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Intelligence for the New World Economy

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Intelligence for the New World Economy
Semafor World Economy
Manal Albarakati

Manal Albarakati

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Emirates posts record profits for third consecutive year

The airline is the world’s most profitable carrier, despite the Iran war effectively shutting down its home airport at the end of the reporting period.
An Emirates plane sits on the tarmac at Los Angeles International Airport.Daniel Cole/Reuters

Aramco’s archival footage shows first ever Saudi oil shipment

The footage shows Saudi Arabia’s founding father King Abdulaziz turning the valve of a tanker, enabling the first shipment of Saudi oil to leave on May 1, 1939.
Archive photo of the DG Scofield tanker leaving Ras Tanura in 1939.saudi_aramco/X

Gulf construction boom pauses amid Iran war

The Gulf’s construction market was worth $175 billion in 2025, built on gigaprojects and other oil-funded diversification plans.
Start of construction of Jeddah Tower in Jeddah.Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters

Saudi Arabia brings medieval cartography, and Yoko Ono, to Venice

Thirteenth-century maps, first-century incense burners, and new commissions from Yoko Ono and Wael Shawky are coming together in Saudi’s Venice exhibition.
Photo of a page from the Pearl of Wonders and the Unique Marvels, 1576–1577.Courtesy of the Saudi Ministry of Culture

Abu Dhabi saw prewar property boom with best-ever first quarter

Sales in the first three months of 2026 were almost half of the total figure for 2025, according to the sector’s regulator ADREC.
Abu Dhabi’s skyline.Staff/Reuters

Dubai bets on more artificial coastline

A new beachfront development will add 90 kilometers of coast to the city, with 544 new villas to be completed by 2028.
The Palm Jebel Ali under construction in 2010. Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters.

Gulf luxury hotels chase residents as tourists stay away

The most exclusive properties are offering residents deals that would have been unthinkable six months ago.

Saudi researchers turn date pits into artificial bones

The pits share enough in common with human bone — in terms of calcium, structure, and density — that they could be used in fracture repair.

Bahrain bets on AI to boost oil output

State oil company Bapco tapped SLB and US AI startup Geminus to increase production.

Abu Dhabi’s international airport opens stores to non-travelers

UAE residents can now register online, collect a digital QR code at the door, and spend up to four hours shopping at the airport.

A Saudi oil magazine is publishing some of the best writing about the Islamic world

Aramco has been contributing some of the most unexpected stories about the Islamic world, says the Paris Review.

Gulf countries push nationals to take private sector jobs

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have intensified efforts to move their citizens into the private sector.

Dubai emergency kit sales soar on war fears

The startup Trooper sells a 75-item box equipped with water pouches, meal bars, and a hand-crank radio, designed to sustain a family of four for 72 hours.

Dubai’s property market starts to crack

Property sales slowed and hotel occupancy collapsed as the war stalls Dubai’s real estate boom.

Civilian toll mounts in Iran as war presses on

There have been twice as many US and Israeli attacks on Iran compared to the number of Iranian retaliatory strikes since the war began.

Riyadh evacuates main business hub over Iran threat

Businesses have been told not to send employees into work at King Abdullah Financial Center.

Bad timing for posh Iranian cuisine in Riyadh

Berenjak, a buzzy Iranian restaurant that started in London before expanding abroad, opens a permanent location in Riyadh today, but the mood is dour.

Ratings agencies warn of impact of Iran war

Fitch said it could downgrade Qatar’s rating, citing the risk of further damage to the country’s gas facilities.