National wage increase on cards
Saudi employees may get pay rise after Shura Council recommendation to help cope with inflation.

Ministers come under fire
Kuwaiti MPs demand to question two ministers in latest campaign against cabinet members.

Arab filmmakers vie for top prize
Dubai International Film Festival attracts more than 300 entries for this year's Arab film competition.

Grey whale washes up in Dubai
Mammal 12m long and weighing nine tonnes found floating in marine channel near Jebel Ali.

Iran defiant on atomic plans
Country says it will not abandon right to nuclear technology despite threat of more sanctions.

DP World rating unaffected by IPO
Dubai's plan to sell 20% stake in ports operator will have no impact on 'A1' rating, Moody's says.

Early days for Dubai, Qatar share swap talks
Talks about exchanging LSE and OMX shares at very early stage and could yet fall through, sources say.

Work begins on Saudi-Jordan cement plant
Arabian Cement plant near Amman will expand Saudi firm's capacity to 2mn tonnes a year.

Labour city build gets underway
Abu Dhabi's biggest worker residential area will provide temporary accommodation for 32,000 personnel.

Egypt invests $109mn in solar power
Orascom Construction to build the biggest solar power station in Mena region.

Laura Bush meets UAE breast cancer survivors
US First Lady meets Emirati women on tour to raise awareness of disease.

Zain pays $120mn for Ghana telecom
Kuwaiti operator to buy 75% of Western Telesystems from the Ghanaian government.

Gulf travellers head Down Under
GCC tourists visiting Australia up 21% year-on-year, region among country's top 30 inbound markets.

Cityscape 2007