Category: Latest Updates

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiGulf Bank has renewed its long-term strategic collaboration with Mastercard, strengthening a payments alliance aimed at expanding digital banking services, improving transaction security and responding to changing customer behaviour across Kuwait’s financial sector.The renewed agreement gives Gulf Bank continued access to Mastercard’s payment technologies, digital solutions and global expertise, with a focus on contactless payments, mobile wallet services, card security, customer convenience and data-led product development. The partnership is positioned as a platform for customer-driven innovation

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Wall Street climbed to record levels as hopes for renewed US-Iran diplomacy, a stronger-than-expected Intel forecast and reduced uncertainty around Federal Reserve succession combined to fuel a broad risk rally across US assets.S&P 500 gained nearly 1 per cent on Friday, extending its longest weekly advance since 2024 and pushing the benchmark to an all-time high. Nasdaq also advanced, helped by a powerful move in semiconductor and artificial intelligence-linked shares, while Treasury yields slipped as traders

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiGlobal gas markets face a deeper supply squeeze after the International Energy Agency estimated that conflict in the Middle East could remove about 120 billion cubic metres of liquefied natural gas from world supply between 2026 and 2030, a loss equal to roughly 15% of expected LNG availability over the period.The warning marks a sharp reversal for a market that had been preparing for a wave of new liquefaction capacity from North America, Africa and

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi’s Aldar has sold 80 per cent of the homes released at Yas Park Place, generating more than AED800 million in sales and underscoring sustained investor appetite for lifestyle-led residential communities on Yas Island. The sales result places the project among the developer’s stronger launches of 2026, at a time when Abu Dhabi’s property market is drawing deeper interest from both local buyers and overseas investors.Yas Park Place, positioned beside Yas Central Park, is being developed

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Aldar has sold 80% of the homes released in the first phase of Yas Park Place on Yas Island, generating more than AED800 million in sales and underlining the continuing pull of Abu Dhabi’s off-plan residential market at a time when demand remains strong from both domestic and overseas buyers. The project, announced on 23 April, adds another fast-moving launch to the developer’s expanding pipeline on one of the capital’s most closely watched residential and leisure corridors.The

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiRaimondi Middle East has crossed the threshold of 100 cranes in operation across the UAE, underscoring how deeply the company has embedded itself in one of the Gulf’s busiest construction markets. The 100th machine, a Raimondi LR273 luffing jib crane, has been deployed in Dubai and is the first unit of that model to be installed in the country.The milestone is more than a branding exercise. It reflects the intensity of building activity across the

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Stake has teamed up with ACE & Company to build a secondary transfer facility for fractional real estate investments in the UAE, a move aimed at tackling one of the biggest weak points in digital property ownership: liquidity. The Dubai-based platform said the arrangement is designed to give investors clearer routes to sell holdings before the eventual disposal of an underlying asset, while improving price visibility and strengthening confidence in a market that has drawn growing

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi has stepped up its push to place more Emiratis in banking, finance and insurance, with the Central Bank of the UAE saying the sector’s Emiratisation programme outperformed its 2025 target and moved beyond entry-level hiring towards strategic and specialised roles. The latest official update said the “Ethraa” programme reached 160% of its 2025 goal, building on a strong 2024 performance and tying the hiring drive to broader efforts to strengthen the country’s financial system,

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Al-Futtaim has launched a nationwide initiative called “One Family”, positioning the programme as a year-long effort to create more opportunities for families across the UAE to spend time together through shared experiences, practical support and community-focused activities aligned with the country’s Year of Family 2026. The group said the initiative will run across its retail, automotive, real estate, health, financial services and education businesses, with access centralised through its Blue lifestyle app and a dedicated “One Family”

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Washington’s suggestion that the United Arab Emirates might need outside financial support has drawn a swift rebuttal from Abu Dhabi, with the country’s envoy in the United States saying such claims misread the strength of the federation’s economy and balance sheet. The response followed remarks by President Donald Trump that a currency swap arrangement with the UAE was under consideration and that he would help if needed, comments made against the backdrop of conflict-related disruption linked

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Commodity trading houses are drawing another surge in earnings as the conflict centred on Iran tears through oil, gas and shipping markets, sending prices higher, widening regional differentials and creating the kind of volatility that large physical merchants have historically turned into outsized gains. The upheaval has hit flows through the Strait of Hormuz, jolted tanker availability, lifted insurance costs and scrambled crude quality balances, giving the biggest energy traders fresh scope to profit from arbitrage,

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Donald Trump has said Washington is considering a currency swap arrangement with the United Arab Emirates, opening the door to an extraordinary financial support mechanism as Gulf states assess the economic risks created by the war involving Iran and the disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. The remark has thrust an arcane central-banking tool into a fast-moving geopolitical crisis and underlined how quickly military confrontation can spill into liquidity, trade and currency markets.Trump’s comment came

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiDubai International Financial Centre has unveiled plans to remake itself as what it describes as the world’s first AI-native financial centre, tying the ambition to a projected $3.5 billion contribution to Dubai’s economy and the creation of 25,000 jobs as artificial intelligence is woven into regulation, operations, talent development and the district’s built environment. The move marks a step beyond the common industry approach of using AI mainly for back-office efficiency or client-facing tools, and instead

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiDubai Holding Real Estate has moved to reshape the financing model for off-plan home sales by partnering with Emirates NBD to embed mortgage solutions into purchases across projects developed by Meraas, Nakheel and Dubai Properties. The arrangement allows eligible buyers to seek mortgage pre-approval at the off-plan stage, widening access to bank finance earlier in the transaction and reducing dependence on developer-led instalment structures.The agreement is significant because off-plan sales have become one of the

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai The United Arab Emirates said it had dismantled a terrorist organisation inside the country and arrested its members over what authorities described as a covert plot to undermine national unity, infiltrate sensitive locations and prepare sabotage operations. Investigators said the group was tied to Iran’s Wilayat al-Faqih doctrine, while state-linked reporting in the UAE said officials had publicly identified 27 suspects as part of the case.Authorities said the organisation had moved beyond rhetoric and was

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiUAE officials used the World Bank Group and IMF Spring Meetings in Washington to press a broader case for stronger multilateral coordination, flexible fiscal policy and wider financial partnerships, as the gatherings unfolded against a darker global backdrop of slower growth, energy-market strain and rising uncertainty. The delegation, led by Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, said the meetings from 13 to 18 April produced concrete outcomes in bilateral and multilateral

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiPrestige One Developments has begun handing over Vista, a 140-home residential project in Dubai Sports City, marking a delivery milestone for the developer as it expands construction activity across the emirate. The handover comes as Prestige One says it has more than 20 active developments under way and about 2,500 residential units under construction, underscoring how mid-sized developers are trying to convert off-plan momentum into completed stock at a time when Dubai’s property market is balancing

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai The Integrated Transport Centre, an affiliate of Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport, has held its annual ceremony to honour strategic partners, using the event to spotlight the role of public-private collaboration in shaping the emirate’s transport ambitions. The gathering in Abu Dhabi came as the transport authority continues to widen its work with technology firms, mobility operators and infrastructure partners across road, maritime and advanced mobility projects.The ceremony was framed not simply as a recognition

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remained far from normal on Friday evening even after Tehran said the waterway was open to all merchant traffic, with ship-tracking data showing a cluster of vessels moving towards the passage before many stopped or turned back. The movements underlined the gap between Iran’s political signal and the shipping industry’s assessment of operational risk across one of the world’s most sensitive maritime chokepoints.Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai UAE equities closed higher on Friday, extending a second straight week of gains as traders responded to signs that Washington and Tehran may keep diplomatic channels open, lifting sentiment across Gulf markets and pushing Dubai to its highest level in about six weeks. Dubai outpaced Abu Dhabi, with buying concentrated in banking and property names as investors weighed the prospect of lower geopolitical risk around the Strait of Hormuz and the wider region.Dubai’s main share

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiAbu Dhabi has moved to expand lower-cost rental housing through a new partnership between the Department of Municipalities and Transport and Aldar, with the two sides planning about 9,000 value housing units across Mohamed Bin Zayed City and Baniyas in a scheme aimed at easing pressure on tenants and broadening access to professionally managed homes. The projects, announced on 17 April, sit within the government’s Value Housing Programme and carry a gross development value of AED2.8

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Oil prices fell sharply on Friday after Iran’s foreign minister said the Strait of Hormuz would remain open to commercial shipping during a ceasefire, easing immediate fears of a prolonged choke on one of the world’s most important energy routes. Brent crude and US West Texas Intermediate both tumbled by more than 11% at one stage of trading, as investors unwound risk premiums that had built up during weeks of conflict and supply disruption.The market

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiEmirates and Wesgro have signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at increasing inbound travel to Cape Town and the Western Cape, giving the province a fresh marketing and air-connectivity push at a time when South Africa’s visitor numbers have climbed above pre-pandemic levels. The agreement was formalised on 16 April on the sidelines of World Travel Market Africa in Cape Town and was signed by Afzal Parambil, Emirates’ regional manager for Southern Africa, and Wrenelle Stander,

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai has completed its first purpose-built station for electric vertical take-off and landing air taxis near Dubai International Airport, marking a tangible step in the emirate’s bid to introduce commercial aerial taxi services before the end of 2026. The four-storey facility, presented by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is designed as the main operational hub for a new urban air mobility network that officials say will connect major parts of the city in

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiAbu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan used meetings in Beijing with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang to push the UAE-China relationship deeper into energy, investment, technology and industrial cooperation, as both sides sought to align long-term economic goals with a more volatile regional backdrop. The visit, which ran from April 12 to April 14, also carried diplomatic weight as China sharpened its focus on Gulf stability and the

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Sequoia Capital has raised about $7 billion for a new fund, giving one of Silicon Valley’s best-known venture firms fresh firepower to back its largest and most expensive bets, especially in artificial intelligence, according to people familiar with the discussions. The fundraising marks the first major capital raise under the firm’s newer leadership era and arrives as investor appetite has swung sharply toward a small cluster of frontier technology companies commanding enormous valuations.The size of

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai has moved to widen the role of small and medium-sized enterprises in its property market after Dubai SME and Dubai Land Department signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at giving entrepreneurs greater access to owners’ associations and real-estate operations, as the emirate pushes ahead with a broader strategy to deepen private-sector participation in one of its strongest growth industries.The agreement, announced on 16 April, links Dubai SME, which operates under the Dubai Department of

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai has moved to protect its standing as a fast-rising hedge fund centre by giving financial firms more room to handle disruption linked to the Iran war, as market volatility, staffing strains and geopolitical risk test one of the emirate’s most carefully cultivated growth stories. The Dubai Financial Services Authority said on 9 April it would offer temporary, proportionate relief across licensing, governance, staffing, reporting and selected regulatory timelines, while keeping underlying supervisory standards unchanged.The

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Object 1 has made its first formal move into Abu Dhabi with the launch of A1LA Residence on Al Reem Island, a 171-unit residential tower that signals the developer’s intention to build a longer-term presence in the capital rather than test the market with a one-off scheme. The project, announced on Thursday, is set on one of Abu Dhabi’s busiest apartment investment corridors and comes months after the company opened its first sales gallery in the

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiParkin Company has teamed up with SP Corporation Car Parking Management, which operates as Secure Parking, in a deal aimed at speeding the spread of barrierless parking across the UAE after the two companies brought a fully integrated system into operation at City Walk in Dubai. The partners say they have identified a pipeline of more than 60,000 parking spaces for possible future collaboration, turning a single-site deployment into one of the country’s larger smart parking

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai EDGE Group and Indra Group have agreed to explore the development and production of next-generation radar systems in Brazil, extending a defence partnership that has widened from the Gulf into Europe and now Latin America. The memorandum of understanding was signed at LAAD Security 2026 in São Paulo, where both companies said the plan is intended to help build a domestic radar production base with technology transfer and skilled industrial jobs tied to Brazil’s defence sector.

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Aldar Properties has closed an AED 5 billion five-year syndicated sustainability-linked revolving credit facility, giving Abu Dhabi’s biggest listed developer a fresh layer of financial flexibility as it pushes ahead with expansion across development, investment properties and strategic capital partnerships. The senior unsecured facility, structured across conventional and Islamic tranches in dirhams and US dollars, lifts Aldar’s total available liquidity to AED 38.2 billion, including AED 13.9 billion in cash and AED 24.4 billion in undrawn committed

Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Qatar’s finance minister has warned that the world economy faces a far sharper hit from the Middle East conflict than markets have yet absorbed, saying the oil-price surge seen so far is only an early sign of wider damage that could spread through energy, food and industrial supply chains by May or June. Speaking at the IMF and World Bank spring meetings in Washington on Wednesday, Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari said the impact would reach far

Arabian Post Staff -DubaiMarine fuel sales at Fujairah fell to a record low in March as the US-Iran conflict upended shipping patterns, strained fuel supply chains and pushed vessels to avoid one of the Gulf’s most important refuelling hubs. Data cited by traders and market reports showed sales at the port dropped to 158,852 cubic metres, down more than 70 per cent from February and from the same month a year earlier, underlining how sharply activity weakened at a