Middle East business papers

Please find below a selection of our most recent business papers with a Middle East scope.

2010 Global Retail Development Index™
According to the 9th annual Global Retail Development Index study from management consulting firm A.T. Kearney, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region exhibits the most exciting retail growth opportunities today for international retailers. Eight countries in the MENA region are among the GRDI’s top 21: Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, Turkey and Algeria.
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Reinventing investment banking in the GCC - Time to diversify beyond private equity
There is an opportunity for GCC investment banks to revisit their current business models and redesign their long-term strategies, as the GCC’s market for investment banking offers significant long-term potential.This report argues that it is time to diversify beyong private equity.
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Deal Making— Now Is as Good a Time as Any - M&A opportunities for MENA real estate players
When the economy takes a tumble and asset prices are at historic lows, companies look inward and go into defensive mode. Yet companies that look outward—understanding this is a buyer’s market—are best positioned to emerge as winners when the upswing arrives. For MENA real estate players, acquisitions are the lever out of this crisis.
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Investing in the Rebound – The 2010 A.T. Kearney FDI Confidence Index®
The Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index is a regular survey of global executives conducted by A.T. Kearney looking at the future prospects for international investment flows. Companies participating in the survey account for more than $2 trillion in annual global revenue. According to the 2010 A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index FDI flows will remain disappointing through 2011. UAE and other Gulf countries rated among top 15 most attractive global FDI destinations.
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GCC banks: On The road to Maturity
Banks in the GCC countries—Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar—are breathing a sigh of relief as the worst of the global economic crisis appears to be over and the factors that fueled their initial growth are still intact. Yet there are several new pressures on the GCC banks that are exposing them to some intrinsic weaknesses. Indeed, as the laissez-faire approach of the past will no longer work, the crisis has provided GCC banks with the impetus needed to take a big step on the road to maturity.
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Recovering Markets, Revised Ambitions A.T. Kearney’s 2010 Real Estate Global Opportunity Index
When A.T. Kearney issued its last Real Estate Global Opportunity Index in 2008, the real estate crisis was in its early stages. Since then, prices have plummeted worldwide, creating a downward spiral that has devastated economies. Promising projects have been cancelled or downscaled, and developers are coping with previously unseen financial difficulties. Today, however, the market is gearing up for a comeback, what is the next move?.
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Middle East Media on the Move
Across much of the developed world and many developing economies, the media sector is facing challenges on an unprecedented scale. While the media and entertainment industry struggles worldwide, the MIddle East is providing a bright spot. The pan-Arab media industry is growing faster that the economy in general at about 19 percent per year, with both online and offline channels expanding and even feeding off one another.
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More Than Just Lip Service
Banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are flush from the effects of the regional economic boom. Yet while GCC banks are remarkably profitable compared to global peers, there is a serious gap in the quality of their customer service. Why should this matter? Because satisfaction in the teller line—and on the phone and online—can have a direct impact on the bottom line. A midsized GCC bank with world-class customer service could increase profits anywhere from $50 million to $150 million a year.
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Balancing the Global Property Development Equation
Globally real estate has been making headlines for the wrong reasons. Even casual followers of current events are familiar with a new vocabulary: subprime disaster, liquidity crisis and foreclosure. The media provide constant coverage of the damage to leading economies and financial institutions from collapsing real estate values. But the global real estate industry offers far more than negative headline stories.
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Tapping the Sun
Like the rest of the world, the Middle East region is not immune to the negative impact of fluctuating oil prices, particularly as it consumes the “black gold” for its own air-conditioning, electricity and drinking water. There is an alternative energy solution, however, and it is directly overhead—the sun.
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The IT Market a Middle East Perspective
The report was commissioned by Dubai Internet City and identifies specific objectives for small and medium businesses to capture part of the IT services market. Small and medium businesses can benefit from a gap in the $13 billion IT market in the Middle East. The sector is expected to attract $40 billion in investments in the Middle East and Africa with $13 billion in the Middle East alone. The report seeks to identify the success factors for SMBs in this region as well as provide an overview of the common entry strategies and entrepreneurial environment.
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Dubai and the Global Cities Index
Presentation given by Robert Ziegler, Vice President A.T. Kearney Middle East at Meed Conference “Dubai Project” on 16th March 2009. The results of the Global Cities index are presented alongside the specific score, characteristics and considerations of Dubai. The Global Cities study was developed by A.T. Kearney, Foreign Policy magazine, and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
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(See the complete 2008 Global Cities Index on the Foreign Policy website)

Adressing the Muslim Market - Can you Afford Not to?
Throughout the world, Muslims are becoming increasingly active as investors and manufacturers, bankers and traders, competitors and suppliers, and becoming real partners in a global economic system. Muslims comprise one of the fastest growing consumer markets in the world and, hence, represent a major growth opportunity for businesses around the world.
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