Good morning, wonderful people. We have a packed issue to keep you busy as we all push through the final stretch of the week before a much-needed four-day weekend.

THE BIG STORY here at home is Adnoc reaching the final investment decision on its Ruwais plant, and handing out a USD 5.5 bn EPC contract to a JV between engineering companies Technip Energies and JGC Corporation, and National Marine Dredging Company.

Also getting a lot of attention: Alef Education’s lackluster debut on the ADX yesterday.

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS-

#1- UAE bourses on break for Eid al Adha: The UAE’s stock exchanges will be on holiday from Saturday, 15 June until Tuesday, 18 June, next week for Eid al Adha, following in the footsteps of the public and private sector, according to the The Securities and Commodities Authority.

#2- Public parks and leisure facilities in Dubai will run on different schedules during Eid Al Adha. You can find the revised timings here.

#3- WEATHER- It’s another >40°C day here at home, with the mercury hitting 41°C in Dubai, with an overnight low of 32°C. Abu Dhabi will see slightly cooler temperatures, with a 36°C high and an overnight low of 32°C.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- More hedge funds are eyeing Abu Dhabi: Two UK hedge funds are exploring setting up shop in Abu Dhabi — the latest in a number of hedge funds that have planted their footprint in the emirate, including Chris Hohn’s TCI and macro fund Brevan Howard.

Marshall Wace plans to open an Abu Dhabi office to be nearer to investors in the region, and enhance its ability to attract talent, the Financial Times reports. The move is set to take place within the next few months.

Meanwhile, London-based hedge fund Capula Investment Management is also reportedly in talks with Abu Dhabi authorities to potentially expand operations into the emirate, Bloomberg reports, citing people with knowledge of the matter. The company’s plan is still at an early stage, with no decision made yet, the sources said.

ALSO- Deutsche Bank expands GCC wealth management team: Deutsche Bank has recruited 10 new bankers — a number of them from Credit Suisse — with an eye to doubling its business in the region by 2028, Deutsche’s head of private banking in the Middle East told Bloomberg. “The Middle East region is one of our core growth markets, so what we are doing right now is to further strengthen the team to capture the huge potential,” Osseiran said, name-checking the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar as priority markets.

Global wealth managers are vying for the Gulf’s affluent clients and families as the region emerges as a “key battleground,” Bloomberg said. Deutsche is the latest wealth manager to bolster its GCC team, following Julius Baer, Goldman Sachs, and HSBC, who have all ramped up their hiring in the region.

#2- Dubai's first AI-powered platform for urban planning is set to launch within a month, following directives from Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Wam reports. The initiative seeks to incorporate generative AI in Dubai’s urban planning, facilitated by the Dubai Urban Design Platform, and will be overseen by the Supreme Committee for Urban Planning in Dubai in collaboration with Dubai Municipality and AI firm Toretei. The initiative positions Dubai as one of the world's first cities to incorporate generative AI into its urban planning.

#3- NMC Healthcare taps Rothschild for potential IPO: Abu Dhabi-based integrated healthcare services provider NMC Healthcare appointed Rothschild & Co to advise on its strategic restructuring plans, including a potential IPO and sale of the business, it said in a statement. A second financial advisor will be appointed “in due course,” the company said, without disclosing more information.

In context: NMC underwent restructuring in 2022, after being placed in administration in 2020 over some USD 4.4 bn in debt and allegations of financial misreporting. The restructuring resulted in 34 core NMC companies exiting administration. NMC has since appointed David Hadley (LinkedIn) as its CEO, in line with a “new phase of growth and transformation.”

#4- Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Eshraq Investments is looking to expand in the UAE and Saudi in several key sectors, including technology, artificial intelligence, healthcare and others, its chairman Fahad Al Qassim told CNBC (watch, runtime: 13:54).

The investment firm is still evaluating its options for Shuaa Capital’s open-ended fund Goldilocks Fund, which include transferring the fund entirely to Eshraq, exiting it completely, or co-managing it, with a view to make a decision before year’s end, Al Qassim said. Al Qassim clarified that the Goldilocks fund is primarily managed by a Shuaa Capital subsidiary, with Eshraq only providing the funding.

REMEMBER- Eshraq rolled out its five-year corporate strategy last month, focusing on private equity investments and transitioning legacy portfolio assets, including properties within its existing real estate portfolio and the Goldilocks Fund.

#5- Al Habtoor Group scrapped plans to launch a TV channel in Beirut, after receiving physical threats against its founder and chairman, Khalaf Al Habtoor, and staff members, which posed “severe security challenges,” it said in a statement. “Following the project announcement, the group encountered a barrage of orchestrated campaigns including accusations, slander, and threats,” the company said. The company filed both criminal and civil complaints in Lebanon and other locations against individuals who had allegedly threatened the group and its staff, it said.

Background: The company had been planning to launch a TV channel and a studio city, which had received support from Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

#6- Is Congo buying out the UAE’s stake in their gold-exporting JV? Congo is set to acquire the UAE’s Primera Group’s shares in their JV, Primera Gold, following ongoing discussions, presidential spokesperson spokesperson for Congo’s President, Felix Tshisekedi told Bloomberg. Primera owns 55% of the JV, which has seen gold shipments slump amid rising prices on the black market.

Primera could develop a separate venture focusing on refining tin, tantalum and tungsten from the region, according to Bloomberg.

HAPPENING TODAY-

The G7 summit kicks off today in Italy, and runs through to Saturday. UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is expected to attend after receiving an invite last month. The meeting is set to discuss the situation in the Middle East, as well as the Russia-Ukraine war, climate change, and AI.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Steady as she goes says the Fed, who yesterday kept interest rates unchanged and forecasted only one cut to come this year in the ongoing will they, won’t they interest rate cut saga occupying central banks across the globe. Despite encouraging inflation data (pdf) for May also released yesterday being “a step in the right direction … you don’t want to be too motivated by any single data point,” said Fed chief Jerome Powell (watch, runtime: 1:02:04). We have more in Planet Finance, below.

It seems that Wall Street didn’t get the Fed’s hawkish memo, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both hitting all-time highs, while the Dow slipped 0.1%. With inflation falling faster than forecasts, many traders aren’t buying the Fed’s hawkish tone and are pricing two cuts by the end of the year.

WHILE IN OUR PART OF THE WORLD- Hamas has rejected US claims it has obstructed its ceasefire plan with proposed changes, with officials from the organization taking to the airwaves to argue that Israel has instead been the one refusing to agree to an end to hostilities. Despite claims by US State Secretary Antony Blinken that Israel has accepted the ceasefire plan “as it was, as it is,” Israeli PM Netanyahu has repeatedly insisted that he will not end the war before destroying Hamas.

IN ENERGY MARKETS- We’re going to have a “staggering” glut of oil by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency, which will make it a whole lot harder for Opec+ to control prices when there’s 8 mn bdp in spare capacity sloshing around.

AND IN TARIFF NEWS- Chinese EVs are getting hit by a fresh raft of tariffs from the EU as the bloc adds more fuel to a trade war with China by imposing tariffs of up to 38.1% — depending on the maker — on imports of Chinese EVs on top of a pre-existing 10% levy.

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