فانسا سوبيليا، نائب مدير غرفة جنيف للتجارة والصناعة والخدمات، عضو مجلس ادارة الاتحاد العالمي لمجلس الغرف التجارية (يضم 12000 غرفة في 130 دولة، ومقره باريس)
اجرى المقابلة ايمن ابو الخير
(French)
نظرا لأهمية منطقة الخليج العربية، تقوم غرفة جنيف للتجارة والصناعة بتنفيذ عدة رحلات اقتصادية. كانت اخر زيارة قامت بها الغرفة ضمن وفد برئاسة رئيس بلدية جنيف، غيوم برازون، وهو أيضا عضو في البرلمان السويسري الوطني (في اللجنة الاقتصادية). حيث قام الوفد بزيارة الى عدة دول خليجية في تشرين الثاني/نوفمبر الماضي.
Les relations commerciales entre la Suisse et le Conseil de Coopération des États du Golfe (CCG)
18 Feb 2017
La région du Golfe d’Arabie ne cesse d’être une région très appréciée, de par ses ressources en énergie, sa croissance économique phénoménale, sa population croissante et les opportunités des affaires qu’elle offre aux investisseurs étrangers.
Vincent Subilia, directeur adjoint de la Chambre de commerce, d’industrie et des services de Genève (CCIG), membre du Conseil général de la Fédération de la Chambre mondiale des Chambres de commerce (réunissant 12 000 Chambres dans 130 pays, avec siège à Paris)
(بالعربية)
Propos recueillis par Ayman Abualkhair
Vu l’importance de cette région, la CCIG y a effectué plusieurs déplacements ; le dernier en date a consisté en une délégation conduite par le maire de Genève, Guillaume Barazzone, également conseiller national (siégeant au sein de la Commission de l'économie). Celle-ci s’est rendue en novembre dernier dans plusieurs pays du Golfe ; la CCIG y fut représentée par Vincent Subilia.
alarabiya.net
According to the web site of Alarabiya.net, Saudi Arabia is ready to implement a region-wide value added tax, the cabinet confirmed on Monday, giving final approval to the measure which will take effect next year.
ايمن ابو الخير
هل نحن في مرحلة اجتياز الاقتصادي المهيمن القائم على أساس المصانع الكبيرة والشركات متعددة الجنسيات إلى عالم يقوم على حرية الاختيار، الذي سيتمكن فيه الكيانات الصغيرة من المنافسة مع الشركات الكبيرة،وبالتالي ستساهم في تشكيل اقتصاد المستقبل؟ هل نحن فعلا بصدد عبور الاقتصاد "التناظري" الحقيقي الى الاقتصاد الافتراضي، ام ان الانتقال سيكون من الاقتصاد الافتراضي الى الاقتصاد الحقيقي؟
Arab Knowledge Economy & E-commerce: Are we crossing the age of “analogue” to digital economy?
28 Oct 2016By Ayman Abualkhair
Are we in a stage of passing the dominant economic age, based on large factories and multinational companies, to a world predicated on freedom of choice, in which small entities would have the potential to compete with large companies, and hence shape the future economy? Are we crossing the age of a real economy to a virtual one, or is it moreover transitioning from a virtual economy to a real economy?
مجلة الشرق الاوسط للأعمال - ميدل ايست بزنس
هي ليست مجرد شجرة، يُستفاد من كل اجزاءها، تُغني زارعها، تشفي آكلها، وتحمي الأرض من تحتها وترفع اعمدة الحضارات فوقها... انها شجرة النخيل وثمارها من الرطب والتمر. جاء في القرآن الكريم:
﴿وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَنشَأَ جَنَّاتٍ مَّعْرُوشَاتٍ وَغَيْرَ مَعْرُوشَاتٍ وَالنَّخْلَ وَالزَّرْعَ مُخْتَلِفًا أُكُلُهُ وَالزَّيْتُونَ وَالرُّمَّانَ مُتَشَابِهًا وَغَيْرَ مُتَشَابِهٍ كُلُوا مِن ثَمَرِهِ إِذَا أَثْمَرَ وَآتُوا حَقَّهُ يَوْمَ حَصَادِهِ وَلَا تُسْرِفُوا إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفِينَ﴾(الأنعام141).
Recent legislative reforms by the Omani government are creating burgeoning opportunities for foreign direct investment in the Sultanate, it emerged recently.
Under the current law, foreign investors are required to have a local shareholder that owns at least 35% of the foreign company. In many instances, this acts as a deterrent to investors who express a tendency to prefer full ownership of their business.
In a bid to open up the market and encourage more international companies to set up a base on its soil, Oman is looking to allow 100% foreign ownership and remove the minimum capital requirement of USD 389K (OMR 150K).
The new foreign capital investment law is in its third and final drafting stage, and according to analysts is poised to attract swathes of international firms operating in a variety of sectors from transport and logistics, to construction, technology, industrial and financial services.
According to leading independent research firm Arabian Monitor, Oman’s logistics sector is set to see significant growth, as the government announced the establishment of a new government holding company to manage its investments in ports, free zones, rail, maritime and land transport.
Acting as the government's development arm, the ‘Oman Global Logistics Group’ will play a pivotal role in creating major growth opportunities for the sector. It will also focus on realising the National Logistics Strategy, under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Transport and Communication.
According to Arabian Monitor, the logistics industry in Oman accounted for around 13% of GDP in 2015 (USD 8B) and is likely to grow at an annual growth rate of 7% between 2016 and 2020.
The firm sees infrastructure investments associated with national logistics development plans, economic diversification efforts and increased trade with other countries as key drivers for growth.
It anticipates sea transport to grow by 4.8% in 2016, driven by the increasing intra-regional GCC trade and demand from Asia, Europe, and Africa. Currently the segment accounts for 80% of freight shipped to and from the Sultanate.
The new 680km highway between Oman and Saudi Arabia which opened this year is a major milestone in improving road transport efficiency by providing a direct route between the two countries and reducing the number of border crossings.
However, logistics infrastructure in the Sultanate, especially outside urban areas, remains largely inefficient. Meanwhile, the country continues to face chronic challenges of skilled labour shortage to support the growing requirements of the market, which according to Arabian Monitor, “could hold back the sector’s growth.”
To remain competitive in the region and globally, Oman will need to invest heavily in developing and upskilling its local workforce, while also attracting top talent from more experienced regions such as Europe, Asia and the Americas.
With surging competition from neighbouring UAE and Saudi Arabia, and other countries with a similar portfolio and investment scenarios, the Sultanate will need to foster a fair, competitive and flexible business environment for both local and foreign investment to flourish.
By Soukaina Rachidi
According to recent forecasts from the International Monetary Fund, the GDP of the six oil-reliant members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, U.A.E, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are projected to slow to 2.7% in 2016, down from 3.2% in 2015. The main cause for this slowed growth is the historically low oil prices, which have weakened the fiscal balances of Gulf’ oil-exporters and resulted in unprecedented budget deficits for the first time in 20 years.
With increased oil yields from Russia, Africa, the Caspian Sea and the re-introduction of Iran into the global oil market, the GCC has had to deal with an increasing number of competitors. However, this increase isn’t the only challenge facing the GCC. The growing interest in renewable energy has also resulted in a steady decline in the demand for oil. However, while oil prices are unlikely to rise anytime soon, The GCC’s substantial sovereign wealth funds and foreign reserves are sure to protect it from any economic shocks in the foreseeable future.
Marie Owens Thomsen, Chief Economist at Indosuez Wealth Management, believes that low oil prices are presenting the GCC with a unique opportunity to introduce structural reforms and fiscal policies that will diversify its economies, increase investment and create more sustainable business opportunities for the region. Here are three new emerging industries that investors should consider in the GCC.
1. Halal Lifestyle Industry
A recent report published by the Economist Intelligence Unit predicted that the Gulf’s Halal food imports are projected to increase to 53.1 billion dollars by 2020 and by the end of the decade, the UAE’s annual Halal food imports alone are expected to reach an estimated 8.4 billion dollars. While the GCC has lagged in developing the Islamic economy in the past, these projections are changing the landscape of the region’s economy. The UAE is currently leading the charge, as it primes Dubai to become the future hub of Islamic banking, Halal food and lifestyle industries.
By leading the world in the standardization of halal accreditation and certification, Dubai hopes to attract new industry-specific manufacturing and services to the region. In addition to that, the UAE is also targeting the halal tourism market, which represents 11.6% of global tourism expenditure and is projected to be worth 238 billion dollars by 2019. With the rapidly growing global Muslim population and an emerging middle class, the GCC has the potential to generate great revenue serving the needs of this growing market segment.
2. Aviation Industry
The lack of other efficient modes of transportation in the GCC has played a big role in fueling the demand for better airlines, airports and aviation services in the region. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the Middle East is anticipated to be one of the fastest growing regions in the world in terms of passenger traffic until at least 2034, with an annual growth rate of 4.6% on average. Over the past couple of years, the GCC has implemented various progressive aviation policies to increase transparency and promote competitiveness in the sector to encourage further growth.
The fact that roughly 80% of the world's population lives within an eight-hour flight of the GCC has also presented a great advantage to the region’s aviation sector. While airlines like Qatar Airways, Etihad and Emirates lead the market in long-haul flights, smaller low-cost carriers like FlyDubai and Air Arabia are filling the gap in the short-haul market. The GCC’s clear geographic advantage, the rise in tourism, growing populations and the ready access to capital, fuel and space make the Gulf’s aviation industry a strong investment opportunity for investors seeking to capitalize on the privatization of airports and existing gaps in the domestic travel market.
3. Entrepreneurship Industry
While political turmoil and lower oil prices have adversely impacted many sectors in the region, the GCC’s start-up ecosystem continues to flourish. In fact, in 2015, the Dubai Department of Economic Development issued an estimated 22,025 trade licenses, which is almost double the number issued in 2009. Despite the additional regulatory challenges that entrepreneurs face in the GCC, such as restrictive visa regulations or the lack of bankruptcy laws, the region still remains an attractive hub for startups founders. Dubai Department of Economic Development has risen steadily during the past eight years, after a dip in 2009, when the global financial crisis hit the region. Last year, Dubai DED issued 22,025 trade licences, up from 11,743 in 2009.business category.The number of trade licences issued by Dubai Department of Economic Development has risen steadily during the past eight years, after a dip in 2009, when the global financial crisis hit the region. Last year, Dubai DED issued 22,025 trade licences, up from 11,743 in 2009.
According to Dany Farha, the Chief Executive of Dubai-based Beco Capital, the GCC’s tech startup sector has grown ten-fold in the past four years. The growth of the regional venture capital ecosystem and the falling demand for office space and the willingness of suppliers to negotiate prices has created the “perfect storm” for small businesses to grow and reduce overhead costs. Furthermore, the privatization of various public services across the GCC, has created a unique opportunity for investors to diversify their portfolios and help entrepreneurs provide more efficient and cost-effective services for GCC governments’ and consumers.
According to the interview of Indrajit Sen with Salim bin Nasser Al Aufi, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Oil and Gas, at arabianindustry website, Oman’s oil production may go down a little bit in 2016, compared to 2015. One main reason for this drop is some planned activities that will take some production away. The focus will be more on activities that have as little impact as possible on production, including one or two rigs that they decided to shelve.
Oil prices have tumbled by over 40% since the start at the year, with brent crude - the global benchmark – presently trading at around $36 a barrel.
Asked if capital expenditure will be cut for 2016 in light of declining oil prices, the official said, “We have already planned in terms of what activities will be executed in 2016. We have reduced the budget to a large extent to the things that we think are very critical and are important for execution.”
“The only thing that probably remains for the companies to do is to go back and revise their own activities and make sure they become a little bit more efficient. But in terms of cutting activities, I think we have already gone past that bridge,” he noted.
Asked what the break-even cost of production for Oman would be, the undersecretary said, “We can go down to as low as it takes. It does not matter because.... ‘shutting in’ is going to cost us more money because you still need to pay for maintenance; you still need to pay for employment and so on.”
