Al-Futtaim Technologies and Johnson Controls Partner to Launch OpenBlue Smart Building Platform in the UAE
As smart city development accelerates in the Middle East, this partnership positions Al-Futtaim Technologies and Johnson Controls as key enablers of next-generation digital buildings – driving operational excellence, environmental responsibility, and future-ready infrastructure across the region.
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Jordan Times
3 hours ago
- Jordan Times
Jordan's sectors add 184,926 jobs in 2024 — JEF
AMMAN — The Jordan Economic Forum (JEF) issued a fact sheet on Saturday, titled "Job Creation in the Kingdom in 2024: Concentration and Beneficiary Groups". The paper tracks net job creation, a key tool for measuring the economy's capability to absorb new entrants to the labour market and mitigate worsening unemployment rates, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. The paper noted that results of the 2024 Job Creation Survey showed that 184,926 individuals aged 15 and above had assumed new jobs, while 89,584 others left the labour market during the same period. The paper indicated that a total of 96,421 new job opportunities were created in the Kingdom's public and private sectors, equivalent to around 96.4 per cent of the annual target set within the Economic Modernisation Vision (EMV). JEF said that this growth reflects the extent of efforts made to enhance labour market dynamism and "effective commitment" to the vision's path to generate "sustainable" jobs that contribute to reducing unemployment and improving living standards. For beneficiaries, the paper noted that the new job opportunities were distributed at a rate of 69.3 per cent for males, equivalent to 66,804 jobs, and 30.7 per cent for females, equivalent to 29,617 jobs. The paper also indicated that the largest proportion of job opportunities created in 2024 was in the private sector, amounting to 75.7 per cent, reflecting "success of economic policies and reforms in enhancing job opportunities, despite the surrounding geopolitical challenge." The Kingdom's public sector accounted for only 23.6 per cent of these new jobs, indicating the private sector's "essential" role in achieving growth and employment goals within the vision. According to the report, "a clear trend dominated to prioritise employment of Jordanian workers in the local market, with lower percentages allocated to foreign counterparts." The paper said that the majority of new jobs targeted Jordanian nationals, representing 90 per cent of the total opportunities. Non-Jordanian Arab nationalities accounted for 6.2 per cent of the overall jobs, while non-Arabs received 3.7 per cent of the total posts. In terms of the distribution of new job opportunities by economic activity, the paper noted that Jordan's manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade sectors accounted for the largest share, with equal percentages of 15.4 per cent each. Jordan's public administration and defence sectors accounted for 14.6 per cent, the education sector's share stood at 11.5 per cent and the health sector stood at 10.2 per cent, Petra noted.
Jordan Times
4 hours ago
- Jordan Times
Arab Bank Group profits grow by 6% to $535m in H1 2025
AMMAN — Arab Bank Group reported solid results for the first half of 2025, with 6 per cent increase in net income after tax reaching $535.3 million compared with $502.8 million for the same period last year. The group maintained its 'strong' capital base with a total equity of $12.5 billion, according to an Arab Bank statement. The group's assets grew by 9 per cent to $75.2 billion, loans of $39.8 billion showed a net growth by 6 per cent, and deposits grew by 9 per cent to reach $55.3 billion. Chairman of the Board of Directors Sabih Masri said: "The strong results achieved in the first half of 2025 are a clear testament to the effectiveness of the bank's strategy and the resilience of its operating model." He noted that despite ongoing economic headwinds and regional geopolitical uncertainties, the bank continued to "prudently" grow its operations and deliver sustainable growth and healthy returns for shareholders. Masri stressed the bank's commitment to executing its integrated corporate strategy and long-term vision, with a clear focus on meeting the evolving expectations of both shareholders and clients. He stressed that Arab Bank Switzerland completed the merger of Gonet & Cie SA ('Gonet') and ONE swiss bank SA (ONE) and strengthen its presence in Switzerland and operational entities abroad. Arab Bank Switzerland Group assets under management increased to reach 18 billion Swiss franks, according to the statement. Chief Executive Officer Randa Sadik said that the underlying performance of the group continued its growth "trajectory" with first half results recording a healthy increase of 5 per cent in revenue while maintaining a solid balance sheet growth of 9 per cent. Sadik emphasised that the bank remains focused on maintaining high liquidity and preserving its high asset quality. The group's loan-to-deposit ratio stood at 72 per cent and credit provisions held against non-performing loans continue to exceed 100 per cent. Arab Bank Group maintains a strong capital base that is "predominantly" composed of common equity with a capital adequacy ratio of 17.1 per cent. The Arab Bank has recently received the "Best Bank in the Middle East 2025" award from New York-based Global Finance magazine, a testament to its leading position in the regional banking sector.
Al Bawaba
2 days ago
- Al Bawaba
du reports a stellar net profit expansion in Q2 2025 with a 25.1% year-over-year growth
Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company PJSC (du) reported its financial results for the second quarter of 2025. Continuing the positive momentum established in the first quarter, our revenues increased by 8.6% year-over-year, reflecting strong performance across all business segments and solidifying our market position. EBITDA rose by 16.4% resulting in an EBITDA margin of 46.8%, a 3.1 percentage points improvement year-over-year, driven by our strategic focus on value-driven products and our disciplined cost operational excellence translated into an impressive net profit increase of 25.1%. In recognition of these strong financial results, the Board has approved an interim cash dividend of AED 0.24 per share, representing an increase of 20% year-over-year.Q2 2025 Highlights• Solid subscriber base growth with an increase of 10.8% in Mobile and 12.0% in Fixed, reflecting positive market dynamics and good level of customer acquisition• Strong market position with 8.6% revenue growth and solid performance across all business segments• Impressive bottom-line growth with EBITDA up 16.4% and margin improving by 3.1 pp to 46.8% resulting in net profit rising by 25.1%• 2025 guidance: 2025 Revenue growth of 6-8%, 2025 EBITDA margin: 45-47%• Upgraded full-year guidance supported by the strong performance achieved in the first half and highlighting confidence in the growth trajectory• Strategic investments in adjacent businesses to support future growth highlighted by:• Start of deployment of the hyperscale datacentre in partnership with Microsoft• Launch of the National Hypercloud platformMalek Al Malek, Chairman said: 'Our strong performance in the first half of 2025 reflects the effective delivery of our focused strategy, underpinned by a favourable economic environment and sustained commitment to business excellence. The Board is confident in management's customer-centric and agile approach, which reinforces du's leadership in driving innovation and adaptability. We take pride in our strategic initiatives that contribute to advance the UAE digital agenda, expanding our ICT capabilities and accelerating the digital transformation. Through partnerships with global technology leaders, we are enabling sovereign hyperscale cloud and AI services from UAE-based data centres—empowering a smarter, more connected future for the Emirates. We continue to ensure disciplined capital allocation and sustained long-term value creation for our shareholders. Reflecting our robust first-half results and continued confidence in du's future prospects, the Board has approved an interim dividend per share of 24 fils, underlining our enduring commitment to shareholder returns.'Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO commented: 'Our second quarter financial results showcased impressive performance, fuelled by the meticulous execution of our strategy and consistent growth across every aspect of our operations. We achieved double digit growth in both our Mobile and Fixed subscriber base, underscoring our market leadership and brand strength. We advanced our network coverage and enhanced our connectivity offering with the commercial rollout of 5G Advanced. Our fibre infrastructure also expanded significantly, supporting long-term demand for high-speed connectivity. We launched the UAE's first sovereign hyperscale cloud platform, the National Hypercloud, and made advances in deploying our hyperscale data centre in collaboration with Microsoft, positioning us at the forefront of secure, AI-ready digital operational achievements translated into strong financial performance underpinned by our disciplined approach to value creation and cost efficiency. The solid revenue growth of 8.6% year-over-year was coupled with strong profitability as EBITDA margins expanded by 3.1 percentage points to 46.8%, translating into a 25.1% increase in net profit. Our upgraded full-year guidance reflects the strong performance achieved in the first half of the year, our confidence in the resilience of our business model and our ability to deliver sustainable, profitable growth.'Customer base• In Q2 our Mobile customer base grew by 10.8% year-over-year, reaching 9.1 million subscribers, representing 893,000 net-additions year-over-year. Postpaid rose 9.8% year-over-year to 1.9 million customers supported by strong momentum in the enterprise segment. Prepaid grew by 11.1% to 7.3 million subscribers, reflecting the continuous success of the Alo brand among blue-collar workers and the expansion of retail presence in underserved areas, as well as a solid tourist activity.• In Q2 our Fixed customer base recorded a strong year-over-year growth of 12.0%, reaching 706,000 subscribers, with 76,000 net-additions over the past 12 months. This performance was driven by the continued success of our Home Wireless offering as well as sustained demand for fibre broadband services, reflecting our enhanced value proposition and our expanding Network. Q2 2025 Financial Highlights• Revenues surged by 8.6% year-over-year reaching AED 3.9 billion, marking strong performance across both service and non-service revenues. This strong performance underscores the continued momentum in our core business and the successful execution of our revenue diversification strategy.• Mobile revenues climbed by 7.7% year-over-year to AED 1.7 billion reflecting sustained growth in our customer base and the success of our targeted propositions and highly effective marketing campaigns. The optimized use of digital and retail channels also enhanced customer acquisition and engagement, further fuelling revenue momentum.• Fixed revenues rose by 10.1% year-over-year reaching AED 1.1 billion mainly driven by the ongoing expansion in Home Wireless and Fibre customer base. We witnessed encouraging traction in the SME segment, along with increased adoption of Office Wireless solutions-further cementing our position as a trusted partner for connectivity and productivity.• 'Other revenues' recorded an 8.8% year-over-year growth to AED 1.1 billion buoyed by higher inbound roaming and interconnection revenues—reflecting our expanded Mobile base, higher handset sale, and growth in ICT revenues in line with our strategic ambition to broaden revenue streams beyond traditional connectivity.• EBITDA grew by 16.4% to AED 1.8 billion, with the EBITDA margin improving by 3.1 points year-over-year to 46.8%. The uplift was fuelled by a stronger gross margin, mainly benefiting by a more favourable mix, with continued migration toward unlimited data plans. Our continued discipline around cost efficiency and collections also played a pivotal role in enhancing profitability.• Net Profit rose by 25.1% year-over-year to AED 727 million, delivering a Net Profit margin of 18.6%. This reflects the strength of our operational performance and a clear focus on value creation for our shareholders.• Capex reached AED 545 million (Q2 2024: AED 442 million), representing a capex intensity of 14.0% (Q2 2024 capex intensity of 12.3%). This increase reflects our commitment to scaling our data centre capabilities and supporting long-term digital infrastructure growth.• Operating free cash flow (EBITDA – Capex) rose by 13.8% to AED 1.3 billion, underpinned by strong EBITDA growth. This robust cash generation provides the financial flexibility to invest in future growth while maintaining attractive shareholder returns. Based on these results, the Board approved an interim dividend of AED 0.24 per share for the first half of the year, representing a 20% increase year-over-year and reflecting the strong financial performance and confidence in our outlook.
