policy free of European rules, are increas-ingly worried. Foreign Sec-retary Boris Johnson was secretly recorded this week saying that while Brexit would happen, “the risk is that it will not be the one we want”.

He implied that May might not have the “guts” to be a tough negotiator with Brussels, and that US President Donald Trump may have done a better job. Brexit Secretary David Davis also reportedly threatened to resign over plans to avoid customs checks between Northern Ireland and Ireland.

Nakilat wins Microsoft Digital Transformation Award 2018THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Nakilat has been presented with Microsoft Digital Transformation Award 2018 during a ceremony hosted by Microsoft recently in Doha. The award was received by Nakilat’s Information Technology Manager Hamad Rashid Suwaid.

This award is a recognition of Nakilat’s outstanding efforts in executing its comprehensive digital transformation strategy across its integrated operations. Taking advantage of leading-edge technologies, Nakilat creates a space for enhanced collaborations between employees and improves decision-making capabilities using real-time business data and analytics. Nakilat has

received several awards in the Information Technology field, which is atestament to the com-pany’s continuous dedication in pursuing innovative ways to create additional value to its operations and increase its com-petitive advantage.

Rashid Hamad Al Marri,

Nakilat’s Chief Administration Officer, said:

“We are grateful to be rec-ognised for our efforts and con-tributions to the IT sector, as well as to all our partners for their support and co-operation throughout the journey. This award serves as a great acknowledgement of Nakilat’s impressive journey and is a tes-tament to the skill, ingenuity, and vision of our employees. This award further highlights Nakilat’s continuous dedication in pursuing innovative ways to create additional value to its operations and increase its com-petitive advantage and strength-ening its position to be a global leader and provider of choice for energy transportation and maritime services”.

Hamad Rashid Suwaid (centre), Nakilat’s Information Technology Manager, with the Microsoft Digital Transformation Award 2018, during a ceremony hosted by Microsoft recently, in Doha.

This award is a recognition of Nakilat’s outstanding efforts in executing its comprehensive digital transformation strategy across its integrated operations.

Despite Trump deal, China’s ZTE and Huawei to face closed doors in US AFP

WASHINGTON: Chinese telecoms companies like ZTE and Huawei face severely tightened access to the US market despite the Trump administration’s deal this week to give ZTE a lifeline after it agreed to a steep fine.

Amid persistent worries that their phones, routers and other products will open a path for Bei-jing’s spying on the United States, analysts say the US government will remain broadly closed to products of the two companies and that the US telecoms industry will remain under pressure to avoid their equipment.

Indeed, four Democratic and Republican senators, criticizing the deal that will permit ZTE to resume purchasing US elec-tronics components, proposed legislation Thursday for an out-right ban on the government buying products and services from both ZTE and Huawei.

“Huawei and ZTE pose a serious threat to America’s national security. These com-panies have direct links to the Chinese government and Com-munist Party,” said Republican senator Marco Rubio.

“Their products and services are used for espionage and intel-lectual property theft, and they have been putting the American

people and economy at risk without consequence for far too long.”

But experts say the move could hinder the growth of next-generation 5G wireless networks in the United States. The two Chinese companies are poised to become global leaders in the 5G rollout, just beginning this year in several countries.

“The overall concern is that these companies are close to the Chinese government,” said Paul Triolo, a China security specialist at the Eurasia Group.

With fifth-generation mobile technology, he said, “the concern becomes magnified” because the technology is heavily

cloud-based, potentially leaving sensitive data accessible by the service provider.

Indeed, US officials have repeatedly suggested that the two companies could design their equipment to allow Chinese intelligence to hack into American networks and siphon off personal data and communi-cations from cellphones.

A 2012 congressional report said the use of Huawei and ZTE equipment in US critical infra-structure “could undermine core US national-security interests.”

In February, six top intelli-gence and security chiefs told a Senate panel they would not use equipment from either company.

“We are deeply concerned about the risks of allowing any company or entity that is beholden to foreign governments that don’t share our values to gain positions of power inside our telecommunications net-works,” said FBI Director Chris-topher Wray.

And in May the country’s top counterintelligence official, William Evanina, likewise con-firmed that ZTE phones are too risky.

The warnings come at a time of growing concerns over Chinese technology and spying.

Facebook was excoriated this week for having allowed Chinese smartphone makers,

including Huawei, to access a broad range of Facebook users’ personal data.

The threat is plausible. Many intelligence experts believe that the US government has asked American technology vendors for backdoor access to technology. And US intelligence is constantly pressuring Silicon Valley to create ways they can get around encryption apps.

Still, no one has publicly detailed any concrete examples of such attempts by Huawei or ZTE.

“So far there is no smoking gun on these companies,” said Triolo. But one recent example shows the risks.

Pound set for tumultuous week as Brexit bill goes to parliament

19MONDAY 11 JUNE 2018 BUSINESS

Xi extols free trade at Asia meet in ChinaAP

QINGDAO, CHINA: Chinese President Xi Jinping extolled free trade and criticised “selfish, short-sighted” policies yesterday during a closely orchestrated gathering of a Beijing-led Shanghai Cooperation Organi-sation (SCO) bloc, standing in stark contrast with the G-7 summit that ended in disarray over trade tensions.

“We should reject selfish, short-sighted, narrow and closed-off policies. We must maintain the rules of the World Trade Organization, support the multilateral trade system and build an open global economy,” Xi said. Though his remarks did not mention US President Donald Trump, Beijing has sought to portray itself as a defender of free trade in response to the American leader’s support for import controls. This is despite China’s status as the most-closed major economy.

Xi also hailed the entry of new members of the Shanghai Coop-eration Organization, calling the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain “of great historic significance” in opening remarks at this weekend’s

summit of in the northern Chinese port of Qingdao. Their two South Asian nations joined the bloc as full members last year.

With tight security, closed roads and restricted press access, the summit’s choreographed show of unity was a striking con-trast to the tumultuous Group of Seven summit of leading indus-trialised nations that concluded Saturday in Quebec and saw the US and its allies divided by esca-lating trade tensions.

The Beijing-led bloc, which experts see as seeking to chal-lenge the Western-led order, is dominated by China and Russia and also includes Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. Founded in 2001, it was originally conceived as a vehicle for resolving border issues, fighting terrorism, and

- more implicitly - to counter American influence in Central Asia following its invasion of Afghanistan. The summit comes as Russia and China have boosted ties in response to the US national security strategy that describes them as America’s top adversaries.

“We should reject the Cold War mentality and confrontation between blocks,” Xi said, adding that the countries should “oppose the practices of seeking absolute security of oneself at the expense of the security of other countries.”

In recent years, the Shanghai bloc’s economic component has grown more prominent, embodied in Xi’s signature, trillion-dollar foreign policy and infrastructure drive known as the Belt and Road Initiative.

Xi announced that China would offer 30bn yuan ($4.7bn) in loans through the bloc, high-lighting its economic aspect.

Beijing’s infrastructure projects in Central Asia make some in the bloc uncomfortable - particularly India, which alone among members has refused to endorse the program. Russia, too, is wary of China’s expanding influence, and though it has somewhat reluctantly embraced the Belt and Road, it is also

seeking to expand its own eco-nomic and political leverage in the region through a customs union it dominates known as the Eurasian Economic Union.

China has sought to downplay concerns that the Shanghai grouping is a way for Beijing to project its strategic

influence abroad. The Global Times, a Communist Party news-paper, said Sunday in a com-mentary that unlike Western organizations like NATO and the G-7, which seek to “consolidate the global economic order that is favorable to the Western world,” the Shanghai Cooper-

ation Organization is inclusive.It is “is not a tool for geopo-

litical games, seeking hegemony or engaging in international con-frontation,” the paper said. As trade tensions simmered between China and the US in recent months, Beijing has drawn closer to Moscow and New Delhi.

Russian President Vladimir Putin during a photo session of the SCO Heads of State, heads of observer nations and leaders of international organisations ahead of an expanded format meeting of the SCO Council of Head of State in Qingdao, China, yesterday. From left, front row: President of Mongolia, Khaltmaagiin Battulga; President of Iran, Hassan Rowhani; Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi; President of the Kyrgyz Republic, Sooronbay Jeenbekov; President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon. From right: President of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani; President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko; President of Pakistan, Mamnoon Hussain; President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev; President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev; and President of China, Xi Jinping in Qingdao, yesterday.

The Beijing-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) bloc, which experts see as seeking to challenge the Western-led order, is dominated by China and Russia.

QATAR STOCK EXCHANGE

QE Index 9,224.74 0.19 %

QE Total Return Index 16,252.96 0.19 %

QE Al Rayan Islamic Index - Price 2,241.04 0.21 %

QE Al Rayan Islamic Index 3,636.14 0.21 %

QE All Share Index 2,708.97 0.06 %

QE All Share Banks &

Financial Services 3,277.89 0.57 %

QE All Share Industrials 2,935.67 0.01 %

QE All Share Transportation 1,864.16 0.39 %

QE All Share Real Estate 1,703.87 1.84 %

QE All Share Insurance 3,260.58 0.57 %

QE All Share Telecoms 1,031.24 0.91 %

QE All Share Consumer Goods & Services 6,128.53

1.38 %

QE INDICES SUMMARY QE MARKET SUMMARY COMPARISON WORLD STOCK INDICES

GOLD AND SILVER

10-06-2018Index 9,224.74

Change 17.56

% 0.19

YTD% 8.23

Volume 4,948,564

Value (QAR) 239,685,342.45

Trades 3,159

Up 24 | Down 17 | Unchanged 0007-06-2018Index 9,242.30

Change 85.47

% 0.92

YTD% 8.43

Volume 9,959,866

Value (QAR) 435,143,785.37

Trades 5,276

EXCHANGE RATE

GOLD QR152.3940 per grammeSILVER QR1.9658 per gramme

Index Day’s Close Pt Chg % Chg Year High Year Low

All Ordinaries 6137.4 28.9 0.47 6256.5 5834

Cac 40 Index/D 5462.91 1.96 0.04 5657.44 5038.12

Dj Indu Average 24799.98 -13.71 -0.06 26616.71 21113.31

Hang Seng Inde/D 31259.1 165.65 0.53 33484.08 29129.26

Iseq Overall/D 7193.15 31.17 0.44 7257.41 6410.26

Kse 100 Inx/D 44144.2 441.62 1.01 47144.12 40169.62

S&P 500 Index/D 0 0 0 2872.87 2532.69

Currency Buying SellingUS$ QR 3.6305 QR 3.6500

UK QR 4.8530 QR 4.9215

Euro QR 4.2767 QR 4.3368

CA$ QR 2.7963 QR 2.8514

Swiss Fr QR 3.6845 QR 3.7369

Yen QR 0.03279 QR 0.03343

Aus$ QR 2.7617 QR 2.8156

Ind Re QR 0.0538 QR 0.0548

Pak Re QR 0.0311 QR 0.0318

Peso QR 0.0687 QR 0.070

SL Re QR 0.0227 QR 0.0233

Taka QR 0.0425 QR 0.0437

Nep Re QR 0.0337 QR 0.0344

SA Rand QR 0.2825 QR 0.2882

20 MONDAY 11 JUNE 2018BUSINESS

Japan is back in Malaysia amid doubts over Chinese fundingREUTERS

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad is set to woo investors and offer business deals during a trip to Japan that started yesterday, as he looks to cover a gaping debt hole and shift the country away from dependence on Chinese invest-ments.

The visit marks his first foreign trip after returning to power in a shock election result last month, and indicates a shift back to the 92-year-old’s ‘Look East’ policy to strengthen ties with east Asia, especially Japan.

It is also seen as a sign of the Southeast Asian country’s move away from China, which contentiously pumped billions of dollars into the scandal-tainted previous Najib Razak administration.

The new government has said some Chinese companies are now under sus-picion of being used to cover up the graft scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Devel-opment Berhad (1MDB).

“The previous government may have engaged Japan, but certainly not with the enthusiasm it had for China,” said Shahriman Lockman, a senior analyst with the Institute of Strategic and International Studies.

Malaysia ’s cash-strapped

government could look to tap Japan’s vast pool of low-cost capital, while potential stake sales in Malaysian state-linked companies could be investment targets of Japanese com-panies, said bankers involved in cross-border deals.

Mahathir had already agreed to attend the annual Nikkei conference on

Asia before winning the elections, but will now also meet Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and senior officials during his three-day visit.

“The fact that he chose to stick to his plans to attend the conference does say something: it will doubtless provide an opportunity to rejuvenate Malaysia-Japan ties,” said Shahriman.

Mahathir has pulled out of a high-speed rail project with Singapore and is reviewing a $14bn local rail line to be built by Chinese companies.

Malaysia’s foreign ministry said in a statement that Mahathir’s visit would enable Malaysia to highlight its current policies towards Japan and other countries in the region, espe-cially related to foreign investments and trade.

“With the comeback of Tun Dr Mahathir, I’m sure our industries will be very delighted to think positively of their engagement with Malaysia and its industries,” Makio Miyagawa, Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia told state news agency Bernama.

Japan is Malaysia’s largest foreign direct investment contributor at $13bn last year, Bernama said.

Mahathir has accused Chinese state-linked firms of inflating deal costs, engagiwng in corrupt practices, and even conspiring in the cover up of the 1MDB scandal.

He’s sending the finance minister and anti-graft agents to China this week to investigate discrepancies in a bilateral gas pipeline deal. These billion-dollar deals, and a growing presence of Chinese construction workers and entrepreneurs, have spooked Malaysians.

“Mahathir probably wishes that he could run a scalpel through those incredibly costly projects that involve Chinese companies,” said Shahriman.

But moving away won’t be easy, given the decades of strong ties and about a hundred billion dollars in bilateral trade, Shahriman said.

Ties between Malaysia and China peaked in the last few years after Beijing stepped in with a $2.3bn deal to buy 1MDB assets. This was followed by several infrastructure projects which were won by Chinese state-linked firms.

Financial industry executives expect Japan to accelerate its pace of investment in Malaysia under the new government.

“Malaysia is a market the Japanese find easier to invest in. The way Malaysian firms operate their business, the legal set-up - all this is something the Japanese are comfortable with,” said the regional head of investment banking at a Japanese bank, who was not authorised to be named.

He expects interest in the financials sector, namely banks and insurers. Mahathir is scheduled to meet top offi-cials from Nomura Securities and Sum-itomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, among others.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s (pictured) visit to Japan marks his first foreign trip after returning to power in a shock election result last month, and indicates a shift back to the 92-year-old’s ‘Look East’ policy to strengthen ties with east Asia, especially Japan.

Samsung Electronics ranked 14th on Global 2000 list QNA

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics Co. moved up one notch to 14th place in this year’s Global 2000 list, the report by Forbes showed yesterday.

The latest findings of the largest publicly traded companies revealed the world’s largest producer of com-puter chips and smartphones trailing only Apple Inc. among information technology companies and was the

only South Korean business to make the top 100 list.

The Cupertino, California-based Apple stood at eighth place this year, with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd. coming in at the top of the pile among companies from 60 countries. Samsung outpaced such IT giants as Microsoft Corp., Intel Corp. and Facebook in the report that checks sales, profits, assets and overall market value.

Samsung Electronics stood at 11th place in terms of sales, fourth in profits, 114th in assets and 12th in market value this year.

The company placed 22nd in 2014 rose to 18th in the following year and moved up to 15th in 2017.

The latest Global 2000 showed Toyota Motor Corp. ranking 12th, the highest among non-Chinese Asian companies, with the top 10 being dominated by Chinese and US

financial firms, such as China Con-struction Bank and JP Morgan Chase & Co.

Besides Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor Co. and SK hynix ranked 147th and 200th in the report, respectively, with such firms as KB Financial, POSCO, Shinhan Financial, SK Innovation Co, Hana Financial, KEPCO, Samsung Life Insurance, LG Electronics and Hyundai Mobis all making the 2000 list.

Union seeks 12,500 rand minimum for SA gold minersCAPE TOWN: South Africa’s Association of Mine-workers and Construction Union plans to demand a 12,500 rand ($957) monthly minimum wage from some of the country’s top gold producers in upcoming wage negotiations.

The labor group decided on its demands on Sunday at a mass meeting near Carletonville, about 90km west of Johannesburg. It is the second largest union at producers including AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., Sibanye Gold Ltd. and Harmony Gold Mining Co Ltd., according to Minerals Council South Africa, a lobby representing the industry.

BREAK TIMEVILLAGGIO & CITY CENTERCROSSWORD NOVO Pearl Qatar

MALL

Note: Programme is subject to change without prior notice.

LANDMARK

ROXY

AL KHOR

ASIAN TOWN

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (Action) 12:00noon, 12:30, 12:45, 2:45, 3:00, 3:15, 3:30, 5:30, 6:00, 6:15, 8:15, 8:45, 9:00, 11:20, 11:40, 11:45pm & 12:00midnight Kaala (2D/Tamil) 12:00noon, 3:30, 7:00 & 10:30pm Last Rampage: The Escape of Gary Tison 12:00noon, 2:00, 4:00, 6:00, 8:00, 10:00pm & 12:00midnight Sid & Aya (2D/Tagalog) 12:15noon, 4:45 & 9:00pm Veere Di Wedding (2D/Hindi) 2:15, 6:45 & 11:00pm Solo: Star Wars Story (2D/Action) 12:00noon, 2:45, 5:30, 8:15 & 11:00pm Avengers: Infinity War (2D/Action) 12:00noon, 5:00 & 10:00pm Armed Response (2D/Action) 3:00 & 8:00pm Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (3D/IMAX /Action) 2:00, 5:00, 8:00 & 11:00pm

Kaala (2D/Tamil) 2:30, 8:15 & 11:15pm Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2D/Action) 3:00, 8:00, 9:45 & 11:00pm Sid & Aya: Not A Love Story (2D/Tagalog) 8:00pm Veere Di Wedding (2D/Hindi) 11:30pm

ROYAL PLAZA

Kaala (2D/Tamil) 8:00 & 11:15pm E. Ma. Yau (2D/Malayalam) 8:30pm Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2D/Action) 9:00 & 11:15pm Kaala (2D/Telugu) 11:00pm

Kaala (2D/Tamil) 2:30 & 11:00pm Kaala (2D/Hindi) 8:00pmSid & Aya: Not A Love Story (2D/Tagalog) 8:00pm Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2D/Action) 8:30 & 11:00pm Last Rampage: The Escape of Gary Tison (2D/Drama) 9:45pm E. Ma. Yau (2D/Malayalam) 11:30pm

Kaala (Tamil) 1:00, 7:30, 10:00 & 10:30pmKaala (Telugu) 7:00pmKaala (Hindi) 7:30pmE. Ma. Yau (2D/Malayalam) 8:00, 10:15 & 10:30pm

Kaala (Tamil) 10:45am, 2:00, 8:15 & 11:30pmE. Ma. Yau (2D/Malayalam) 12:30 & 8:45pmKaala (Telugu) 10:30am & 7:45pmKaala (Hindi) 1:30 & 11:00pmJurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2D/Action) 3:00 & 11:15pm

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2D/Action) 12:30, 3:10, 5:50, 8:30 & 11:10pm Kaala 12:30, 3:45, 5:00, 7:00, 8:15, 10:15 & 11:30pmKaala (Hindi) 4:15pm Kaala (Telugu) 1:00, 7:30 & 10:45pm Stolen Princess 12:30 & 2:45pm

When the island’s dormant volcano begins roaring to life, Owen and Claire mount a campaign to rescue the remaining dinosaurs from this extinction-level event.

FLIK Mirqab

JURASSIC WORLD

Avengers: Infinity War 10:00pmE.Ma.Yu 2:40, 3:20, 8:00 & 10:35pmIncredible Story of The Giant Pear 2:35 & 5:15pm Jurassic World 3D 4:05, 6:40, 9:20pm & 12:00midnight Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom 2:30, 5:00, 7:35, 8:55, 10:15 & 11:30pm Kaala 2:55, 4:50, 6:20, 7:40, 9:45 & 11:00pm Masha And The Bear 4:20pm Show Dogs 3:10, 6:05 & 7:00pm Sid & Aya: Not Love Story 2:50, 5:55 & 8:00pm Solo: A Star Wars Story 5:00 & 11:05pm