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SUNDAY, MAY 15, 2016
MARKET Interest subsidy handed over to small business enterprise tial Omani youth and grooming them with on-job training to handle various aspects of their business and has steadily increased its Omanisation from 16 per cent to 50 per cent at end of December, 2015.
Al Safwa Trading Company had approached SME Fund for its financial and business support for setting up staff accommodation and logistics in Barka.
Times News Service MUSCAT: An interest subsidy refund cheque was handed over to Al Safwa Trading Company (ASTCL) at a special event. The refund money was given to Warith Al Kharusi, chairman, ASTCL by Raphael V Parambi, CEO of SME Development Fund (SMEF). The function was attended by representatives of both the companies. Eligible small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are offered finance at subsidised in-
EXTENDING A HELPING HAND: The interest refund was handed over to Warith Al Kharusi, chairman, ASTCL by Raphael V. Parambi (extreme right), CEO of SME Development Fund. - Supplied picture
terest rate. Subsidised interest refunds are made to customers at the end of every 12th month. The net interest paid by eligible SMEs is a very attractive four per cent, on a reducing balance basis. ASTCL is a SME focused on logistics and facilities management for big corporates notably in the oil and gas area. The company has been set up by Warith Kharusi, an Omani professional with over 20 years of senior level experience in these areas in PDO. The company had approached SME Fund for its
AGREEMENT
financial and business support for setting up staff accommodation and logistics in Barka. Since the support was extended, a year ago, ASTCL has made rapid strides, more than doubling the accommodation facility from 400 to 1,100 head capacity. It has also created an integrated pallet handling yard within the premises to cater to the requirements of the logistic sector developing in the area. The company follows the philosophy of recruiting high poten-
Grow in stature Speaking on the occasion, Warith Kharusi stated that the sound accounting processes, set up with the help of SMEF, and their monitoring and guidance had helped the firm grow in stature and confidence. The company is already in the process of planning the next stage of growth and was confident of contributing to economic diversification and enhanced in-country value accretion in the Sultanate. He encouraged SMEs to avail of the integrated services provided by the Fund and seek to grow and to strengthen their balance sheet. Parambi, appreciated the rapid growth and professional approach of ASTCL which today has won the confidence of blue chip clients like Bahwan Engineering Company, PZ International Constructions and Global Source Technical Solutions. SMEF’s nurturing service, comprising accounting support, free software, monitoring & mentoring is aimed at helping other
SMEs to achieve similar growth trajectories. Therefore the four point plan linked payment of interest subsidy to the compliance of borrowers to the nurturing programme. SMEs, were gradually realising the importance of maintaining books of accounts and adhering to financial discipline and we were gratified that many of our SMEs like ASTCL had indeed grown as a consequence and been able to win the confidence and business of the best corporates in the country. The SME Development Fund (SMEF) has been established under the Sultanate’s offset program, with the objective of developing entrepreneurship and financing small and medium enterprises in the Sultanate. It was launched in March 2014 and commenced operations in April 2014. SMEF’s objectives are the financing and supporting of growing SMEs and the ‘creation’ of new entrepreneurs. Creating entrepreneurship, funding, nurturing and legitimising are the Four Point Plan of SMEF. Under the Nurturing Plan, the Fund supports entrepreneurs with accounting, software, monitoring and mentoring. Accounting support is provided by top accounting firms.
ACQUISITION
Buffett backs group bidding for Yahoo's Internet assets
EXTENDING SUPPORT: Impact Company aims at getting access to global leadership in the development of industrial security devices to achieve security and safety for homes. - Supplied picture
National Business Centre incubates local company Times News Service MUSCAT: In line with its efforts to offer a premier platform to support and develop Omani entrepreneurs, the National Business Centre (NBC) recently signed an agreement to incubate Impact Company. Impact Company aims at getting access to global leadership in the development of industrial security devices to achieve security and safety for housing units. The NBC is an initiative launched by the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (PEIE) at the Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM) to offer promising Omani entrepreneurs a platform to develop their business ideas and advance them into growing ventures. The centre of-
fers a premier platform for Omani entrepreneurs by providing business development support and guidance, training and mentoring, access to markets and industry experts, and state-ofthe-art and fully equipped office space, meeting rooms and presentation facilities. The objectives of the centre comprise facilitating and supporting the growth of investable ideas into successful businesses; building entrepreneurial skills through dedicated and focused training, coaching and mentoring; and providing business support facilities from office space, administrative support, financial support and consultancy services that are crucial in ensuring the success and survival of new ventures.
NEW YORK: Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett is backing a group bidding for Yahoo’s Internet assets, people familiar with the matter said. The consortium, which includes Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert, is in the second round of bidding for Yahoo’s assets, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the bidding process is private. Buffett did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent to an assistant. Quicken Loans and Rebecca Neufeld, spokeswoman for Yahoo, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday afternoon. Yahoo helped millions of people discover e-mail and the Internet in the 1990s, but failed to keep up with changing consumer tastes and advertising techniques, losing audience and revenue to Facebook, Twitter and Google. The company in February began exploring strategic options after it scrapped a long-held plan to spin off its multibillion-dollar stake in Alibaba Group Holding because of concerns about a potentially hefty tax bill. Initial offers Last month, Yahoo Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer said the company was moving swiftly to consider offers to buy its Web operations. Yahoo received more than 10 initial offers last month, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The bids ranged from about $4 billion to $8 billion, the people said. Bidders include Verizon Com-
Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett. — Bloomberg file picture
munications, YP Holdings, TPG, and a consortium led by Bain Capital and Vista Equity Partners, people familiar with the matter said last month. Gilbert, Buffett Gilbert is perhaps best known today for owning the National Basketball Association’s Cleveland Cavaliers. He started Quicken Loans, a big online retail mortgage lender in the US, at age 23 with $5,000. He’s now chairman of Quicken and its parent, Rock Holdings, which at one point owned 29 companies in areas as diverse as designer sneakers and private equity. Buffett, 85, has a long history of providing financing for buyouts. In 2014, Berkshire put up $3 billion to help Burger King Worldwide with its takeover of
Canadian doughnut chain Tim Hortons. The billionaire also backed Mars Inc.’s deal for Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. Berkshire already has links with Yahoo. Buffett turned to the Web portal to broadcast his company’s famous annual shareholder meeting online for the first time this year. And Susan Decker, a Berkshire board member since 2007, previously held various executive roles at Yahoo. Shares of Yahoo rose more than one per cent in after-hours trading on Friday. — Bloomberg News
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BOT MODEL
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Consortium to develop projects
The project will be developed with a consortium comprising Mitsui & Co, ACWA Power, Dhofar International for Development and Investment Holding on Sunday. The consortium expects that the two plants, built as per the build, ownand operate (BOT) model, will commence commercial operations in the first quarter of 2019. As per the agreement, OPWP will purchase the full production of the two plants for 15 years. The investment cost for the two plants is pegged at about OMR885 million. Mitsui owns a 50.1 per cent in the project, ACWA Power 45 per cent and Dhofar International for Development and Investment Holding owns 5 per cent. – With inputs from Oman News Agency
T H R E E - D AY E V E N T
Oman to host major expo on waste management MUSCAT: Oman Waste and Environmental Services (OWES) Exhibition and Conference will start on May 23, at Oman International Exhibition Centre. The three-day event is in line with the special attention given by the Sultanate on environment. Government and private agencies concerned with environment and waste management participate in the event. The OWES exhibition and conference is organised by Omanexpo, in conjunction with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs and Bee’ah. The event brings together policy-makers, domain experts, engineers, technology companies, scientists, researchers, students, entrepreneurs, equipment suppliers and other professionals on a single platform to discuss environmental challenges in Oman and explore plausible solutions. It strives to focus on all aspects of environmental and waste management sector in Oman. In fact, the exhibition, technical sessions, panel discussions have been designed to address major environmental challenges in Oman, including but not limited to solid waste management, industrial waste management, sewage, air pollution, water pollution, ecological degradation, green buildings, climate change, environmental management and environmental awareness. The exhibition will highlight the environmental impacts of refineries and petrochemical industries of Oman and will provide environmental compliance solutions and procedures for such facilities. More than 100 top environmental specialists from different parts of the world are expected to participate, providing an excellent opportunity for peer networking, knowledge-sharing and brainstorming. Oman Waste and Environmental Services will provide stakeholder, including policymakers, investors, public sector, as well as private sector, a perfect venue for dialogue to exchange experiences on how to best improve Oman’s environmental and waste management capabilities. — ONA
US STOCKS
Wall Street seen failing to reach for year-old record so far NEW YORK: As the anniversary of the S&P 500’s high mark approaches, the benchmark US stock index’s latest rally has stalled and failed to breach a key level, prompting some calls for sell-offs, at least in the short term. The rally, which started in midFebruary and fizzled in late April, took the S&P 500 just shy of its record close set May 21, 2015. The index trades at nearly 17 times the estimated earnings of its components over the next year - still as expensive as at its peak and in the two attempts since to breach it. The latest rally was driven by more companies than a year ago, something viewed as a positive by both market technicians and those who deal with fundamentals. It was not, however, enough to cata-
pult the S&P to new highs. The S&P rose almost 17 per cent from its two-year low hit in midFebruary to this year’s high mark of 2,111 in April. “Seems every time we get up here the market runs out of steam, investors start to worry about valuation,” said Paul Hickey, cofounder of research firm Bespoke Investment Group in Harrison, New York. Valuation is not the only reason to sell but it is “hard to justify adding new money,” he added. Hickey said earnings need to catch up to valuations, something that most analysts expect to happen in the second half of the year according to the latest estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters. The first-quarter earnings growth estimate stood at negative
HIGH VOLATILITY: The S&P rose almost 17 per cent from its twoyear low hit in mid-February to this year’s high mark of 2,111 in April. - Bloomberg News
5.4 per cent on Friday with 90 per cent of S&P 500 companies having reported. Revenues are expected to have fallen 1.9 per cent from the first
quarter of 2015. The second quarter reporting season begins in July. Technical analysts see strong resistance, or significant selling pressure, at 2,100 on the S&P. Both
in August and December the index hovered near that level before double-digit percentage declines. Three weeks ago it again failed to get over the hurdle, triggering calls for another sharp sell-off. “For a breakout we need consecutive weekly closes above 2,100,” said Katie Stockton, chief technical strategist at BTIG in New York. “Momentum is not there yet, so I’m watching for the downside.” Her technical analysis showed buyers would initially get into the S&P when the index nears 2,000, and draw even more support in the area between 1,925 and 1,950, she said. “That’s where I think the correction takes us. We need to set higher lows compared to February; that would be the first step toward a real recovery,” he added further.
Another pillar for that recovery may already be in place, in the form of broader market breadth. In the week the S&P set its record last May, nearly 550 stocks on the New York Stock Exchange hit a 12-month high. In six of the last seven weeks, even more stocks have hit new highs despite a drop of over 1 percent in the S&P 500. “We’ve had a consolidation of the move up, the market is catching up to itself,” said Bruce Zaro, chief technical strategist at Bolton Global Asset Management in Boston. Zaro said even though he saw “a potential for the (S&P 500) to make fleeting nominal new highs,” the market would eventually break down due to the uncertainty ahead of the US presidential election on November 8. — Reuters