GULF AIR HONORS AGENTS

Gulf Air presented awards to its agents for their 2006 performance at a ceremony held in Jeddah on Monday night. Bahraini Consul General Hamad Ali A. Al-Binkhalil distributed the awards jointly with Adel Al-Tamimi, Gulf Air’s Jeddah-based general manager, and Airport Manager Mohammed A. Yateem. Al-Tamimi, a veteran of 20 years with Gulf Air who assumed charge in Jeddah a month ago, said: “The carrier has code share arrangements with some international carriers including Saudi Arabian Airlines. “We have good relations with Saudia and would like to thank the Kingdom for its support.” Al-Tamimi said. “Gulf Air works closely with its travels agents and recognizes the important role they play in our business,” he said. “Travel agents are our biggest strength and we have excellent relationship with all of them,” he added. “Being the airline with the biggest network in the Middle East with excellent onward connections to Europe, Far East and the Indian subcontinent, Gulf Air offers tremendous business opportunities for both inbound and outbound travel.” Gulf Air presented its gold awards to Kanoo Travel and Al-Zagel Travels. Saddik & Mohamed Attar was given a silver award. Saudi United, Al-Tayyar, Al-Rajhi, Elaf, Awasim, Alzouman, STTB, Musaid, Mirage, Al-Balagha, Al-Nawrus, Airwings, Portfolio, Zahid, Alattas and Dallah Wings received bronze awards. Some staff members were also honored with awards of appreciation.

SAUDI CREDIT & SAVING BANK

The Yanbu branch of the Saudi Credit and Saving Bank offered a total of SR37.6 million in loans to citizens with limited income in 2007, the bank manager Muhammad Samarqandi said yesterday. Some1,899 loans given by the bank included assistance to set up small businesses, house repair, for marriage and loans to fulfill other social obligations. The bank loans also included SR896,117 assistance under the King Abdullah Scheme to 13 men to buy taxi cars. Only one man applied for the loan to set up a trade establishment. He was given a loan of SR40,000. While 234 families enjoyed social loans worth SR465,000, the bank extended 1,436 loans for marriages at SR20,000 per applicant, which would be increased to SR30,000 in the next budget.

CLEAR FOR MEN CLUB

Following its successful launch campaign of the first male antidandruff shampoo range, Unilever Arabia has announced the establishment of a CLEAR for Men Club in Jeddah with plans to spread it to major cities across Saudi Arabia. The club is a social association that reflects today’s more eclectic and varied Saudi society, with members whose lifestyle, spending habits and concern for personal appearance are typical of a fashionable, urban man living in major metropolitan centers around the world. Club spokesman Yasser Joharji said: “The typical for Men Club member lives in or within easy reach of a metropolis, because that is where all the best shops, clubs, gyms and hairdressers are. Events can include a broad range of interests from sports and social to the arts and book activities.”

MOTOROLA’S FIRST ROKR

Motorola, Inc. revolutionized hands-free driving with the launch of the MOTOROKR T505 Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone and Digital FM Transmitter, its first road-ready, music-oriented ROKR accessory and the latest addition to its portfolio of in-car solutions. The MOTOROKR T505 enables consumers to connect a compatible Bluetooth enabled phone to the car sound system and enjoy hands-free calling and their own personal music collection in outstanding stereo sound. The T505 is extremely portable and requires no wires or installation. Drivers simply clip the device to a car’s visor and pair the T505 using Motorola’s EasyPair technology to a compatible Bluetooth device. When the T505 is connected to a stereo Bluetooth phone, such as a MOTORAZR or MOTOROKR Z6, or an MP3 player, calls and music are streamed wirelessly with the perfectly-tuned clarity and wide-ranging volume of a car stereo. Drivers with standard Bluetooth phones can use the T505 to make and take their calls over the car stereo. And when the ride’s over, the T505 can be easily unhooked and taken to another car for the next trip.

BANKMUSCAT WINS AWARD

BankMuscat (SAOG), one of Oman’s premier financial institutions, has been presented with the JPMorgan Chase Quality Recognition Award for its outstanding performance and long-term commitment to quality in the area of fund transfer. Less than one percent of JPMorgan fund transfer clients were able to qualify for this award. AbdulRazak Ali Issa, chief executive, BankMuscat, said: “Ensuring the highest levels of quality in everything that we offer, the services we provide or the processes and procedures that we follow are of great importance to the bank. Having won this prestigious award for the seventh time, winning this award for the seventh time is testimony to this and reflects the unwavering commitment of our people to high standards we are committed to.”

NEW MERCEDES SYSTEM

Mercedes-Benz is in the final stages of testing a new type of assistance system to warn the driver of tiredness and the dreaded phenomenon of nodding off at the wheel. The system uses sensors to analyze driving behavior and recognizes tiredness-related changes in the driver’s personal driving style. In this event the driver is prompted to take a break. “Official statistics cite tiredness as the reason behind around one percent of all serious traffic accidents although experts believe that this figure could be higher,” said Johannes Fritz, director, Mercedes-Benz Cars, Middle East and Levant. “The assistance system developed by Mercedes-Benz is designed to detect the early signs of tiredness and warn the driver. It will, therefore, make an important contribution to the prevention of accidents.”

AL-SORAYAI IN CARPET SHOW

Al-Sorayai Trading Industrial Group, one of the Middle East’s largest carpet manufacturers and exporters, will be participating in Domotex Hanover 2008 on Jan. 12-15, showcasing its latest line of innovative flooring products. Domotex Hanover is the world’s most comprehensive floor covering expo, and the Al-Sorayai Group participates in this show annually. It offers the opportunity for Saudi industry to reveal the latest of its developments to the rest of the world, particularly those in the carpet industry, as represented by the revolutionary and innovative styles of flooring products. Saleh Nasser Al-Sorayai, CEO of the group, said: “Our participation in this event is an opportunity for the Al-Sorayai Group to demonstrate in the high level of development of Saudi industry in various fields, particularly those in the carpet and furniture industries.

TRAVEL SECTOR GROWTH

A recent study commissioned by Amadeus, a global leader in technology and distribution solutions for the travel and tourism industry, revealed that travel agencies in the Middle East will soon have to re-engineer their operations to achieve long term sustainability. The study carried out by Hermes Management Consulting in the Kingdom, cites reductions in airline commissions, rapid expansion, growth of low-cost carriers and a shift toward online distribution channels as the key reasons for this change. Hermes together with Amadeus Saudi Arabia classified the travel agencies according to their main business focus — leisure and business, and carried out an exhaustive analysis of activities based on a balanced mix of size, location, level of automation and main global distribution system provider. Within the leisure segment, two types of travel agency were identified; cash driven and service driven travel agencies. The study covers 13 Middle Eastern countries for the period to 2020 and is to be published in full at the Hotel Show 2008, the Middle East’s leading supplies exhibition to the region’s hospitality sector, scheduled at the Dubai International Exhibition Center on June 8-10.

ARAB INSURANCE CONFERENCE

The steering committee of the 27th General Arab Insurance Federation (GAIF) has officially extended an invitation to local companies to showcase their products and services in the GAIF Insurance Conference Exhibition. The three-day exhibition will be taking place on the sidelines of the 27th GAIF Conference, which will be held in the Kingdom of Bahrain under the patronage of Prime Minister Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al-Khalifa, on Feb. 26-28, 2008. The biennial conference — widely regarded as the Arab World’s most important insurance industry event — will draw around 1,000 participants representing the pan-Arab insurance sector elite. Ashraf Bseisu, chairman of the Bahrain Insurance Association (BIA), the official host of the GAIF 2008 Conference, re-emphasized the importance of local participation.