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GCC

Business news and financial news, analysis, opinion and statistics covering the six Gulf Corporation Council members Bahrain, Kuwait,  Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE

Nature, Outdoors, Sea South African hospitality group Mantis announced on Wednesday it will open a resort project on Bahrain’s Hawar Island in partnership with Edamah

Bahrain reveals plans to reach 2026 visitor target

Mumtalakat, Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, has been announced as a partner in the development of a new luxury island resort which will open later this year and include a water park and a Bear Grylls Survival Academy. The opening is part of Bahrain’s wider push to expand its tourism offering – with new hotels, beaches […]

An installation in Ottawa, Canada, near the venue where the UN is in a penultimate round of talks for a treaty to curb plastic pollution

Gulf petrochems sidestep curbs from global plastics treaty

Major petrochemical exporters such as Saudi Arabia are unlikely to face mandatory production curbs despite latest efforts to craft a global plastics treaty and clamp down on single usage. At a UN Environment Assembly in early 2022, member countries approved a resolution to end plastic pollution and forge an “international legally binding agreement” by the […]

Teenage students use a laptop and tablet. One cybersecurity expert said pupils' personal devices could increase the risk of data breaches

Cybercrooks have their eyes on Gulf schools, experts warn

The education sector in the GCC has emerged as a prime target for cybercriminals because of budgetary constraints and a lack of expertise, tech experts have told AGBI. “Schools, in particular, are vulnerable due to their extensive storage of sensitive personal information and comparatively lower investments in cybersecurity,” said Ram Narayanan, country manager at Check […]

Crypto miners have been drawn to the Gulf for its low electricity costs and comparatively unrestricted land use rules

Crypto miners see ‘enormous potential’ in the Gulf

With cryptocurrencies edging up again after last weekend’s “halving” – in which the rewards Bitcoin miners get for solving problems is cut in two to maintain scarcity – these are heady days for holders of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Bitcoin miners have been attracted to the Gulf by cheap electricity and established infrastructure.   “GCC […]

UK Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch attended the sixth round of UK-GCC trade talks in Riyadh in February

UK election adds urgency to GCC trade talks

An imminent general election in the UK and a potential change of government has accelerated pressure on negotiators to resolve talks about a GCC trade deal. Talks between the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council – the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait – and the UK are almost two years old.  […]

GCC insurance companies may have to consolidate in the wake of payments for flooding damage in the region

More GCC insurance mergers likely after flooding impact

Consolidation in the GCC’s insurance sector – already underway because of rising competition and stricter regulations on solvency capital requirements – could be accelerated by the impact of the flooding in the region last week. Ratings agency S&P Global said this week that many insurance companies – mainly in the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia […]

Real GDP growth projection for the UAE was revised to 3.9 percent this year, up from 3.7 percent

World Bank raises UAE’s economic growth outlook

The World Bank has raised its UAE economic growth forecast for 2024 and 2025, citing robust non-oil sector growth and higher oil output. The real GDP growth projection for the Gulf state was revised to 3.9 percent this year, up from its previous forecast of 3.7 percent in January, the World Bank said in its […]

Highway traffic in California. Opec said the upcoming 'driving season' in the US will provide the usual additional demand for fuel

Opec stands by predictions for oil demand growth

Opec predicts robust fuel use this summer and has stuck to last month’s forecast of relatively strong growth in oil demand in 2024 and 2025. The oil producers’ organisation predicted in its monthly report that global demand will rise by 2.25 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024 and by 1.85 million bpd in 2025. […]

Sima Ganwani Ved: 'The people being hired are GCC, the people running the stores are GCC-based'

Boycott of western brands hurts GCC workers, Apparel chief warns

Boycotts of western brands by Gulf consumers in protest against the Gaza conflict only hurts local workers in the region, the founder of the fashion and lifestyle retail conglomerate Apparel Group has warned. The company, which is based in the UAE and handles more than 80 brands from the US, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia […]

The Saudi Contractors Authority put the total value of ongoing projects in the kingdom at $1.5 trillion by the end of October 2023

Mena steel demand to rise over next two years

Steel demand in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is expected to accelerate in 2024 and 2025 after a significant slowdown in the past two years, the World Steel Association (WSA) said in a report. Demand is forecast to rise by just over 4 percent and 2.6 percent year on year to 57 […]

Vitol expects global growth of 1.9 million bpd this year, driven by China, India and increased air travel boosting demand for jet fuel

Oil price to hit $100 if Opec+ cuts continue says Vitol chief

Crude prices are likely to reach $100 per barrel in 2024 if Opec+ maintains its output cuts, a global commodity trader has said. The supply-constrained market has already reached an average price of $83 per barrel this year, S&P Global Commodity Insights reported, quoting Vitol CEO Russell Hardy’s speech on Tuesday at a summit in […]

A worker at Shams Solar Power Station in Abu Dhabi. Solar's share of renewable energy in the Middle East has soared over the last decade

Middle East renewable capacity doubles but the region is lagging

Renewable energy capacity in the Middle East has more than doubled in the past decade, with Iran and the UAE leading the way – but the region remains a bit-part player globally. New figures released by the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) show that regional capacity rose from just under 16 gigawatts to more than […]

People, Person, Adult

China and US vie for FDI supremacy in Gulf’s biggest economies

China and the United States invested more than $23 billion in projects in the Gulf’s two biggest economies last year. The US more than doubled its “greenfield” foreign direct investment in the UAE to nearly $4 billion, while China’s commitment to Saudi Arabia rose 10-fold to almost $17 billion. Greenfield FDI involves a foreign entity […]

Dr Azad Moopen, the founder chairman of Aster, retains 35 percent ownership alongside management and operational control

Aster DM completes GCC and India business split

Hospital chain Aster DM Healthcare has concluded the separation of its GCC and India businesses into two standalone entities.  As part of the separation plan, a consortium of investors led by Fajr Capital, a UAE sovereign-backed private equity firm, acquired a 65 percent stake in Aster GCC. Dr Azad Moopen, the founder chairman of Aster, […]