Arab Spring to cost Middle East $800 billion – HSBC

The Arab Spring uprisings will end up costing Middle Eastern economies about $800 billion in lost output by the end of next year as countries struggle to restore stability, banking giant HSBC estimated on Wednesday.

In a research report, HSBC predicted that at the end of 2014, gross domestic product in the seven hardest-hit countries - Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Bahrain - would be 35 per cent lower than it would have been if the 2011 uprisings had not happened.

“The combination of a severe fiscal deterioration, and a decline in government effectiveness, security and the rule of law will weigh heavily on policymakers’ efforts, even to bring employment back to pre-revolution levels,” it said.

HSBC forecast GDP growth in the Middle East and North Africa would slow to 4.0 per cent this year, reviving only slightly to 4.2 per cent next year, from 4.5 per cent last year and 4.9 per cent in 2011.

That forecast included big differences between the oil-rich Gulf, which has mostly boomed, and troubled countries in North Africa.

Egypt, for example, is expected to grow just 2.2 per cent this year and 3.0 per cent next year as it faces heavy pressures on its state budget and external accounts – growth rates which many analysts believe are too low to cut its unemployment.

Partly because the Arab Spring lifted oil prices and encouraged governments to boost spending on social welfare in order to buy peace, Gulf countries have mostly prospered since 2011. HSBC expects Saudi Arabia to grow 4.3 per cent this year, falling slightly to 4.0 per cent in 2014.

But the bank said the Arab Spring had also damaged the Gulf economies, by increasing their dependence on oil-fuelled government spending and deterring politically sensitive policy reforms.

“Only for the Gulf’s wealthiest economies - Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait - does this approach look sustainable,” HSBC said. Other countries with lower ratios of oil wealth to population may yet suffer as a result of the Arab Spring, it added.

Legend Zindane.. even though my fav player is Ronaldo

The France legend lifted the award back in 1998 and has tipped his compatriot to follow in his footsteps on the back of his treble-winning exploits last term

Zinedine Zidane believes Franck Ribery deserves to win the Ballon d'Or over Cristiano Ronaldo but admits he could well miss out to Lionel Messi.

The Bayern Munich winger scored 11 goals and made 19 assists in all competitions last season as the Bavarians lifted the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and the Champions League.

However, he will face stiff competition from the Barcelona and Real Madrid stars - who have already lifted the individual prize in their careers - but Zidane has offered his backing to his compatriot.

"[Ribery and Ronaldo] both deserve to win it," the Real Madrid assistant coach told RMC. "But I would give it to Franck for what he did this year and especially the three major trophies he has won.

"The problem is there is a guy [Messi] who has 55 goals."

Zidane has been working alongside Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti in a coaching capacity since the summer and was asked for this thoughts on the misfiring Karim Benzema, who has come in for criticism for his lack of goals.

The 41-year-old added: "When a football player is down, it is always difficult. You lose some confidence, freshness. However, he will never lose his qualities. He never gives up!"

Benzema has scored just two goals in La Liga this season, with los Blancos already five points adrift of rivals Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, who have perfect records so far this term

Ronaldo: I'd love to see a Messi or Ronaldo-type player for Brazil

The legendary striker admitted La Liga's leading pair would be welcomed with open arms into the Selecao, and backed Diego Costa's decision to represent the Spain national team

Former Brazil forward Ronaldo has revealed he would have no problem accepting foreign-born players into the national team, provided they were the calibre of Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.

Speaking at a press conference in Rio de Janeiro, the 37-year-old explained that the Barcelona ace or Real Madrid star would be his first choice to represent the 2014 World Cup hosts, even ahead of former Argentina forward Diego Maradona.

"I would love it if there was a Messi or a Cristiano Ronaldo rejected by their country that could play in the Brazilian team," he said. “I would prefer Messi to Diego [Maradona], even though Diego is also my friend.”

Atletico Madrid’s Diego Costa’s desire to represent Spain at international level, despite being born in Brazil and playing two friendlies for the Selecao, has reignited the debate over international eligibility, but Ronaldo insisted that such developments are nothing new.

"Players who are not used in their own country and have a second citizenship are used by other countries," noted the former Barcelona and Real Madrid striker.

Ronaldo’s comments also come in the wake of reports that the England Football Association was considering using Manchester United’s Adnan Januzaj at senior level, if and when the winger becomes available.

The 18-year-old was born in Belgium, and under Fifa rules is also eligible to represent Albania, Kosovo, Serbia and Turke

Beyonce films in bomb shelter

Beyonce has filmed a new video in a bomb shelter.
The 'Halo' singer made a video at Greenham Common in Newbury, near London, which is a former Royal Air Force (RAF) base and the alleged site of a nuclear accident back in 1958.
The singer reportedly had the bunker swept for radiation before she would enter to ensure it was completely safe. 
A source told The Sun newspaper: 'Beyonce is shooting a music video for every track on her new album.
'The record has been delayed, so she wants to make a big splash when it eventually comes out. She wants to be in the UK with baby daughter Blue Ivy as Jay Z tours, so this was a good chance to shoot a video in the UK. It's an amazing location for a music video.'
Beyonce was originally believed to be releasing her fifth solo album this year, but although new tracks 'Standing on the Sun' and 'Grown Woman' were used in adverts and she previewed another song, 'Bow Down / I Been On', the album is yet to get a title or release date.
Her long-term collaborator Ne-Yo has said: 'Beyonce's the kind of artist where you're not gonna see it until it's right. And her fans, they love her so they'll be patient.'
Beyonce also recently completed her 'The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour'.

Queen Elizabeth kicks off Commonwealth Games countdown

Britain's Queen Elizabeth has kicked off the countdown to next year's Commonwealth Games.
The monarch placed a special message inside the baton during the official ceremony outside Buckingham Palace yesterday (09.10.13), which she will read out at the opening ceremony for the Glasgow-based games in July 2014.
The baton will now travel for over 120,000 miles around every Commonwealth country the world before it reaches its Scottish destination next summer.
Lord Smith of Kelvin, the Glasgow 2014 chairman, told crowds at the Palace: 'Years of planning and preparations have gone into putting on the Games and we have now reached the moment when the countdown really begins.
'The baton is a tangible object. Thousands of people will carry it, and they will bring the Commonwealth to life in front of our eyes. As the journey unfolds, we will see a vast diversity of people, of landscapes and of cultures.'
Former track cyclist and renowned Olympian Sir Chris Hoy was chosen to carry to baton along The Mall to the Queen, accompanied by the Scots Guards and Royal Scots Borderers.
Once the Queen's message - which she penned during her annual break at Balmoral - was concealed inside, the 87-year-old royal passed it on to former sprinter Allan Wells and Unicef ambassador Monica Dzonzi.
As the duo made their way out of the Palace gates, a host of other bearers - who included athletes, volunteers and schoolchildren involved with the 20th annual games - took turns holding it as they circled around the Queen Victoria Memorial.
The symbolic trophy was then taken to London's Marlborough House before leaving for India today (10.10.13).

Harry speaks Arabic..

Britain's Prince Harry was left red-faced after attempting to speak Arabic.
The 29-year-old royal attended a special fundraising dinner in Dubai on Monday night (07.10.13) in aid of his Sentebale charity, which he co-founded with Lesotho's Prince Seeiso to help children with the HIV virus.
The handsome heir tried to put his 300-strong audience - which included members of Dubai's royal family - at ease during his speech by attempting some sentences in their mother tongue, but sadly stumbled over some of the words.
He started off well, greeting them with, 'Asalaam alaikum, masah al khair, marhaba', which means, 'God be with you, good evening, hello.'

But the bashful-looking prince then ruined the effect by muttering, 'Hopefully that was right, I'm not sure. Probably not.'
Harry persevered with the rest of his speech in English, asking people to bid generously during the auction at the Forget-Me-Not dinner and explaining the opportunity to help children had been a 'life-changing experience' for him.
He finished off by quipping in Arabic: 'Thank you for your generosity and all the best with Dubai's [World Expo] 2020 bid.'
Guest Jamal Laaloui told The National newspaper: 'It was not pure Arabic and his accent was not authentic at all. You could definitely tell he was not an Arabic speaker.'
A number of stars attended the high profile event at the JW Marriott Marquis hotel, including TV star Denise van Outen and soul singer Joss Stone, who performed for guest

The 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Alice Munro

The 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Alice Munro, the Swedish Academy announced Thursday.

Canada's Munro won the prize for her short stories that focus on the frailties of the human condition.

Her works include, 'Who Do You Think You Are?' (1978), 'The Moons of Jupiter' (1982),
'Runaway' (2004), 'The View from Castle Rock' (2006) and 'Too Much Happiness' (2009).

Her most recent collection is 'Dear Life' (2012).

Literature was the fourth of this year's Nobel prizes. The Nobel season will end on October 14 with the presentation of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, a prize not originally established by the will of the award's founder, Alfred Nobel. This prize was introduced in 1968 by the Swedish central bank, the Sveriges Riksbank, in memory of Nobel, an industrialist who invented dynamite.

All the prizes are traditionally presented to the winners in a ceremony in Stockholm on December 10, the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel (1833-1896). Laureates receive a diploma, medal and around eight million Swedish kronor (920,000 euros, $1.25 million).

The Nobel Prizes were established in Nobel's will in 1895 and are widely seen as his attempt to be remembered by posterity for something more than an invention that has caused so much destruction. The prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace were first awarded in 1901.

Nobel highlight

The season culminates in the awarding of the Nobel Peace Price on Friday, October 11, in Oslo, Norway. A record 259 nominations have been submitted for this year's prize.

Among the people widely mentioned as possible laureates is Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager who survived being shot in the head last year by the Taliban for championing education for girls.

Last year's winner was not a person, but an entity: the European Union, which received the prize in recognition of its achievements in bringing about reconciliation and integration in Europe.