Renewable Energy Oman signs 3 green hydrogen projects worth over $20bn Hydrogen Oman SPC (Hydrom), a subsidiary of Energy Development Oman, has signed three deals to develop green hydrogen projects with investments worth over $20 billion. The three projects were signed with the consortia of Amnah, Green Energy Oman and BP Oman. They are expected to yield a total production capacity of half a million tonnes […] June 2, 2023
Opinion Why we must harness AI for the common good Artificial intelligence can and should serve goals such as sustainability and gender equity May 18, 2022
Analysis Markets Dollar upbeat ahead of Trump’s White House return Donald Trump’s US presidential election victory has extended a dollar rally that began in late September on expectations that the real estate mogul’s return to the White House may ultimately force the Federal Reserve to resume interest rate rises. Five of the six GCC countries peg their currencies to the dollar, while the sixth – […] November 7, 2024
Media & Advertising Coming to a movie theatre near you … AlUla It would make the perfect setting for Star Wars or Indiana Jones, but AlUla is developing production facilities that will expand its reach beyond sci-fi and desert adventure movies, making it one of the region’s prime locations for international shoots. The tourist location in northwest Saudi Arabia is fast developing into a mini-city with an […] December 24, 2023
Retail Retail festival to test Covid-hit Chinese shoppers’ urge to splurge China will get a picture of how its zero-Covid policy and slowing economy are affecting shoppers’ urge to splurge this weekend, as e-commerce platforms gear up to report takings from the mid-year 618 shopping festival. The retail event, held in the run-up to June 18, is China’s second-largest by sales after Singles Day on November […] June 14, 2022
Analysis Food & Drink Gulf hotels and cloud kitchens join forces to cook up extra profit Partnership between hotels with spare capacity and fast-growing cloud kitchens is a “no brainer”, say industry experts. Radisson Hotel Group in Dubai recently announced a partnership with food technology company Krush Brands, with the first cloud kitchen location at Radisson Red Silicon Oasis. Cloud kitchens are companies that prepare food solely for home delivery without […] January 9, 2023
Analysis UAE-Israel trade could reach $4bn after countries ratify deal Bilateral trade between the UAE and Israel could touch $4 billion next year after both governments ratified their comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) on Sunday. That’s the view of Dorian Barak, co-founder of the UAE-Israel Business Council, who told AGBI that the deal “builds on the unprecedented interest among Emiratis and Israelis in taking this […] December 12, 2022
Opinion Economy In the Gulf, the age of the petrodollar will not be ending soon GCC currency pegs have provided stability for 40 years. The dollar remains the best bet for oil exporters April 2, 2024
Real Estate London’s suburban real estate moves Middle East investors While central London property retains its allure for ultra-high-net-worth individuals from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, cash buyers are flocking to the outskirts of the UK capital to snap up investment properties. A survey of GCC high-net-worth individuals by London-based shariah-compliant lender Al Rayan Bank found that a third of respondents said they had […] November 28, 2023
People & Lifestyle Saudi director’s labour of love takes the kingdom to Cannes For the first time a Saudi film has been selected to compete in the Cannes film festival, catapulting its little-known self-taught director into the limelight. Tawfik Alzaidi was so surprised that he’d managed to break through to the big time that he kept the news that his film Norah had been accepted for the ‘Un […] April 26, 2024
Business of Sport Italy’s Serie A football league targets Middle East backers Italy’s Serie A is targeting investment opportunities from the Middle East, as the football league becomes increasingly attractive to global lenders and private equity giants. The Gulf region has sizeable interests in English football, including Saudi-backed Newcastle United and Manchester City FC, which is majority-owned by Abu Dhabi United Group. Qatar Sports Investments is also […] June 17, 2023
Media & Advertising Twitter CEO Elon Musk says user signups at all-time high Twitter Inc chief executive Elon Musk says new user signups to the social media platform are at an “all-time high”, as he struggles with a mass exodus of advertisers and users fleeing to other platforms over concerns about verification and hate speech. Signups were averaging over two million per day in the last seven days […] November 27, 2022
Analysis Biden Middle East 43 billion reasons why the US is key to Saudi’s wealth fund Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is expected to continue with an investment strategy of “bargain hunting” in the United States but will likely deploy some caution, given current volatility in the US stock market. US president Joe Biden’s visit to the kingdom is an opportunity to strengthen bilateral business ties, commentators told AGBI, and […] July 8, 2022
Aviation Paris air show takes off with historic plane order Airbus announced a record 500-plane deal with Indian airline IndiGo on day one of the Paris Airshow, as strong demand for jets and air defences vied for attention with the industry’s supply chain problems. The multibillion-dollar deal for single-aisle planes – the largest ever by number of aircraft – confirmed a Reuters report earlier this […] June 20, 2023
Opinion Indian Web3 startups migrate to the UAE The co-founder of one of MENA’s top tech policy firms explains why Indian crypto and Web3 companies are being drawn to Dubai June 1, 2022
Logistics Agility and Hassan Allam link up to build logistics parks in Egypt Kuwaiti logistics specialist Agility has formed a joint venture with the development arm of Hassan Allam Holding to build and run warehouses in Egypt. The venture, Yanmu, is due to open its first logistics park in August with an initial investment of about $100 million, Agility said in a stock market filing. The development, a […] March 14, 2023
Economy Slowing Chinese economy no threat to Saudi oil exports – yet Slower economic growth in China in the second quarter of this year has raised concerns about Saudi Arabia’s ability to maintain funding lines from its main trading partner. The Chinese economy grew at a year-on-year rate of 4.7 percent, down from 5.3 percent in the previous quarter. In the retail sector, the pace of growth […] July 17, 2024
Opinion Markets Three ways to keep your cool in a bear market Volatility should not blow your mind, it's important to hold fast and remain focused July 22, 2022
Opinion Banking & Finance Israel war tests GCC regional bank resilience GCC governments have been notably proactive in terms of their support to the local banking system November 28, 2023
Opinion Oil & Gas Uncertainty over Russian price cap clouds recovery of crude As the price of Brent rises, so does the price of Russia’s Urals crude oil July 24, 2023