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Thursday, 1 November 2018

HSBC likes Egypt, UAE and Kuwait as it looks to double MENA profit by 2023

** #8 HSBC is expecting to double its commercial banking profit in the MENA region by 2023 thanks to China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the Gulf’s plans to diversify its sources of income, Tom Arnold writes for Reuters. “You have probably two of the biggest infrastructure programs ever undertaken: The Middle East transformation programs and the Belt and Road Initiative. We are in many of the countries where this is being undertaken, so we are at the heart of it,” said Daniel Howlett, HSBC MENA head of commercial banking.

Egypt — alongside the UAE and Kuwait — is one of the “stand out markets for growth” in the region when it comes to new business in education, professional services, infrastructure, and healthcare, among others, Howlett said.

Is Saudi part of this positive outlook, too? Yes. Howlett said the Khashoggi murder has not affected the commercial bank’s plans for doing business with the kingdom. “We have a long-term, strategic commitment to the region. Saudi Arabia is a G20 member and an important part of that and we have a duty to serve our clients wherever they may operate,” Reuters quoted Howlett as saying.

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