Moody’s Investors Services has published its first report on Sharjah, awarding the emirate with a A3 stable rating. The rating, which reflects the emirate’s credit strength, is primarily supported by its very strong fiscal and government debt position, noting that government debt is at low levels. A few months ago, global credit rating agency S&P announced its first ever sovereign ...

The Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) took its investment promotion roadshow to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait this month, in line with it’s goal to strengthen economic relations between Sharjah and neighbouring GCC countries. “We seek, through our roadshow, to highlight the investment potential in Sharjah and to familiarise business groups and economic authorities with the available investment ...

Strong growth in the UAE economy and rising rents in neighbouring Dubai have boosted demand for residential and commercial property in Sharjah, according to a report by international real estate consultancy Cluttons. The report stated that average residential rental costs climbed by 4.5 per cent during the first quarter, leaving them 19 per cent higher than this time last year, ...

Bee’ah, Sharjah’s award-winning fully integrated environment and waste management company, has awarded a GBP300 million (AED1.8 billion) contract to UK firm Chinook Sciences to build the world’s largest advanced thermal energy-from-waste facility. “There are many technologies and many companies which have used incineration for years,” said Bee’ah’s CEO Khaled Al Huraimel. “Sharjah wants to be a leader in the environmental ...

Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) has embarked on a roadshow of major European cities to promote the Emirate of Sharjah as a tourist destination. The first part of the European road show includes Austria, Germany and Switzerland and runs from 19-23 May 2014, with further country visits to be announced. More than 250,000 European tourists visited the Emirate ...

Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB) announced this week that it has joined NASDAQ Dubai’s new Islamic financing platform, Murabaha, which offers an alternative for Islamic financing transactions using Sharia-compliant Certificates. SIB is the first bank to join the Murabaha platform, which was set-up by NASDAQ Dubai in partnership with Emirates Islamic Bank (EIB) and Emirates Islamic Financial Brokerage (EIFB). Originally founded ...

Sharjah could award up to AED 11 billion (US$3 billion) of construction projects by the end of 2014, according to a new report by Meed Projects. The report, which takes into account all known construction and transport projects in Sharjah with an estimated value of over AED18.3 million (US$5 million), predicted a bumper year for construction in the Emirate. According ...

Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) has announced the details of the AED 500 million (US$ 136m) Sir Bu Nuair Island development, a ground-breaking mixed-use real estate development due for completion in 2017. The announcement was made during the Arabian Travel Market (ATM 2014) in Dubai and is one of Shurooq’s largest initiatives to-date. Renowned for its natural beauty, the ...

Sharjah International Airport has added 200 more weekly flights to the airport’s summer timetable from this week. The boost in air-traffic comes partly as a result of the shutdown of two of Dubai International Airport’s runways for scheduled maintenance. Dubai International announced a 26 percent cut in the number of flights from 1 May to 20 July 2014, due to the ...

Sharjah government trade and investment organisations recently held roundtable discussions with members of the Netherlands Business Council Dubai on business and investment opportunities in Sharjah. The United Arab Emirates is currently the Netherlands largest export market in the Gulf, accounting for 40 percent of all the country’s exports to the GCC, while total trade between the UAE and the Netherlands ...