Quantitative easing is necessary to support the global economy, but it is destabilising the Mena region through food price inflation, according to internationally acclaimed investment guru Richard Duncan, chief economist at Blackhorse Asset Management in Singapore.

Duncan is also the author of the international bestseller “The Dollar Crisis: Causes, Consequences, Cure”, said a statement.

He was addressing a high-profile audience of investors in Istanbul on the occasion of the Annual Limited Partner (LP) meeting for Amwal II, the second partnership of Riyadh headquartered Amwal AlKhaleej - one of the Mena region’s leading private equity firms with offices in Dubai and Cairo and $700 million of assets under management.

While credit growth has driven economic growth for decades, only additional credit growth can prevent the great recession from becoming a new depression. He expects stocks and commodities to drop until quantitative easing starts, but once launched Duncan anticipates that the dollar will fall, while gold and oil will rise.

Present at the event were Amwal AlKhaleej co-founders, professional team, and the limited partners including Dr Fahad Al-Mubarak, the newly appointed governor of the Saudi Arabian Monterey Agency (Sama), and members from AlMuhaidib Group, AlFozan Group, Alissa Group, Al-Saghyir Group and Goldman Sachs.

Ammar AlKhudairy, managing partner, Amwal AlKhaleej, said: “2011 was a positive year for Amwal AlKhaleej, and this meeting with our LPs gave us the opportunity to reflect on our successes and plot our way forward for 2012. The company recently received the prestigious ‘’Best Performing Mena Private Equity Fund” award at the 2011 Private Equity World Mena Awards as well as “Deal of the Year” award in conjunction with Gulf Capital, highlighting our some of our key accomplishments  in 2011.” – TradeArabia News Service