Author: Dr Issac PJ

The Indian rupee’s steady weakening is pushing the UAE dirham closer to the psychologically important Rs25 mark, raising expectations of stronger remittance inflows from the Gulf and giving expatriate workers a timely exchange-rate boost.With the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) signalling it will not defend any specific currency level and markets forecasting further rupee depreciation, traders increasingly see downside pressure as difficult to avoid in the near term.At current levels, the shift is already working in favour of overseas earners. With the rupee trading around 90.87 to the dollar, the UAE dirham — pegged at roughly 3.6725 to the greenback —…

Gold is charging into 2026 with unprecedented momentum, fuelling growing conviction across global markets that the precious metal is on the cusp of breaking decisively above the psychologically powerful $5,000-an-ounce mark.After delivering a stunning 64 per cent gain last year and adding more than 6 per cent in the first two weeks of the new year alone, bullion has transformed from a traditional defensive hedge into the centrepiece of a new “real assets” supercycle driven by geopolitical risk, monetary easing, relentless central bank buying and a structural shift in portfolio allocation.Standard Chartered has emerged as one of the most influential…

The UAE banking sector is poised to remain one of the most profitable and resilient in the region in 2026, even as interest margins begin to normalise following several years of exceptional performance, according to a new outlook from S&P Global Ratings.S&P expects the financial profiles of UAE banks to remain broadly stable next year, underpinned by solid economic growth, strong credit expansion, benign asset quality trends and ample liquidity. While profitability is likely to ease modestly from the peak levels recorded between 2023 and 2025, the rating agency believes earnings will remain structurally sound and well above pre-pandemic averages.“The…

The UAE is sharpening its lead as the Gulf’s most mature and globally connected startup hub, with strong deal flow, rising exits and deeper international investor participation reinforcing its central role in regional venture capital, according to new data from MAGNiTT.While Saudi Arabia delivered the fastest growth in funding volumes in 2025, the UAE continued to anchor the Middle East’s venture ecosystem through consistency, liquidity and breadth. UAE-based startups recorded 231 venture deals during the year, keeping the country among the region’s most active markets and underlining its ability to attract capital even as global investors became more selective.Saudi Arabia…

GFH Partners Manrre REIT and Palmon Group have opened an $11 million specialised chemical storage facility at Jebel Ali Free Zone, strengthening Dubai’s role as a regional hub for regulated logistics.The facility, located within Jebel Ali Free Zone, spans 112,000 sq ft on a 180,000 sq ft plot and adds a mission-critical, Grade A asset to the portfolio of Manrre REIT, which is managed by GFH Partners.   The warehouse was inaugurated by Abdulla bin Damithan, CEO and managing director of DP World GCC, alongside senior officials from Jafza, GFH Partners and Palmon Group.Designed to meet stringent international safety and compliance…

With global equity valuations stretched by the artificial intelligence boom, Gulf sovereign and institutional investors are increasingly acting as the market’s shock absorbers, sustaining AI-driven valuations and private deal activity through long-term, patient capital, according to Standard Chartered’s Global Market Outlook 2026.The bank’s Wealth Solutions Chief Investment Office argues that while investor unease over a potential AI-led equity bubble is understandable, today’s market conditions differ sharply from the leverage-fuelled excesses that preceded the 2008 global financial crisis. Instead, the closer historical parallel is the late-1990s dot-com cycle, albeit with two decisive differences: the sheer scale of capital being deployed into…

After a year of subdued listings, the UAE is shaping up as the focal point of a GCC IPO revival in 2026, with a strong pipeline of large, diversified offerings expected to restore depth and confidence to regional equity markets, according to a new report by Kamco Invest.Market attention is already shifting firmly towards the UAE after a disappointing 2025, when IPO activity across the GCC slipped to a four-year low. The region saw just 42 listings during the year, while total proceeds fell to $5.8 billion, the weakest showing in five years and almost 55 per cent lower than…

The UAE’s transition to a digital-first payments economy is gathering pace, with mobile and card-based transactions now firmly dominating everyday spending, while cash continues to retreat into a shrinking set of niche uses, according to new research by Visa.Visa’s third Where Cash Hides report shows that 68 per cent of consumers in the UAE are now largely non-cash users, making most of their payments through cards or mobile devices. That marks a seven-percentage-point increase from last year and underscores the speed at which digital payment habits are becoming embedded across the country.Overall, eight in ten payments, or 80 per cent,…

The Middle East and North Africa’s sustainable finance market has moved from a niche sovereign-driven space into a bank-anchored, multi-sector capital engine led overwhelmingly by the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as issuance climbed to $35.1 billion in 2025 despite a challenging global funding environment.According to Bloomberg Intelligence, the region’s sustainable finance volumes have expanded sevenfold since 2020, underlining how climate-linked capital has become structurally embedded in Gulf financial systems even as worldwide green bond issuance cooled amid higher interest rates and risk-off investor sentiment.The report shows that while total issuance in 2025 was 18 per cent below the record set…

Dubai’s real estate market is entering a new phase where wellness, sustainability and quality of life are shaping buying decisions just as much as prestige or returns.As global investors and end-users become more discerning, low-density neighbourhoods with green spaces, walkable layouts and community-focused planning are emerging as the true drivers of long-term value.Data from the Dubai Land Department underlines the strength of the market. In the first half of 2025, Dubai attracted around 94,700 investors, representing a 26 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. These investors completed more than 91,000 residential transactions valued at Dh262.1 billion,…