The international transport and logistics company Cargo-Partner announces the opening of its Bahrain office. With this location the global logistics player strengthens its global position through offering its customers an extended network.

Cargo-Partner is one of the largest forwarding companies with private European ownership in this region. It runs a solid network of subsidiaries in Europe, USA, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and the Middle East.

Services offered by Cargo-Partner in Bahrain range from common transport business including air and sea cargo, road transports as well as insurance and customs brokerage services. Furthermore some warehouse facilities are available.

Mr. Stefan Krauter, CEO of the Cargo-Partner Group said: “Bahrain’s strategic location in the heart of the Gulf along with the proximity to the region’s largest market Saudi Arabia was one of the main reasons that made us decide to have a presence in Bahrain. Further advantages are the Kingdom’s world class logistics infrastructure and excellent road network. Bahrain offers a well established open economy and an easy access to a pool of educated and productive workforce along with a liberal and advanced ICT infrastructure, which makes the Kingdom a business friendly environment.”

Cargo-Partner has opened its first office in the GCC region in Jebel Ali in 2010, this was followed by offices in Dubai and Bahrain. These offices are run by well experienced management and operations team offering competitive services to the customers.

Cargo-Partner is an international forwarding company, represented in the whole world and specialized in providing complex services in the area of transport and warehousing. The fast growth has been achieved by providing air, sea and road transports for international and domestic customers. Services of Cargo-Partner are also focused on the optimization of storage capacities.

The Cargo-Partner group is present around the world with more than 100 offices and 2,400 employees in 29 countries and achieved a 2011 turnover of 470 million Euros.

Bahrain’s central bank has urged five Islamic banks to merge early next year as it seeks to strengthen the banks’ capital bases, a senior official said on Sunday.

Under the plan, Al Salam Bank would merge with Bahrain Islamic Bank, while CAPIVEST, Elaf Bank and Capital Management House would merge with each other.

Bahrain Islamic Bank and Al Salam announced in August that they were in merger talks to form Bahrain’s largest Islamic lender with assets of BD1.7bn ($4.5bn).

“We pushed for that because it is positive, it will strengthen their capital and balance sheets,” Ahmed Abdul Aziz al-Bassam, director of licensing and policy at the central bank, told Reuters, referring to both mergers.

The mergers are awaiting approvals by shareholders, he said, adding: “We expect it to take place in the first quarter 2012.”

Bassam was speaking on the sidelines of an Arab Monetary Fund meeting on banking supervision in the capital of the United Arab Emirates.

Standard & Poor’s is reviewing credit ratings on 50 banks in the Middle East and North Africa under a new set of criteria, a senior S&P executive told Reuters. Last month, the agency classified Bahrain’s banks as the riskiest in the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Bassam also said Bahrain’s central bank had granted in-principle approvals for two Geneva-based investment houses as well as a Hanover-based reinsurance company to set up offices in the country, which was hit by political unrest earlier this year. He declined to name the companies before a formal announcement.

“This indicates European financial institutions are willing to be in the Middle East looking for business,” he said.

“Those financial institutions think long-term. What happened in Bahrain was only for a couple of months, what they call the Arab Spring.”

Bahrain will soon set up an internal committee to study the readiness of banks to implement the Basel III global banking standards, Bassam said, adding that banks were unlikely to face problems as they were adequately capitalised.

Asked about the main risks that Bahrain’s banking system was facing, he said: “The liquidity risk and also the capital. For us, what is happening in Europe is not that much of a problem.”

Manama, Wednesday 30 November 2011: Bahrain’s Reload Consulting Services WLL  (Reload Consulting), which specialises in digital information security services, today signed agreements with global Indian Information Technology (IT) companies Secure Matrix and Prism Informatics Ltd, which will pave the way for the provision of leading information security services and IT solutions in Bahrain and across the region.

Through the landmark agreement with Secure Matrix, an information security consulting firm, Reload Consulting Services WLL will act as the local provider and new business development arm for the Indian company, initially in Bahrain and subsequently across the Gulf region. Under the agreement, Reload Consulting will benefit from Secure Matrix’s global expertise as it expands its offering focused on protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information, principally for private sector businesses, and provide customised information security training for public, private and education sector entities.

Furthermore, under the agreement Secure Matrix and Reload Consulting will create the Kingdom’s first Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT). The CERT facility will benefit from the expertise and knowledge of Secure Matrix to create a comprehensive emergency response facility including a security coordination centre, online monitoring and logging infrastructure and, most importantly, provide appropriate action on detection of any potential threats, such as cyber-attacks. 

Through the second agreement, Prism Informatics Ltd, which is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), will work with Reload Consulting to design and deliver technology solutions for the manufacturing, retail, education, pharmaceutical, banking, engineering and construction industries in Bahrain.

Speaking at the signing ceremony in Manama, Bahrain, Ahmed Husain, Managing Director of Reload Consulting Services WLL said: “This is an incredibly exciting opportunity for Reload Consulting; with the expertise and knowledge of both Secure Matrix and Prism Informatics Ltd, two leading multinational companies in the field of e-security and IT consulting services, we will be able to significantly expand our IT support services whilst providing world-class information security services to companies of all sizes in Bahrain and across the region.”

A recent study by EMC IT group in Europe found that almost three-quarters of firms and public sector organisations were “not very confident” they could fully restore their networks following an IT failure and over half admitted they had lost data or suffered systems downtime in the past 12 months. Ahmed Husain added, “By working with us, businesses in Bahrain can rest assured that their IT infrastructure, and most importantly their data, will be safe.”

Explaining the firms’ decision Mr Sachin Gajjar, Chief Operating Officer of Secure Matrix India Private Limited, and Mr. Saurabh Dani, Promoter Director, of Prism Informatics Ltd said: “Bahrain is renowned as a leading regional financial services hub with over 400 financial institutions, and a mature ICT industry with a favourable business environment. Furthermore Bahrain offers an excellent location as a practical base to access the growing markets of the neighbouring Gulf states, therefore it was a natural choice to decide to enter in to this venture with a Bahraini company, and Reload Consulting is the ideal partner”.

Welcoming the announcement, Shaikh Mohammed bin Essa Al-Khalifa, Chief Executive of the EDB said: “This is a real boost for the ICT services industry in Bahrain. And the decision by Secure Matrix and Prism Informatics Ltd to invest in Bahrain demonstrates the continued confidence in Bahrain. The decision is great news for the Bahraini economy and underlines our continuing attractiveness as an investment destination.”

These partnerships were initially discussed and progressed at Gitex Technology Week 2011 Dubai, the region’s leading ICT expo, earlier this year. Reload Consulting attended as part of Tamkeen’s Tarweej scheme to showcase their hi-tech products and services. “Tarweej”, Tamkeen’s Growth Assistance scheme provides financial support to businesses in Bahrain to cover the cost of participation in leading local, regional, and international exhibitions. The event provided the opportunity to network and exchange expertise with decision makers from around the region as well as exploring possible international business partnerships.

Shaikh Mohammed bin Essa Al-Khalifa added, “We are delighted we were able to support Reload Consulting through the Tamkeen programme and will continue to not only support businesses within Bahrain but also those investing in Bahrain.”

For more information, please visit www.bahrainedb.com

Short films tackle issues from parental control to societal progress

Dubai, UAE; November 16, 2011: Five short films offering powerful insights into the changing face of life in the Gulf region will be screened in the ‘Gulf Voices’ segment of the eighth Dubai International Film Festival to be held from December 7 to 14, 2011.

Each of the films – from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait – stands out for its bold and innovative interpretation of complex and unusual issues, from the ties that bind within families to the fragility of social progress.

Kuwaiti director Mohammed Walid Ayyad’s I Wish We Were Dancers, for example, is the story of a girl with multiple sclerosis who is confined to a wheelchair, but has vivid dreams of being a ballerina. The film will make its world premiere at DIFF.

From Oman, directors Mohammed Al-Harthy and Shabib Al-Habsi’s Pillar considers the challenges of familial ties that bind, particularly parental control of children from a young age and into adulthood. The allegorical short is set in a castle, and will make it its world premiere at DIFF.

Three additional films were selected from this year’s Gulf Film Festival, the home of bold, innovative and contemporary cinema from the Arabian peninsula.

Six Blind Eyes, by acclaimed Saudi filmmaker, critic and founding member of the Saudi Film Competition Abdullah Al-Eyaf, follows a psychiatrist who takes on a case he could never have imagined.

Omani filmmaker Amer Alrawas’ Spices, which received the ‘Special Mention’ Award at the GFF Gulf Competition, interlocks four stories of four unrelated individuals: an infertile woman seeking a cure, a 90-year old man waiting, a child preparing for change, and a blogger, at the same moment in time.

Bahraini director Mohammed Jassim’s The Power of Generations shines a light on the rapid developments that the region has witnessed, and addresses the fragility of progress. The thought-provoking film won the second runner-up prize in the GFF Gulf Competition for short films.

Masoud Amralla Al Ali, Artistic Director of the Dubai International Film Festival and Director of the Gulf Film Festival, said: “These five filmmakers are powerful voices for the contemporary Gulf region, in the subjects they choose to focus on, the way they interpret them, and the style of their execution.”

The Gulf Voices showcase will screen to the public at VOX Cinemas, Mall of the Emirates, from December 8 to 14. The DIFF Box Office opens November 22, 2011.

The eighth edition of DIFF is held in association with Dubai Studio City. Dubai Duty Free, Dubai Pearl, Emirates Airline and Madinat Jumeirah, the home of the Dubai International Film Festival, are the principal sponsors of DIFF. The Festival is supported by the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority.

Accreditation for the Festival is open. For more details, log on to www.dubaifilmfest.com. For more and updated information about DIFF, please visit www.dubaifilmfest.com or join DIFF on     and 

Manama, 3rd November 2011: His Excellency the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Hassan Fakhro, and Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) Chief Executive, Shaikh Mohammed bin Essa al-Khalifa, formally welcomed German manufacturing company, RMA, to Bahrain today at an official ground breaking ceremony at the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP).

Once complete, the new 6,000 sq metre RMA plant will manufacture Pipeline Inspection Gauge (PIG) traps and tee pipe fittings for the oil and gas sector.  The €13 million (BD6.8m) investment is expected to bring over 100 jobs to the Kingdom and with 95% of output expected to be for export.  RMA is the second German firm in as many months to establish operations at the BIIP, following the opening of BASF’s 15,000 sq metre state-of-the-art antioxidant blends plant in late September.

At the event, which was also attended by the German Ambassador to Bahrain, Sabine Taufmann, Shaikh Mohammed said: “The decision by RMA to locate its regional operations at the BIIP underlines the attractiveness of Bahrain as a gateway to the trillion dollar Gulf market, and its position at the heart of the majority of the global oil and gas reserves.  Under the stewardship of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the BIIP is going from strength to strength, welcoming high calibre foreign manufacturers attracted by the duty free access to the regional market not available in free zones elsewhere in the region.”

Speaking following the event, Andreas Truttenbach, Managing Director of RMA, said: “The decision by RMA to establish our regional production plant in Bahrain was based on the compelling attributes of the Kingdom as an investment destination.   The offer of a highly skilled workforce, duty free access to the GCC and a low cost base proved highly persuasive. It was a natural choice for RMA.”

The plant is expected to begin operation in August 2012.  The announcement of the latest addition to the Bahrain International Investment Park comes days after Shaikh Mohammed announced at the World Economic Forum in Jordan that the EDB forecasts Bahrain’s economic growth to reach 5% in 2012. The announcement comes ahead of the visit by a delegation from Bahrain, led by the EDB, to Germany in November to highlight the opportunities for investment in the Kingdom.

For more information, please visit www.bahrainedb.com and www.rma-middle-east.com

Selection from Gulf Film Festival alongside films from Maghreb, Levant and Egypt

Dubai, UAE; October 31, 2011: Five short films depicting slices of life from around the Arabian Peninsula are screening in Cairo this week as part of the Goethe-Institut Cairo’s third Arab Shorts Festival. The films debuted in and are selected from Gulf Film Festival, the Dubai-based home of bold, contemporary and innovative cinema from the Arabian peninsula.

As part of the Goethe-Institut’s efforts to boost independent Arab cinema and media art at home and abroad, Arab Shorts is presenting 40 contemporary short films from across the Arab world, selected by 11 curators in eight distinct programmes. The showcase includes films from the Maghreb, Levant, Egypt and Gulf regions.

The Gulf showcase includes: from the UAE, Emirati director Khalid Al Mahmood’s award-winning film Sabeel, the story of two young boys in Ras Al Khaimah tending and selling vegetables to help their ailing grandmother.

From Bahrain, Mohammed Jassim’s The Power of Generations shines light on the developments that the region has witnessed from the beginning of time; and Omani filmmaker Amer Alrawas’ Spices narrates the stories of four individuals at the same moment in time.

Kuwaiti filmmaker Abdullah Boushahri Heaven’s Water is the story of a peddler who gets involved with a pregnant girl looking for a way out; while Belgium-Iraq production Land of the Heroes by director Sahim Omar Kalifa tells the story of two young children who want to watch cartoons on television at the peak of Iraq-Iran conflict.

The five films were curated by Masoud Amralla Al Ali, Artistic Director of the Dubai International Film Festival and Director of the Gulf Film Festival.

As part of its 8th edition, the Dubai International Film Festival is hosting a special cinema programme focused on Germany with the Goethe-Institut, which acts as a cultural ambassador for Germany around the world; German Films, in charge of marketing and promotion of German films and its film industry; and the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, one of Europe’s premier film commissions involved in film funding and location development and marketing.

DIFF 2011 will be held from Dec 7 to 14, and is organised in association with Dubai Studio City. Dubai Duty Free, Dubai Pearl, Emirates Airline and Madinat Jumeirah, the home of the Dubai International Film Festival, are the principal sponsors of DIFF. The Festival is supported by the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority.

For more and updated information about DIFF, please visit www.dubaifilmfest.com or join DIFF on     and

Opening of new B2B and B2C retail showroom complements leading company’s move to create stronger Middle East market presence

October 09, 2011

Danube Building Materials, the leader in construction, building materials and shop fitting industries, revealed the opening of its new ‘BUILDMART’ showroom in Hamad Town. The new B2B and B2C showroom, which is the third BUILDMART in Bahrain, is part of the leading company’s strategic initiative to consolidate its market presence across the Middle East region, particularly in key emerging economies like Bahrain.  Mr. A. Ajay Kumar, First Secretary, Indian Embassy in Bahrain, led the inaugural ceremony and was joined by Adel Sajan, Director, Danube Group and other senior officials of the group. The opening complements a recent report from leading business research and intelligence firm, Research and Markets, showing that Bahrain’s construction industry is on the rebound, further made stronger with the influx of new projects across the country.

The new ‘BUILDMART‘ is centrally located in the heart of Hamad Town’s industrial area, which is primarily dominated by fabricators, joineries and other related industries. Measuring at 36,000 square feet, the new retail facility is split into a retail showroom and a covered warehouse. The showroom is looking to target Bahrain’s current crop of construction projects and also tap into home owners by addressing their home interior needs.  The new branch will offer an impressive collection of products that range from essential building materials to key household products. 

“I congratulate the Danube Group on the opening of their new ‘BUILDMART’ showroom in Bahrain. This event reflects the continuous efforts to drive in more business and investment opportunities into Hamad Town and help in the growth and development of the region. The new showroom will be a strategic complement to current ongoing projects in the country,  allowing developers easier and quicker access to world class building materials while also giving homeowners access to a wide portfolio of home interior products and services,” said A. Ajay Kumar, First Secretary, Indian Embassy in Bahrain.

Aside from the Hamad Town showroom, Danube also operates two other ‘BUILDMART’ retail showrooms in Bahrain Mall and Salmabad. The products offered in the new showroom includes chandeliers, sanitary, ceramic tiles, wallpapers, curtains, blinds, carpets, plywood, timber, steel, hardware, flooring, gypsum, veneer, etc.

“The opening of our new ‘BUILDMART’ showroom demonstrates our unending commitment to create a key presence in the Middle East region. Over the years, our pioneering move to introduce key showrooms that carry all the essential needs in building materials and home interior products has received overwhelming response from our customers. This has given us the confidence to consolidate our reputation of being strategic providers of world-class materials, banking on our ability to understand the demands and requirements of our growing customer base,” concluded Adel Sajan, Director, Danube Group.

Dubai: The Secretary General of the UAE National Olympic Committee (NOC) is quietly confident that Bahrain will put up a commendable sporting spectacle when it plays host to the inaugural edition of the Gulf Games next month.

“Bahrain has always been an example in this part of the world on how to organise such mega sporting events, and the Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC), led by its CEO Shaikh Khalid Bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, has been doing all they can to stage a fantastic Games next month,” Saeed Abdul Gaffar Hussain, Secretary General of the UAE NOC, told Gulf News a day before the start of the 69th Executive Office Meeting of the GCC NOCs and the tenth Common Meeting between the GCC Executive Office and the Presidents of GCC Committees at the Armani Hotel today and tomorrow.

The two-day meeting under the chairmanship of the UAE NOC will have a great impact on sports and its organisation in the Gulf region. “This meeting is really important to the entire region as it is the right platform for all member countries to meet, discuss and exchange expertise in the field of sports and its organisation,” Hussain said.

The Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) is set to organise “Bahrain 11″, the inaugural edition of the GCC Games and the largest showcase of Gulf sporting talent from October 11-22. The event is expected to attract more than 1,500 athletes from all six member nations, including Paralympics and women’s sports.

“We have seen the capability of Bahrain during the Beach Games earlier this year, and going by the presentation made by Bahrain we are confident of a memorable Games next month,” Hussain said.

Besides the GCC Games, the officials from the region will also debate on the preparedness of Qatar to stage the next edition of the Pan-Arab Games that will be held in the first half of December. “It will be a fruitful meeting wherein we will be in a position to solve differences that will ultimately benefit our athletes,” Hussain said.

Bahrain saw its real GDP fall by 1.4 percent in the first three months of 2011

Bahrain’s economy grew by 1 percent quarter-on-quarter in April-June after shrinking in previous three months, but annual growth decelerated to its slowest pace since 2008 as the impact of unrest continued to stifle activity, data showed on Sunday.

The small non-OPEC oil exporter saw its real gross domestic product falling by 1.4 percent in the first three months of 2011 compared with the previous quarter, its first quarterly contraction since the global financial crisis in late 2008.

On an annual basis, GDP growth in the Arab island kingdom - the smallest economy in the Gulf at some $14 billion - decelerated to 0.8 percent in the second quarter from 1.8 percent in January-March 2011, the sixth slowdown in a row, the data from the Central Informatics Organisation showed.

“The quarter-on-quarter rebound seems reasonable. In terms of year-on-year it could have been worse but it still shows that 2011 is going to be a pretty tough year for the economy,” said Paul Gamble, head of research at Jadwa Investment in Riyadh.
 
“The issue is still the legacy of the unresolved political tensions that we had earlier in the year have made the private sector very cautious.” he said.

Quarterly annual growth rates for Bahrain’s GDP before 2008 are not available.

The island kingdom, a financial hub where nearly $9bn in mutual funds is parked, had been rocked in February and March by its worst public unrest since the 1990s.

Around 30 people died in a month of unrest which brought in Saudi troops, closed banks and shops and triggered capital flight. At the time, NCB Capital estimated economic losses at $1 billion, which made up 17 percent of the first quarter GDP.

“What seems to happen obviously is further slowdown,” said Giyas Gokkent, head of research at National Bank of Abu Dhabi. “We will have to see the third quarter for hopefully a bounce because of establishment of some stability.”

In July, Central Bank Governor Rasheed al-Maraj expected the economy to expand by 3 percent this year, less than 4.5 percent seen by the finance ministry in March.

Bahrain’s financial sector, which accounts for around a quarter of the GDP, has been only slowly picking up from the global financial crisis and a regional property crash.

It grew 1.7 percent year-on-year in real terms in April-June, up from a 1.3 percent rise in the previous quarter.

Hotels, the most heavily hit by the uprising against the Sunni-led government, booked a 29.3 percent drop in the second quarter after a 30.3 percent output slump in January-March.

The real estate sector, which has yet to return to levels seen before the global crisis, was down 5.0 percent in the second quarter, the data showed.

Transport and communication and government services remained the main GDP drivers, analysts said, growing at an 8.6 percent and 4.9 percent annual clip, respectively.

Output of the hydrocarbon sector, which accounts for around one third of the economy, was up 1.9 percent in real terms compared with the same period a year ago. It jumped 43.5 percent in nominal terms as crude prices soared to $115 per barrel in May, due in part to the unrest across the Arab world.

Bahrain, which pegs its dinar to the U.S. dollar, does not release quarterly GDP data by expenditure.

The country’s nominal GDP increased by 19.8 percent year-on-year to BD2.4bn ($6.3bn) in the second quarter, the data also showed.

Over BHD 614 million in new construction projects expected to aid country’s bid for economic recovery

September 4, 2011

Rizwan Sajan, Founder & Chairman, Danube Building Materials

Danube Building Materials, the leader in construction, building materials and shop fitting industries, has revealed that the company posted a 31 per cent growth in revenue for the first two quarters of 2011 in the Kingdom of Bahrain, amidst the unrest that happened in early February. The figure reveals an increase in revenue for first half of 2011 as compared to same period in 2010.  The company has reported that the country’s move towards recovery is being bolstered by the entry of over BHD 614 million worth of new construction projects. Danube is aiming to take advantage of these new projects by leveraging its strong reputation as a premier provider of world class building materials across its rapidly growing customer base in the Kingdom.

According to recent performance reports, Danube suffered a key drop in business by 50 per cent during the unrest in February and March. However, strong government support and the move towards economic recovery helped the company bounce back in April to June, ultimately driving in the 31 per cent increase against the first half of 2010. The increase also complements a report from Research and Markets, a leading business research firm, showing that Bahrain’s construction segment is likely to rebound soon with the emergence and influx of new projects across the country, The new projects are expected to help Bahrain regain its reputation as a key commercial and financial hub for the Middle East. The report further shows that Bahrain is one of the very few countries that have managed to key in positive economic growth despite the impact of the recent economic downturn.

“These are vibrant times for Bahrain, which is currently witnessing a key influx of construction projects that can ultimately give the country a needed push towards economic recovery, “ said Rizwan Sajan, Founder & Chairman, Danube Building Materials. “We are looking to play a major role in this development by living up to our reputation as a premier provider of world class high quality building materials across these major projects.”

Reports have also shown an upsurge in opportunities in the country’s real estate segment. In fact, Bahrain’s commercial rental rates have stabilized and are expected to track sideways for the duration of the current year. 2012 has been forecasted to drive in a five per cent increase in most of the sub-sectors in the Kingdom’s three cities, except for retail space in Manama and Muharraq, which has been having a more delayed response to the downturn. Analysts have shared that the Bahraini government’s move to introduce general reforms after the unrest has resulted in bringing back confidence to various institutions. To date, the introduced reforms are helping create a more competitive market atmosphere for Bahrain. 

“Bahrain continues to be an important market for us and we are confident to key in more sustainable growth for the next half of 2011. Rest assured, we will remain true to our commitment of providing world class building materials and home interior products through our 2 branches in the country,” concluded Rizwan Sajan. 

Danube currently operates two BUILDMART retail showrooms in Bahrain, strategically located in Bahrain Mall and ٍSalmabad. The company will soon be opening a new Danube Building Materials Showroom in Bahrain which is set to open during the first week of October this year.