Trade Hong Kong thrives as GCC-China ‘super-connector’ As Hong Kong prepares to host the Belt and Road Summit this week, its focus is increasingly turning to the Gulf for trade and investment opportunities. The Chinese special administrative region has been strengthening its links with the Middle East since 2013, when the Belt and Road Initiative was launched. It now wants to attract […] September 12, 2023
Tech Russians bulk buying iPhones in UAE to sell back home Last year Apple officially stopped all product sales on its Apple store in Russia in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Despite this, Russian telecom operator MTS and Russian e-commerce sites are already accepting pre-orders for the iPhone 15 – to be unveiled by Apple CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday – and some of […] September 12, 2023
Tech Dubai embraces AI to disrupt the film sector Are robot writers and CGI actors about to steal our jobs? That’s one of the core fears at the centre of Hollywood’s largest strike by actors and writers in over 60 years. From ChatGPT generating scripts and AI-generated actors replacing extras in crowd scenes, to computers automatically editing scenes and creating stunning visual effects (VFX) […] September 11, 2023
Markets Risk-averse Gulf telecom companies look to Europe Following myriad lacklustre investments in Asia and Africa, some former telecom monopolies in the Gulf are now buying minority stakes in long-established operators in Europe to provide lower-risk, dividend-based returns. STC Group, previously known as Saudi Telecom Co and majority-owned by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, this week revealed it had spent 2.1 billion euros […] September 8, 2023
Tech Dubai bullish on metaverse as hype fades The metaverse has been seen as the silver bullet that would revive businesses in Dubai and the wider Gulf region in the post-pandemic era. The UAE is still bullish about its potential, but Mohammad AlBlooshi, CEO of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Innovation Hub, told an event on Monday that enthusiasm for the nascent […] September 6, 2023
Inside Saudi Arabia’s plans to raise the bar on education Saudi Arabia has launched a series of initiatives to address deep-seated issues in the quality of its education. Last month the giga-project Neom unveiled plans to roll out a “comprehensive” early-childhood-to age-18 education programme. The scheme includes a career-oriented talent academy, an education, research and innovation foundation and the Neom U university. Elsewhere, the kingdom’s […] September 6, 2023
Trade UAE and New Zealand plan Cepa to build non-oil trade When Auckland-based startup Exsurgo joined the Hub71 technology park in Abu Dhabi it was a potential sign of things to come in the UAE-New Zealand trade relationship. Exsurgo has raised $10.5 million and aims to provide non-pharmaceutical treatments for neurological conditions through the use of neuroscience and data analytics. Last week, two months after Exsurgo’s […] September 5, 2023
Leisure & Hospitality Gulf events turning to inflatable domes A Slovenian leader in the manufacture of high-tech air domes is seeking expansion across the Gulf after capturing deals in Saudi Arabia. DBS Engineering has agreements with the Ministry of Investment, Alwaseel Sport City, Filling & Packing Materials Co (Fipco) and Zamil Industrial. The company said it will soon complete its second project in Qassim […] September 4, 2023
Renewable Energy Egypt’s green hydrogen goals get BP boost Egypt’s ambitions to develop a green hydrogen industry have been given a major boost with the announcement that BP is to invest $3.5 billion in the country over the next three years. Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El Sisi and BP CEO Bernard Looney announced the plans on Monday. A portion of the funding will go towards […] September 1, 2023
Banking & Finance Islamic finance tops $3.3trn but growth challenges remain Saudi Arabia is the world’s biggest player in Islamic finance and the appetite for it in the kingdom is only growing. It has $830 billion of assets out of a global market estimated to be worth $3.3 trillion, according to Ayman al Sayari, the governor of the Saudi Central Bank. Just last week, when Saudi […] August 30, 2023
Trade Saudi minister Al Falih heads to Milan for trade talks Saudi Arabian and Italian officials are to meet in Milan next week for talks on investment opportunities in clean energy, healthcare, manufacturing and hospitality. The Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia will co-host the Italian-Saudi Investment Forum on September 4, as the countries seek to build on bilateral trade that surpassed $11 billion last year. […] August 30, 2023
Agriculture Inside the $100m plan to transform desert farming Total cropland in Mena countries decreased by 2.4 percent between 2003 and 2018 – the sharpest drop in the world – according to satellite imagery. In response, a Beirut-based multilateral is seeking $100 million for a new programme to enhance innovation to increase farming productivity in a region that already had the lowest cropland […] August 29, 2023
Finance Saudi Arabia pushes easy mortgage financing scheme Saudi Arabia has increased funding for home ownership for citizens over the past year in an effort to reach Vision 2030 targets. The kingdom’s sluggish mortgage market has been affected by high US interest rates. The Saudi riyal is pegged to the US dollar, tying the Saudi mortgage market to US interest rate fluctuations. Residential […] August 29, 2023
Finance Bahrain adds ‘smart factories’ to strategy to lift private sector Bahrain plans to develop 300 “smart factories” by 2026 as it seeks to boost private sector activity and tackle its sluggish growth rate. The iFactories initiative aims to support the manufacturing sector’s move to digitalisation, reduce dependence on unskilled work and strengthen national industries, said Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, the kingdom’s industry and commerce minister, […] August 28, 2023
Business of Sport Saudi football sells TV rights in hope of net profit Saudi Arabia’s professional football league has sold broadcast rights to 12 networks across 130 countries for coverage of the 2023-24 season, following a spending spree on players that has captured global attention. But wary of previous experience with China, broadcasters will be following closely to see if a global appetite exists for Saudi Arabia. “The […] August 27, 2023
Trade New Middle East members expand Brics reach Four Middle East countries are to join the Brics bloc of developing countries, bridging regional political divides and signaling increased Chinese influence around the world. The new memberships of Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, as well as those of Argentina and Ethiopia, will be effective from 2024. The decision to add […] August 24, 2023
Trade Joramco flies high as UAE and Jordan deepen industrial ties Commercial aircraft maintenance operator Joramco is establishing a new Boeing Converted Freighter production line in the Jordanian capital of Amman. The company, which is part of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, is flying the flag for trade relations between the UAE and Jordan as they expand their joint industrial ambitions. Joramco said the new venture will support […] August 24, 2023
Trade Aid turns to trade as UAE plans Ethiopia investments The UAE is planning to increase its investments in Ethiopia as the economic relationship between the two countries evolves from aid to trade. More than a dozen memoranda of understanding were signed between public and private entities in Addis Ababa during an official visit to Ethiopia by UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan […] August 21, 2023
Oil & Gas Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi bet on crude-to-chemicals Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi’s state-run oil companies both want to expand their chemicals production capacity in a strategic shift that will have huge implications for a petrochemicals industry already suffering from its lowest margins in two decades. Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (Adnoc) together provide around almost half of Opec’s crude […] August 18, 2023
Energy Saudi Arabia’s markets to feel petrochemicals slump Saudi Arabia’s petrochemicals producers reported plunging profits in the second quarter, and are likely to face further struggles due to weak demand, oversupply and high costs. There seems little scope for the industry to rebound until at least 2024, analysts now predict, as a hoped-for turnaround failed to materialise. This gloomy outlook will weigh on […] August 17, 2023
Manufacturing Abu Dhabi’s industrial ambitions begin to bear fruit Abu Dhabi has registered a 63 percent jump in the number of industrial licences issued during the first half of 2023 as the emirate makes progress on plans to double the size of the sector by 2031. In the first full year since the launch of the Abu Dhabi Industrial Strategy, nearly AED15.4 billion ($4.2 […] August 17, 2023
Transport Careem could yet be hailed a smart buy for Uber The hefty premium Uber paid for Dubai ride-hailing rival Careem will prove worth it in the long run, analysts believe. Uber, which has racked up nearly $33 billion in losses since its inception in 2009, paid $3.1 billion for Careem in January 2020 in what remains the largest deal for a homegrown Gulf tech startup. […] August 16, 2023
