Responding to the global financial crisis, NASEBA and the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry have added two panel discussions to the program of the three-day Real Estate Investment World Summit beginning here on Saturday. The additional discussions will examine the impact of the crisis on Middle East markets and seek to respond to investors' needs in the region. GCC countries, as opposed to the developed countries that have run into liquidity problems, say they have enough reserves to face the crisis, from the surpluses accumulated over the past few years. Besides, they have not directly invested in any international institutions. However, amid the prevailing global economic pessimism, the GCC is taking precautionary measures to insulate the region. GCC governments have just created guarantees for all bank deposits, ensuring they can face any liquidity issues if needed. Saudi Arabia, despite having a healthy and growing economy, has also decided to cut interest, Nonetheless, the general secretariat of the Federation of GCC Chambers of Commerce and Industry recently stated that the crisis could pose “a threat to the development programs as well as economic, investment and financial activities in the GCC states.” “In this context, there is a surge from investors to understand what the actual situation in the region is and how they should react to the international crisis,” said Fabien Faure, managing director of NASEBA Middle East and India. “We have had a lot of requests from the investors who are attending this summit as they are concerned about what they should do next to secure their investments,” he said. On Oct. 19, Ford Fraker, US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia and Dr. Fahad Al-Sultan, secretary general at the Council of Saudi Chambers, will discuss the global economy and the impact of the credit crunch and compare worldwide relations during a panel discussion. Khaled Al-Kamda, group managing director of Dubai Islamic Bank, will focus on disappearing liquidity. He will look at the credit crunch on a global perspective, examine the immediate- and near-term impact of the credit crunch in the GCC region. Blair Hagkull, MD-MENA of Jones Lang Lasalle and Rehan Ateeq, the co-CEO of Capri Capital US, will raise issues on wealth management and how to maximize returns on investment while minimizing risk. __
