Industry Update

It was mid-September when Lloyd Blankfein, the former chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., suggested investing in commodities was “not a bad thing.” Prices for most materials were just off pandemic lows and the asset class was still very much the ugly duckling. Fast forward four months and commodities are surging. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Corp. and Ospraie Management LLC have all called for a bull market as stimulus kicks in and vaccines help the world emerge from the coronavirus crisis. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has also joined the chorus, advising clients to boost their exposure to materials while reducing investments in bonds.

Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-16/blankfein-called-it-now-the-whole-world-is-watching-commodities?srnd=premium-middle-east

Dubai is hoping one of the world’s fastest vaccination programs and rapid testing technology will help achieve its goal of holding the Expo 2020 event this year, after the coronavirus pandemic forced a delay. The government is confident inoculation programs will be successful enough to open the Expo on Oct. 1 and says it’s still possible that 25 million people will visit the city for the six-month event. The Expo, which Dubai has been preparing for a decade, is meant to be one of the biggest events globally this year and generate billions of dollars for the government. The resurgence of the virus in recent months has complicated the planning and led to questions about whether it will have to be downsized.

Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-17/dubai-bets-on-speedy-vaccine-rollout-to-keep-expo-2020-on-track?srnd=premium-middle-east

President-elect Joe Biden plans to sign roughly a dozen executive orders, including rejoining the Paris climate accord and ending the travel ban on predominantly Muslim countries, on his first day in office, according to a memo from incoming chief of staff Ron Klain. He'll also sign orders halting evictions and student loan payments during the coronavirus pandemic and issuing a mask mandate on all federal property in an effort to either roll back moves made by the Trump administration or advance policy in a way that was impossible in the current administration.
One of Biden's most common campaign trail promises was to tackle an issue on his first day in office -- a pledge he usually made to either contrast himself with President Donald Trump or highlight just how important he believed an issue to be. These promises were made on everything from climate change to immigration to foreign policy, and many are reflected in Klain's Saturday memo, which was first reported by the New York Times.

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/16/politics/joe-biden-executive-orders-paris-climate-accord-muslim-ban/index.html

Shortly before 22:30 GMT (17:30 EST) on Saturday, the four engines ignited, burning for more than a minute before the event was aborted. The core stage of the the Space Launch System (SLS) was being evaluated at Stennis Space Center, in Mississippi. The engines were supposed to fire for eight minutes to simulate the rocket's climb to orbit. The SLS is part of Nasa's Artemis programme, which aims to put Americans back on the lunar surface in the 2020s. When it makes its maiden flight - possibly later this year - the SLS will become the most powerful rocket ever to have flown to space. Teams at Stennis are still poring over the data to find out what happened. John Honeycutt, SLS program manager at Nasa's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama, said there were "a lot of dynamics going on" when the engine shut down.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-54583588

UAE residents and visitors can visit the new attraction from January 22, 2021. Reem Al Hashimy, Director General of Expo 2020 Dubai Bureau and UAE Minister Of State for International Cooperation, during a press conference for the Media Tour of the Substainable Pavillion at The Dubai Expo Site.

Source: https://gulfnews.com/photos/news/expo-2020-dubai-a-sneak-peek-into-terra--the-sustainability-pavilion-1.1610811520553?slide=1

Bahrain’s Investcorp has signed an agreement to acquire Unilog, an Indian e-commerce solutions provider. Investcorp’s backing is expected to support further platform innovation and customer acquisition. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. “Unilog presents an attractive opportunity, as it operates in a large and growing addressable market driven by e-commerce ladoption, which has only been further accelerated amidst COVID-19,” said Gaurav Sharma, Head of Private Equity, Investcorp India.

Source:https://gulfnews.com/business/company-releases/bahrains-investcorp-to-acquire-indian-e-commerce-firm-1.76545006
Wafrah approves impeachment of board, audit

Wafrah for Industry & Development Co. approved the impeachment of the board of directors and audit committee, as applied for by shareholders in possession of 7.14 percent of the total shares of the company, the firm said in a bourse filing today, Jan. 17. The decision came during the company’s ordinary general assembly meeting (OGM) held virtually through the Tadawulaty system on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021.

Source: https://www.arabnews.com/node/1793971/business-economy

President Joe Biden is discovering the limits of his power to boost the world’s largest economy on his own, as congressional opposition to his sweeping stimulus plan hardened soon after he was inaugurated. While publicly urging Congress to swiftly pass his $1.9 trillion proposal -- warning of rising unemployment, hunger and homelessness if lawmakers don’t act -- Biden issued more than a dozen executive actions in his first three days in office, some aimed at propping up the economy and containing the coronavirus to allow its reopening.

Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-23/biden-seeks-to-juice-economy-as-congress-spars-over-stimulus?srnd=economics-vp

Tech giants Microsoft Corp., Apple Inc. and Tesla Inc. will be among the companies headlining a busy earnings week, shedding more light on how businesses performed at the end of 2020 as Covid-19 cases rose. Overall, more than a fifth of the S&P 500 and a third of the Dow Jones Industrial Average are expected to provide their quarterly updates starting Monday, according to FactSet. In addition to tech, the schedule includes some of the biggest names in manufacturing, restaurants and telecommunications.

Source: https://www.wsj.com/articles/tech-giants-apple-microsoft-and-tesla-headline-a-busy-earnings-week-11611410368?mod=hp_lead_pos1

2020 was arguably one of the most challenging years in human history. The onset of COVID-19 strapped the global economy on a roller-coaster ride, affecting both lives and livelihoods of people worldwide. On the business side particularly, the pandemic has revealed the resilience of cities like Sharjah, which continued to grow amid crisis by allowing global investors leverage opportunities offered by its diverse economy, business-friendly environment and low operating costs, among other competitive advantages.

Source: https://www.gulftoday.ae/business/2021/01/23/despite-coronavirus-challenges-sharjah-attracts-over-dhs800-million-in-fdi-investments