CAIRO: Egypt captain Ahmed Hassan indicated that an amount of the 2008 African Cup of Nations winning bonus will be allocated for helping charities. Hassan revealed that the Egypt squad members agreed collectively on helping the Cancer Hospital in Egypt. We are hoping to contribute something to our society, he told FilGoal.com. The Anderlecht playmaker …

CAIRO: Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris denied Saturday any wrongdoing or involvement in the suspected corruption scandal over the acquisition of Italian mobile phone operator Wind SpA. “I haven t been officially notified of any investigation by Italian police, Sawiris, chairman of Orascom Telecom Holding, said in a press statement. “I can assure that the sale …

CAIRO: Egyptian exports to Arab countries increased by 25 percent, according to the Foreign Trade annual report. Egyptian non-petrol exports to Arab countries have reached $5.43 billion in 2007 compared to $4.43 billion a year earlier, the Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry, Rachid Mohamed Rachid said on Wednesday in a meeting for the Arab …

LONDON: Oil prices charted fresh record territory Friday, rising to $103.05 as the dollar fell to all time lows, before profit-taking trimmed the gains, traders said. At the same time gold led other commodities higher too, hitting a record $976.32 per ounce as the troubled, cheaper dollar encouraged buyers. This was part of a broad-based …

BERLIN: Puma AG, the world s third-biggest sporting goods and apparel company, said Tuesday fourth-quarter profit rose 17 percent on the back of improved sales. The increase came as the company moved ahead with opening more of its own branded stores and demand for its apparel rose across its markets in Europe, the Middle East, …

ROME: Telecommunications mogul Naguib Sawiris is under investigation for alleged corruption in a probe over the 2005 acquisition of Italian mobile phone operator Wind SpA, Italy’s financial police said Thursday. The probe concerns consultancy fees that were allegedly paid during the sale of a majority stake in Wind, which Sawiris’ Weather Investments consortium bought from …

LONDON: The dollar firmed against the euro on Thursday but remained near a record low point after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke signalled the prospect of more cuts to US interest rates, dealers said. In European trading, the euro dipped to $1.5104 from $1.5119 in New York late on Wednesday. The single currency had surged …

CAIRO: Al Futtaim HC Securities (AFHC) recently secured an advanced position in the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), said a press statement. According the latest financial reports, AFHC now hold the second highest position on the DFM – registering total trades amounting to 19,432 – even though a very short time has passed since their emergence …

CAIRO: Seeking more exposure on international markets, the chairman of the Egyptian bourse signed Wednesday a Memorandum of Understanding with the Cyprus Stock Exchange that would enhance exchange of information and trading systems. “Cyprus has become a member of the European Union.and cooperating with their stock exchange could facilitate and boost our presence in the …

CAIRO: DAMAC Properties signed a contract with Engineers Consultants Group (ECG) to supervise the first phase of their latest project located in New Cairo. The contract was signed at ECG’s office in Nasr City, in the presence of representatives from both companies. DAMAC is the largest private sector luxury lifestyle provider in the Middle East. …

CAIRO: Minister of Transport celebrated Tuesday the installation of 13 railway tractors, in what he called a first step towards restoring Egypt’s railway system. Minister Mohamed Mansour said during the inaugural ceremony held at Ramses Station that 88 tractors would be renovated by year-end and 10 new ones would be up and running next November. …

CAIRO: Above all else in business, Finland is known for its innovative mobile technology, clean energy solutions, and cost-effective healthcare products. Egypt, on the other hand, is the most populous country in the Middle East with a heavy consumer culture and a government that strives to become a hub for foreign direct investment. As both …

CAIRO: The fifth session of the Agriculture and Land and Water Use Commission (ALAWUC) for the Near East got underway yesterday at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Cairo. A branch of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 23 of Alawuc’s member states participated in the session, which concludes tomorrow, along with several NGOs and …

CAIRO/DUBAI: From a competitive pool of 17 finalists across the Middle East, Samih Darwazah, founder and chairman of Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC, Jordan, was named as the 2007 Ernst & Young Middle East Entrepreneur Of The Year at a gala ceremony held at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai Feb. 23. “This award has an important symbolic value …

Beltone acquires Obelisk Beltone Financial Holding has completed the acquisition of Obelisk Securities, a brokerage and financial services firm, previously owned by a group of individual investors. Aladdin Saba, Chairman and Founder of Beltone Financial Holding, said, “This acquisition takes advantage of the synergies of the two firms and adds real value to our client …

CAIRO: The four-day Cairo Internet and Communication Technology (ICT) forum kicked off Sunday at the Cairo International Conference Center in Nasr City under the slogan, “The world as we know it is now changing . Hundreds of businesspeople and graduates streamed into the center from 10 am onwards to find what resembled some futuristic corporate …

CAIRO: Technical and vocational education is Egypt’s ultimate answer to unemployment, industrial competitiveness, and illegal immigration, agreed political and business leaders on Sunday. “Egypt has to create every year close to 700,000 new jobs because up to 700,000 new people enter the labor market every year, Klaus Ebermann, European Union Ambassador and head of the …

Damascus: Egypt will begin exporting natural gas to Syria next month after the third phase of the giant pipeline project was completed, Syrian Oil Minister Sufian Allaw said Saturday.Allaw made his comments during a meeting of energy ministers from Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and Turkey in Damascus dedicated to discuss the progress in the Arab …

CAIRO: EFG-Hermes has partnered with the Principal Bank for Development and Agricultural Credit to expand its reach and target a wider audience in Egypt through the Al Massy Fund, , the regional investment bank said in a statement. The fund – the first investment fund by the bank, with EFG-Hermes as Investment Manager – was …

CAIRO: EUROMED partnership countries will meet in Cairo on Feb. 26-27 for the EUROMED Ministerial Conference on the Information Society entitled “Building an Enabling Environment for the EUROMED Information Society. The conference is held under the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU in cooperation with the European Commission and hosted by Egypt’s Ministry …

CAIRO: Egypt’s telecom regulator announced Sunday that requests for proposal for Egypt’s second landline network will start March 13 for a fee of $10,000 while the actual bid will start June 19, halting years of monopoly by incumbent operator Telecom Egypt. Local and international companies interested in bidding for the second fixed license could obtain …

LINKdotNET announces free month for subscribers Internet Service provider LINKdotNET said it will not charge its current subscribers for its services between Feb. 18 and March 18, as compensation for the internet outage period that resulted from damaged undersea cables. The company is also working, along with mother company Orascom Telecom, on a news submarine …

MANAMA: Bahrain-based Gulf International Bank said on Thursday it suffered a net loss of $757.3 million in 2007 due mainly to its exposure to the crisis-ridden US home-loan subprime market. The merchant bank said in a statement the loss resulted from revaluation losses and provisions in relation to exposures impacted by the global credit crisis …

MADRID: A sovereign wealth fund owned by the government of the booming Gulf emirate of Dubai said Thursday it had been given more time to go through the books of Spain s second-biggest property firm Colonial with a view to a possible bid. The Investment Corp of Dubai (ICD) said in a statement it had …

Cairo: The Cairo Conference Center in Nasr City will host the 2008 Cairo Internet and Communication Technology (ICT) forum February 24-27. The forum, which has run annually since 1996 and is widely held to be the largest of its kind in the region, will operate on three levels tackling the business side of the ICT …

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina: Foreign ministers and envoys from South American and Arab countries vowed Thursday to increase cooperation and trade, while pledging to bolster Middle East security. Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa closed the two-day gathering in Argentina of more than 30 nations with a news conference at which he announced a commitment to study …

CAIRO: Nokia launched a new range of handsets in Egypt at a press conference at the Intercontinental Semiramis Hotel in Cairo Wednesday. Nokia’s Head of Sales for North East Africa Sherif Barakat, Mohamed Essawi, the company’s head of “Go To Market for North East Africa, and Dana Adnani Al Mubaidin, communication manager for Nokia North …