The four largest banking markets in the GCC -- UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar — are expected to 'nearly approximate' pre-pandemic profitability ranks by the end of 2022.

Dubai, UAE—  The economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council will likely receive a boost from the FIFA 2022 World Cup, as more than 1.2 million fans are expected to attend the event. According to a survey conducted by S&P Ratings, the influx of football fans from around the world will...

Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, points out that since the Ukrainian crisis, an important part of energy supplies to the EU has been coming from the Gulf countries, including the UAE. “This has changed the energy landscape of Europe,” he says.

Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media platforms have reportedly blocked campaigns aimed at influencing opinion in Central Asia and the Middle East.

The Gulf region’s loan-to-deposit ratio fell by 160 basis points in the second quarter of 2022, due to higher customer deposits.

GCC, which has been investing heavily in Asia with an eye on protecting its petrochemicals and oil exports, is engaging in growth industries like fintech and logistics.

Sixteen member countries of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue that send and receive laborers discuss problems and welfare of the workers during high-level meetings in the UAE.

Several factors are at play when it comes to strengthening relations between GCC and Asian countries. TRENDS looks at all of them and gives them a perspective.

Despite soaring inflation and murky economic prospects worldwide, the IMF maintained its projection of 5.0 percent growth for the region in 2022, dropping to 3.6 percent in 2023. But the figures, although higher than elsewhere in the world, don't reflect the region's "challenges", Middle East and Central Asia director Jihad...

More Saudi businesses embrace engagement technologies to boost customer experience, increase RoI and enhance productivity, says Unifonic VP & MD Ibrahim A Almohaimede.

The secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council condemned remarks by Germany's interior minister on the World Cup due to be hosted in Doha. Qatar summoned Germany's ambassador to protest against comments made by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser casting doubt on whether the Gulf state should host the football World...

Abu Dhabi, UAE— The UAE Ministry of Finance announced amendments to some provisions of the Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017 on Value Added Tax (VAT), which will be effective from 1st January, 2023. The amendments were made are in line with international best practice in light of the GCC...

As the US is apparently pulling away from the Middle East, the cooperation between the Gulf and Asian regions is taking place in areas such as the new energy, artificial intelligence, and industrial diversification.

With an estimated 209 million people making purchases online at the height of the pandemic, e-commerce in the MENA area has grown faster than anywhere else.

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - The sixth round of revived negotiations between the Riyadh-based Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Republic of Korea to reach a free trade agreement was launched in the South Korean capital of Seoul Tuesday and lasts until October 28. The two sides expressed readiness to advance...

Following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, many experts believe that Washington is shifting its attention and resources to the "priority theatre" of the Indo-Pacific. But as the world recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, the GCC countries are expected to play a more significant role in the ongoing Asianization of the global...

SEOUL, S. KOREA - South Korea and a group of Arab countries will hold another round of negotiations for their free trade deal next week, Seoul's trade ministry said Sunday. South Korea and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will begin the sixth round of official talks for a bilateral free...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—The GCC has unveiled the Gulf Center for Disease Prevention and Control in Riyadh to enable the prevention of diseases, mitigate public health emergencies, and promote healthy communities across the Gulf. The GCC health ministers and GCC Secretary-General Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf were present at the event. The ministers...

Traditionally, GCC trade was focused on the West. However, now it is moving to the East. This eastward shift is not too surprising given the continuing travails of many developed Western economies. With the sluggish recovery from the financial crisis in the EU and the US, Gulf economies have had...

Beyond oil and gas, Gulf companies have made some strategic investments in sectors with strong potential for growth, including fintech, e-commerce and logistics. For example, in 2020, Saudi fintech startup Tamara established operations in Vietnam, and the UAE's B2B e-commerce provider Distichain set up a base in Singapore.

Nearly 32 percent of respondents to a TRENDS poll saw metaverse as a good investment for GCC businesses, as two biggest economies in the region invest heavily in this sector.

The Gulf countries rely heavily on assistance from Asia, particularly China, to modernise their economies and diversify away from oil.

Chemical companies in the Gulf region are likely to cope relatively well with the current stresses of rising rates and higher energy costs, says a recent report.

Most of the respondents in the poll feel that GCC will weather the gathering economic storm and come out unscathed, a view corroborated by the IMF and the World Bank.

Here are the details of how GCC countries gained in past four years in terms of foreign assets held by each of the central banks of the region post-pandemic.

Current trends in the automotive sector such as zero-emission vehicles and carbon-neutral manufacturing demonstrate the growing importance of sustainability, says a key BMW Group Middle East official.

It is unusual for a woman to rise to the top, and in the conservative Arab monarchies of the Gulf, Reyadh's position is astounding.

High oil prices drove equities up on both the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange and the Dubai Financial Market, but Saudi equities did not follow the trend, remaining subdued toward the close of the week.

It becomes first Saudi firm to enter plasma products' field in GCC region.

It will take $60-85 billion for the GCC to put in place a modern recycling system for waste management, according to a study carried out by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

The world's richest countries have the highest happiness scores, which probably explains why Lebanon, facing its worst-ever economic crisis, ranks low in the MENA region.

At the end of her two-day visit to Saudi Arabia, she hailed the kingdom's strong “economic performance and impressive progress in implementing their Vision 2030 reform agenda, notably the doubling of the share of women in the labor force in just four years”.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has renewed its commitment to continue having a strong partnership with China in order to serve common interests.

Saudi Arabia hosted a meeting of the GCC Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee to broaden economic cooperation among the GCC countries.

With the rise in demand for low-carbon investments, investors issued $517 billion in green bonds last year, a 50 percent increase over 2020.

GCC markets had a mixed week as Saudi stocks powered by the banking and commodities retail sectors posted gains, while the UAE stocks tanked, ending the weeks with losses.

A TRENDS poll on Twitter revealed that 43.9 percent of voters preferred real estate, followed by technology at 37.4 percent.

Major events such as Qatar World Cup 2022, Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, etc. will give Gulf tourism a boost in the last quarter of this year, according to a latest report.

Earnings of many Gulf banks may hit nearly pre-pandemic levels by the year end, owing to high oil prices and rising interest rates that will support their creditworthiness.

NEW YORK, US - UAE foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed enhancing the prospects of women empowerment and gender equality with Sima Bahous, chief of UN Women. The two met at the Permanent Mission of the UAE to the United Nations in New York during the 77th...

The UAE delegation attended the fifth day of high-level meetings on the sidelines of the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Taking a cue from Federal Reserve, GCC central banks have raised interest rates, tracking a hike in the US Fed's benchmark rate. The US central bank announced its third consecutive interest rate increase of 0.75 percentage point, continuing the forceful action to tamp down inflation that has surged to the...

Hotels in Dubai are reporting an increase in room bookings ahead of the Qatar World Cup 2022, with many expecting to be fully booked during the international football event.

India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretariat on the "mechanism of consultations" between the two sides.

Iran is keen to broaden its relations with the UAE, six years after the diplomatic tussle between Iran and other Gulf states saw minimal diplomatic interactions. Iranian Foreign Minister was speaking while welcoming the new Emirati ambassador back to Tehran.

Abdulmohsen bin Khuthaila in his speech on the sidelines of an official debate on human rights in Geneva, said that the GCC backs all open and effective dialogue in Sri Lanka

Rising oil prices, which have proved to be a windfall for governments and companies in the upstream sector, has strengthened balance sheets of the region's banking sector.

Qatar’s private sector exports during the second quarter of 2022 amounted to QAR 8.92 billion ($2.44 billion), a 21 percent growth on annual basis compared to QAR 7.73 billion in Q2-2021, said Qatar Chamber in its quarterly report. On a quarterly basis, it also surged 15.4 percent compared to QR...

The Gulf countries assist loan defaulters by delaying payments or exempting those who can't pay to save emerging companies and prevent their accumulation of financial burdens.

The FIFA World Cup, which is likely to boost tourism across GCC, is all set to increase revenues for Gulf airlines, hotel and restaurant industries and domestic transportation.