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Boat, Transportation, Vehicle

Most Gulf stocks track oil prices higher, with Aramco up 3.3%

Most stock markets in the Gulf ended higher on Tuesday, tracking oil prices and global shares as China eased some quarantine requirements for international arrivals which raised hopes for stronger growth and a revival in demand for commodities. China slashed the quarantine time for inbound travellers by half in a major easing of one of […]

Masdar City, due to be one of the most sustainable communities in the world, has been held up bu funding and other issues

Climate target aided by surging oil price, says top US banker

Oil and gas-producing countries can capitalise on the commodity price boom to fuel their transition to net zero, the boss of one of the world’s leading financial institutions said yesterday. Arshad Ghafur, president of the MENA region at Bank of America, made the comment in a speech to the Dubai International Financial Centre’s Fintech Week, […]

Shoe, Clothing, Footwear

Nike Q1 forecasts downbeat, despite higher Middle East sales

Nike Inc forecast first-quarter revenue below estimates as it expects to discount more and wrestles with pandemic-related disruptions in China, its most profitable market. The company’s shares fell 3 percent to $107 after the bell. Analysts are mixed about Nike’s prospects in China this year even as strict COVID-19 lockdowns have been lifted in several […]

Edward Lister, former aide to Boris Johnson, wants discussions to be far-reaching
  • Exclusive

UK-GCC talks must extend beyond tariffs, say top diplomats

The newly-commenced free trade agreement talks between the UK and the GCC have been welcomed by senior diplomats. Lord Udny-Lister, co-chair of the UAE-UK Business Council and a former strategic advisor to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, hailed the FTA discussions as “great news”, but called for a wide and nuanced set of agreements that […]

The weakened pound is attractive to Middle East investors keen on London's prime property
  • Analysis

A UK recession may spook Arab investors – or present an opening

The economic outlook for the UK has grown progressively bleaker over recent months. After contracting 0.1 percent in March, Britain’s economy shrank by a further 0.3 percent in April, marking the first back-to-back declines since the onset of the global pandemic in March 2020. Last week the pound plunged to its lowest level against the dollar […]

  • Analysis

From chocolate to solar power, the UK-GCC trade deal is a winner

A trade deal between the United Kingdom and the Gulf region has the potential to support jobs “from Dover to Doha”, while building vital green industries and supplying innovative services to the GCC. That’s according to UK Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan, who today launched free trade negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council, made up of […]

Person, Human, Sitting

Britain launches free trade talks with Gulf countries

Britain on Wednesday will launch talks over a new free trade deal with six Gulf states, the trade ministry said, in the latest set of negotiations aimed at increasing non-EU ties after Brexit. Trade minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan will visit Riyadh to begin discussions with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which is made up of Bahrain, […]

Many amateur investors took a hit when cryptocurrencies crashed but there is now a gap to exploit by those with a solid business plan

Crypto crisis will weed out the Gulf’s weak players, say analysts

The region’s cryptocurrency industry has grown rapidly – and is now being hit hard by the worldwide plunge in prices, but experts and businesses are welcoming the shake-up The value of the cryptocurrency market has slumped by more than $2 trillion since November, with bitcoin’s price dropping 70 percent and some in the sector laying […]

Solar panels

Gulf defies oil financing trends as UN calls for end to fossil fuels

The Middle East is boosting investment in oil and gas, bucking the global trend even as the United Nations calls for an end to the funding of fossil fuel projects. The MENA region is forecast to invest $879 billion in energy projects from 2022 to 2026, an increase of 9 percent over the previous five […]

An oil refinery
  • Analysis

Middle East growth forecast brightens despite global gloom

Growth forecasts for the Middle East have been revised upwards despite the darkening global landscape. Middle East GDP growth for 2022 is now projected at 5.2 percent, an increase of 1 percentage point on the forecast three months ago, according to the Economic Insight report for the Middle East, commissioned by the Institute of Chartered […]

  • Analysis

Trade commissioner: UK and GCC have endless opportunities

The Gulf states and the UK have historically enjoyed strong diplomatic and trade ties, but this decades-long alliance has intensified in the last two years.  As UK businesses look to drum up new trade in the wake of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic, the Gulf looks set to become ever closer to Britain. Pre-Brexit, around […]

Office Building, Building, Car

Gulf bank stocks hit hard, as most bourses in red after rate hike

Most stock markets in the Gulf ended lower on Thursday, after the US Federal Reserve delivered an aggressive rate hike and cut its growth projections. The US central bank on Wednesday approved its biggest interest rate hike since 1994, lifting the target federal funds rate by 75 basis points to a range of between 1.5 […]

Fed hike hits Gulf stocks as well as price of food and property

Gulf stock markets quickly reacted negatively this morning to the announcement that local central banks were to follow the US Federal Reserve and hike interest rates, in a bid to curb inflation and rising costs.  AGBI spoke to experts across the business community to see how the move will impact everyone from property developers and […]

Grass, Plant, Office Building

Gulf raises rates as US hits highest level in nearly 30 years

Most Gulf central banks followed the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday, lifting their key interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point, while Saudi Arabia made a smaller hike after the latest data showed inflation there slowing slightly. The US central bank projected a slowing economy and rising unemployment in the United States in the […]

Andina, a Peruvian restaurant based in London, wants to add a venue in the Gulf

UK targets Gulf for growth post-Brexit and Covid

Rocked by the double whammy of Brexit and the global pandemic, UK businesses have endured a tumultuous two years. As European trade battles sharp retrenchment – UK-EU exports dropped by 12 percent last year, a loss of £20 billion  – British companies are pursuing new growth avenues and the Gulf is proving to be a […]

Business travel lagging behind tourism as Gulf goes virtual

An estimated 115 million more passengers in the Middle East and Africa will fly during 2022 compared to last year if flight booking trends continue at their current pace, according to new research. However, business travel in the region is returning at a much slower pace with medium/long-haul and domestic bookings remaining well below 2019 […]

Finnair looks to Asia, Middle East, after impact of Ukraine war

Finland’s national carrier Finnair, hit hard by the closure of Russian airspace, plans to shift its focus away from Asia travel and reduce the size of its operations, the chief executive told Bloomberg News, the agency reported on Friday. Finnair’s pre-pandemic profitability centred on offering short connection times between Asia and Europe via its Helsinki […]