On the page below you will find a selection of articles from the GSN archive. Please note that while some of the content is free to access, all items preceded by a padlock symbol (
) require a subscription.
2010 Kuwait archive
2008-2009 Kuwait archive
2006-2007 Kuwait archive
2004-2005 Kuwait archive
2003 and earlier Kuwait archives
Return to main GSN's World Kuwait page
Select another country
Kuwait imposes UN sanctions on Iran
On 11 November, the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) issued a circular to all local banks, investment companies and money exchanges, ordering them to freeze assets and cease dealing with Iranian financial institutions that contribute to the country’s nuclear activities, according to Kuwait’s Al-Qabas newspaper and other local media.
Issue 890, 26 November 2010.
more
Distorted alliances mark fresh phase of Kuwaiti battles over political power and business strategy
Confusion is the overwhelming impression as Kuwait’s factions tussle over reform, vested interests, economic strategy and political patronage. These battles are reflected in everything from a dispute over chamber of commerce leadership to control of the Zain telecommunications giant
Issue 889, 12 November 2010.
more
This sporting strife
Governance problems at some of Kuwaiti sport’s governing bodies have led to the country’s exclusion from some international competitions.
Issue 889, 12 November 2010.
more
Kuwait Energy plans IPO
Kuwait Energy Company (KEC) is planning an initial public offering within nine months, after shareholders approved a plan to raise its authorised share capital to KD127m ($451m) from KD103.6m.
Issue 887, 15 October 2010.
more
Risk management report
Big budget announced, spending committed to multi-billion dollar development plan
Issue 887, 15 October 2010.
more
Etisalat moves to buy Kharafi and other Zain stakes
A move by UAE state telecommunications company Etisalat to buy a substantial stake in Kuwaiti telecoms player Zain comes as Abu Dhabi extends its ambitions to buy assets in the region following the global downturn
Issue 886, 1 October 2010.
more
Praxair buys into ROC
Praxair has agreed to buy 49% of Refrigeration and Oxygen Company (ROC)’s industrial gases businesses in Kuwait, UAE and Qatar, which in 2009 generated annual sales of some $80m.
Issue 884, 3 September 2010.
more
Gulf mourns deaths of leading old-school liberals
Two prominent Gulf figures died in August – Saudi Arabia’s labour minister, former diplomat and poet Ghazi Al-Gosaibi and Kuwaiti author and academic Ahmed Al-Baghdadi
Issue 883, 27 August 2010.
more
Is it time for investors to think more positively about Kuwait?
Two decades after Saddam Hussein’s invasion and in the fifth year of Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah’s rule, is a more positive investment and policy implementation story starting to emerge from Kuwait?
Issue 883, 27 August 2010.
more
Border deal
The Saudi-Kuwaiti technical committee for border demarcation has signed a contract for New Zealand’s NZ Aerial Mapping to carry out the demarcation.
Issue 882, 30 July 2010.
more
Risk management report
Big budget announced, spending committed to multi-billion dollar development plan
Issue 881, 16 July 2010.
more
Government heads off debt bill
MPs have failed to force the government to endorse a popular bill that would have cost the state some $23bn to buy up personal loans and scrap interest (GSN 871/16).
Issue 880, 2 July 2010.
more
Court releases writer after international pressure
Kuwait’s criminal court on 28 June ordered the release of controversial writer Mohammed Abdulqader Al-Jassem after 49 days in detention.
Issue 880, 2 July 2010.
more
NBK Islamic fund fully subscribed in one day
National Bank of Kuwait’s Islamic KD Ijara Fund IV was fully subscribed in its first day with a fund size of KD33m ($112m). The fund allows NBK clients to invest in a diversified portfolio of leasing contracts structured according to sharia principles.
Issue 879, 18 June 2010.
more
Investment Dar restructuring nears approval
Investment Dar, the Kuwait-based owner of half of Aston Martin Lagonda, and its creditors have agreed to most commercial aspects of restructuring its liabilities, the company’s creditors committee said.
Issue 879, 18 June 2010.
more
Sheikh Nasser exploits leverage over MPs to push through liberalisation measures
MPs under pressure from constituents to secure loan bailouts are susceptible to government lobbying on economic development and reform measures
Issue 876, 7 May 2010.
more
Indicted Agility loses US Army order
The Public Warehousing Company KSC (PWC), rebranded as Agility, on 15 April issued a statement to the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) saying that the United States’ Defence Logistics Agency (DLA) had appointed another company to manage its main supply contract for Kuwait and Iraq
Issue 875, 23 April 2010.
more
MPs reject Rafale deal
An Islamist parliamentary group has warned the government not to purchase French-made Rafale fighter jets, saying the deal is “suspicious”. “The bloc reiterates its firm rejection of this suspicious deal, especially following information that the latest technical reports have recommended the rejection of the deal,” the Reform and Development Bloc (RDB) said in a statement on 21 March.
Issue 874, 9 April 2010.
more
Time for clear thinking on free speech in Kuwait
Freedom of expression is a proud Kuwaiti boast in a region where most countries restrict public debate and media comment. The existence of a powerful and democratically elected parliament is only one facet of a society that can justifiably claim to stand out from its neighbours for the pluralism and vigour of its political culture. Equally important are the newspapers – whose buildings line Press Street in the capital’s Shuwaikh district – and a rich variety of diwaniyas and meetings where citizens chew over ideas and opinions.
Issue 873, 19 March 2010.
more
Energy pointers
Oil revenues rise but remain below peak levels; Al-Khafji project launched in PNZ
Issue 872, 5 March 2010.
more
Deadlock is broken, but Kuwait’s MPs remain in combative mood
In a major breakthrough for Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, Kuwait’s combative MPs have approved a national five-year development plan, the first for decades, and the creation of a Capital Market Authority (CMA). But, with confrontation looming over MPs’ insistence on passing a $13bn measure to buy up unpaid consumer debts, it remains too early to talk of a lasting transformation of the political atmosphere.
Issue 871, 12 February 2010.
more
Oil minister threatened with grilling, parliament approves KSE regulatory body
Risk management report
Issue 870, 29 January 2010.
more
Premier survives no-confidence vote, KIA sells Citi stake to invest at home
Risk management report
Issue 869, 15 January 2010.
more
2010 Kuwait archive
2008-2009 Kuwait archive
2006-2007 Kuwait archive
2004-2005 Kuwait archive
2003 and earlier Kuwait archives
Return to main GSN's World Kuwait page
Select another country