Issue 5 | February 2007

MEMSA Newsroom (see articles below)

Bahrain: 200,000 residential properties uninsured UAE: Decision on medical error insurance's ceiling made UAE: Insurers to suffer over 50% drop in 2006 profit Greece: Morgan Stanley with 5.196% stake in MPB Kuwait: Shuaiba refinery hit by explosion on pipeline Middle East: Probe held on Diclofenac link with deaths Lebanon: France offers EUR 500mn loan Greece: Eboriki in search of a buyer for Phoenix Bahrain: 200,000 residential properties uninsured Gulf Daily News, 31 Jan 2007,:- The General Manager of Fakhro Insurance Services estimates that some 200,000 residential properties in Bahrain are not covered by insurance. At most 75% of local tenants and owners, translating into 150,000 people, do not own insurance for their residences, a phenomenon attributable to their general optimism. © Esmerk Link to original article in English. Back to Top UAE: Decision on medical error insurance's ceiling made Khaleej Times, 24 Jan 2007,:- The Managing Editor of Insurance Magazine Mohammad Al Baali projects that the profit of the 22 insurers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) listed on the stock markets will fall by over 50% year on year. The insurers' collective profit has fallen 70% in the first nine months of 2006 to Dh 900mn (US$ 245.04mn EUR 189.01mn). The Managing Director of Al Fajer Financial Services Nabel Farahat projects that UAE's insurers would make Dh 1.23bn in profit in 2006, a decline of 57%. The phenomenon is believed to have been caused by the local bourse crashes in March and November 2006. © Esmerk Link to original article in English. Back to Top UAE: Insurers to suffer over 50% drop in 2006 profit Trade Arabia, 19 Dec 2006,:- The Managing Editor of Insurance Magazine Mohammad Al Baali projects that the profit of the 22 insurers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) listed on the stock markets will fall by over 50% year on year. The insurers' collective profit has fallen 70% in the first nine months of 2006 to Dh 900mn (US$ 245.04mn EUR 189.01mn). The Managing Director of Al Fajer Financial Services Nabel Farahat projects that UAE's insurers would make Dh 1.23bn in profit in 2006, a decline of 57%. The phenomenon is believed to have been caused by the local bourse crashes in March and November 2006. © Esmerk Link to original article in English. Back to Top Greece: Morgan Stanley with 5.196% stake in MPB Gulf News, 26 Jan 2007,:- The Greek arm of the international financial and investment house, Morgan Stanley, has increased its overall stake in the share capital of Greece's Marfin Popular Bank (MPB) to 5.196%, from 5.01%, after the recent acquisition of a further 154,750 shares in MPB for the amount of EUR 8.43 (US$ 11.3) per share. © Esmerk Link to original article in English. Back to Top Kuwait: Shuaiba refinery hit by explosion on pipeline Middle East Economic Digest Online, 26 Jan 2007,:- Kuwait's smallest and oldest refinery at Shuaiba is reported to have sustained damage by an explosion on a leaking gas pipeline on 17 January 2007. The fire was the second incident at the refinery over the recent months. The fire caused disruption to operations. © Esmerk Link to original article (subscription required) in English. Back to Top Middle East: Probe held on Diclofenac link with deaths Khaleej Times, 29 Jan 2007,:- The relation between consuming Diclofenac, an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drug, with sudden deaths and heart attacks in the Middle East region is being investigated by the Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) Executive Board of Health Ministers. This over-the-counter medication is often consumed to relieve pain caused by conditions such as acute injuries and arthritis. © Esmerk Link to original article in English. Back to Top Lebanon: France offers EUR 500mn loan Le Figaro, 25 Jan 2007, p.2:- French President Jacques Chirac has offered Lebanon a EUR 500mn (US$ 0.67bn) loan at advantageous rates for reconstruction and hopes that other countries participating in the Conférence de Paris, such as the US, will follow suit. Back to Top Greece: Eboriki in search of a buyer for Phoenix Naftemporiki, 19 Jan 2007,:- The Greek bank Eboriki Trapeza is open to offers from Greece, as well as abroad, for the sale of its entire stake in its general insurance subsidiary, Phoenix Metrolife, according to a recently published press report in Greece. © Esmerk Link to original article in Greek. Back to Top

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