JEDDAH: Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) has dispatched a shipment of 20,000 tons of urea to Pakistan, where it is expected to reach within a couple of days, the consulate General of Pakistan stated yesterday. According to an agreement between the Kingdom and Pakistan, another shipment of 135,000 tons of urea will be sent to Karachi soon.
Qatari firm’s units to invest $5.9bn
DUBAI: Industries Qatar (IQ), the Gulf’s second-largest chemicals maker by market value, said its units would invest 21.3 billion riyals ($5.85 billion) into expansion and new projects by 2011, a newspaper reported yesterday. Qatar Petrochemical Co., Qatar Fertilizer Co., Qatar Fuel Additives Co. and Qatar Steel Co. would make the investments, daily Peninsula reported, without clarifying its source.
Egyptian GDP grows 7.2%
CAIRO: The Egyptian economy grew 7.2 percent in the 2007/8 financial year which ended in June, Finance Minister Youssef Boutros-Ghali said yesterday. The minister gave the number to Reuters in response to a query by text message. He gave no further details. The Egyptian government has said gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of 7.4 percent in the first nine months of the year. The figure for the whole year indicates that growth slowed to an annualized 6.6 percent in the April-June quarter.
Hankook Tire plans plant in US
n DETROIT: Hankook Tire Co. Ltd., the world’s seventh-largest tire maker, plans to build its next manufacturing plant in North America as it aims to increase sales in the region to $1 billion within three years, its North American chief has said. South Korea’s Hankook Tire, 10 percent owned by French tire maker Michelin, has five plants in South Korea, China and Hungary.
Russia’s WTO bid in doubt
GENEVA: Russia’s longstanding aim of joining the World Trade Organization has been thrown into doubt as the conflict with Georgia and tensions with the West threaten to reshape the geopolitical order. Moscow has been knocking at the door of the Geneva-based body since 1993, just two years after the collapse of the Soviet Union and during the first flush of the country’s embrace with capitalism.
Spain sees 3% economic growth
MADRID: Spain faces adverse economic conditions that could last longer than expected, but the downturn should be followed by a strong recovery, Spain’s prime minister said in an interview published yesterday. “This adversity is proving tough, above all, because it came on very fast,” Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero told Spain’s El Mundo newspaper. Zapatero has ruled out recession and sees growth around 3 percent in 2010, up from 1.6 percent in 2008 and 1 percent next year.
Kuwait inflation due to external factors
KUWAIT CITY: Governor of the Central Bank of Kuwait Sheikh Salem Abdulaziz Al-Sabah has said inflation in Kuwait, which has hit record levels, is mainly caused by external factors. “Inflation in Kuwait is imported ... since the country imports most of its commodities from abroad,” Sheikh Salem said in statements cited by the official KUNA news agency late Saturday. Inflation hit a record high of 11.4 percent in April but dropped slightly to 11.1 percent in May, the latest available figure.
