phentermine side effects
Before, investment services were offered by a few boutiques operating under phentermine side effects licenses and the phentermine side effects banks. Importantly, the changes have occurred at a time of rising liquidity as the petrodollars flow and the government has reduced its debt. Not surprisingly, bankers look ahead in a bullish mood, saying financial services will be one of the kingdom’s most dynamic sectors for several years to come. Areas of growth they point to include the sukuk market; housing finance with the anticipation of new mortgage legislation – which should provide lending opportunities for banks and securitisation opportunities for investment banks – increasing numbers of initial public offerings, and growth in the insurance industry. Lending is also increasing to the private sector as it benefits from the boom, with private sector lending growing by 16.4 per cent year on year to September, according to SABB Bank. Even the stock market, which has been plagued by speculative trading and saw about $500bn wiped off it market capitalisation from its peak of $834bn during its crash, has shown some signs of improvement. It is up about 18 per cent in the past year, although economists say it is too early to say whether it is moving away from its volatile path. “In the coming three to five years we will see significant financial transformation in the kingdom, and for the best. There will be much more dynamism, much more product offering, much more sophistication and innovation,” says Said Alshaikh, chief economist at National Commercial Bank. The seeds of that “transformation” can be traced back to a liberalisation process in the sector that began in 2002 and accelerated ahead of the country’s accession to the World Trade Organisation in late 2005. Bankers expect a period of consolidation for investment companies as a number are unknown and many will be competing for the same business. But the overall development creates greater competition and improves under developed equity research services. “It forces local banks to be more attentive to their clients, to develop their systems, to invest in technology, to invest in human resources,” Mr Alshaikh says. The expectation is that foreign banks, which must apply for a licence for every branch they open, will focus on investment banking, asset management and the high net worth market. However, one banker suggested some may turn out to be little more than suitcase banks, opening offices to ensure a presence in the market, while the actual banking will be done at larger branches outside the kingdom. Some have yet to begin their operations. Hamad al Sayari, the governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, says those that remain idle could have their licences revoked. But he adds: “We understand some of the challenges, especially the shortages of skilled labour, but from our observations all of them are eager to work.” The skilled labour shortage is creating pay increases and large turnovers of staff, and could constrain growth. Another hot topic is whether the CMA will open up the stock market to western institutional investors. Residents of the other five Gulf Co operation Council states can invest in the Tadawul, but western investors can only access the market through Saudi mutual funds. Experts says the fact the market is retail driven exacerbates its volatility, saying this could be smoothed out by the participation of institutional investors. At present, mutual funds account for just 2 per cent of the market’s capitalisation, but there is growing western interest in the region’s largest bourse. “I think it will open up over time,” Mr Sayari says. “We just have one concern – the stability in the financial market, and to avoid the hot money coming in and going out causing disruptions. Otherwise it’s not a protectionist attitude.” That decision would have to be taken by the CMA, generally praised regulating the the market. The agency has adopted a trading system to monitor traders and could help curb market manipulation. This year, banking groups had to separate phentermine side effects banking business, brokerage and asset management. Tim Gray, chief executive of HSBC ’s investment bank in Saudi, says: “The biggest thing is quality of companies’ disclosure and insisting on disclosure to the public, and the more they get trained they get better and better.” And it is happening as the number of companies listing increases, partly driven by the government, partly as family owned businesses look to list. By the end of the year there should be about 26 IPOs, valued between $4.7bn and $4.8bn, compared with 10 last year with a value of about $2.8bn, Mr Gray says. Another three large IPOs are expected in coming months, and the markets estimates their combined value could be more than $6.5bn, says one analyst. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007 Print article Email article Order reprints ... phentermine side effects