Ducab Metals Business Showcases Advanced Manufacturing at Middle East Energy 2024
DMB's participation underscores its commitment to supporting regional electrification through high-performance, sustainable solutions. 'We are focused on providing solutions that support the region's electrification and enhance the reliability and capacity of power transmission networks,'
said Mohamed Al Ahmedi, CEO of DMB. He highlighted the company's increased ACSS conductor production and investment in regional supply chains as key to meeting global demand for sustainable infrastructure.
In a move to broaden its international footprint, DMB is expanding its distribution channels to provide faster, more efficient access to essential materials. This global outreach enhances its role as a strategic partner for industries seeking reliable, high-quality solutions.
Beyond manufacturing, DMB is investing in advanced technologies and R&D, aiming to address both current and future infrastructure challenges. This forward-thinking approach aligns with global standards while supporting regional sustainability goals.
As the UAE advances its renewable energy infrastructure, DMB's products are becoming increasingly critical in ensuring the reliability, capacity, and efficiency of these systems. Serving sectors from automotive to healthcare, DMB is scaling its impact globally while driving innovation at home.
News Source: Emirates News Agency
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Middle East Eye
15 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
IMF warns against Egypt's military dominance over economy
In arguably its bluntest report to date, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that Egypt's military-controlled economic model is crippling private sector growth, deterring investors and keeping the country in a cycle of debt and underperformance. In its long-delayed staff report for the fourth review of Egypt's loan programme, the IMF noted: 'The economic landscape is dominated by public-driven investments, an uneven playing field, and state-owned entities, including military ones.' The IMF further warned that military-owned firms continue to enjoy 'preferential treatment', including tax breaks, cheap land and privileged access to credit and public contracts. Such privileges, the 202-page report notes, have continued to sideline private sector competitors and distort the market. While Cairo has taken some economic steps - such as floating the pound, slashing subsidies and launching a state ownership policy - the IMF says progress has been 'uneven and slow', leaving many of the country's key problems unresolved. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Public debt remains high, and Egypt's external debt is expected to rise from $156.7bn to $180.6bn in the current fiscal year, deepening the country's financial strain, according to the IMF. Meanwhile, everyday Egyptians are bearing the brunt, grappling with soaring inflation, declining ages and a shrinking safety net, the report suggests. A flawed economic model The military's grip on Egypt's economy is not new. It dates back to the 1950s, following the July 1952 revolution, when army officers overthrew the monarchy. But the generals' economic role expanded significantly after the 2011 uprising, when the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) assumed control following the ouster of long-time autocrat Hosni Mubarak. The situation even worsened under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who technically assumed power in 2013 after he had led a coup that removed Egypt's first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi. Egypt's Sisi accused of 'giving away' strategic Red Sea land of Ras Shukeir after decree Read More » One of the IMF's central concerns is the ongoing expansion of military-run businesses in non-defence sectors, operating behind closed doors, with little transparency or public oversight. The military has steadily expanded its role in construction, agriculture and other civilian sectors, justifying its reach by claiming to deliver major national projects and secure economic stability. But experts argue that this flawed model pushes out the private sector and reinforces a non-transparent economic elite. 'Military involvement in the country's economy undermined competition, discouraged private investment, and distorted market signals, creating a dual economy - one transparent and risky - and the other opaque and protected,' a Cairo-based economist told Middle East Eye on condition of anonymity for security concerns. The expert's view is echoed by a construction contractor in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, who also asked to remain anonymous for similar reasons. 'Military involvement in the country's economy undermined competition' - Egyptian economist 'Before the army stepped into our industry, I used to have three projects running in and around Alexandria,' he told MEE. 'Now, I'm lucky if I get one a year. We just can't compete with the pricing or timelines of military-backed companies.' In 2019, Mohamed Ali, a former contractor now living in self-imposed exile in Spain, blew the whistle on the military's business dealings, sharing explosive behind-the-scenes details in a series of viral videos and social media posts. His revelations sent shock waves through Egypt, sparking rare public outrage and calls for accountability in a country where questioning the military is often taboo. In an exclusive interview with MEE, Ali revealed that he received state-funded projects without contracts or oversight. His claims, supported by the IMF's latest report, painted a picture of a shadow economy that avoids scrutiny. The IMF's latest report reflects those alarms, reinforcing long-standing concerns about secrecy and privilege in Egypt's economic system. 'While some private sector representatives reported improved access to foreign exchange,' the IMF noted, 'others flagged an uneven playing field in key sectors.' The report also pointed to 'gaps in transparency and accountability' in both state-run and military-affiliated companies. According to the report, military-owned and state-run firms benefit from tax exemptions, access to prime land and cheap labour, all while operating with very limited transparency about their finances. In industries like cement, steel, and marble and granite, military firms control up to 36 percent of the market, making it nearly impossible for genuine private competition to develop. An earlier section of the report noted that the 'reallocation of public spending towards military-related or high-profile projects diverts resources from more productive uses, and undermines long-term growth potential', cautioning that ongoing public sector control can discourage foreign investment and crowd out domestic enterprise. Credibility at stake The fifth and sixth reviews of Egypt's $8bn loan programme have now been merged and delayed, another sign of the IMF's mounting frustration. The delay highlights Cairo's slow progress on key commitments, especially privatising state and army-run companies and reducing fiscal vulnerabilities that still burden the economy. As part of its commitments to the IMF, the Egyptian government has promised to sell stakes in 11 state-owned enterprises by mid-2027. Four of these companies are military-owned, including Wataniya Petroleum and Safi, a bottled water company that has faced long-standing criticism for its lack of financial transparency. IMF more than doubles Egypt bailout deal to $8bn following devaluation Read More » The plan aims to increase private sector involvement and restore investor confidence. However, progress has been slow. Both Wataniya and Safi have been moved to the Sovereign Fund of Egypt to prepare them for sale. Two other military-affiliated companies - ChillOut, a fuel station chain, and Silo Foods - a large food processing business, are also set to be offered to local and foreign investors as part of the state's broader privatisation effort. While Gulf investors have consistently expressed interest in buying these military-run businesses, the deals have faced continuous delays, despite numerous promises and public statements from Egyptian officials. No clear timeline has been established, which raises questions about the government's willingness and ability to fulfil its privatisation commitments. Despite Egypt's shift to a flexible foreign exchange rate in March 2024, commended by the international lender, the report made it clear that Cairo must keep up with reforms to secure the next $2.5bn loan tranche. 'Preserving exchange rate flexibility and rebuilding credibility in the monetary framework will be critical,' the IMF explained. With public debt soaring and economic inequality deepening, the IMF's warning comes at a crucial moment. 'Unless exclusive benefits offered to military and state firms are lifted and transparency is ensured, private businesses will continue to hold back. The IMF's message is crystal clear. Sustainable growth requires fair play, not to protect a powerful few who avoid public scrutiny,' the economist concluded.
Middle East Eye
3 days ago
- Middle East Eye
Starmer's 'all guns, no butter' policy will cost him dearly
The recent Nato summit demanded that member states agree to reach a target of five percent of GDP on defence spending over the next decade. Nato secretary general Mark Rutte was beside himself with joy. This will make Nato 'more lethal', he vowed. Rutte was in no doubt as to why Nato had successfully agreed on this historic high in arms spending: US President Donald Trump, or 'daddy', as Rutte called him. In embarrassingly fulsome messages to Trump, made public by the US president, Rutte put to shame the most obsequious courtier in an 18th-century absolute monarchy, as he verbally prostrated himself at the feet of the ruler of the empire. In all fairness to Rutte, he was correctly summarising the view of European governments. Much as some claim to dislike Trump, they have fallen in line with his demands for increased arms expenditures in double-quick time. All but Spain endorsed the five-percent defence spending target, despite the fact that the US spends only 3.5 percent of GDP on arms. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Trump was triumphant, using the Nato news conference to rub the noses of European leaders in the latest proof that the US is the organisation's top dog. Never has founding secretary general Lord Ismay's aphorism - that Nato exists to keep 'the Soviet Union [read Russians] out, the Americans in, and the Germans [read Europeans] down' - been more true. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is an unqualified enthusiast for rearmament. The most clearly defining policy of his prime ministership so far, where so much else is shrouded in serial U-turns, is a commitment to US-led rearmament. The picture of Starmer at the recent G7 summit bowing at Trump's knee to pick up papers that the president had dropped went viral, because it accurately captured the political relationship between the two governments. Credibility gap Starmer, of course, signed up to the five percent of GDP rearmament target and coupled it with a commitment to buy a dozen American F35A fighters capable of carrying a nuclear payload, marking the first time the UK will have the capacity to deliver airborne nukes since the Cold War. The cost of this programme alone will be £15bn. More broadly, the newly publicised Strategic Defence Review underpins Starmer's over-inflated rhetoric about the UK needing to prepare to fight on the 'home front' in the case of a full land invasion of the UK. Such a project, unsuccessfully contemplated by Napoleon and Hitler, was last accomplished in 1066. There is no plausible modern candidate for this project. Russia, with an economy the size of Spain's and a military depleted by three years of unsuccessful war in Ukraine, is certainly not the 21st-century equivalent of either Napoleon or Hitler when their empires spanned the continent. Indeed, having failed to reach Kyiv, it is improbable to the point of absurdity to think that Russian troops might soon be on the Normandy beaches. The period of high Starmerism is past. Now the pendulum is swinging in the other direction, back towards traditional centrist Labourism The UK defence establishment and government are well aware that this huge credibility gap exists in the minds of British voters. The Strategic Defence Review spends an unusual amount of time worrying about how rearmament can be sold to the population. It calls for a 'national endeavour', first mooted by the previous Tory government, in which a wide variety of propaganda and 'educational' weapons will be fired at hapless citizens in order to reduce them to compliance with the warmongers' project. And there is no Starmer speech that does not echo the Strategic Defence Review's insistence that there will be a 'defence dividend', in the Orwellian language now common in government circles, that will result in more jobs. So far, the 'national endeavour' project is failing spectacularly. The purchase of F35A jets is a case in point. It's a slap in the face for Unite the Union general secretary Sharon Graham, who campaigned relentlessly for a renewal of the Eurofighter Typhoon fleet in the name of British jobs. In a sharp lesson in the UK's defence subservience to the US arms industry, Starmer ignored her and opted instead to flatter Trump with a purchase of American planes manufactured by Lockheed Martin, with only 15 percent of UK-made components. Leadership in danger But even when money spent by the UK government isn't pouring directly into the bank accounts of US defence contractors, it will never produce the same number of jobs as the same amount of money spent on civilian industry. Defence spending is simply a massively inefficient way of generating jobs. Beyond these specific arguments is the gigantic fact that Starmer is advocating huge increases in arms expenditures, while hacking away at the already emaciated welfare budget. The assault on welfare, the defining project of the first year of the Labour administration, has already produced a record-breaking back bench rebellion. This in turn produced yet another screeching U-turn from Starmer. Accompanying the U-turn is the blame game. At the moment, No. 10 guru Morgan McSweeney and 'iron chancellor' Rachel Reeves are the ones catching it in the neck. Starmer is running out of road Read More » As tens of thousands of people at the recent Glastonbury Festival cursed Starmer's name, Starmer himself has been busy apologising for his own mistakes to any journalist who will listen. A sure sign that Starmer's leadership is endangered was Health Secretary Wes Streeting's recent TV interview, in which he refuted criticism of the Glastonbury crowd by saying that Israel should get its 'own house in order'. Starmer is now a couple of by-election losses away from a leadership challenge. Perhaps he can make it to the May 2026 council elections if the fates spare sitting MPs and no by-election takes place. But whatever the timing proves to be, the period of high Starmerism is past. Now the pendulum is swinging in the other direction, back towards traditional centrist Labourism. A number of important consequences follow. Firstly, the time for Jeremy Corbyn to launch a new leftist party is now. Secondly, no new party can afford to be merely an electoral project: it must have the closest possible relations with Palestine and antiwar movements whose activists will be its core constituency. Thirdly, the antiwar movement will be central to ongoing opposition to the government. Reeves or her successor will return to the task of extracting the money for rearmament from working people, one way or another. The defence of working-class living standards at home will be intimately bound to opposition to the preparation for war abroad. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
Arabian Business
3 days ago
- Arabian Business
UAE bank investments surge 16.2% to nearly $211bn in April 2025
Banks operating in the UAE recorded investment levels of AED 774.3 billion by the end of April 2025, according to data from the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE). The figure represents a 16.2 per cent increase compared to April 2024 and a 1.4 per cent rise from March 2025, maintaining the sector's upward trajectory. UAE banking sector sees strong growth Banking indicators released by the CBUAE show investments in debt securities reached AED 352.4 billion by April's end, according to a statement by the Emirates News Agency (WAM). Securities held to maturity totalled AED 345.8 billion during the same period. Banks allocated AED 19.3 billion to stocks and AED 56.8 billion to other investment instruments. Total bank credit exceeded AED 2.259 trillion, marking an annual growth of 9.5 per cent. Domestic credit comprised approximately AED 1.881 trillion of this total, whilst foreign credit accounted for AED 378.3 billion. Bank deposits surpassed AED 2.965 trillion, with resident deposits contributing AED 2.689 trillion and non-resident deposits reaching AED 275.6 billion. The breakdown by emirate shows Abu Dhabi banks led with investments of AED 408.9 billion, followed by Dubai at AED 296 billion. Other emirates recorded AED 69.5 billion in banking investments.
