Issue 08 March / April 2011

The Dubai Gold & Commodities exchange (DGCX) achieved a robust start to 2011, with a record volume of 244,385 contracts, valued at $11.7bn in the first month of the year. That was the highest ever monthly volume activity for the exchange since inception in 2005. It was driven by strong member participation in currency, gold and crude oil futures, recording …

Abu Dhabi’s foreign trade was worth aed 109.1bn in 2010, a decrease of 2.5 per cent compared to 2009, according to the Emirate’s department of Finance, General directorate of Customs, in providing annual statistics on foreign goods arriving via land, sea and air. The statistics also showed a decline in imports, recording aed 86.54bn, a drop of 7.8 per cent …

FRSGlobal, a part of Wolters Kluwer Financial services, is increasing its footprint in the Middle East by introducing reporting capabilities for banks operating in Bahrain into its global regulatory solution. FRSGlobal’s regulatory reporting solution automates report compilation and submission to the national regulator – helping save Bahrain fi rms’ valuable time and resources, and helping ensure compliance with latest requirements …

Financial services companies need to look far beyond their domestic markets if they are to achieve their ambitious growth aspirations, according to the 14th annual PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Global Chief executive Offi cer (CeO) survey. The research shows CeOs of fi nancial services companies believe emerging markets are more important than developed markets to their organisation’s future. China tops the list …

Treasurers’ main focus remains liquidity, according to the 12th annual global cash management survey carried out by JP Morgan asset Management and the association of Corporate Treasurers. It reveals that while extreme risk aversion is beginning to recede, treasurers remain cautious in the wake of the financial crisis. In particular, the survey shows a continued focus on liquidity, and an …

Dear Reader, Co-operation and collaboration are the watchwords highlighted in two of our principle articles in this issue as businesses and banks act to increase profitability and sidestep market turmoil. First, as our main article points out, corporate treasurers based in the Middle East’s major commercial and trading centres are collaborating more closely with trade finance managers to exploit opportunities …