UAE travel specialist musafir.com highlights UAE National Day 2024 holiday booking trends
Industries
Riyadh
Saudi Arabia spending $800m on Riyadh road projects
Saudi Arabia’s Roads General Authority is investing heavily in maintaining Riyadh’s road network
Sharjah real estate
Sharjah real estate boom sees transactions hit $7.6bn and volume up 47% in 9 months
Sharjah real estate transactions are climbing, with more than $7.5bn in the year to the end of September
RAK Properties
Ras Al Khaimah real estate: RAK Properties releases final phase of Quattro Del Mar
RAK Properties releases final phase of Quattro Del Mar in Ras Al Khaimah
insurance
Saudi authorities launch first coastal tourism insurance product
Saudi Arabia announces coastal insurance in effort to boost tourism
Binghatti
Dubai real estate: Binghatti sells out 50% of $1.4bn Skyrise development in 24 hours
Binghatti Skyrise development sells 50 percent of units within 24 hours of launch
Japan
Saudi Arabia’s PIF signs $51bn of deals with Japanese financiers
PIF signs $51bn of deals as Saudi Arabia and Japan strengthen ties
Amazon
Gig economy in Dubai: Emirates, Amazon, Careem and GEMS Education team up to support Sandbox initiative
Leading companies in Dubai collaborate on Gig Economy Sandbox initiative to develop emerging sector
Driven Properties
Dubai real estate: Property giant secures $70mn Canal Front acquisition
The purchase brings the Dubai firm’s total investment in the Canal district to AED9 billion, encompassing existing and planned developments
Aviation
Boeing ups contract offer to striking workers to 38% hike over 4 years
New contract endorsed by the union, but workers to vote on Monday as hopes rise of an end to 7-week standoff
Apple
Apple sees record sales in India in July-Sept quarter; to open 4 more stores
The quarter ending September saw Apple’s revenue from iPhone grow in almost every geographic segment worldwide, including the UAE
Alphabet
OpenAI adds new search function to ChatGPT in challenge to Google
OpenAI collaborated extensively with the news industry and gathered feedback from its partners regarding the search function
Crypto-mining
UAE tech major Phoenix Group posts 148% jump in assets to $978mn in 9 months of 2024
The company also announced a core revenue of $35.9 million and investment income of $68.5 million in Q3 this year
Crypto.com
Crypto.com, Beyon Money sign MoU to enhance payments and transaction services in Bahrain
The agreement envisages seeking joint innovation opportunities in artificial intelligence and open banking
AI adoption
Google launches AI Opportunity Initiative for MENA, investing $15mn by 2027
The new initiative aims to empower half a million individuals within two years with critical AI skills
Dubai real estate market
Dubai startup debuts walk-through blueprint tech for real estate, eyes NEOM, Red Sea megaprojects in Saudi push
The company’s strategic entry into the Middle East comes through a partnership between Calas and two prominent regional investors from the UAE and Saudi Arabia
dubai salik gates
Dubai announces opening two new Salik toll gates to ease traffic
The new toll gates will be located at Business Bay Crossing and Al Safa South on Dubai’s Sheikh Zayed Road, and will be operational from November 24, 2024