Business

The UAE’s first full-service freehold residential plots have been announced in Sharjah by Shoumous Properties, a joint venture between Albatha Real Estate and Moafaq Al Gaddah (MAG) Group. Unlike the many other freehold residential developments in the United Arab Emirates, the Shoumous Residential Complex will allow investors to build and sell their own homes according to Sharjah’s real estate regulations. ...

The United Arab Emirates registered strong growth in private sector production, purchasing and employment during January, according to HSBC‘s monthly Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), compiled by Markit, a global financial information and services company. Experts predict a slowing in some economic activity during this year as a result of lower oil prices, however January’s index showed a three-month high. The ...

The University of Sharjah (UOS) plans to build a new AED 200 million (US$54m) residential tower in Al Mamzar in the centre of Sharjah city. The university currently manages more than 60 buildings on its main campus in Sharjah’s University City near the international airport, in the city and on Sharjah’s east coast. The new residential tower adds to a ...

Air Arabia (AIRARABI:DFM) will become the first low-cost airline from the Middle East and Africa to connect the region with China next month. Starting on February 10, 2015, the Sharjah-headquartered carrier will fly regular non-stop services to Urumqi, the largest city in Western China. Located in the Xinjiang district of China, Urumqi is a modern industrial city of 3.3 million ...

Sharjah’s award-winning integrated environmental and waste management company, Bee’ah, announced its new, state-of-the-art, eco-friendly headquarters during the first day of the World Future Energy Summit 2015 (WFES) in Abu Dhabi this week. The new Bee’ah headquarters building, which takes its inspiration from desert sand dunes, has been designed by Prtizker prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid and reflects the organisation’s passion for ...

Rafi Agri Foods International FZC, a leading agri-commodity trading firm based in the Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (SAIF Zone) has announced its acquisition of a 20 percent stake in Delta Food Industries (FZC), one of the UAE’s fastest growing food exporters. A company statement estimated Delta Foods’ exports at over 250 TEUs (twenty-foot-equivalent units) per month, nearly 70 percent ...

The 2015 World Forum for Foreign Direct Investment will focus on the impact of geopolitics on foreign direct investment (FDI). The forum, hosted by the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) and organised by Conway Events, will be held from 9 – 10 February in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates: the first time that the event has taken place in the ...

Sharjah’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry is to launch a new Sharjah Exports Development Centre next week. The centre will help promote and develop exports from Sharjah industries to regional and global markets. The Exports Development Centre is one of a wide range of initiatives undertaken by Sharjah government departments and authorities to help capitalise on the emirate’s strong economic ...

Sharjah-headquartered terminal operator Gulftainer has reported that the Sharjah Container Terminal (SCT) handled 400,000 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) during 2014, recording double-digit growth compared to previous year’s volumes. SCT is managed and operated by Gulftainer on behalf of the Sharjah Port Authority. The terminal operator credited the arrival of new services throughout the year with boosting throughput, including UASC’s Gulf India ...

Sharjah-headquartered budget carrier Air Arabia (AIRARABI:DFM) has announced plans to open a new international hub at Amman Queen Alia International Airport in Jordan following its acquisition of a 49 percent stake in Petra Airlines. Air Arabia, which is the first and largest low-cost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East and North Africa, already has hubs in Alexandria (Egypt), Casablanca (Morocco), ...