NCB
The National Commercial Bank (NCB) recently hosted the Lord Mayor of London, Ian Luder, and a delegation of top British economic, financial, commercial, and investment experts that accompanied him at its headquarters in Jeddah. Al-Sharif Khalid Al-Ghalib, senior vice president at NCB and head of individual sector, welcomed the guest and his entourage. Al-Ghalib said the objective of the Kingdom’s financial and other business sectors. The visit also highlighted the potential investment opportunities in the Kingdom. The purpose of such meetings is to increase trade and investment between the Kingdom and its trading partners by looking into channels of cooperation in various economic areas, reviewing investment opportunities available in the Saudi economy and highlighting developments in the economic reform program adopted by the Kingdom. He said the NCB places great emphasis on exploring the horizons of cooperation between the two parties.
AL-RAJHI BANK
Al-Rajhi Bank’s corporate group has witnessed a distinctive and record success due to a wide customer appeal from various business sectors including large-scale business enterprises in the Kingdom. Adnan bin Abdullah Al-Olayan, AGM for the corporate group, said the success is attributed to the various development programs that the bank is undertaking with a purpose to continuously improve performance based on a clear strategy to maintain market leadership. “Our key success factor is our partnership with the enterprise sector and assisting it by creating better efficiencies,” he said. Al-Olayan highlighted the bank’s payroll service for companies and enterprises, which is gaining a wide appeal among businesses. In short, this service is easy and simple to use in order to facilitate employee payroll and manage the salary rosters and private payments. Employees with payroll cards can withdraw their salaries using the ATM without having to open a personal bank account at the Bank. “These cards have been designed to meet the payroll needs of employees as it is an ideal tool for companies with a large,” he added.
MECL/SONY
The Sony Creative Science Awards 2009, the 5th edition of the hugely popular community initiative of Modern Electronics Co. Ltd. (MECL) and Sony Gulf FZE (SOGUL), in co-partnership with the Directorate of Education & Culture for the Saudi Armed Forces, was announced in Riyadh recently. Registration for the Award is open for all Central Province (Riyadh-based) Schools. Prince Mohammed bin Khalid Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, group president, (AFG), Prince Bandar bin Turki bin Abdullah Al-Saud, head of the Directorate of Education and Culture for the Saudi Armed Forces, Ziad Al-Tunisi (vice president of AFG, Taro Kimura, GM (sales and marketing MECL/SONY) and Dr. Abdul Aziz bin Mohammed Al-Dabayan from Ministry of Education were among those present. The Sony Creative Science Award, the first initiative of its kind in the Kingdom, promotes creativity among children and opens their minds to scientific curiosity.
3POINTS
3Points advertising agency launched its new corporate identity to mark its 10-year anniversary of creativity since its ambitious launch. The new logo will reflect the vision and concept of its mission in the field of contemporary advertising. Today the 3points team provides creative advertising to clients within a framework of excellence to achieve the goals of the clients and provide access to competition in the market has been active with international companies for many years. The 3points team has earned numerous awards. Marwan Qutub and Issa Bogeri, founders of the agency, said, they were the first Saudi agency to hire talented Saudis in all departments of the agency. “In addition to that, we have set standards in public awareness campaigns through the Aqim Selatek project, providing correct ways to communicate with local the consumer and represent standards of the local traditions, in terms of appearance and content,” Qutub said. 3 Points is a Saudi-based organization run by Saudi qualified employees.
HEDGE FUNDS
Four months of intense competition and careful selection by an independent panel of judges culminated in the announcement this week of winners of the 2009 Hedge Funds World Middle East Awards. The awards ceremony in Dubai brought together 250 top executives from hedge funds institutions from across the region and beyond to recognize and celebrate companies and individuals who have demonstrated an unparalleled ability to succeed and continually set standards of excellence. The annual event, running in parallel with the Hedge Funds Middle East Conference, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary in the Middle East, is considered to be the most prominent event. The awards reward institutions that have done something truly exceptional. An independent judging panel of international and regional industry specialists elected nominees, said Symon Rubens, MD, Terrapinn, organizer of both the conference and the awards ceremony and a leading global business media company said.
VACHERON
Watches and jewelry play a big role in Arab weddings. They represent new beginnings, long commitments. When couples think of a wedding gift that reflects stability and continuity, Vacheron Constantin, described as the world’s oldest watch manufacturer of 250-year standing, has it. Created especially for such occasions is the 1972 Cambree for women and the Malte Chronograph for men, available at the Vacheron Constantin boutiques and points of sale across the Arab world. Each of these highly valued timepieces is created to complement the details of every bride and groom’s look and is a symbol of their elegance. Each piece by Vacheron Constantin radiates a truly exquisite beauty and charm while maintaining the highest standard of quality that the brand is known for.
ITFC
The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), an autonomous entity within the Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB), recently held a training program in Ankara, Turkey for four days for top officials of selected trade organizations from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Palestine, Iran, Albania and Nigeria. ITFC CEO Waleed Al-Wohaib said: “The ITFC takes the initiative of conducting on-job training programs in many countries to enhance the capabilities of trade promotion officials and ensure that trade initiatives are effectively implemented to better achieve the overarching aim of the IDB, which is to promote and finance trade on order to bring about economic benefits that translate into better living standards for people in OIC member countries.”
MLA
Residents of the Middle East consumed more Australian red meat products in 2008 than they did in 2007, according to a report issued recently by Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA), which showed that Aussie red meat sales in the ME soared by 18 percent in 2008. The report showed that major growth occurred across the full range of Australian red meat products and underlined the continuous significance of KSA and UAE markets for Australian red meat products. Overall sales totaled 97,743 tons in 2008 compared to 82,770 tons in 2007. Beef sales in the region increased by 201 percent in 2008, to reach 12980 tons from 4,304 tons in 2007. The highest increase in Australian beef sales was in the Kingdom by 306 percent, jumping from 897 tons in 2007 to 3,650 tons. The UAE, however, was still the largest market for Australian beef products, which soared by 138 percent, reaching 4,312 tons in 2008 from 1,807 tons in 2007.
