The UAE real estate market entered a more measured and mature phase in the first quarter of 2026 after the rapid expansion seen in 2025, according to a market report released by Colliers. The report said the market continues to be supported by strong fundamentals and ongoing infrastructure investment, while...

Dubai, UAE -- A humanoid robot completed a half-marathon in China in a time faster than the human world record, according to state media and industry reports, highlighting rapid advances in robotics. The robot, widely referred to as “Lightning” or “Flash,” finished the 21.1-kilometer race in 50 minutes and 26...

The UAE’s foodservice sector continued to grow in 2025 and is expected to expand further through 2030, even as the global market moves into a phase of more stable and moderate growth, according to an exclusive preview of Deloitte’s Foodservice Market Monitor 2026 shared with TUTTOFOOD. The report said the...

Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB) reported a 19.4 percent rise in first-quarter net profit, supported by higher income from Islamic financing and continued growth across business segments. Net profit after tax reached 380.7 million dirhams ($103.7 million) in the three months to March 31, compared with 318.9 million dirhams in the...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR) has launched five new logistics routes designed to enhance supply chain efficiency and integrate various transport modes.These routes link Arabian Gulf ports with the Kingdom’s central and northern regions, extending to the Red Sea and northern neighboring countries. By utilizing a multimodal...

Dubai, UAE -- Dubai’s real estate transactions rose 31 percent year-on-year to 252 billion dirhams ($68.6 billion) in the first quarter of 2026, with volumes increasing 6 percent, official data showed, underscoring sustained investor confidence. Figures from the Dubai Land Department showed 718,160 real estate procedures were recorded during the...

Dubai, UAE -- Masdar and TotalEnergies have signed a binding agreement to establish a $2.2 billion 50/50 joint venture aimed at expanding onshore renewable energy across Asia. The partnership will consolidate both companies’ onshore solar, wind, and battery storage operations across nine countries: Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, the Philippines,...

National Bonds said it posted its strongest annual performance in two decades, with bondholders’ funds surpassing $4.9 billion in 2025. The company said funds rose 14% year-on-year, while returns of up to 4.45% were distributed to savers. Regular savers increased 37% compared to 2024, and corporate liquidity and treasury solutions...

Dubai, UAE -- The UAE’s real estate sector extended its upward trajectory in March, with robust project launches, steady construction activity and record-setting transactions reinforcing its position as a global investment hub. The momentum builds on a strong 2025 performance, when Dubai recorded one of its busiest years on record,...

Dubai, UAE — Dubai Chambers, in collaboration with Dubai Customs and DP World, convened a meeting with around 100 private sector companies to assess logistics challenges and explore ways to strengthen supply chain efficiency amid shifting global conditions. The session, chaired by Dubai Chambers Chairman Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori,...

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries continue to strengthen their position in global energy markets, supported by extensive natural resources, advanced infrastructure and sector expertise, according to data released by the GCC Statistical Centre. The data show that the region’s energy strategy is increasingly expanding beyond oil and gas production and...

Dubai, UAE -- Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Aramco) reported a net profit of $104.7 billion for 2025, a decline from the previous year as global oil prices and market conditions weighed on earnings. The state oil giant remains the world’s largest energy company and one of the most profitable publicly...

Saudi Arabia’s low-cost carrier flynas posted a net loss of SAR 527 million in 2025, compared with a net profit of SAR 433.5 million a year earlier, according to financial data reported by Argaam. Revenue rose 3.8 percent year-on-year to SAR 7.84 billion in 2025 from SAR 7.56 billion in...

Dubai, UAE -- Airlines has extended the suspension of flights to several Gulf destinations as regional tensions continue to affect aviation operations. The airline said flights to and from Oman, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Bahrain will remain suspended until Thursday while the situation is closely monitored. In a statement...

Some wealthy Asian investors are considering moving assets out of Dubai following Iranian missile and drone attacks on the city, raising concerns about the Gulf’s reputation as a stable financial hub, according to a report by Reuters. The report said that shortly after the attacks last week, two Indian entrepreneurs...

ABU DHABI, UAE -- The United Arab Emirates has consolidated its position as one of the world’s leading global and regional hubs in the e-commerce sector, benefiting from an integrated ecosystem that includes advanced logistics infrastructure, rapid digital transformation in government services, and a flexible regulatory environment that supports the...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-- Saudi Arabia secured a place for three hospitals in Newsweek’s list of the World’s Best Hospitals 2026 (Top 250). The achievement highlights the Kingdom’s continued progress in strengthening its healthcare system under Vision 2030. King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre ranked 153rd globally. The hospital advanced...

Will Hicks and Louise Thomas We've entered an age of personal physiology. Wearables track our heart rate, sleep and VO2 (the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during intense exercise) with astonishing precision. Yet they miss half the story. Wearables’ dashboards tell us what is happening in our...

Arar, Saudi Arabia - The proliferation of flower flies, also known as hoverflies, has been observed across several natural and urban locations in Northern Borders Region, a positive indicator of improved ecological balance and enhanced biodiversity in the area. Flower flies of the Syrphidae family play a vital role in...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues to strengthen its global leadership in open data through a comprehensive national ecosystem led by the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA). Since its establishment, SDAIA has worked to develop the regulatory framework for data and build an advanced digital ecosystem that...

Dubai, UAE -- Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation PJSC (Empower) said it has distributed AED2.575 billion in dividends to shareholders since its listing on the Dubai Financial Market in November 2022. The company said it has maintained a commitment to distribute dividends regularly twice a year following the listing. In...

The dollar still functions as the world’s primary safe haven, and in moments of acute geopolitical uncertainty, capital flows toward US assets, particularly when positioning had been stretched against it.

Dubai, UAE -- Dubai is positioning itself as a global hub for private wealth as high-net-worth individuals rethink where and how to invest amid market volatility, demographic change and shifting capital flows, according to a report released on Tuesday by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The report, Global Wealth...

Six coffee shops from the Middle East have secured places in The World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops 2026 list, highlighting the region’s growing reputation as a global specialty coffee destination. The second edition of the annual ranking, presented in partnership with DaVinci Gourmet, was announced at CoffeeFest Madrid on February...

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- The UAE Ministry of Finance said on Sunday it had launched its first-ever seven-year tranche of dirham-denominated Islamic Treasury Sukuk worth 550 million dirhams (about $150 million), marking the longest tenor issued under the program to date. The ministry, acting as issuer in collaboration with the...

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- Abu Dhabi’s real estate market recorded transactions worth a record AED 142 billion ($38.7 billion) in 2025, marking a 44 percent increase in value and a 52 percent rise in transaction volume compared with 2024, the Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre (ADREC) has said. According to...

As geopolitical turbulence grows, companies are increasingly at the mercy of forces beyond corporate leadership’s control.

Los Angeles, United States -- Jury selection begins Tuesday for a landmark trial that could establish a legal precedent on whether social media companies deliberately designed their platforms to addict children. The case being heard in a California state court in Los Angeles is being called a "bellwether" proceeding because...

Qadi, the Middle East’s first sovereign regulatory compliance platform, has partnered with Core42, a G42 company, to power its artificial intelligence infrastructure as it scales operations following a pre-seed funding round. The partnership will see Qadi run its workloads on Core42’s Sovereign Public Cloud, built on Microsoft Azure, ensuring full...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Arabia's Humain artificial intelligence company has secured up to $1.2 billion in financing to expand digital infrastructure, a statement said, as the kingdom bolsters its investment in AI. The non-binding framework agreement with Saudi Arabia's National Infrastructure Fund outlines the development of up to 250...

Abu Dhabi-based artificial intelligence group G42 on Tuesday launched what it calls a Digital Embassies framework and an operating model named Greenshield, aimed at allowing governments to deploy artificial intelligence while retaining legal authority and control over data and systems, even when infrastructure is located outside national borders. The initiative...

Ksar El Kebir, Morocco – Achraf Hakimi is an idol across Africa Cup of Nations host country Morocco, but there is a particularly strong feeling of pride in Ksar El Kebir, his mother's home town. Far from the tumult of the six Cup of Nations host cities, including Casablanca and Marrakesh,...

Tianjin, China -- Towering accordion steps and a fantastical spiral staircase greet visitors to a massive bookstore in northern China's Tianjin, where its striking interior is a bigger draw for selfie snappers than scholars. Sales of hard-copy books across the country have failed to bounce back to pre-pandemic levels, data...

Las Vegas, United States -- Toy makers at the Consumer Electronics Show were adamant about being careful to ensure that their fun creations infused with generative artificial intelligence don't turn naughty. That need was made clear by a recent Public Interest Research Groups report with alarming findings, including an AI-powered...

Paris, France -- Eating some common food preservatives is linked to a slightly higher risk of eventually developing cancer and diabetes, according to two large French studies published Thursday. However, outside experts called for more research and emphasized that these kinds of observational studies cannot demonstrate a direct cause-and-effect relationship....

Sydney, Australia -- England and Australia's cricket teams honoured at the fifth Ashes Test in Sydney on Sunday emergency service personnel and members of the public who responded during a mass shooting at Bondi Beach. The on-field guard of honour ahead of the clash was accompanied by loud applause from...

Oslo, Norway -- Norway came close to its objective of selling only zero-emission cars in 2025, with electric vehicles accounting for 95.9 percent of new registrations. Although Norway is Western Europe's largest exporter of petroleum products, it has led the shift to electric vehicles, setting a non-binding target of selling...

The Middle East and North Africa region is expected to outperform the global economy in 2026, with GDP projected to grow by 3.6% year on year compared to global growth of 3.1%

Washington, United States - Nearly 12 years after Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished with 239 people on board, the search for answers to one of aviation's most haunting riddles resumed Tuesday in the remote southern Indian Ocean. Armed with cutting-edge deep-sea robots and smarter data, US investigators are scouring the...

Tokyo, Japan -- Japanese tech investor SoftBank said Wednesday that its stake in OpenAI is now around 11 percent after completing the second stage of a $41-billion investment in the maker of ChatGPT. Having made colossal profits as well as losses on previous investments, flamboyant founder Masayoshi Son has pivoted...

Taipei, Taiwan -- Taiwanese tech titan TSMC has started mass producing its cutting-edge 2-nanometre semiconductor chips, the company said in a statement seen by AFP on Wednesday. TSMC is the world's largest contract maker of chips, used in everything from smartphones to missiles, and counts Nvidia and Apple among its...

Singapore, Singapore -- Facebook owner Meta has agreed to acquire Manus, an artificial intelligence agent created by a company founded in China but now based in Singapore, the two firms said. However, analysts warned the deal could fall foul of regulators at a time of fierce technological rivalry between Washington...

Beijing, China -- China will on January 1 launch an "action plan" for boosting management and operations of its digital currency, a deputy governor of the country's central bank said Monday. "The future digital yuan will be a modern digital payment and circulation means issued and circulated within the financial...

Dakar, Senegal -- Mining company Axis International said Monday it was seeking World Bank arbitration against Guinea for withdrawing its right to operate a major bauxite mine in the West African country. Guinea, which has been run by a junta since a coup in 2021, has cancelled dozens of licences...

Saint-Tropez, France - French film sensation Brigitte Bardot, a symbol of sexual liberation in the 1950s and 1960s who reinvented herself as an animal rights defender and embraced far-right views, died on Sunday aged 91, her foundation said. She passed away in her Saint-Tropez home, La Madrague, on the French Riviera."The...

Sofia, Bulgaria -- Ancient rock art, a patron saint and a monk will be emblazoned on euro coins from Thursday, when Bulgaria joins the single currency. The motifs are already on the lev, the currency Bulgaria adopted 1881 and which is named after an archaic word meaning "lion". Rider of...

Samawah, Iraq -- Deep in Iraq’s southern desert, bulldozers and earthmovers spread layers of moist clay over sand dunes as part of a broader effort to fight increasingly frequent sandstorms. Iraq has long suffered from sand and dust storms, but in recent years they have become more frequent and intense...

Beijing, China -- China's sprawling high-speed rail network passed 50,000 kilometers (31,000 miles) in total operating distance with the opening of a new line on Friday, state media reported. The country has the world's largest rail network -- one-fifth longer than the circumference of the earth. The trip begins in...

San Francisco, United States -- Nvidia has hired the leadership of a promising AI chip startup, a statement said Wednesday, as the artificial intelligence giant expands its tech empire. Chip maker Groq said the departure of its top executives was part of a non-exclusive licensing agreement with Nvidia for its...

London, United Kingdom -- Precious and industrial metals are surging to record highs as the year ends, driven by economic and geopolitical uncertainty, robust industrial demand and, in some cases, tight supply. Below AFP examines the reasons for the surge in demand.  Safe havens  Gold and silver are traditionally seen...