Latest news with #Dh6.7
The National
30-04-2025
- Business
- The National
Dr Sultan Al Jaber discusses strengthening relations with Austria on official visit to Vienna
, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, held meetings with senior government officials and business leaders during an official visit to Austria on Wednesday. The UAE's eagerness to build on bilateral relations established in the 2021 trade agreement between the nations was at the forefront of Dr Al Jaber's discussions, state news agency Wam reported. Accompanied by Hamad Al Kaabi, UAE Ambassador to Austria, Dr Al Jaber met Christian Stocker, Chancellor of Austria. Dr Al Jaber conveyed the best wishes of the UAE leadership to Mr Stocker for the continued progress and prosperity of Austria. Dr Al Jaber also discussed new avenues of collaboration in key areas such as industry, technology and energy with Austria's Foreign Minister, Beate Meinl-Reisinger. Discussions with Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer, Austrian Minister of Economy and Energy, included ways to increase collaboration in energy, renewables, petrochemicals, advanced industry and technology, infrastructure and data centres. Dr Al Jaber also met Alexander Pröll, secretary general of the People's Party and State Secretary for Public Services and Digital Transformation. They talked about using technology across government sectors to enhance efficiency and drive innovation. During the visit, Masdar and Austrian energy company OMV signed a letter of intent to work together on the production of green hydrogen, sustainable synthetic fuels and chemicals in Austria, the UAE and Europe. The value of non-oil bilateral trade between the UAE and Austria reached approximately Dh6.7 billion (US$1.8 billion) in 2024, a 28 per cent increase on 2023, according to Wam. This growth was driven by a 248 per cent surge in exports, particularly of pearls, precious metals and machinery. Imports rose by 21 per cent, and re-exports grew by 15 per cent. In the first quarter of 2025, bilateral trade between the countries increased by 54.5 per cent year-on-year. Exports more than tripled, while imports rose by close to 42 per cent. Pearls, precious metals, and machinery continued to lead export growth, Wam reported.
Gulf News
22-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
Dubai's Emirates NBD clears Dh1 trillion balance-sheet milestone in Q1-2025
Dubai: Emirates NBD's profit before tax stirred up a sharp 56% quarter-to-quarter growth to Dh7.8 billion for the first three months of 2025. The key fundamentals - 'lending momentum, improvement in deposit mix and new products' - were all in play. Net profit too was up 56% q-to-q to Dh6.2 billion. But on a year-to-year basis, Emirates NBD's net profit is down from the Dh6.7 billion for Q1-2024. The Dubai bank's balance-sheet cleared the Dh1 trillion milestone, in large part helped by the 'impressive' loan and deposit growth. Deposits grew by 5%, driven by a 'record' Dh27 billion increase in current and savings account balances. "All business units achieved an outstanding performance as they delivered higher income year-on-year," said Hesham Abdulla Al Qassim, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of Emirates NBD. Loans were up Dh18 billion - and with more than half of the increase sourced from the growing International network. Emirates NBD is among the handful of leading UAE banks that have incrementally built up a network outside as well, and the Q1 numbers show some of that work is indeed paying off. "In Egypt, inflation is continuing to come under control which should allow the private sector to expand while Turkey's monetary policy is helping to curb inflation," said Emirates NBD in a statement. The entity has a sizable presence in these markets. When it comes to the UAE and Saudi Arabia, 'oil production is due to increase in both this year, while revenue diversification is helping to provide some insulation to the economies from volatility in oil price." 'Offset lower interest rate' "The Group's ability to substantially grow income is a direct benefit of the strategic investment in our regional footprint, digital and GenAI, helping to offset the impact of lower interest rates," said Shayne Nelson, Group CEO. (The US Fed had trimmed interest rates over the recent past, which has also been immediately reflected in the UAE banking sector.) The bank has also been working on its higher margin offerings, especially the recent arrangement with BlackRock to expand access for Emirates NBD's high networth clients to private market options. There is also the UAE bank's 35% market share of local credit card spend, with over Dh50 billion in credit and debit card spend in Q1-25.
