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Lifestyle and entertainment news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

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Luxury yachts in Dubai. The emirate is now home to 39 billionaires

Billionaires in UAE rise as Saudi numbers drop

The number of billionaires in the UAE increased in the last year as the amount of super-wealthy residents in neighbouring Saudi Arabia dropped.  Forty-eight billionaires lived in the UAE in 2023, with a combined wealth of $205 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7 percent. Dubai made up 39 of that total and welcomed one extra […]

In the absence of any concrete structures as yet, Neom exhibitors provided virtual reality sets to give throngs of curious visitors a sense of what The Line will look like

Leaders of The Line share vision of a brave new world

Its managers and designers say it is the human society of the future, but others might see in it a dystopian vision of life shielded in a glass box from an uninhabitable world.  Leading figures behind the Neom city The Line – the boldest of Saudi Arabia’s $1.25 trillion giga-projects – made a coordinated pitch […]

Saudi consumers are looking for non-alcoholic drinks that deliver the flavour of traditional cocktails

Saudis getting a taste for non-alcoholic drinks

The Saudi government’s drive to improve the nation’s health is boosting the food and beverage market in the most unlikely of places – zero-alcohol beer.  A report by MarkNtel Advisors shows the Gulf market is growing by 7.7 percent a year. The local and international brands vying for share include Aujan Group Holding, Anheuser-Busch InBev, […]

Sales agents taking bids at a Sotheby's auction in London. The 2025 auction will mark the opening of the company's Riyadh office

Sotheby’s pins hopes on Saudi auction launch

Sotheby’s is to open an office and stage its first auction in Saudi Arabia next year.  The new branch will be located in the Faisaliah Tower in the capital Riyadh. The auction will take place on February 8, 2025 in the Unesco World Heritage site of Diriyah.  Prior to the auction, an exhibition featuring the […]

Christie’s to open new office in Saudi Arabia

British auction house Christie’s announced last month that it had received a commercial licence to conduct sales and exhibitions in Saudi Arabia. From its new base in Riyadh it is hoping to tap into a secondary market for luxury goods and state institutions’ growing appetite for art.  The company, which has its headquarters in London, […]

Beautyworld Middle East said there had been an 8.4% increase in participation from UAE and GCC brands for this year’s Dubai event

Gaza boycotts fuel sales spike for Gulf beauty brands

Homegrown beauty brands in the Middle East are benefiting from boycotts of international companies as a result of the Israel-Gaza conflict. The cosmetics giant L’Oreal said the boycotts had a two-percentage-point drag on its growth in the first half of the year, as consumers turned their backs on the Paris-based company which also owns the […]

It is claimed that Dubai Mall is the most-visited place in the world, but mid-sized community malls are increasingly popular with the city's inhabitants

Does Dubai need more malls? The people say yes

In a city that already has more than 60 million square feet of leasable retail space, one of the highest per capita in the shopping-crazy Gulf, it is perhaps surprising to see more malls being built or added to the pipeline. Yet that is exactly what is happening in Dubai, where this week Sobha Realty […]

Dubai's plan includes increasing the amount of public transport and improving the quality of public spaces to encourage walking

Dubai begins work on ‘20-minute city’ concept

Dubai has approved a plan to support the “20-minute city” concept by developing land close to metro stations. The emirate’s executive council gave the green light to a plan to develop areas around metro stations by incentivising developers, UAE state-owned Wam news agency reported. The move will provide additional services, support the 20-minute city concept, […]

The arts centre, designed by Tom Wiscombe, will be a futuristic building that straddles rugged mountains outside Riyadh

Futuristic architect lands arts centre in Saudi’s Qiddiya

Saudi sports and entertainment city Qiddiya is to build a performing arts centre designed by leading architect Tom Wiscombe, whose futuristic building will straddle rugged mountains outside Riyadh.  The centre will include 3,000 seats spread across three theatres including an amphitheatre with views of the capital.  Qiddiya, one of the Public Investment Fund’s giga-projects, said […]

wealthy migrants UAE

Wealthy migrants to UAE boost luxuries but stir inflation

The UAE is likely to attract a new surge of ultra-rich migrants, lured by low tax rates, high-privacy settings and a luxurious lifestyle, at a time of global geopolitical upheaval and heightened anti-money laundering measures in developed countries.  But, while the wave of wealth is likely to stimulate specialised sectors of the economy, the arrivals […]

A stall holder in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. People in Istanbul faced rises in the cost of living this year, as soaring inflation impacted wages

Cairo and Istanbul feel biggest cost of living squeeze

Dubai has become the most expensive city in the Middle East for expatriate workers, while Cairo and Istanbul were among the cities that saw the biggest rise in the cost of living this year, as soaring inflation impacted wages. Dubai, the UAE’s largest city, saw rental prices rise by about a fifth in the last […]

Analysts say consumers believe that wearable technology can help improve their health and quality of life

Wearable tech shoppers track price as well as health

Gulf consumers who are interested in wearable tech – smart watches, rings, glasses and implants – are opting for mid-range gadgets rather than premium devices, industry experts have told AGBI. Dubai retailer Jumbo Electronics reported 50 percent year-on-year growth in the AED600-1,000 (about $163-$272) price segment in the first four months of 2024. The AED1,000-1,500 […]

Russians Turkey Istanbul Bridge

Russians rush from Turkey as costs and restrictions bite

Rising costs, increased difficulties in obtaining residency permits and tighter enforcement of restrictions on the number of foreign nationals who can live in popular regions are prompting an exodus of Russian citizens from Turkey.  The number of Russian nationals holding Turkish residence permits has plunged to just over 96,000 as of May 16, down from […]

Mads Bo Larsen, vice-president of Novo Nordisk UAE, says a local plant 'will not solve anything' in the face of the country's Ozempic shortage Video length: 3:39

UAE diabetics face Ozempic shortage due to weight-loss users

The manufacturer of Ozempic is “troubled” by the fact the drug, which was designed to help people with diabetes, is in short supply in the UAE because of the high number of consumers using it for its weight loss side-effects. Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk introduced Wegovy, a drug meant to specifically tackle obesity, to […]

The UAE has bucked the trend of working-from-home that emerged in the pandemic

UAE offices in demand – in contrast to the West

Offices in the UAE are outperforming Western equivalents, with a steady influx of foreign businesses and local developers’ preference for residential projects. “The need for more Grade A office space is becoming increasingly urgent,” Behnam Bargh, managing director at real estate agency CRC, told AGBI. “Addressing this issue will be crucial for maintaining the country’s […]

Marina Storti, CEO of WTA Ventures, front right, and Kevin Foster, head of communications at PIF, front left, at the signing of the sponsorship agreement between the two

PIF to sponsor women’s world tennis rankings

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is giving its name to the women’s world tennis rankings, the latest sponsorship deal in the kingdom’s drive to dominate global sports.  “The PIF WTA Rankings will track players’ journeys, and PIF will work with the WTA to celebrate and support players’ progress,” PIF said, calling the deal “multi-year”.  […]