Riyadh-based Al Aziziah Panda United Co. received the “Best retail company in the Middle East” prize at a ceremony in Dubai recently. The competition was supervised by Middle East Retailers and the jury consisted of a team of international experts in retail sector based on high standards focusing on the location of retail markets, display of goods and commodities, and market management as well as customer service, cleanliness and community service. Dr. Muhammad A. Kashgari, president of Aziziah Panda Co United and also of the retail section of Savola Group, told a recent press conference in Jeddah: “We are proud to get this prize, which is an honor to our society and a proof for the success of our continuous efforts in giving best offers and services.” The company is investing about SR900 million in 2007 to open 12 Panda markets and four hyper Panda markets across the Kingdom.
ABC
Moody’s has upgraded the deposit ratings for Bahrain-based Arab Banking Corporation (ABC) by two notches to A3 and the bank financial rating from D+ to C-. Moody’s had re-evaluated a group of regional and international banks in the region. “The ratings upgrade from Moody’s reflects the continuous improvement in the ratings that we already received from other international ratings agencies. This important achievement is a result of the continuous improvement in our financial standing, ABC’s profitability and risk management methodologies,” Ghazi Abdul-Jawad, president and chief executive of ABC, said. He added that ABC would continue to build on its strength and ratings by implementing the strategies that were already in place in various countries where ABC has a presence. Arab Banking Corporationhas also announced its first quarter results with an increase in shareholders return on equity.
TUSDEER
Saudi Trade & Export Development Company (Tusdeer) has signed an agreement to provide financial advisory services for the development of the Jeddah Islamic Port’s third container terminal Project with Al-Rajhi Bank and the Standard Bank of South Africa Ltd. Al-Rajhi Bank has also been appointed as the mandate lead arranger for the one billion Saudi riyals Islamic financing for the project. “Following a selection process initiated with two local and three international banks, the Al-Rajhi Bank-Standard Bank consortium was chosen due to their wealth of experience in build, operate and transfer BOT project finance, their strong multi-disciplinary advisory team and their extensive experience in comparable projects worldwide,” said Aamer Alireza, CEO of Tusdeer. The SR1 billion Islamic financing for the project is being fully underwritten by Al-Rajhi Bank.
KERFI ARABIA
Kerfi Arabia and Nexus Ag launched Nexus HIS products at a ceremony in Riyadh recently. Swedish Ambassador Jan Thesleff presided over the ceremony that was attended by Dr. Peter Blomeyer, deputy head of the mission at the Germany Embassy in Riyadh, and Swedish Trade Commissioner Patrick El-Cheikh. “The Swedish Embassy in Riyadh has one of its main tasks to promote trade, technology transfer and investments. I am very happy to have a high-performing team from the Swedish Trade Council working actively together with Saudi and Swedish companies,” Thesleff said. Kerfi Arabia is the result of cooperation between Kerfi AB Sweden, a member of Opin Kerfi Group, and a Saudi-based company. As a result of this fusion, Kerfi Arabia has full access to the Kerfi group’s knowledge and resources, while having all local expertise required to bid as systems integrator for major projects in the GCC.
ALDAR
Aldar, Abu Dhabi’s major integrated property development company, has signed an exclusive contract with Ferrari to construct the Ferrari Theme Park on Aldar’s Yas Island project. Work has already begun on the project, one of the main anchors of which is the innovative and exciting theme park. Built around the legendary Italian auto company and featuring an interesting mixture of attractions, the theme park will consist of family rides, driving school and virtual simulations as well as retail merchandising for people who wish to truly live Ferrari. “This partnership is the start of a new era for the team. We are proud to be associated with Aldar, one of Abu Dhabi’s leading brands, whose determination and desire to succeed matches Ferrari’s philosophy and brand values perfectly and I hope we will both continue to progress together for many years to achieve our own respective goals,” Jean Todt, CEO, Ferrari, said.