By Mahmoud Kassem
Swiss bank Pictet & Cie.’s water fund is profiting from the Middle East’s need to buy the technology to make more seawater drinkable as companies such as Xylem Inc. (XYL) andDanaher Corp. (DHR) step up business in the region.
“The companies that we are invested in are doing more business in the Middle East,” Hans-Peter Portner, manager of the Pictet Asset Management SA’s fund, said in an interview in Abu Dhabi. “They’re selling pumps, they’re selling membranes. The region is definitely a growth market for water companies.” Arid Middle Eastern states including the United Arab Emirates, of which Abu Dhabi is the capital, rely on treatment plants to remove salt from seawater to make it drinkable. The region is estimated to need $900 billion...