COCA-COLA
Coca-Cola Company launched the latest of its soft drinks dubbed Coca Cola Zero in Riyadh yesterday. “Since the company introduced Coca-Cola Lite, this is the most significant launch in 20 years,” its General Manager Asadullah Sherazee, said. “The new drink is an innovation in the world of soft drinks. It retains the legendary Coca-Cola taste while being completely sugar free,” he added. With this launch, Zero is the latest soft drink to join the soft drink family of Coca-Cola with its flavor that is especially an attraction for women,” Abdullah Al-Arrak, external communication and media manager of the company, said. He added that the company’s marketing plan for Zero was designed to attract young men and women, while targeting chiefly men between 20 and 29 years of age. Khaled M. Riad, the company’s area manager for Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Yemen, Bahrain and Qatar, said that the Kingdom was the largest market for sparkling beverages in the Middle East and 220 million cases of drinks were marketed annually in the Kingdom.
DOW
Corporate Responsibility Officer (CRO) Magazine has named the Dow Chemical Company one of America’s “100 Best Corporate Citizens” of 2008. This is the first time in the Awards’ nine-year history that Dow has made the list, securing a place in the top 15 and ranking ahead of all other chemical companies. “This is a remarkable achievement,” said Andrew Liveris, Dow’s chairman and chief executive officer. “To be recognized as one of the leading corporate citizens in the US is a tribute to every one of our 46,000 people - our Human Element - and speaks volumes to the progress we have made towards our vision of being the largest, most profitable, most respected chemical company in the world.” To compile the list, CRO commissioned IW Financial, the US-based major consultancy in environment, social and governance ratings, to assess more than 1,000 US-headquartered companies against eight dimensions of corporate citizenship. The final rankings were determined using a weighted average of the categories.
DAMAC
DAMAC Properties, a luxury lifestyle provider and Middle East’s major private sector master developer, is sponsoring the German KADACH Racing Team, one of the pillars of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup this year. The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup is a high-ranking race series of 11 world-class races to be held on the same track as well as the same day as the Formula One Grand Prix races across the various European GP circuits and the Bahrain GP raceway at Sakhir. Speaking about the partnership with the KADACH Racing Team, DAMAC Holding Chairman, Hussain Sajwani said: “DAMAC’s association with iconic championship races are not new and we strongly believe in being part of these exciting events held across the globe. Today, DAMAC has a global presence, backed by an enviable project portfolio worth $30 billion worldwide and over 110 nationalities have invested in our unique projects. DAMAC’s sponsorship of KADACH Racing Team at the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup therefore clearly underlines the importance of the German market for us.”
SHOWSERIES
“Heroes” begins its second season on March 26 exclusively on SHOWSERIES every Wednesday at 9 p.m., with the episode entitled ‘Four Months Later’ after the big New York City battle. The characters scattered all across the world will leap forward four months when the show returns everyone that is except Hiro. The time-tripping fan boy, played by Masi Oka, was suddenly teleported to 1671 Japan in the cliffhanger of the Season 1 finale. The Season 2 premiere will find him right where we left him — stuck in the middle of samurai who are about to wage war. The season opener is packed with many tantalizing new mysteries.
SAMSUNG
Samsung Electronics and PC Magazine have announced the launch of the 2008 PC Magazine Technology Challenge, a trivia-style competition open exclusively to primary school students in the UAE, which will be held on April 5 at the Sheikh Rashid Auditorium of The Indian High School, Dubai. The computer science and technology trivia challenge will gather 50 competing schools to a fun and interactive activity to promote the development and education of the country’s next generation of technology users. Fully supported by platinum sponsor Samsung Electronics and key sponsor Canon, the event will accept two nominated teams from each participating school, comprised of students aged from 8 to 12 years old. The Challenge will consist of three rounds of technology trivia on computer history, basic technology concepts, computer technologies, Internet basics, and general knowledge. The three teams garnering the highest scores at the end of the three rounds will proceed to a final round to determine the final ranking.
AL-RAJHI BANK
Al-Rajhi Bank launched its “Mega Car Xpress,” an exhibition bringing all popular car brands under one roof. Providing quick and easy car financing, it is a quarterly event that is held in the bank’s Khorais showroom at Exit 30 in Riyadh. The exhibition continues till March 31. Mega Car Xpress is a modification to its Car Xpress, the monthly activity that has been running for the past year with significant success. It presents customers benefits and attractive offers, including no down payment and no processing fees on select cars available at the venue. It also provides customers with the option of contract signing at their own convenience, in 10 branches in and around Riyadh. “We are constantly looking at opportunities to offer more value to the customer. This is a one of a kind initiative undertaken by the bank to interact with consumers and meet the rising need for facilitating the car purchasing process with more ease and comfort, according to Saeed Mohammed Al-Ghamdi, the bank’s deputy CEO.
SGHG
During the recent 5th Leading CEO summit organized at Burj Al-Arab, both Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) and Saudi German Hospitals Group (SGHG) signed an MOU for collaborating to establish five not-for-profit hospitals in the Middle East and Africa. SGHG has planned the hospitals to cover the primary and secondary health care needs, mainly by providing high quality services in return for a subsidized fee. The income generated is to be reinvested in the maintenance and future expansion of the hospitals. “CCC, a big company with local presence in more than one region and among the top 20 companies worldwide, responded to our initiative and their commitment is an honorable example of how big industry players should pay back their communities,” Sobhi Batterjee, president, SGHG, said. “We hope that the commitment of CCC in investing $12.5 million will be a source of encouragement for others.” CCC’s area general manager for northern Emirates Samir Khoury said: “CCC’s top management has always been keen to repay its major stakeholders.”
SAUDI FAIR
Saudi Gulf Luxury Trade Fair is the first of what will be an annual Middle East themed trade fair will take place at London’s InterContinental Hotel in Park Lane, supported by Conduit Capital Liquid Funds Ltd., a London-based investment company. The InterContinental London Park Lane within the last 12 months completed a £76 million refurbishment, and is now the flagship of the worldwide hotel group, which is the venue for the new fair, which is scheduled for two days from Aug. 2. Fifty-six companies, ranging from world famous luxury brands of cars, boats, private jets, property, jewelry, fashion, art, furniture and mobile phones will join business stands that include banks, investment houses, lawyers and British companies who wish to develop trade and investment opportunities within Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states. Admission for visitors will be free. A centerpiece of the fair will be an Arabic tent, constructed within the hotel’s ballroom. The hotel will be carrying a strong Middle Eastern theme on the run up to the fair.
NEXT MOVE
The inaugural edition of the Next Move real estate investment exhibition will be held at the Cairo International Conference Centre in Cairo for four days from April 16. The event will have the participation of more than 40 exhibitors and 25,000 visitors to explore various residential and commercial projects worth AED36.7 billion. Organized by ACG-ITF Co., an exhibition organizer in Egypt and a major trade events organizer in the MENA region, the event will be attended by major developers such as Talaat Mostafa Group, Damac Properties, Al-Ahli Group, Qatari Diar, Emaar Egypt, Oriental Development Group and Al-Jawhara. Prominent real estate financing companies including Arab Egyptian Real Estate Bank, Amlak Real Estate and Financing Co., and Commercial International Bank will also participate. Ahmed Ghozzi, chairman, ACG-ITF, said: “Next Move offers a relaxed yet vibrant platform for buyers, developers, and financiers to interact and discuss the latest and best options for real estate acquisitions.”
EMAAR
The Economic City (Emaar EC), the Tadawul-listed company developing King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), is highlighting the tourism initiatives and investment opportunities within KAEC at the Saudi Travel & Tourism Investment Market 2008 (STTIM), being held in Riyadh until March 27 with the support of Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman. The event, organized by Supreme Commission for Tourism (SCT), is focused on growth strategies for the travel and tourism sector, and the investment opportunities in the sector. Prince Sultan ibn Salman, secretary general of SCT, said: “STTIM 2008 highlights the importance of the tourism and travel sector to the Kingdom’s economy and future growth plans. The participation of Emaar EC at STTIM reiterates the essential role that the private sector plays in strengthening the tourism sector.” Fahd Al-Rasheed, CEO of Emaar EC said: “The tourism sector is one of the most important sectors in terms of creating investment opportunities and generating promising jobs.”
RAKIA
Ras Al-Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA), the government body responsible for the socioeconomic growth of the emirate, in partnership with the Indian Business & Professional Council (IBPC), organized a seminar on investment opportunities in Ras Al-Khaimah on Monday. IBPC’s President Abbas Mirza and Secretary General Navin Kapoor, RAKIA’s CEO Dr. Khater Massaad and Executive Director Serge Guillaume, Peter Schuster, GM, RAK Offshore, and Indian Ambassador to the UAE Talmiz Ahmad were among the speakers. In his keynote address, Dr. Massaad spoke about the long-standing trade relations between the UAE and India, and highlighted the ever-increasing potential for investment opportunities for Indian companies in the emirate. “The UAE has trade relations with India since several decades, making the South Asian country one of the oldest trading partners of the UAE. The UAE has emerged as the second largest market globally for Indian products. Indo-UAE trade is now valued at over $18 billion,” he said.
SHAIKH HOLDINGS/ARABTEC
Shaikh Holdings, a major Dubai-based real estate investment and development company, has awarded Arabtec Construction LLC an AED412 million contract to commence construction of its prestigious Sanctuary Falls villa development, a landmark boutique community in Jumeirah Golf Estates. The award-winning AED850 million Sanctuary Falls project aims to create a new benchmark in community living by being the first resort-style residential golf community in the UAE. Launched in July 2007, the development has already received keen interest from both local and international homebuyers and was awarded ‘Best Golf Development’ in the CNBC Arabian Property Awards 2007. Arabtec will commence construction of the 96 distinctly styled resort villas of Sanctuary Falls in April 2008, and expects completion by first quarter 2010. “We have taken our time to research and appoint the best quality contractors and subcontractors as our partners for the Sanctuary Falls development,” said Imran Shaikh, CEO, Shaikh Holdings.
SMART TECHNOLOGIES
SMART Technologies has announced its continued leadership regarding the number of interactive whiteboards installed in education institutions around the world. The data comes from a recently released report from Decision Tree Consulting (DTC), an industry-leading UK research company that has documented interactive whiteboard sales for eight years. The report also noted that SMART increased its 2007 product category share in the education segment by 4.4 points over 2006. The company’s closest competitor has less than half of SMART’s category share. SMART now holds 53 percent of the product category share in the education segment in the US and 57 percent in the UK. DTC noted that 377,000 interactive whiteboards were sold to education institutions in 2007. DTC forecasts that the worldwide interactive whiteboard category will increase by 200 percent in the next five years. “SMART continues to lead the interactive whiteboard product category in education with strong sales around the world,” said Nancy Knowlton, SMART’s CEO.
SUZUKI
Suzuki Motor Corporation’s concept “Kizashi 3” has made its international debut at the New York International Auto Show. The sleek and athletic concept car is the latest addition to Suzuki’s highly acclaimed series of concept cars that include the concept Kizashi and concept Kizashi 2. Suzuki is now moving forward with the third phase of its world strategy, a phase in which it will enter the D-segment (midsize segment). The concept Kizashi series was developed to reflect a “dynamic athlete in motion,” taking its design cues from a strong, honed physique while displaying the performance, strength and style befitting a flagship vehicle. It symbolizes both Suzuki’s future design direction and stated intent to enter the D-segment category. The concept Kizashi 3 represents a closer-to-production vision of a future Suzuki sport sedan offering. The concept Kizashi’s “supersport” identity, a core component of the Suzuki brand DNA, is tempered by the design’s overall impression of strong, refined urban performance.