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ALEPPO, Syria — Once touted to become the biggest industrial zone in the Middle East, Sheikh Najjar near the ravaged Syrian city of Aleppo is now simply hoping for a second chance.

Most of its buildings have been reduced to carcasses — destroyed, burned and pillaged during the past two years of fighting in Syria's former industrial powerhouse.

But with the government's recapture of the area, Aleppo's businessmen are taking their first steps to return and restore the once-bustling zone.

"The soldiers retook the industrial zone on July 7 and when we entered a week later, we saw the devastation. Some buildings had simply disappeared," said 55-year-old Mohammed Handie, the zone's director general.

"Despite everything, we remain optimistic, because in the weeks that followed my arrival, I received many requests to return, rebuild, refurbish machines," he added.  "It was very encouraging."

Syria's civil war swept into Aleppo in mid-2012, and the fighting quickly divided the city between regime control in the west and rebel control of the east.

Sheikh Najjar, located to the northeast of the city, was in rebel hands and the scene of fierce battles until its recapture.

Near the industrial zone, the walls are still daubed with graffiti left behind by rebels, including the flags of the Islamic State jihadist group and Al Qaeda affiliate Al Nusra Front.

"Freedom for us and hell for the Alawites," reads one slogan, referring to the religious community to which President Bashar Al Assad belongs.

'Working night and day' 

The Syrian conflict that began in March 2011 has ravaged the country's economy and infrastructure.

Economists say gross domestic product has contracted more than 40 per cent, millions of homes have been destroyed, half the workforce is unemployed and inflation is around 50 per cent.

Despite the lingering presence of snipers and the occasional sound of shelling, workers labour away in Sheikh Najjar, rebuilding walls, repainting and installing generators and cables.

"When I returned, my factory had been burnt. All the walls you see, I rebuilt and repainted them," said 51-year-old Mohammed Hajar, owner of Al Bayan factory.

"Now I am repairing my machines," added Hajar, whose business making fabric for furnishings once exported to Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia.

"I've been asleep for two years! So now, I'm working night and day. I have six Italian looms. Two are lightly damaged and won't take long to get back to work, two others were burnt and I have refurbished them," he continued.

Two more charred looms, covered in a tarpaulin, are awaiting their turn, but the factory is already restarting work.

It is producing 1,000 metres of coloured fabric a day, after repairs that have already cost Hajar $75,000.

To return the factory to full capacity would cost the dynamic entrepreneur eight times his outlay so far.

'Back to life' 

When the industrial zone was established in 2004, it was intended to host 6,000 companies, and 1,250 were already there.

Most produced textiles, though there were also engineering, food, and chemical and pharmaceutical operations, employing 42,000 people.

Today, 140 businesses have reopened their doors, and Handie hopes that around 900 will be up and running within two years.

For that to happen, the state will need to invest $62.5 million (50 million euros) in infrastructure, because the zone now lacks virtually everything, and the businesses at least $500 million.

But that may be a tall order for the Syrian government, which is struggling to make ends meet and is heavily reliant on aid from its allies.

Handie accuses Turkey, a key backer of the Syrian opposition, of pillaging machines from Sheikh Najjar's factories and insists many of them are still on the other side of the border.

But despite the challenges, those who have returned to Sheikh Najjar are ebullient.

"I stopped working in 2012 and I lived like a zombie for two years, but I have come back to life being back in my factory," said an emotional Muwaffaq Abawi, head of a plastics factory.

"Look at me. I'm really alive! And now I'm rebuilding, repainting, restoring. I'm not going to die. We are a people who are not born to die," he added.

LONDON — Credit rating agency Standard and Poor's (S&P) said on Wednesday that China's over-priced and over-supplied property market and capital-starved Russian banks were likely to face further downgrades in the coming years.

In two new emerging market-focused reports, S&P said Chinese property ratings were likely to be hit more than other large markets in Asia, while like in Russia, banks in Turkey, South Africa and Brazil also faced difficulties.

S&P added in the property report that ratings in Asia would have "a negative bias" next year because of an expected fall in Chinese and Hong Kong house prices.

The property sector accounts for more than 15 per cent of China's annual economic output, banks provide much of the financing for building and buying, so a prolonged downturn poses possibly the biggest risk to the world's second-largest economy.

"Continuing sluggish sales, rising financing cost, and declining access to funding will hit smaller [Chinese] regional players... as a result, we may see further downgrades, and even defaults, at the lower end of our rating spectrum," S&P said.

In its banking sector analysis, it highlighted Russia as the big concern from a list of seven top emerging markets that also included China, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey and India.

Almost 70 per cent of S&P's Russian bank ratings have negative outlooks, meaning there is roughly a one in three chance of a downgrade in the next two years.

"Russian banks remain the most vulnerable to the current operating difficulties created by Western sanctions and lower economic growth," S&P said. "The main risks we see for 2015 are capital erosion on the back of rising risk costs and funding pressures."

Western sanctions directly affect more than half of Russia's bank assets, it added, and although the immediate impact should be limited in the short term, the pressure will rise as customers use up or move savings.

"While we expect large banks' ratings to remain tied to the trajectory of sovereign ratings, due to the large state ownership in the banking sector, rating trends for small- and medium-sized banks are likely to mirror their capacity to cope with their increasingly tough operating environment," S&P continued.

Turkish banks, meanwhile, remained vulnerable to a potential downturn in global debt and capital markets due to their large debts, while low growth in South African and Brazil would weigh on their banks.

AMMAN — Of around 54,000 net new jobs created by the Jordanian economy in 2013, men snatched nearly 64 per cent of those, an official report said Wednesday. 

In 2012, the number of jobs created in Jordan stood at 50,000. 

A study released by the department of Statistics (DoS) indicated that a total of 82,000 new jobs were created in the Kingdom last year, but 28,000 of them were lost. 

The DoS report, a copy of which was e-mailed to The Jordan Times, showed that 35,000 new jobs were occupied by men, and that majority of the jobs were produced by the private sector. 

Nearly 79 per cent of the net new jobs, or 41,000, were created by the private sector, while the government sector helped create 13,000 new jobs. 

Residents of Amman, Irbid and Zarqa, Jordan’s most populous governorates with more than 70 per cent of the population, took three quarters of the new jobs, while residents of the southern governorate of Maan were the least to benefit from the new employment opportunities, said the report. 

The DoS study pointed out that 77 per cent of the new jobs were occupied by Jordanians and that only 13,000 jobs went to guest workers. 

According to the department, the figures confirm that guest workers are still demanded by employers in the Kingdom despite government efforts to replace them with Jordanians.  

Around 50 per cent of the new jobs were occupied by individuals holding educational qualifications less than the secondary certificate, with bachelors degree holders accounted for 31 per cent of the new employees. 

Social science, commercial business and law graduates who hold a diploma degree or higher constituted 29 per cent of the new employees, with the secondary certificate holders from the literature stream taking the highest ratio to find jobs among secondary certificate holders. 

The same study showed that work environment was the main reason for employees, both males and females, to quit their jobs.

"When comparing 2013 numbers with previous years, it is clear that the private sector secured jobs in 2013 more than it did in each of the years from 2007 through 2012, and the public sector provided less jobs in 2013 compared to the statistics of the same years," the report indicated

The results also showed that the private sector always provided more jobs than the public sector through the past seven years. 

AMMAN – Amman Chamber of Commerce (ACC) President Issa Murad on Tuesday requested US help to  facilitate trade exchange between Jordan and Palestine. During a meeting with US Ambassador to Jordan Alice G. Wells, Murad called for American  influence through drawing up mechanisms to ensure a smooth flow of Jordanian commodities to with Palestine and to eliminate Israeli obstacles hindering trade with Palestinians. Discussions covered the need for the US to support small- and medium-sized enterprises in the Kingdom, in addition to programmes and plans aimed at combating poverty and unemployment. The two sides stressed the need to foster cooperation to help facilitate investments in the area of renewable energy and gas explorations through providing the required technical and financial assistance. The ACC chief underlined the importance of cooperation to promote the US-Jordan Free Trade Agreement on all levels to maximise the benefits of the accord for both sides. Total US investments in Jordan currently amount to $2.2 billion, constituting nearly 8 per cent of the $27.6 billion total accumulated foreign investment in Jordan.

AMMAN — Managing public debt tops the challenges facing Jordan, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission chief to Jordan Kristina Kostial said Tuesday.

In a press conference from Washington over the phone, Kostial expected Jordan’s indebtedness to reach 89 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by the end of this year, noting that the percentage was 71 per cent of the GDP in 2011.

To face this challenge, Kostial said the authorities have to control public finances, especially those related to the central government and service units such as the National Electric Power Company which started implementing a strategy towards full recovery.

According to the mission chief, the Kingdom has shown the capability to overcome economic problems in a difficult environment, especially with the cuts of Egyptian gas supplies and the Syrian and Iraqi crises. 

Besides the substantial indebtedness and the considerable budget deficit of the central government and state units, Kostial stressed the need for structural reforms, particularly those to tackle chronic high levels of unemployment, especially among the youth and women. 

She mentioned the low level of economic participation for the workforce, especially women, when compared to  peers in the Middle East and North Africa countries.

The mission chief valued recent improvements with the endorsement of the Public-Private Partnership Law and the Investment Law as well as the improvement in public sector institutionalisation  and governance.  

Due to the difficult situation facing the Kingdom, she said that the IMF’s executive board has adopted a flexible policy with Jordan in order to arrive at better conditions. 

Kostial expected electricity tariffs to be raised at the beginning of next year, urging the government to make revenue amendments because the GDP lost about 9 per cent between 2007 and 2011 due to lower revenues.

She described the draft income tax law, under discussion in Parliament, as a “step in the right direction” and, noted that the draft law can be more ambitious in achieving justice.

“Three per cent of the population pay income tax and this rate must be widened to reach 20 per cent of the rich and not the middle class,” she said. “That is justice.” 

Kostial called for limiting tax incentives and for it to be more transparent, noting the IMF preferred to work on measures for additional revenues during discussions with government officials, leaving the management for spending to the authorities.   

Regarding extending the fund’s programme with the Kingdom, she said that it will end in August 2015, and it is the government’s decision to ask for a renewing the programme.

Asked about alternatives in case the income tax law is not endorsed this year, she said that tax incentives, which doubled in the last years, should be reduced.

AMMAN — Investment volume in the private hospitals sector in the Kingdom exceeds JD2 billion, Private Hospitals Association President Fawzi Hammouri said Monday. Hammouri made these remarks after his participation in the 1st National Conference for Investment where he indicated that private hospitals employ 30,000 workers, 95 per cent of whom are Jordanians. He said that 64 private hospitals constitute 60 per cent of the total number of hospitals in the Kingdom. He added that the attractive investment environment has contributed to developing the sector, referring to the investment law that exempts hospitals from customs fees and sales tax on construction materials and medical equipment. He pointed out that there are more than 25,000 Jordanian doctors in the Kingdom, noting that with 28.6 doctors to each 10,000 citizens, this ratio is considered among the highest in the world. 

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Monday received Yousef Nuwais, chairman of Maabar Company Jordan, the company's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Imad Kilani and Maabar International CEO Abdullah Al Haj Ali. 

Ensour was briefed on the company’s investments in Jordan, most important of which is Marsa Zayed in Aqaba, and the challenges facing the company. 

The premier praised the investments of the United Arab Emirates in Jordan, and welcomed more investments by virtue of the brotherly relations between the two countries. 

He also expressed the government’s interest for the success of these projects, and its readiness to remove any challenges they may face. 

AMMAN – The government and the private sector are pinning hopes on the new investment law for whetting the appetite of Jordanian and foreign investors. 

Officials and businesspeople, including Arab investors, gathered on Monday at the 1st National Conference for Investment to explore ways to increase capital flows and obstacles hindering the development of the business environment in the Kingdom. 

Industry, Trade and Supply Minister Hatem Halawani described the new investment law, endorsed by the Parliament just few months ago, as a modern bill that would attract local, regional and international investors to benefit from wider incentives and easier measures to start new businesses. 

The new law merged all entities that used to be in charge of investment issues in one agency, the Investment Commission, and also removed investment obstacles, he said, adding that under the legislation an investment council will be headed by the prime minister to oversee the development of businesses and to guarantee more transparency. 

"Investors will no longer wait for long periods to have their projects approved," Halawani stressed, adding small and medium businesses will also benefit from tax exemptions and incentives under the new bill. 

Former finance minister Mohammad Abu Hammour said Jordan's economy needs to return to pro-2008 growth figures of 6 per cent to 7 per cent to create more jobs for Jordanians and to reduce poverty. 

"This can be achieved through large investments," he added, but questioning if the new investment law was enough to stimulate the appetite of investors at a time when a draft income tax law, currently at the Lower House for deliberations, is a concern for businesspeople.

Jordanian Businessmen Association President Hamdi Tabbaa called on the government to withdraw the income tax bill and to re-draft it in consultation with the private sector. 

"The income tax bill is a major concern for the private sector," Tabbaa said. 

The controversial draft law imposes 35 per cent tax on several sectors such as the telecommunications, banking and insurance. 

Taxes in Jordan are higher than regional countries, Tabbaa added, noting that the new investment law in addition to the Kingdom's stability and strategic location should be an advantage for investors. 

Amman Chamber of Industry President Ziad Homsi said the private sector was eagerly waiting for approving the new investment law as it merged government investment bodies and laws in one entity, adding that instability in economic legislation over the past years have negatively affected the performance of businesses. 

Halawani said a one stop window will be available for investors with the help of representatives from concerned government agencies, who will have authority to make decisions. 

The event was organised by the National Association for Investor Protection.

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will keep its production ceiling steady at its "toughest ever" meeting this month, a former adviser to oil kingpin Saudi Arabia said after global crude prices hit a four-year low.

The 12-nation OPEC group, including the world's biggest crude producer Saudi Arabia, will meet on November 27 in Vienna.

Mohammed Suroor Al Sabban, who until last year was chief adviser to the kingdom's petroleum ministry, said the group's talks will be "the toughest OPEC meeting ever as some OPEC ministers had not anticipated prices would drop to this level, and so quickly".

He said he expected OPEC members to stick with the current output ceiling.

"In my personal opinion, the next meeting will confirm the current production ceiling... at 30 million barrels a day and OPEC will adhere to that in the coming period," he told businessmen in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah late Saturday.

Sabban said that some OPEC members, such as sanctions-hit Iran, "cannot be obliged" to cut their output.

At the same time Saudi Arabia has sent a clear message that "it cannot lower production alone, or carry the burden of reductions". 

OPEC nations currently produce around 600,000 barrels of oil a day over the output ceiling.

In early November, Riyadh sent global oil prices tumbling when it cut its price for crude on the US market while raising it for Asia, the country's major outlet.

Analysts said the kingdom wanted to strengthen its market share in the United States against a flood of oil being extracted there from shale rock, which had helped to create a global supply glut and lowered prices.

Oil rebounded slightly on Friday, with the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for December delivery rising to $75.82 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for delivery in January advanced to $79.41 in London.

Prices have fallen by about one-third since June.

Saudi Arabia's Petroleum Minister Ali Al Naimi last week rejected talk that the country was leading a price war in global oil markets.

On Saturday, Crown Prince Salman Bin Abdul Aziz told fellow members of the Group of 20 (G-20) most powerful world economies that the kingdom wants oil market stability, official media reported.

"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues its balanced and positive role in cementing the stability of oil markets, taking into account the interests of the producing and consuming countries," he told the G20 meeting in Brisbane, Australia.

Saudi Arabia produced around 9.6 million barrels a day in October, according to data cited by OPEC.

KUWAIT CITY — Government revenues in Kuwait dropped 4.4 per cent in the first half of the fiscal year due to sliding oil prices, but the energy-rich emirate still reported a healthy provisional surplus.

Official figures posted Sunday on the finance ministry website put April-September public income at 15.1 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($52.1 billion) compared with 15.8 billion dinars in the same year-ago period.

Oil income, which accounts for 94 per cent of revenues, dropped 5.3 per cent to 14.2 billion dinars in the first half from 15 billion dinars previously, according to the new figures.

Despite the fall, the emirate still managed to post a provisional budget surplus of 9 billion dinars.

Spending was 6.1 billion dinars, up 19.6 per cent on last year's 5.1 billion dinars.

The sharp dive in global oil prices did not reflect fully on the Kuwaiti figures because most of the slump took place in October and deepened in November.

The average price for Kuwaiti oil in April-August was $103.92 a barrel, according to Adnan Abdul Samad, the head of the parliamentary committee on budgets.

Abdul Samad said Wednesday the price for Kuwaiti oil dropped to an average of $95.4 and $84.3 a barrel in September and October, respectively.

The slide has continued this month, with the price of oil closing Friday at $71.40 a barrel, less than the breakeven rate of $75 a barrel estimated in the 2014-2015 budget, according to Kuwait Petroleum Corp.

Abdul Samad also warned that Kuwait, which posted a budget surplus in each of the past 15 fiscal years due to high oil prices, could see its first shortfall at the end of this fiscal year if the trend continues.

As a result of the windfall, Kuwait's fiscal reserves reached $548 billion as of June 30.

The fiscal year starts on April 1 and ends on March 31 in Kuwait, a tiny Gulf state which has a native population of 1.25 million and is also home to about 2.8 million foreigners.

Separately, Kuwait warned Sunday that action was needed from members of the organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to halt the "sharp decline" in oil prices after the value of global crude hit a four-year low. 

A joint meeting by the oil-rich emirate's Cabinet and its Supreme Petroleum Council — the highest decision making body on energy — chaired by Prime Minister Jaber Mubarak Al Sabah reviewed "necessary steps that need to be taken" to halt the price slide, said a statement cited by the official KUNA news agency.

The measures included "consultations with OPEC members to discuss taking the best means to support oil prices and safeguard the interests of all sides".

The statement did not call for any change in OPEC production, which is currently 600,000 barrels a day above its recommended output ceiling of 30 million.

The 12-nation OPEC cartel, which accounts for a third of global oil output, will meet on November 27 in Vienna.

Oil Minister Ali Al Omair briefed the meeting about the slide in oil, the statement said. 

No new measures were announced.