Latest News
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Boeing makes partial comeback on flydubai order
Boeing responded to the Dubai Airshow on Wednesday with a provisional purchase order from flydubai for 75 737 MAX jets. This comes a day after this long-time Boeing client placed an order for 150 A321neo planes, which are a direct competitor of Airbus. Flydubai announced in a press release that the order included options for 75 additional Boeing jets. The switch to Airbus was one of the main talking points at the Middle East's largest aviation event. It was held on the site of a brand new airport, which will become flydubai’s home in 2032. This week, it was reported that Boeing continued to negotiate a contract involving dozens jets in order to claw back a portion of the growth share of one of their most important 737 MAX users. Flydubai can choose later which of the three 737 MAX models it wants - MAX 8, MAX 9 and the yet-to-be-certified MAX 10. Ghaith al Ghaith, the CEO of Boeing, said in an earlier interview that the U.S. aircraft manufacturer would emerge stronger after its recent crisis. However, he noted that the Airbus planes were chosen for their additional range and size. (Ahmed Elimam, Federico Maccioni, Tim Hepher; Editing by Conor Humphries)
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Portuguese airline TAP's quarterly profit rises 14%, bookings robust
The net profit of Portuguese airline TAP in the third quarter rose by 14.4% compared to a year earlier, thanks to higher revenues, lower costs for interest and gains on currency, the company said. It also added that bookings were still strong throughout the rest of this year. Between July and September, the state-owned airline, which is currently being privatised in part, reported a profit net of 126.85 million euros. In a press release, it said that bookings for the fourth quarter "remain robust and slightly higher than last year" but warned about persistent competition in key markets. The quarter's revenue increased by 2.7%, to 1.3 billion Euros. Passenger numbers rose 4.2% to approximately 4.8 million in "one of most busy summers since recent years". However, the period was impacted by handling disruptions as well as border-control bottlenecks across Europe and Portugal. Operating costs increased 4.8%, to 1.1 billion Euros. This was due to an increase of 5% in employee costs and an 11% in traffic costs. TAP's earnings before taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), a measure for profitability, fell by 4.4%, to 332.8 millions euros. Its EBITDA margin, which is a measure for profitability, decreased from 27% to 25.1% a year earlier. Portugal has relaunched its long-delayed TAP privatisation in July. It aims to sell a 44.9% share, with an additional 5% reserved for the staff. Lufthansa and British Airways' owner IAG, as well as Air France-KLM, have expressed interest.
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Iran releases the tanker Talara and all 21 crew members are safe
Iran released a fuel tanker on a Wednesday, five days following its seizure in the Gulf. This was its first action of this kind since it curtailed its regional military activities after Israeli and U.S. airstrikes in 2014. Columbia Shipmanagement, the manager of the vessel, said that all 21 crew members aboard the fuel product tanker Talara flying the Marshall Islands flag were safe. Talara was en route from the United Arab Emirates to Singapore when it got intercepted on Friday by Iran's Revolutionary Guards. The manager lost contact with the vessel that was loaded with high sulphur gasoil approximately 20 nautical mile off the coast from the UAE town Khor Fakkan. Iran confirmed on Saturday initial reports that it had taken a tanker for alleged violations, and diverted it to Iranian territorial waters. Columbia Shipmanagement announced on Wednesday that the vessel was released on November 19 at 0442 local time (0112 GMT). The company added that no accusations had been leveled against the vessel, its crew, or its managers and owners. The statement read: "We have notified their families and the vessel can now resume normal operations." Iran has taken over tankers before in the Gulf. However, it had not done this since it reduced its military activities in the region following the 12 day Israeli strike in June. The United States also joined in. Reporting by Jonathan Saul, writing by Renee Maltezou, editing by Peter Graff
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Minister: Poland will respond to rail sabotage
Poland will soon respond over a Railway explosion It blames two Ukrainians who collaborated with Russia to create chaos in a country that strongly supports Kyiv against Moscow's invasion The Polish Foreign Minister said on Monday. "It wasn't just an act sabotage, but also an attack of state terrorism." Radoslaw Skorski, who spoke to lawmakers, said that the response would not be diplomatic. The explosion on the Warsaw-Lublin Line, which connects Poland's capital with the Ukrainian border at the weekend, was the latest in a series of cyberattacks, arson attacks, and sabotage in Poland and elsewhere in Europe since the full-scale invasion started in 2022. Poland, a major hub for Western aid in Ukraine, has said that two Ukrainians who were behind the sabotage fled to Belarus. Belarus is an ally to Russia. Moscow has denied responsibility for the sabotage and blamed "Russophobia", both in Poland as well as elsewhere. (Reporting by Marek Strzelecki, Pawel Florkiewicz, Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
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Officials say that ten people were killed and forty wounded by a heavy Russian attack in Ukraine
Officials in Ukraine said that ten people died in an overnight Russian drone and missile attack on a residential tower in Ternopil in western Ukraine. The overnight attacks on Ukraine, which targeted the energy and transport infrastructures, resulted in 40 more injuries. This forced emergency power cuts across a number regions at freezing temperatures. In the attack, the upper floors of a residential building in Ternopil was torn off. The tower block was engulfed in a haze of black smoke and orange light. Officials said that Russia had launched 48 missiles and more than 470 drones during the attack. Poland, a NATO-member state that borders western Ukraine, closed Rzeszow Airport and Lublin Airport in the Southeast of the country. Polish and allies aircraft were scrambled as a precautionary measure to protect its airspace. ZELENSKIY CALLS FOR MORE PRESSURE OVER RUSSIA Ihor Klymenko, Minister of Interior, said that all 10 deaths occurred in Ternopil. He added that 12 children were among the 37 people injured. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ternopil confirmed that multi-storey residential building were hit and that others could be trapped beneath the rubble. He called on allies to intensify pressure on Russia in order to end the nearly four-year old war in Ukraine. This includes providing Kyiv more air defence missiles. "Each brazen attack on everyday life shows how insufficient the pressure is on Russia. "Effective sanctions and assistance for Ukraine can change this," said he on X. Officials from the energy sector said that there were strikes on energy infrastructure in seven Ukrainian regions. Witnesses in Lviv, a western city, reported hearing explosions. Although the full extent of damage is not yet known, consumers in the entire country have been restricted from using electricity. Reporting by Andriy P. Perun, Lidia Kelly and Anastasiia M. Malenko from Lviv; editing by Himani S. Sarkar and Timothy Heritage
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Fed rate cut will not affect most Gulf stocks
In early trading on Wednesday, most Gulf stock markets were subdued due to falling oil prices. Investors awaited the delayed U.S. employment report for clues about the Federal Reserve's rate policy. The price of oil, which is a major factor in Gulf financial markets' performance, fell on concerns about oversupply, but U.S. sanctions against the largest Russian producers have helped to limit losses. Brent crude traded at $64.53 per barrel as of 0810 GMT. The markets are now waiting for the delayed September non-farm employment report. Traders have priced in a 42% probability of a 25 basis-point Fed rate reduction in December. This is down from a near certainty one month ago. In the Gulf, most currencies are pegged with the dollar. The benchmark Abu Dhabi index edged down by 0.1%, weighed down by a drop of 1% in ADNOC Distribution as well as a fall of 4.1% in Response Plus Holding. Two Point Zero Group rose 4.8% while Presight AI Holding rose 1.8%. Seoul announced on Tuesday that South Korea had agreed to collaborate with the United Arab Emirates to build an artificial intelligence data campus, backed by the United States, in the Gulf. Dubai's benchmark index fell 0.1% with the majority of constituents in negative territory. Emaar Properties fell 0.7% while Al Ansari Financial Services dropped 1.1%. Saudi Arabia's benchmark index fell 0.1% with all sectors falling. Dar Al Arkan Real Estate and Bank Albilad both dropped by 1.2%. The chief executive of Dar Global, a developer's subsidiary, said on Tuesday that it hoped to fund a large part of its new Trump-branded resort in the Maldives using blockchain-based crypto tokens sold to U.S. retailers. ADES Holding increased by 1.4% after announcing that its merger with Shelf Drilling is expected to be completed on November 25, The benchmark Qatari index rose by 0.8%. This was due to gains across the board. Industries Qatar grew by 3% while Qatar National Bank grew by 1.1%.
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Serbian-owned oil company NIS seeks US license to resume operations
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has received a request from Serbia’s Russian-owned NIS Oil Company, which is sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department. It requests a special license that will allow uninterrupted operations. The statement stated that "in line with the current status of negotiations between shareholders, interested parties and the company, a request for a new license has been made to OFAC to enable the company to continue its operations while negotiations are underway on a viable solution for NIS." OFAC imposed sanctions against Russia's oil industry, including Gazprom, in January. However, for NIS which operates Serbia's sole oil refinery, the sanctions were repeatedly delayed and came into force on October 8, according to a statement. Aleksandar Vucic, the populist president of Serbia, said on Sunday that Serbia had seven days to take steps to resolve its crisis with NIS. Washington wants to see the Russians divest from NIS. On Saturday, it granted a license to its owners that gives them three months in which they can find a buyer. Gazprom and Gazprom each own 11.3% of NIS, while Serbia holds 29.9%. The rest is held by small investors.
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Jet2 launches a share buyback to boost profits
Jet2 announced on Wednesday that it would be able to meet market expectations for annual operating profits and also announced a buyback of shares. This was after a strong demand from its customers for the airline's flight-only services helped Jet2 achieve a higher interim profit. Early trading saw a 5% increase in its shares. To combat short-notice bookings, and industry-wide challenges such as rising costs and operational costs, the group behind 'Nothing Beats a Jet2 Holiday' has implemented price increases on its holiday and flight offers. Jet2 also plans to expand its Gatwick Airport operations to meet the demand of more travelers and to reach out to them. The company hopes that this new base will be profitable by fiscal 2029. According to the Leeds-based company, the trend of booking holidays nearer the departure date has continued. In a press release, CEO Steve Heapy stated that customers may book later but they still want to enjoy their well-earned holiday in the sun. He also announced a share buyback of 100 million pounds ($131.4 millions). Analysts at J.P.Morgan noted that the outlook was "relatively difficult" in the near term, after a small reduction of winter capacity as well as the persistence of summer trends. Jet2's operating profit grew by 2%, to 715.2 millions pounds, for the six-month period ended September 30. In a press release, the company stated that analysts expect an operating profit of 453 million pounds for the year ending on March 31, 2026, excluding Gatwick costs.
China Gas Holdings hires an ex-utility LNG Trader to lead global Gas Trading
China Gas Holdings, a privately-controlled city gas distributor, has hired an ex-senior trader of the Chinese utility GCL Group as its head of global natural gas sales.
Xiong Xin was the head of gas trading for GCL New Energy Holdings (a unit of GCL Holdings), a solar power company, until early 2024. He joined China Gas in Oct.
Xiong has nearly a decade's worth of experience in trading at the state oil giant CNOOC, and privately owned Chinese gas company ENN, before he joined GCL. He now heads China Gas’ growing liquefied gas trading business, as well as liquefied petrol gas trading.
Xiong confirmed his move and said he manages a staff of around 30 traders, analysts, and support staff in offices in Singapore and Shenzhen in southern China, where China Gas' headquarters is located.
Xu Huilin's former boss at GCL New Energy joined China Gas as vice president and was in charge of both LNG business units and LPG business unit, Xu said.
China Gas, a Hong Kong listed company, is China's largest independent distributor of city gas. Its annual sales are around 40 billion cubic meters. This represents about 9% of the national consumption.
Xu and Xiong stated that the company plans to expand its LNG and LPG trade, with each having an annual turnover of approximately 4 million metric tonnes.
The company has signed LNG long-term contracts with U.S. LNG exporters, including Energy Transfer Next Decade, and Venture Global. These contracts have a combined annual volume of 3.7 millions metric tons. The first shipments are expected to begin in 2027. (Reporting and editing by Kate Mayberry; Chen Aizhu)
(source: Reuters)