The lounge, on the second floor junction between concourses G and E of the international terminal, will offer passengers flying in first and business class on Oman Air its award winning service and hospitality as found on board all its aircraft.

The lounge, designed in accordance with the new lounge concept set in place by the airline, can accommodate up to 40 passengers in exquisite luxury.

The facilities for premium class passengers include the use of the business centre with private work stations equipped with free broadband and WiFi.

In addition, the lounge features an array of tasty complimentary hot and cold snacks comprising traditional Arabic food and oriental dishes prepared under the direction of the chef of the Dusit Thani Hotel - Bangkok.

Passengers will also have access to sleeper couches in a specially allocated "quiet area", especially those with longer connections who need time to unwind.

"I am very happy to open this wonderful lounge, which comes in our new design," said Oman Air district sales manager Ahmed Hazeem Al Balushi.

"We have focused on the needs of our customers.

The new lounge provides our premium guests with ideal conditions for a relaxed stay before their departure.

"Just like our customers, we waited eagerly for this day," Mr Al Balushi added.

Oman Air catering general manager Aaron Claxton said the opening of the new lounge is a testament to Oman Air's continuous strides in providing its passenger with a seamless travel experience.

The airline offers five-star services and traditional Omani hospitality from the moment our passengers enter the lounge, he added.

According to Nexus Group head of employee benefits Duncan Crerar, it is crucial that business leaders in the region offer clearly defined employee benefits if they are to stand out in a competitive marketplace.

This is particularly important when it comes to attracting expats, who are growing increasingly concerned about the absence of substantive social security frameworks.

"A common mistake made by Middle East-based businesses is to bundle all manner of benefits into a single lump sum wage," he said.

"Strictly speaking, this does not qualify as a benefit. For example, housing allowance that gets swallowed up with the rest of your outgoings is not the same thing as a company-provided house."

Another common misconception is that underwriting employee benefits is an unnecessary burden on the bottom line.

Mr Crerar disputes this, noting that employers can expect to incur costs of between six and 18 months of an individual's salary should they need to be replaced - largely due to the time and effort it takes to recruit, reintegrate and retrain.

"The best way to avoid financial headaches associated with replacing employees and preventing them from joining your competitors is to keep them happy and loyal," Mr Crerar said.

"This is where employee benefits come in, boosting employee welfare, ticking those all-important corporate social responsibility boxes, as well as acting as a hugely prominent incentive for attracting talented recruits."

A robust set of employee benefits will also help businesses adhere to or pre-empt legislation and emerging industry standards.

Notable employee benefits include private medical cover, life insurance, pension funding and income replacements for short-term and long-term disabilities.

Group affinity and discount schemes can also have a big impact. This entails granting service-providers access to a targeted audience for volume business and results in valuable discounts for staff. Good examples include car insurance, travel insurance and gym memberships.

Determined to set an example across the Middle East in this important area, Nexus Group recently enhanced its employee benefits offering, recruiting leading experts to provide an in-house, independent consultancy service that stands out for industry-best practice, project-based structure and processes as well as long-term value.

The US Senate passed the spending bill and a two-month payroll tax holiday extension on Saturday, punting that problem down the road, but not for long.

Obama had initially sought a one-year extension for the tax cut and unemployment benefits.

The compromise tax measure further dented Obama's authority by forcing him to revisit a contentious pipeline plan, and while the legislation passed easily, its short duration highlighted the inability of feuding legislators to bridge the divide on a more comprehensive deal.

The deal thrusts the contentious Keystone XL pipeline, to carry oil from Canada's tar sands to the US Gulf Coast, back onto the political agenda.

Obama had put off a decision on the project, which pits environmentalists against labour unions and business interests in his political base, until after the November 2012 elections in which he is hoping to secure a second term. The move drew Republican howls.

Instead, the bill gives him just 60 days to review the pipeline project.

The plane is flydubai's 14th next generation 737-800 with the new Boeing Sky Interior.

The Boeing 737 is the best-selling commercial jetliner of all time with total orders exceeding 9,300 airplanes, including orders for the new 737 MAX.

"It is incredible to be delivering our 7,000th 737," said 737 programme vice-president and general manager Beverly Wise.

"We thank flydubai and all our customers who have made the 737 the world's most popular jet airliner.

"This success is due to the years of expertise that thousands of employees continue to build into every Boeing 737 used in private, government and commercial service," he added.

In November 2010, flydubai had the distinction to be the first airline in the world to offer passengers an enhanced on board experience with the brand new Boeing Sky Interior.

This delivery is the 21st in flydubai's fleet and the airline has an additional 30 737-800s on order.

"We are proud to be a part of this important milestone for the 737," said flydubai chief executive Ghaith Al Ghaith.

"With its continuous innovations, the next generation 737 brings the right combination of operational and environmental performance to address the requirements of our markets."

The Zagheh oilfield, outside Deilam town in south Iran, contains an estimated three billion barrels of heavy crude oil.

Iran's state TV quoted Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi as saying yesterday that the field will produce 7,000 barrels per day of heavy crude in the first phase of its development within two years.

"The field has the capacity to increase its crude oil production to 55,000 barrels a day in the second phase within 54 months," Qasemi said.

The TV report said a final contract will be signed within three months on a "buyback" basis, meaning the Russians will build the facilities but will not own them, and will receive their costs plus a pre-agreed profit in return.

"We will look to benefit from his experience in takaful," Chartis central region president Michael Whitwell said. "He will be responsible for developing the takaful strategy for the region and managing operations in Bahrain. He will also take on an advisory and assistance role for the Asia Pacific region to develop a strategy."

Mr Al Ajmi is an associate of the UK-based Chartered Insurance Institute and its external adviser on takaful and retakaful.

The 15,500 square foot store located in Seef Mall opened its doors yesterday with exciting opening offers.

Home Zone is a welcome addition to the group's retail portfolio of world's best retail and clothing brands and promises to enhance the shopping experience of customers in Bahrain.

As the name suggests, Home Zone will provide customers with a wide selection of DIY, and Home and Garden products ranging from outdoor furniture to power tools, gardening accessories and equipment to bathroom and kitchenware, paint and accessories to plants and all of your home and garden improvement items, from a wide range of trusted and world renowned brands, all under one roof.

"It gives me great pleasure to open the first Home Zone store in the region and we welcome all our customers to the store," said Home Zone general manager Wayne Cohen.

"The Al Futtaim Group is fully committed to offering customers an unrivalled choice of the world's best brands with exceptional standards of customer service. With the opening of the new store we aim to meet and exceed customer demands and expectations.

"The Home Zone store puts us at the forefront of Bahrain's DIY and Home and Garden sector and we hope to use that position to revolutionise the way DIY business is done in the kingdom," he added.

"Running surplus depends on how the oil price will behave... We have based our budget on $75," Darwish Al Balushi told reporters on the sidelines of a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Saudi Arabia.

When asked about an increase of spending in 2012 over 2011, he said: "It's about 12pc."

The sultanate was hit by protests demanding jobs, higher salaries and an end to graft this year as unrest spread through the Arab world, making it boost expenditure well above the original plan.

Oman had originally projected a record expenditure of 8.130bn rials ($21.11bn) for the 2011 budget, up 13.2pc from the previous year.

A finance ministry official said last month Oman forecasts a fiscal deficit of 5.4pc of gross domestic product (GDP) next year in its 2012 budget as the government plans to increase spending by 10pc to create jobs.

In September, Balushi said government spending should rise to 9.2bn rials this year.

The 2011 budget was estimated with an expected oil price of $58 per barrel, $8 more than in 2010.

Protests prompted Sultan Qaboos bin Said, a US ally who has ruled Oman for 40 years, to promise a $2.6bn spending package in April. He also announced plans to create 50,000 new jobs among other measures.

Balushi also said the small non-Opec oil producer did not currently have plans for a sovereign bond issue: "We are not at this point of time thinking of tapping the international market for bonds."

Sources said in December Saudi Arabia was in talks with banks about issuing a riyal-denominated Islamic bond, or sukuk, as the kingdom abandons its aversion to sovereign-level debt to help build a local currency yield curve.

In November, Qatar raised $5 billion with its first sovereign bond issue in two years.

Analysts polled by Reuters in September expected Oman's economy to expand by 4pc in 2011 and 4.2pc next year.

The world's top liquefied natural gas exporter saw its economy expand at a double-digit clip in 2011 and it plans to spend heavily on infrastructure projects.

"The economic outlook for 2012 remains positive, despite increased external risks. Real gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate is projected to moderate to six per cent in 2012," the IMF said in a statement after concluding its annual consultation with Qatar on December 1.

For this year, the IMF has estimated growth of 19pc.

Qatar's development planning authority said in October it expected real GDP growth to slow to 5.1pc in 2012 from a projected 15pc for this year, as a decades-long gas expansion programme winds down.

"While real hydrocarbon GDP will slow down to less than 3pc due to the country's self imposed moratorium on development of new hydrocarbon projects until 2015, large infrastructure investment and increased production in the manufacturing sector will boost growth in real nonhydrocarbon GDP, which will accelerate to 9pc," the IMF said.

Qatar's outlook remains positive over the medium term, the IMF said, but warned of external risks.

"The principal risks ahead are lower oil and gas prices as a result of a decline in global demand, disruption in transportation of LNG due to increased geopolitical tensions, but the government has adequate financial cushions and a policy framework in place that would mitigate potential risks."

The fund slightly reduced its estimate of Qatar's inflation compared to projections in its Regional Economic Outlook, released in October.

"Following an average deflation of around 2.5pc in 2010, inflation is expected to average at 2pc in 2011, with the negative rental inflation being more than offset by increases in domestic prices of petrol, and the impact of global food prices," the IMF said.

"Average headline CPI inflation is projected at 4pc in 2012."

In its October forecasts, the IMF had predicted average inflation of 2.3pc in 2011 and 4.1pc next year.

Qatar said in September it would hand out salary, pension and benefit increases to state and military employees costing as much as 30 billion riyals ($8.2bn), following social unrest elsewhere in the Middle East and North Africa.

"Headline inflation remains subdued, but inflation risks have risen somewhat due to a permanent increase in public sector wages, which underscores the need for fiscal policy to monitor aggregate demand and the central bank to manage liquidity," the fund said.

The IMF said the salary and pension hikes would add an estimated $1.6bn to government expenditure in the budget for the 2011/12 fiscal year.

"Closing regulatory gaps in the financial system and continuing with efforts to develop the domestic bond market are needed to further strengthen financial stability while developing the financial system," the IMF added.