These companies help Abu Dhabi’s non-oil foreign trade to rise 34.7%, with non-oil exports up 64% and re-exports increasing 35%
Author Archives: Joy Chakravarty
All Articles
Employee
New research shows over 86% of Middle East professionals work extra hours
Robert Walters says 41% report either starting earlier or finishing later, while 45% state their hours depend on workload
DP World
DP World revenues soar 20.4% to $11.24bn for H1 despite global trade headwinds
Adjusted EBITDA up 21.4% at $3.03bn; Net profit up 68.5% to $960mn; Company on track for full-year capex target of $2.5bn
Retail
UAE retailer Union Coop’s H1 2025 net profit jumps 6.4% to $47.47 million
Total income at $315.32mn; Profit before tax at $52.28mn; Second-quarter profits grow by 13%
Oman
Omani ports record double-digit growth in ship traffic and container handling
Container and cargo handling in the ports grew 11.7%, while ship traffic increased 11.1% during the six months of 2025
Al Barsha
Dubai Municipality interacts with Al Barsha residents for development of two parks
Residents shared ideas on how the two new parks, and a central recreational space of more than 31,000sqft, should be designed
cybersecuirty
University of Dubai signs agreement with Tech Firm Technology
Parties intend to jointly promote educational programs, products, and services of both organisations in cybersecurity and digital resilience
Stocks
UnitedHealth stock soars after Buffett’s Berkshire buys 5.04mn shares
America’s largest health insurance company had fallen nearly 63% from a 52-week high of $630.73 before Friday’s surge
Alibaba Group
Saudi’s PIF sold its entire holding in Meta, Shopify, FedEx and Alibaba in Q2
Its biggest three holdings now are Uber, Lucid and Electronic Arts after paring exposure to US market to $23.8 billion
Aviation
SpaceX reportedly in advanced talks with Saudia for onboard WiFi
Bloomberg says the Musk-owned company also speaking to Emirates, flydubai and Gulf Air in a massive Middle East push
Abu Dhabi
ADNOC L&S JV in China receives first of nine VLECs in major fleet expansion
‘Gas Yongjiang’ to operate under 20-year charter contracts for the fleet, generating approximately $4bn in total revenue
Abu Dhabi
TAQA revenue grows 4.5% to $7.73bn in H1 but profitability takes a hit
Despite pressures, it continued to execute its international strategy, with new partnerships in Morocco and acquisitions in the UK and Uzbekistan
Cafu
Parkin turns Dubai’s parking spaces into ‘moment of convenience’ with CAFU tie-up
CAFU will offer on-demand fuel delivery and car wash services for vehicles parked at Parkin facilities starting Thursday, August 14
data centre
Abu Dhabi’s Zero Two invests in Singapore-based Evolution Data Centres
Zero Two will assume a co-controlling position alongside Warburg Pincus; Evolution has a significant data centre presence in Southeast Asia
Drake & Scull International
Drake and Scull reports $1.77mn net profit as H1 revenue up 57% to $21.2mn
Strong performance in wastewater and water treatment projects across key markets, including India, Tunisia, Romania, and Jordan
Abu Dhabi
Mubadala Capital reportedly partnering Cain for luxury real estate investment
Sources tell Bloomberg that the two companies have each committed new capital to the partnership
LuLu Retail
Lulu Retail H1 revenue surges 5.9% to $4.1bn, net income up by 9.1%
EBITDA for H1 up 7% at $418mn and 7.6% for Q2 at $204mn; Strong growth in the UAE and KSA, but revenue declines in Oman and flat in Qatar
Artificial intelligence
$18bn Perplexity AI makes ambitious $34.5bn offer to buy Google’s Chrome
Offer from the AI start-up comes at a time when Google could be forced to sell Chrome if it loses a monopoly ruling in US District Court
liquefied natural gas
Qatar Gas Transport seeks $1bn loan as it looks to increase fleet size
Bloomberg reports Mizuho Bank will be the sole mandated lead arranger and bookrunner of the five-year deal
Airbus
Kuwait Airways faces challenges as it waits for Airbus delivery
Airline’s 2024 plans were based on having 33 aircraft, but it was forced to operate with just 23
Abu Dhabi
ADNOC L&S defy market expectations with record-breaking Q2 and H1 numbers
Q2 revenue up 40% $1,258mn; EBITDA grows 31% to $400mn; Net profit increases 14% to $236mn; Company raises Full-Year EBITDA Guidance
delivery services
talabat revises GMV and revenue guidance by double-digit points after strong Q2
GMV grows 33% on constant currency basis for Q2 2025, while revenue is up 36%; Adjusted EBITDA rises 31% and Adjusted Net Income 25%
ACWA Power
ACWA Power-led consortium wins $4bn power project in Kuwait
It will be the largest integrated power and water plant in the country and produce over 2,700MW of energy and at least 120 MIGDs of desalinated water
pension funds
Rolls-Royce sells its UK Pension Fund in a $5.8bn deal with PIC
Said to be “another step on our journey towards simplifying Rolls-Royce”, it is the largest UK risk-transfer deal so far this year
AMD
Nvidia, AMD to pay US government 15% of advanced chips sale to China
Nvidia’s H20 and AMD’s MI308 – required for AI-related use – can now be sold; The companies had a combined sale of $23.2bn in China in FY2024
Ruler of Sharjah
Sharjah Ruler issues decree to establish the Sharjah Hospitality Group
Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi to preside over the new institution, which will develop public policies for hospitality services in Sharjah
Dana Gas
Dana Gas net profit up to $73.5mn despite lower revenue in H1 2025
Revenue lower at $170.7mn, compared to $189.5mn in H1 2024; Reports progress on KM250 expansion in KRI and first well success in Egypt
Dubai
Variable parking fee and 11,000 new spots lift Parkin revenue to a new high
Q2 2025 revenue rises 56% to $87.13mn, leading to a 41% increase in EBITDA of $51.44mn; Net profit also rises 56% to $40.4mn
district cooling business
Tabreed proposes first-ever dividend in its history as H1 revenue rises to $300mn
Record capacity growth of 41.6k RT in first six months; Proposed interim dividend of 6.5 fils per share
acquisition
Union Properties subsidiary acquires House Keeping for $27.23mn
Acquired company had revenues of $60.2mn and an EBITDA of $5.83mn for the fiscal year 2024
Abu Dhabi
Burjeel bounces back with strong Q2 numbers after March lows
Net profit jumps 128.9% to $40.3mn in Q2 and 10.6% to $50.9mn for H1; Inpatient footfall up 17.7%, outpatient by 12%
Abu Dhabi
Largest-ever fuel volumes spur ADNOC Distribution’s H1 net profit by 12%
The company records its highest H1 EBITDA of $566mn, up 10.0% YoY, on fuel sales of 7.62 billion liters, up 5.6% YoY; Guidance revised for new stations
retail industry
Six new stores boost Spinneys H1 2025 revenue growth by 13.7% to $490mn
Company experiences increase in online sales and higher penetration of fresh and private label sales as adjusted EBITDA grows 20.0%
Dubai
Emaar’s H1 2025 property sales increase by 46% to reach $12.5bn
Revenue up by 38% to $5.4bn; EBITDA grows 30% to $2.8bn; Net profit before tax up 34% to $2.8bn; Backlog increases by 62% to $39.8bn
Brookfield Asset Management
Brookfield appoints Saad Alfadly as Chairman of its KSA Board
Saad brings over 25 years of experience and will oversee Brookfield’s strategic direction and objectives in the Kingdom
Masdar
Masdar among short-listed bidders for 49% stake in another Iberdrola project
Bloomberg reports, quoting sources, that Abu Dhabi’s Masdar, Norway’s Norges Bank and Australia’s Fortescue bidding for Proyecto Julieta
Emirates
Dubai’s Emirates signs major partnership with Germany’s biggest football club
Seven-year sponsorship with Bayern Munich to provide prominent brand visibility, a dedicated Emirates Skybox and other opportunities
Artificial intelligence
Groq and Saudi’s HUMAIN announce day zero launch of OpenAI’s latest models
gpt-oss-120B and gpt-oss-20B, with full 128K context, real-time responses, and integrated server-side tools, available worldwide at low cost
Abu Dhabi
AD Ports Group expands its presence in Pakistan with new Islamabad office
Will serve as a critical platform for deepening engagement with government stakeholders and advancing priority trade initiatives
Central Bank of the UAE
Tarabut’s open finance platform secures in-principle approval from CBUAE
Becomes the first regional fintech to be licensed under Open Finance frameworks in three major Gulf economies – Saudi, Bahrain and now UAE
Boeing
More woes for Boeing as workers in fighter jets plant go on strike
Union, with 3,200 workers, rejects contract offer; demands a “contract that keeps their families secure and recognises their unmatched expertise”
bureaucracy
UAE health ministry completes second phase of adopting ‘Zero Government Bureaucracy’
The Ministry has reduced time and cost by restructuring several key services, reducing the procedures by almost 50%
DEWA
EV charging point numbers across Dubai increase to 1,270
DEWA reveals that the number of EVs in Dubai reached over 40,600 by the end of the first half of 2025
Dubai
Over a million Dubai residents to benefit from RTA’s new Umm Suqeim tunnel
It reduces travel time between Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road and Al Khail Road by 61% – from 9.7 minutes to 3.8 minutes
Dubai
Sheikh Mohammed travels from Dubai to Fujairah on Etihad Rail
Dubai Ruler calls Etihad Rail “a vital economic artery that supports the UAE’s journey to the future” and appreciates the work done by the project team
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala invests in AI open-source company Anaconda
Abu Dhabi company participates alongside Insight Partners in $150mn Series C Funding that values Anaconda at $1.5bn
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi’s IHC to invest $500mn in reinsurance premiums with RIQ
Launched earlier this year, RIQ will deliver AI-native risk transfer solutions for IHC and its group companies over 10 years
Aviation
Dubai Duty Free smashes all-time July sales record by nearly 6%
Despite DXB passenger numbers growing by 2.3% in the first 6 months, DDF’s year-to-date sales are up 5.86% to $1.29bn
Artificial intelligence
Malaysia joins the UAE and Rwanda-founded C4IR AI Fellowship Program
Agreement to expand the scope of the Fellowship Program and help bridge the gap between AI leaders around the world
branded residence
Branded real estate: Giorgio Armani to bring his magical design to branded beach villas in Ras Al Khaimah
In partnership with RAK Properties and SIE Group, the Armani Beach Residences Ras Al Khaimah will become the first Armani-branded villas in the world
Ras Al Khaimah
Ras Al Khaimah sets new H1 tourism record with 654,000 visitors
Tourism revenue up by 9%; Visitor numbers increase significantly across key source markets, and from markets with direct flight connectivity
Airport
London Heathrow submits $65bn proposal to UK government for a third runway
The new runway, which has divided opinion for many years, will add 276,000 flights a year and increase passenger capacity to 150 million
Abu Dhabi
Borouge exceeds Q2 market expectations despite massive plant turnaround
Company records net profit of $193mn for Q2 2025 against revenue of $1.31bn; Borouge 3 turnaround executed 8 days ahead of schedule
Deyaar
Deyaar’s H1 net profit before tax jumps 31.6% to $72.6mn
Total revenue up 39.2% to $252mn; Revenue from other businesses increases by 6.3% to $46.3mn