Analysis Markets Blue chip dividend yields in UAE beat US and Europe Most UAE blue chip stocks provide much higher dividend yields than their counterparts in Europe and the United States, an AGBI analysis shows. The top 20 largest listed UAE businesses, excluding two non-dividend paying companies, offer an average dividend yield of 4.7 percent. This is almost 60 percent better than the average yield of 1.9 […] February 28, 2025
Health Gulf healthcare battling staff shortages as demand rises Recruitment is the single biggest challenge facing the Gulf’s healthcare sector, according to industry experts. By 2029, the region will need around 12,300 additional hospital beds to serve a population that is not only growing in number but also aging and living longer, according to private equity group Alpen Capital. That is equivalent to growth […] February 27, 2025
Economy Higher than forecast oil prices mean likely budget surplus for Oman Higher than projected oil prices look likely to give Oman a budget surplus for 2024, 10 months of data suggest. The country, which pumps about 1 million barrels of crude a day and depends in it for two thirds of its revenue, based its 2024 budget on a price of $60 a barrel. Last year, […] February 27, 2025
OpinionARTIficial intellgienceAI is highly carbon-intensive, but the GCC offers a solution: sustainable data centresNasser Saidi, Economist, Nasser Saidi and Associates
Opinionbanking & financeInvestors would like to jump in, but need to see deeper, more liquid markets in Saudi ArabiaValentina Pasquali, Senior editor, AGBI
Opinionoil & gasThe strategic stakes for Saudi Arabia from the Trump-Putin summit could not be higherMatein Khalid, Investor
Video length: 04:45 VIDEO Education Universities have to change to bridge the skills gap Education in the Mena region must transform to reflect the changing market, according to experts. Ismael Al-Hinti, president of Al Hussein Technical University in Jordan told AGBI that young people entering the jobs market in the region face a skills mismatch, with unemployment rates highest among the most educated. The answer, according to Al-Hinti, is […]
Analysis Tourism Omani tourism struggles against fierce Gulf competition Oman’s tourism industry is struggling, at least in comparison with its Gulf neighbours. Last year visitor numbers fell by almost 3 percent to 3.9 million, according to Oman’s National Centre for Statistics and Information. That compares with 9 percent increases for Dubai and Saudi Arabia, and a 25 percent rise for Qatar. Bahrain and Kuwait […]
Manufacturing EV maker Lucid’s CEO quits as total losses hit $13bn Peter Rawlinson, the CEO of the Saudi Arabia-backed electric car maker Lucid Motors, has resigned after the Californian company’s total accumulated losses rose to almost $13 billion. Earlier this week, Lucid announced that its losses in 2024 were up almost 11 percent to $3.1 billion, from $2.8 billion the year before. Shares in Lucid, which […]
Analysis Markets Gulf CEOs urged to conquer fear of earnings call Earnings calls for analysts, reporters or investors are a staple for listed companies in Western markets. The same is not true in the Gulf, however, and experts say that can make it harder to assess a company’s performance and justify its stock valuation. It can also deter institutional investors, limit liquidity and slow market growth. […]
Analysis Oil & Gas Egypt’s gas industry caught in vicious circle as demand rises Egypt’s gas industry is caught in a vicious circle. The country uses natural gas to generate almost 80 percent of its electricity, according to the International Energy Agency, and Globalpetrolprices.com says Egyptian households pay less than EGP1 ($0.02) per kilowatt hour. Demand for power and therefore for gas is surging at a time when production […]
Transport Parkin proposes $77m dividend for second half 2024 Parkin, the Dubai government’s parking management company, plans to pay a final dividend of AED281 million ($77 million) for the second half of 2024, the company said in a statement. The dividend payout is subject to shareholders’ approval at the annual general meeting planned by March-end. An interim dividend of AED199 million was paid by […] February 28, 2025
Analysis Markets Blue chip dividend yields in UAE beat US and Europe Most UAE blue chip stocks provide much higher dividend yields than their counterparts in Europe and the United States, an AGBI analysis shows. The top 20 largest listed UAE businesses, excluding two non-dividend paying companies, offer an average dividend yield of 4.7 percent. This is almost 60 percent better than the average yield of 1.9 […] February 28, 2025
Oil & Gas Adnoc Gas to supply LNG to Osaka Abu Dhabi’s state-owned Adnoc Gas has signed a fourth sales and purchase agreement for its Ruwais liquefied natural gas project, which is under development at Al Ruwais Industrial City. Adnoc Gas signed the 15-year contract with one of Japan’s utility companies, Osaka Gas, to supply up to 800,000 tonnes of LNG per year, Adnoc said […] February 27, 2025
Finance IHC’s $27bn holding company aims for Abu Dhabi listing 2PointZero, a newly established UAE investment platform with assets from mines to financial services, is targeting a stock market listing in Abu Dhabi this year, CEO Mariam Almheiri said on Wednesday, according to the Reuters news agency. Last year, Abu Dhabi conglomerate International Holding Company (IHC) established 2PointZero as a holding unit with more than […] February 27, 2025
Video length: 04:45 VIDEO Education Universities have to change to bridge the skills gap Education in the Mena region must transform to reflect the changing market, according to experts. Ismael Al-Hinti, president of Al Hussein Technical University in Jordan told AGBI that young people entering the jobs market in the region face a skills mismatch, with unemployment rates highest among the most educated. The answer, according to Al-Hinti, is […] February 27, 2025
Aviation Flynas secures $132m to acquire 3 A320neo aircraft Saudi low-cost carrier Flynas has secured a sharia-compliant loan of SAR495 million ($132 million) to acquire three Airbus A320neo aircraft, the airline said in a statement. The funding has been provided by Bank AlJazira, which trades on the Saudi stock exchange, the statement said. The new aircraft are expected to support Flynas’s network coverage, improve operational […] February 28, 2025
Markets Umm Al Qura IPO order book hits $126bn The institutional offering of Umm Al Qura for Development and Construction (Umm Al Qura), the developer of SAR100 billion ($26.7 billion) Masar, a mixed-use project in Mecca, was oversubscribed 241 times, according to a statement. The company, which is backed by the state-run General Organization for Social Insurance (Gosi) and Public Investment Fund (PIF), will raise […] February 28, 2025
Construction Barloworld rejects Zahid’s $1.25bn takeover bid Shareholders at South African construction equipment company Barloworld have voted against a takeover offer by Saudi company Zahid Group. The Jeddah-based conglomerate offered to buy shares of the South African listed company at 120 rand ($6.50) apiece, valuing it at around $1.25 billion. The deal failed to secure the majority required, Barloworld said in a […] February 27, 2025
Opinion Banking & Finance Miami’s Saudi love affair hasn’t convinced everyone Saudi Arabia is all the rage among US investors, but FDI constraints remain February 27, 2025
Manufacturing PIF weighs investment in Boeing’s Italian parts maker Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is holding talks about investing in the aerostructures unit of Italian defence company Leonardo, a news report said. The talks are at an early stage with no agreement guaranteed, Bloomberg reported. The investment could lead to the Italian company building a civil aviation manufacturing plant in Saudi Arabia, the […] February 27, 2025
Space Why Gulf demand for satellites is taking off Man has gone there before, but for the Gulf Arab states the space race is only just picking up. Led primarily by the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Middle Eastern countries have spent $25 billion on satellites and other space projects and equipment over the past decade. That number is expected to triple to $75 billion […] February 27, 2025
Aviation Qatar Airways gets nod to buy 25% of Virgin Australia The Australian government has cleared an offer by state-backed Qatar Airways to acquire a minority 25 percent stake in Virgin Australia from Bain Capital, a US private equity company, the companies said in a statement. The Gulf carrier made the offer to buy the stake in October, but the Australian transport minister, Catherine King, rejected […] February 27, 2025
Transport Morocco to get double-decker trains ahead of World Cup Hyundai Rotem, South Korea’s railway rolling-stock maker, will supply double-decker trains to Morocco’s state-backed National Railway Office (ONCF), as the country prepares to co-host the football World Cup in 2030. The contract, valued at MAD15 billion ($1.5 billion), will support the modernisation of the country’s rail network. The new trains are designed to reach speeds of […] February 27, 2025
Oil & Gas Investors may shun Gulf as oil prices fall, BoA says President Donald Trump’s “drill, baby, drill” push to increase US oil production and potentially drive lower prices could dampen investor appetite for Gulf Arab markets, according to the Bank of America. Saudi Arabia, the world’s second-largest oil producer, has been on a marketing blitz in the US this past week, hosting an investor conference in […] February 26, 2025
Banking & Finance Iraq plans digital currency to replace paper notes Iraq’s central bank is planning to issue its own digital currency to gradually replace local paper notes. The country’s central bank governor Ali Al-Allaq told a local press conference in Baghdad that the new currency is part of “radical” changes in the global financial and banking system. “These changes include the decline of paper notes […] February 26, 2025
Infrastructure Water projects take priority in Jordan’s PPP pipeline Jordan is planning to launch public-private partnerships (PPP) valued at more than $1 billion this year – and that figure may soon rise to $2 billion, according to an official. Hamza Alhajaya, head of Jordan’s PPP unit, told AGBI that Jordan is already expecting to publish tenders for seven projects in 2025 worth a total […] February 26, 2025
Analysis Markets Gulf CEOs urged to conquer fear of earnings call Earnings calls for analysts, reporters or investors are a staple for listed companies in Western markets. The same is not true in the Gulf, however, and experts say that can make it harder to assess a company’s performance and justify its stock valuation. It can also deter institutional investors, limit liquidity and slow market growth. […] February 25, 2025
Analysis Tourism Omani tourism struggles against fierce Gulf competition Oman’s tourism industry is struggling, at least in comparison with its Gulf neighbours. Last year visitor numbers fell by almost 3 percent to 3.9 million, according to Oman’s National Centre for Statistics and Information. That compares with 9 percent increases for Dubai and Saudi Arabia, and a 25 percent rise for Qatar. Bahrain and Kuwait […] February 26, 2025
Banking & Finance Turkey, Saudi and other emerging markets take on $4.5trn of debt Emerging markets took on $4.5 trillion of debt last year, according to the Institute of International Finance, and Saudi Arabia and Turkey were among the biggest borrowers. Global debt increased by nearly $7 trillion to $318 trillion in 2024, the highest figure on record, the Washington-based institute said in a report shared with AGBI. Emerging […] February 26, 2025
Agriculture Turkey meets US egg demand with increased exports Turkish producers are redirecting egg exports to the US in response to an outbreak of avian flu which is crippling the US poultry sector. The increased US sales could mean Gulf countries will shell out more for their breakfast staple. The Turkish government has given egg producers approval to increase US sales, with the packaged […] February 26, 2025
Logistics Turkey’s Ciner Shipping packs up and moves to Athens One of Turkey’s largest shipping companies is moving its headquarters to Athens, the latest in a string of Turkish businesses to take advantage of Greece’s EU membership and what they say is a more investment-friendly environment. Ciner Shipping issued a statement on February 21 saying it was shifting its base from Istanbul. Its Turkish staff […] February 26, 2025
Manufacturing Turkish industrial capacity use falls again The level of Turkish industrial capacity in use fell in February, continuing a trend of slowing activity in the country’s factories for a third month. Less than three quarters of Turkey’s industrial capacity was operational in February, according to data issued by the Turkish Central Bank’s statistics unit on February 24. The 74 percent total […] February 25, 2025
Tourism Turkish cruise industry expects a bumper 2025 Cruise port operator Global Ports Holding is expecting a successful year for passenger numbers in Turkey this year, driven by new winter cruises and disruptions to competing destinations in the eastern Mediterranean. Worth $3 billion in revenue to Turkish port operators in 2023, cruise ship traffic is a vital source of income to Global Ports, […] February 25, 2025
Economy Egypt’s economic growth likely to accelerate, says bank Economic growth in Egypt, the third-largest Arab economy, is expected to accelerate this year, driven by expansion in several sectors including transport, financial services and housing, according to a European development bank. In the 2024-2025 fiscal year to June 30, growth may accelerate to 3.6 percent from 2.4 percent a year before, and 4.6 percent […] February 28, 2025
Economy Egypt unveils sizeable social package with wage hike Egypt will increase minimum wages for public sector employees to EGP7,000 ($139) per month starting in July, aligning with a similar hike for the private sector this month, according to local media. The wage increase is part of the EGP200 billion ($4 billion) social support package unveiled by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, the local media reported. […] February 27, 2025
Giga-projects Billionaire calls for review of Egyptian mega-projects Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris said his country’s mega-projects should be reconsidered to save money as they require a lot of foreign currency. “I will be polite and I would say we have an overambitious president who is doing mega projects that are requiring a lot of foreign currency and we should have a second look […] February 27, 2025
Finance Egypt tops Arab list for international project investment Egypt received more international project investment than any other Arab country in the first 11 months of last year, with the UAE the biggest international investor. Egypt, the third largest Arab economy after Saudi Arabia and the UAE, attracted almost $30 billion in 122 international projects, equivalent to a third of all such projects in […] February 26, 2025
Tourism Egypt bets on $1bn Grand Museum to boost tourism Egypt’s tourism sector will get a major boost with the opening of a $1 billion antiquities museum following decades of development. The Grand Egyptian Museum, which is located nearly 2km from the Giza Pyramids, will open on July 3, Bloomberg reported, quoting prime minister Mostafa Madbouly. The museum, construction of which started in 2005, is expected […] February 26, 2025
Video length: 05:03 VIDEO EXCLUSIVE Tech Errol Musk: Tower will be a ‘truly international institute’ Errol Musk told AGBI in an exclusive video interview during his visit to Dubai that the Musk Tower that is to be built in the UAE will serve as an innovation centre. It will also foster developments in science “that are ignored”, including “space-time travel and gravity”, he said. Discussions are ongoing with Abu Dhabi-based […]
Analysis Real Estate How Qatar escaped a World Cup property glut Three years on, it is clear that Qatar has by and large avoided what plagued many of its World Cup host predecessors – the big White Elephant. In spite of a rush of building projects to open a slew of new hotels and apartments for the November-December 2022 event, the gas-rich nation was shrewd enough […]
Food & Drink Climate change and rising costs challenge Turkish tea producers Turkey is one of the world’s biggest tea producers, and it is taking steps to increase its profile in the highly competitive international market
Analysis Telecoms Red Sea attacks put security spotlight on vital subsea cables What do Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, a new data centre in Saudi Arabia and the icy waters of the Baltic Sea have in common? In short, they reflect a new Gulf Arab, and indeed global, focus on protecting vital submarine cable networks and potentially developing alternative, terrestrial routes. The Yemeni militia’s […]
Analysis Finance UAE pension plans aim to ease end-of-service headaches Pensions are a headache for governments, companies and employees alike. How to provide staff with a comfortable retirement that could last for decades? Historically, staff leaving UAE companies receive a substantial one-off payout from their employer, the amount increasing significantly the longer the period of service. But this “defined benefit” system can cause financial difficulties […]
Opinion Employment New UAE gratuity scheme could leave staff worse off Replacing end-of-service benefit with a defined contribution fund could cost expat workers thousands
Opinion Food & Drink Rising prices open door for Saudi Arabia to lead coffee market With its favourable topography and climate, the Arabian Peninsula has the potential to be a major producer
Analysis Food & Drink Dubai restaurants risk out-pricing customers on alcohol costs The cost of eating out in Dubai’s restaurants is rising, especially if you’re washing your meal down with an alcoholic drink. Last year, Dubai was named the third-most expensive city in the world for a half-litre of draught beer at an average of $10.89, according to price comparison website Numbeo. Qatar was number one, followed […]
Analysis Tourism Moroccan tourism startups build momentum ahead of World Cup Startup innovation and entrepreneurship are helping to fuel growth in Morocco’s tourism industry. The sector’s importance to the economy is increasing as the country prepares to co-host the Fifa World Cup in 2030. Morocco welcomed 17.4 million international tourists in 2024, a 20 percent increase on 2023, the latest data from the UN World Tourism […]
Opinion Media & Advertising What’s in a (badly spelt) brand name? Brands – and their branding and PR agencies – like to feel special
Analysis Health Tech specialists tap into Gulf’s market of the sleep deprived People in the Gulf are among the worst sleepers in the world, research has found – and that makes the region a rousing proposition for sleep-aid businesses such as the US pair Whoop and Eight Sleep. A survey of 2,727 people across the GCC, published last month, found that only half manage to sleep for […]
Opinion Leisure & Hospitality Sotheby’s first Saudi auction: a test of Gulf’s market potential The 150 lots will feature everything from Picasso to Hermès handbags, at prices up to $1.5m
Analysis Employment UAE and Kuwait companies struggling to hire staff Companies in the UAE and Kuwait are struggling to afford new staff as a result of squeezed margins, according to the latest business sentiment survey. For the third successive month, non-oil companies operating in the UAE highlighted a reduction in prices charged, with discounting used to support sales amid a highly competitive market. This was […]
Oil & Gas Opec+ hesitant on April oil hike amid US sanctions Opec+ is debating whether to raise oil output in April as planned or freeze it as its members struggle to read the global supply picture because of fresh US sanctions on Venezuela, Iran and Russia, eight Opec+ sources said. Opec+ usually confirms its supply policy one month in advance to have time to allocate crude […]
Agriculture UAE’s Aqua Bridge to build aquaculture farm in India A UAE aquaculture company linked to the ruling Al-Maktoum family of Dubai has agreed to develop an aquaculture farm and research centre in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh at an initial cost of $461 million. Aqua Bridge Group, whose chairman is Sheikh Ahmed bin Mana bin Khalifa Al-Maktoum, said the partnership project in the […]
Trade InvestSaudi to open second US office in Miami Saudi Arabia’s investment promotion authority, InvestSaudi, will establish its second office in the United States in Miami to target flows to and from North and South America. Khalid A. Al-Falih, the Saudi investment minister, made the announcement on Thursday at the Future Investment Initiative summit in the South Florida city. “By selecting Miami as our […]
Oil & Gas Brazil joins Opec+ oil producers’ group Brazil, the largest oil producer in South America, has officially joined the Opec+ group of more than 20 countries that attempts to manage global oil output. The participation formalises an initial announcement in November 2023, a statement by Opec said. Brazil’s membership will be limited to the Opec+ Charter of Cooperation, a permanent forum between […]
