As oil price slides, Gulf's private business may benefit

DUBAI: Kuwait's privately owned Jazeera Airways is preparing to bid for a big stake in state-run flag carrier Kuwait Airways, Jazeera's chairman told Reuters. If the deal goes through, it will be a sign that the business scene is changing in the Gulf.

For several decades, Gulf Arab economies have been dominated by the heavy hand of the state. Governments' huge oil revenues have eclipsed private sector activity. Benefiting from these revenues, state-owned firms have prospered while many private companies have struggled to raise financing and become ensnared in official red tape.