IBM to invest $6bn in India
IBM, the world’s largest computer services company, has announced plans to invest nearly $6 billion in India over the next three years, underscoring the country’s growing importance as a global hub for information technology expertise.

IBM said it planned to expand its services, software, hardware and research businesses in India, where it is already the largest multinational firm with 43,000 staff in 14 cities, up from 4,900 in 2002.
The investment, almost triple the $2 billion that IBM has invested in India over the past three years, is the biggest investment by a multinational firm in India in recent years. It dwarfs the $3.9 billion combined investment announced last year for India by three US-based companies Microsoft Corp, Intel Corp and Cisco Systems Inc.

Oil impact only minor
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said high oil prices were having only a minor impact on global demand growth.
The energy adviser to 26 industrialised countries also said constraints on the supply side were continuing. The Paris-based agency trimmed global oil demand growth by 10,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.24 million bpd and said high oil prices were continuing to brake demand growth in the US. It trimmed the requirement for the group’s oil to 28.8 million bpd in the third quarter and 29.5 million bpd in the fourth. It expected demand growth in China to be 8.6 per cent in the second quarter before slowing to a still robust 5.9 per cent during the second half of 2006.
Opec pumped 29.8 million barrels per day in May, up 215,000 bpd from a revised April figure. Saudi Arabia pumped 9.35 million barrels per day in May, up 100,000 bpd from April.

Italy output down
Italian industrial output fell by 1.0 percent in April from March, the national statistics institute Istat said.
In the 12 months to April production showed a decline of 8.3 per cent, unadjusted figures from Istat showed.
Production of consumer goods fell most heavily, by 6.1 per cent in April over 12 months. Production of semi-finished goods fell by 2.9 per cent over 12 months, and output of energy by 2.3 per cent.

UAE firm to produce caviar
Bin Salem GTE, a prominent group of trading companies in Abu Dhabi, has announced the launch of a Dh200 million ($54.45 million) project to produce caviar in Abu Dhabi Industrial City.
According to a news report, the caviar will be produced in coordination with United Food Technologies, Germany, one of the world leaders for the engineering, designing, construction and operation of life fish aquaculture plants.
Production will be 32 tonnes per year of high-quality caviar. Work on constructing the first phase of the plant will be completed in 16 months.
 
Firm bags orders
Saudi Amiantit CEO Farid Al Khalawi has said he is hopeful that 2006 will be a good year for the company after it won orders worth SR97 million ($25.9 million) for the supply of pipelines to state-owned utility firms.
In December, the firm said it had sealed orders worth SR1.7 billion or more than half of its projected turnover for 2006.
Amiantit, which makes water and oil pipelines for the industrial, agricultural and energy sectors, has been undergoing a restructuring of its business which helped it post a net profit of SR1.5 million in 2005 against a net loss of SR16.6 million in the first half of 2005. It is among the most active industrial companies in Saudi Arabia.

Foodco agreement
The Abu Dhabi National Foodstuff Company (Foodco) has signed an exclusive GCC distribution agreement with XOX-Geback GmbH, one of the top three German-based snacks and nibbles producers and distributors in Europe.
Foodco, which recently announced a 46 per cent increase in its net profits to Dh133 million ($35.6 million) for the year ended December 2005, already deals in a wide range of premium brands and in the export and distribution of essential commodities such as rice, sugar, salt and cooking oil.
XOX is a family-owned enterprise based in Hamelin, northern Germany, and has operations in more than 10 countries throughout Europe. The company has expanded significantly in the past six years and currently has four different brands.

Dramatic increase in Saif Zone tenants
Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (Saif Zone) is celebrating its 10th anniversary by announcing a 40-fold increase in member companies since its inception in 1995. The number of companies with a base at the free zone, situated next to Sharjah International Airport in the UAE, has increased from 55 to 2,201 over the past decade. The past three years have seen the steepest growth with the number of tenants almost doubling from 1,100 in 2003, said a spokesman.
Saif Zone took part for the first time in the recent Airport Build & Supply Exhibition in Dubai, hoping to build on the success already achieved.
Yasser Zamzam, sales and marketing officer for the free zone, attributed success to its unique geographical location, its flexible facilities and the freedom from bureaucratic red tape that it offers to member companies.

Ghazan plans plant
Gazan Agricultural Development has said it plans to build a SR1.1 billion ($293 million) cement plant, the latest in a series of such projects amid a surge in demand in Saudi Arabia.  The plant will have a production capacity of 1.5 million tonnes per year (tpy). Saudi Arabia is pressed to raise cement production to cope with a real estate boom and huge infrastructure projects. Authorities are licensing new firms to invest SR21.6 billion to treble annual production to up to 70 million tpy.
Some of the eight existing cement firms, producing annually 23 million tonnes, are seeking to raise their output to defend their turf against new comers.

Conmex debut
A trade exhibition for the construction industry in the Middle East, Conmex, will debut at the Expo Centre in Sharjah on November 25 of this year.
The four-day exhibition will showcase the entire range of construction-related materials including plant and machinery, commercial vehicles, lifting and conveying equipment, construction equipment, tools and special systems, formwork and scaffolding, construction site facilities, spare parts and accessories, communication and navigation equipment, and safety equipment.