Julian Nabil

The global natural gas market is set to remain under sustained pressure through at least 2027, as the Middle East conflict disrupts supply and delays new capacity, according to the latest quarterly report from the IEA.

Crude oil prices have repeatedly moved above $100 a barrel since the start of the Middle East conflict, coinciding with growing interest in electric vehicles (EVs) across key markets as consumers respond to higher fuel costs and seek lower-running alternatives.

Oil prices rose Tuesday over the $100 mark as investors assessed new signals from US–Iran talks, with lingering doubts over de-escalation keeping markets tense.

Women now hold 7% of board seats across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), according to the GCC Board Gender Index Report 2026, signaling a gradual but steady shift in corporate governance across the region, while the UAE maintains its lead in female board representation.

Nakheel, part of Dubai Holding Real Estate, has awarded contracts worth more than $953 million ( AED 3.5 billion) for the construction of new villas on Palm Jebel Ali , in line with the long-term urban expansion goals of the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan.

Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta reported strong revenue and profit growth for the first three months ended March 2026, largely driven by growing demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) services, even as their combined capital expenditures surged to over $130 billion.

Brent crude retreated from a four-year high of over $126 a barrel on Thursday, after earlier gains driven by fears of renewed escalation in the US-Iran conflict and tighter US restrictions on Iranian oil exports.

While travel demand has softened across parts of the Middle East, it has not disappeared—it has shifted. Image by Prostock-studio / Shutterstock.

Kering's shares rose more than 12% after second-quarter sales at its flagship Gucci brand exceeded market expectations, driven by strong demand for its new handbag collections in the US.

Egypt said Thursday that preliminary investigations found that a drone caused the fire that struck two vessels at Damietta Port on Wednesday.