Dubai moves from importing innovation to exporting it, says Future Solutions Head
Dubai’s innovation ecosystem is entering a new phase, argues Amer Abdulraoof, Head of Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity,...
Interview
GCC agriculture sectors post strong 2024 performance
Muscat, Oman -- Gulf Cooperation Council countries recorded strong performance in agriculture, livestock and fisheries during 2024, reflecting the growing...
Economy
Economy
OPEC+ countries to open the oil taps despite price slump
Saudi Arabia, along with Russia and six other members of the oil cartel, will implement a production adjustment of 411,000...
- Saudi Arabia, along with Russia and six other members of the oil cartel, will implement a production adjustment of 411,000 barrels a day out of the ground
- Numbering a total of 22 countries, most of which are highly dependent on oil, the OPEC group had until recently been exploiting supply scarcity to boost prices
Economy
Trump’s next 100 days: Now comes the hard part
In a dizzying first three months, Trump wielded executive power like no other modern president, signing more than 140 orders...
- The job gets trickier now for the self-styled dealmaker-in-chief, who must corral fractious Republicans on Capitol Hill to anchor his domestic policies in legislation
- Trump's political capital will be put to the test as he aims to shepherd his sprawling agenda on tax, border security and energy production through the House and Senate
Economy
Massive GCC infrastructure investments set stage for rising foreign equity: Franklin Templeton
The Franklin Templeton Emerging Markets Equity outlook emphasizes how GCC countries have reduced their dependence on oil and gas, opened...
- The FTEME outlook emphasizes how GCC countries have reduced their dependence on oil and gas, opened their capital markets, and diversified their economies
- The report highlights a striking decline in the equity risk premium (ERP) in the GCC — from 6.6% in 2016 to 2.4% by March 2025
Economy
Apple expects $900 million hit from tariff war
Apple on Thursday reported first-quarter profit above expectations but warned that US tariffs could cost the company and were disrupting...
- Cook said he expected "a majority of iPhones sold in the US will have India as their country of origin."
- Tit-for-tat exchanges have seen hefty US levies imposed on China, with Beijing setting retaliatory barriers on US imports
Economy
Slower growth expected in MENA region in 2025: IMF
"Growth is still projected to increase in 2025 and 2026, but at a considerably slower pace than anticipated last October,"...
- The lender lowered growth projections from 4 percent to 2.6 percent for 2025, and from 4.2 percent to 3.4 percent for 2026.
- In 2024, average growth in the region slowed to 1.8 percent -- from 2.1 percent the year before -- due to "ongoing conflicts and extended voluntary oil production cuts".
Economy
US reaching out to China for tariff talks: Beijing state media
United States officials have reached out to their Chinese counterparts for talks on vast tariffs that have hammered markets and...
- Punishing US tariffs that have reached 145 percent on many Chinese products came into force in April, while Beijing has responded with fresh 125 percent duties on US imports
- Beijing has vehemently denied any talks are taking place while repeatedly urging the United States to engage in dialogue in a "fair, respectful and reciprocal" manner
Economy
Global stocks mostly rise as Trump grants auto tariff relief
Stocks moved sideways on Monday after notching four straight positive sessions last week as Trump adopted a more conciliatory posture...
- Trump's pivot includes limitations on the impact of multiple tariffs on carmakers and a measure to allow carmakers to offset a portion of the levy for two years
- Investors are "encouraged by the Trump decision to be a little more flexible (...) with the autos," said CFRA Research's Sam Stovall, who predicted stocks could go higher
Geostrategy
Saudi Arabia and Qatar to settle Syria’s World Bank debt
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Arabia and Qatar announced on Sunday that they would settle Syria's debt to the World...
- Both Gulf states have played a key role in the diplomatic outreach to Syria's new rulers since the ouster of longtime strongman Bashar al-Assad in December.
- The statement came just days after Syria's central bank governor and finance minister attended the IMF and World Bank spring meetings for the first time in more than 20 years.
Business
Trump trade war pushes firms to consider stockpiling
Even if they don't all acknowledge it so openly, firms in many different sectors are stockpiling their products in the United...
- Whether it's the luxury, electronics or pharmaceutical sectors, US President Donald Trump's unpredictability complicates the calculations of firms.
- Some companies didn't wait for Trump's April 2 announcement of massive "reciprocal" trade tariffs: they had already begun shipping more of their goods to the United States.
Economy
Tariff war: Xi says China must ‘overcome’ AI chip challenges
Beijing, China - President Xi Jinping said China must "overcome" the challenges of developing core AI technologies including high-end chips,...
- China aims to dominate the artificial intelligence sector, a goal complicated by the trade standoff with Washington
- Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI models have proliferated in the United States and China
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Dubai moves from importing innovation to exporting it, says Future Solutions Head
Dubai’s innovation ecosystem is entering a new phase, argues Amer Abdulraoof, Head of Dubai Future Solutions – Prototypes for Humanity,...
Interview
Company News
Latest News
Backed by its sovereign wealth fund, Saudi chases AI ambitions with homegrown firm pitched to global investors
The company, launched in May, is bankrolled by Saudi's powerful Public Investment Fund, which has played a key role in...
Economy
Steady and sensible, Oman builds its future brick by brick amid the Gulf’s glittering rush
With volatile geopolitics and the resulting uncertainty, the year 2025 has been challenging for most of the countries across the...
Economy
US Fed will likely cut again despite economic murkiness from shutdown
The central bank's second-to-last rate meeting of the year is taking place against the backdrop of a weeks-long standoff between...
Economy
Most Read
Science
Gartner lists 2026’s defining tech: Faster AI, safer clouds, and smarter security
AI supercomputing platforms integrate CPUs, GPUs, AI ASICs, neuromorphic and alternative computing paradigms, enabling organizations to orchestrate complex workloads while...
- AI supercomputing platforms integrate CPUs, GPUs, AI ASICs, neuromorphic and alternative computing paradigms, enabling organizations to orchestrate complex workloads
- By 2028, Gartner predicts that over 40% of leading enterprises will have adopted hybrid computing paradigm architectures into critical business workflows, up from the current 8%
Economy
China vows massive high-tech sector development in next decade
Beijing, China -- China will develop its high-tech sector on a massive scale in the next decade, top officials vowed...
- The country has poured support and investment into developing its science and technology sectors, part of ongoing efforts to present itself as a world leader in those areas.
- Domestically, China has been beset by sluggish spending, a protracted property sector crisis and a demographic crunch as its population starts to decline.
Science
Anthropic announces massive AI chip deal with Google
San Francisco, United States - Artificial intelligence giant Anthropic said Thursday it was expanding its use of Google cloud computing...
- The arrangement will include Anthropic buying as many as one million Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), which are integrated circuits custom-designed by Google
- The expansion promises to let Anthropic bring more than a gigawatt of new computing power online by the end of 2026, enabling it to meet "exponentially growing demand."