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Ms.
Lubna Olayan, chief executive officer of the Saudi
Olayan
Financing Company
has been named one of the 50 most powerful
women in the Arab world by Forbes magazine's Arabic
edition.
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The research and development fund of the Pakistan
Telecommunication (PTCL) will spend Rs
200m to fund 22 PhD scholarships for young Pakistanis
seeking higher qualifications and research in
the fields of information technology and telecommunication.
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Egyptian
telecom company Orascom,
operating in Bangladesh as Banglalink, launched
a new mobile service giving customers a pre-paid
mobile phone connection and a phone for $56. The
package is cheaper than other operators. GrameenPhone,
is the country's biggest mobile telecom operator
with 2.5 million subscribers.
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Indonesian
State oil and gas company Pertamina's
oil production in Aceh and North Sumatra has returned
to its normal level of above 5,000 barrels per
day (bpd) after it fell by 50 percent due to floods
in January.
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Malaysia's national carmaker Proton
Holdings Bhd appointed Mr. Mohamad Azlan
Hashim as its new chairman after Mr. Abu Hassan
Kendut quit the post. Mr. Hashim is a former Kuala
Lumpur Stock Exchange executive chairman.
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Iranian
lawmakers voted to cut Turkcell's
stake in a new mobile phone network to 49% from
70% , making the firm likely to quit one of the
largest foreign investment deals for Iran (estimated
$3 billion). South Africa's MTN which was runner-up
behind Turkcell is poised to take its place.
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Algeria's
state-owned oil and gas company Sonatrech's
oil output climbed 14 percent in 2004 to 59.3
million tons. Natural gas production rose five
percent to 144.3 billion cubic meters. The value
of exports of oil and gas climbed 32 percent to
$ 31.5 billion.
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Telekom
Malaysia and Cisco Systems have entered
into an agreement to closely align their efforts
to enable Telekom Malaysia to create, commercialize
and deliver a comprehensive suite of managed services
that make use of integrated data, voice and video
IP network technologies from Cisco(R).
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By
the end of the year, state-owned Saudi
Aramco, the top world oil exporter, will
increase the number of operating rigs from 34
to more than 70 in order to explore and develop
new oil and gas fields.
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Ettihad
Etisalat unveiled Mobily as its brand
name. The Company was awarded the second mobile
GSM and the first 3G license in Saudi Arabia last
year. The Company is expected to start operation
in the second quarter of this year.
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Abdul
Latif Jameel (ALJ) Company won a libel
suit in the British Court of Appeal against the
Wall Street Journal Europe. An article alleged
that the ALJ Group was being monitored by the
Saudi banking regulators at the request of US
law enforcement agencies.
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Nigerian
National
Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) plans to
increase its petroleum product distribution outlets
from the present five stations to 91 within the
next three years in preparation for a deregulated
market.
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Publicly
listed Bank
Negara Indonesia (BNI)
is planning to merge with state-owned saving
bank, Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN.) The merger of
BTN into BNI will increase the capital of BNI
by Rp3 trillion to Rp26.6 trillion.
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Malaysian
Airline System Bhd. which
operates the country's national carrier, plans
to expand its fleet with an order for up to 78
new planes this year. The order is estimated at
$3 billion US.
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Turkey's
Koç
Holding will decide whether to merge Yapi
Kredi with its existing Koçbank after its purchase
of Yapi Kredi is complete and following consultation
with its partners. This is the biggest sale in
the history of banking in Turkey
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News
reports suggest that Malaysia
International Shipping Corp Bhd (MISC)
is close to selling its liner business to concentrate
on energy shipping.
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Largest Saudi bank (in terms of capital)
National Commercial Bank, earned a
profit of SR3.53 billion in 2004, with an SR518
million increase compared to 2003.
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