Lebanese parliament to discuss 2018 budget

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BEIRUT, March 26 (Reuters) - Lebanon's parliament will discuss the government's proposed 2018 budget - which forecasts a slightly reduced deficit of $4.8 billion - on Wednesday and Thursday, state news agency NNA reported on Monday, citing Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. The coalition government, which includes most major parties represented in the parliament, agreed on the budget on March 12. The Lebanese government, one of the most indebted in the world, is under pressure to show it is willing to institute fiscal reforms before an international donor meeting in April. Last year the government passed Lebanon's first state budget since 2005 after years of wrangling between rival parties had all but brought political activity to a halt. The 2018 budget forecasts spending of 23.85 trillion Lebanese pounds ($15.79 billion) and 18.69 trillion pounds of revenues, while including no new taxes. ($1 = 1,510.0000 Lebanese pounds)

The 24-year-old daughter of tech billionaire Michael Dell shares what ‘growing up Dell’ taught her about life and business

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by Melia Robinson - Business Insider -- As the daughter of a computer industry pioneer, Alexa Dell, the 24-year-old daughter of Michael Dell, didn't assume she would someday work in tech. Looking back, her journey into the app space seems kind of inevitable. Alexa Dell said she grew up "having a front seat to the master class" led by her father in the '90s. She was inspired by the work her father and "for a lack of a better word, his friends" did in making the world more connected through personal computers and the internet. "The idea that if we can make the world a smaller place with technology, we can really exponentially expand the boundaries of innovation and what's possible within the world," Dell said. "That movement was incredibly intriguing to me, and I wanted to be part of that." In 2013, Dell dropped out of Columbia University to pursue a career in tech. She now runs a business consulting firm and works as an adviser to dating app company Bumble. Business Insider recently caught up with Dell at the SXSW film festival and tech conference in her hometown of Austin, Texas, to hear her life lessons from growing up as a Dell.

It's OK to have lots of interests

Dell had no shortage of interests growing up, including photography, fashion, tech, and editorial. Her parents, Michael and Susan, encouraged Dell and her three siblings to explore their interests and find what fires them up. As a high school student, Dell spent her summers in New York City working at fashion houses. In 2013, Dell left college to work at a dating app company that she declines to name. The experience offered a glimpse into life at a startup, where she said a person's good ideas mattered more than their age, status, or gender. Startups wanted to affect change quickly. "I could much faster and much more efficiently present and execute on my ideas," Dell said, adding: "I knew the space would be best-fitting for the change I wanted to have."

'Hard work is the foundation of success'

Dell said there never was a "bring your daughter to work day" at her father's company, but as a child, she often visited the headquarters in Red Rock, Texas, near her childhood home. She watched him build a multinational corporation out of a startup that was once based in Michael Dell's freshman year dorm room. While studying at University of Texas at Austin, Michael launched the company formerly known as PC's Limited with a $1,000 family loan. "The advice that he's given me is that hard work is really the foundation of success," Dell said.

An active lifestyle makes for a happier work-life

Alexa Dell's Instagram has a rare few family photos. In a post captioned "Squad goals," Dell poses atop Grand Canyon National Park with her parents dressed in athletic wear. "Both my parents are very active," Dell said. She learned from her parents that a healthy lifestyle can lead to increased productivity at work. Dell's home office has a treadmill desk where she prefers to take conference calls. "It's great because your blood is circulating and you can think better, you can think more clearly," Dell said. "That's something I kind of learned from them."

Details of Saudi Crown Prince’s innovation-packed visit to Boston

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Al Arabiya -- Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman visited the IBM Watson Health Center and Mechatronics Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston on Saturday on the second leg of his US tour. During the visit, IBM Watson's Senior Vice-President, David Kenny, briefed the Crown Prince with a video presentation on artificial intelligence and improved research performance on drugs using artificial intelligence. Prince Mohammed met with MIT President Leo Rafael Reif, who accompanied the Crown Prince on a tour of the institute and visited the Mechatronics Lab, which uses modern technologies in artificial limbs.

At the Institute's Innovation Exhibition, the crown prince saw many examples of modern AI innovations and selected technical products for a number of Saudi universities and companies. our agreements were signed between MIT, Aramco, SABIC, the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. The signing of these scientific and technological cooperation agreements took place on the sidelines of the Innovation to Impact Forum held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The most prominent of these agreements was a partnership between MIT and KAUST to collaborate on a new Saudi project named "Future Destination." The partnership includes joint agreements on research, student exchanges and entrepreneurship. With the framework of its research and scientific cooperation with MIT, KAUST reviewed the use of bio-energy in the field of oil and gas exploration, and using alternative energy for smart cities and various other areas, including networks for the Internet of Things, in addition to the introduction of a new generation of sensors to monitor the state of the Red Sea and its organisms, to preserve the environment and protect them for future generations. In the KAUST pavilion at the Forum, four programs were presented. The first, an advanced research program, seeks to invest in future technologies. The second program aims to promote innovation at all stages through a technology investment project in emerging companies. The third aims to establish an environment that will contribute to increasing bilateral trade between Saudi Arabia and the United States. The fourth program aims at qualifying talented researchers in Saudi Arabia through the Technology Leaders Program, which provides a unique opportunity to advance Saudi researchers and students. In the SABIC booth, specialized products were exhibited in the plastics engineering industry, and specialized techniques in the manufacture of automobiles, sanitary equipment and medical devices. At the Aramco pavilion, the Saudi Aramco Research Center in Boston presented models of the Center's programs, including the 70% crude oil conversion of chemicals, oil and gas simulation program, 3D manufacturing, nanotechnology and CO2 conversion to chemicals to reduce emissions.

Grace Kelly's granddaughter 'set to wed' French-Lebanese beau

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By emirateswoman.com --She’s ninth in line to the throne of Monaco, an established writer, and a darling of the fashion scene—and it looks like Charlotte Casiraghi can now add bride-to-be to her CV. The style icon, who is the granddaughter of Prince Rainier III and Grace Kelly, is rumoured to be engaged to French-Lebanese film producer Dimitri Rassam following a year-long romance. The 31-year-old sported a diamond on her ring finger at the annual Rose Ball in Monte Carlo on Saturday night, as she attended with her 36-year-old beau. The couple was also joined at the social event—which was hosted by designer Karl Largerfeld—by Casiraghi’s mother, Princess Caroline, and brother Pierre. Casiraghi, who is Princess Caroline’s eldest daughter, wore a Saint Laurent gown for the occasion, featuring a luxuriant feathered neckline. HOLA! magazine reported earlier this month that the two are set to marry this summer in Sicily, where Rassam’s family own a villa.

The groom-to-be is the son of late French-Lebanese film producer Jean-Pierre Rassam and French actress and fashion model Carole Bouquet. Rassam Jnr was educated in France, and started his own production company aged 23. His production credits include 2015’s The Little Prince, 2017’s Le Brio, and the upcoming Playmobil The Movie. If the rumours are true, it won’t be the only regal wedding 2018 will see, with Britain’s Prince Harry and Suits actress Meghan Markle set to exchange vows on May 19. Congratulations to the happy couple!

Lebanese PM Hariri Leads Election Campaign Against Hezbollah

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By Paula Astih -- aawsat.com Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri successfully rallied people behind him after targeting in his speech Hezbollah, making it clear that voters have a choice to make between two very different political atmospheres. “The choice in the elections will be easy: stability, security, economic drive and jobs, or God forbid, economic and social nightmares,” Hariri told the people of Akkar. Hariri’s speech comes at a time when the national registry for electoral lists is almost complete, in light of partisan alliances formed nationwide. The deadline for submitting electoral lists is March 25, announced the Interior Ministry. “This election, with all due respect to all candidates, and all lists, is actually a confrontation between two lines, two approaches and two wills. Between a line that wants to protect Beirut’s political, national, Arab and Beiruti identity, and a line that wants to put its hand on Beirut’s decision and identity,” Hariri said in a speech during a ceremony held by the Future Movement at the premier’s Downtown Beirut residence to announce the electoral list of the Beirut-II district. Called “The Future Is for Beirut,” the 11-member list includes, among others, Hariri, former Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk. After announcing an electoral list he heads in Beirut, Hariri also announced his bloc’s electoral list in Akkar. Prime Minister Hariri patronized Saturday afternoon the Future Movement's organized ceremony in Khreibet el-Jindi in Akkar to announce "The Future Is for Akkar" electoral list. “The Future Is for Akkar" list that we are announcing today, is the guarantee for each and every one of you, that Akkar's share of the large national project that we are working on, will be major especially in terms of job opportunities for the youth in Akkar,” he added. “The choice will be yours. You personally. On election day: if you vote for the Future list, the future will be for Akkar, for Lebanon, and for this political, economic and social project. However, if you do not vote, or vote for another list, you would be personally choosing to halt the project.”

Hariri warned against Hezbollah, driven by Syrian regime head Bashar Al Assad, seeking to gain new territories in upcoming elections. “I did not want to talk about the other lists but we cannot ignore what is happening! Is Bashar working on the formation of lists once again? And is Hezbollah fulfilling the task? Here in Akkar, there is a list, and in Tripoli there is a list, allies of the guardianship (Syrian influence) and Hezbollah? In Beirut and Bekaa, also the same thing,” he told the crowd. “Our battle is with these lists! Our battle is to stop guardianship from laying its hand again on Akkar, Tripoli and the North! Our battle is elections that do not surrender our regions' decision to the guardianship and its allies!” “The lists of the Future Movement have taken this decision in all of Lebanon! These elections are a choice between two projects, two decisions, and two fates: Either a stable, secure Lebanon full of work, life and investment, a sovereign, independent and Arab Lebanon or a Lebanon of the guardianship, oppression and assassination era,” he explained.

Egypt’s King Farouk Patek Watch Sets Middle East Auction Record

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By Claudia Carpenter

A Patek Philippe watch made for King Farouk of Egypt in 1944 sold to an unidentified buyer for $912,500 at Christie’s in Dubai on Friday, a record sum for a timepiece auctioned in the Middle East. The 18-carat gold Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 was estimated to be worth as much as $800,000 by the auction house, which concluded its 23rd auction season in the region. A Rolex GMT-Master made for Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum fetched $162,500, surpassing the estimate of $120,000-$160,000. The sales total for the auction was $7.1 million, compared with an estimate of $5 million to $8 million. “It’s very clear there’s an appetite for watches across the region,” Michael Jeha, managing director of Christie’s Middle East, said in an interview.

Five artists from Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, and Egypt set world auction records at Christie’s postwar and contemporary art sale on Thursday, even though the sales total of $2.97 million fell short of the low estimate of $3.1 million. The most expensive work offered, Une vie singuliere by the late Shafic Abboud of Lebanon, didn’t sell after bids came in below the low estimate of $220,000. Iranian artist Sohrab Sepehri’s Untitled, painted circa the 1970s, was the top lot of the night, selling for $287,500 against an estimate of $150,000-$200,000. The piece is from the artist’s Abstract series, which has been kept at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, among other places, since Sepehri’s death in 1980. The 2009 Good Luck by Huguette Caland, born in Lebanon, fetched $162,500 (estimate: $80,000-$120,000). Another Lebanese painter, Hussein Madi, set a record with his 1998 Baghdad Landscape, which went for $75,000, well above the high estimate of $18,000. Untitled, by Iraqi painter Naziha Selim, sold for $11,250, a record for the artist, who died in 2008. The painting was sold as part of a collection of Fadhil Chalabi, who served as acting secretary general of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in the 1980s. Egyptian Zeinab Abd El Hamid’s Quartier Populaire, an oil on canvas painted in 1956, sold for $58,750, far exceeding the $12,000-$18,000 estimate. Oneness Wholeness, Tree of Life, by Iranian artist Sassan Behnam-Bakhtiar in 2017, sold for $15,000 (estimate: $12,000-$18,000). Bakhtiar, who was born in 1984, will exhibit his new series, “Oneness Wholeness,” at London’s Saatchi Gallery in May.