Can Strategic Analytics Drive Dubai Corporate Growth?

El Houni asked the speakers to share what keeps them "on-point" at work and what suggestions they have for the audience. Hamad Al Hajri, CEO and Founder of Snoonu said it was "important to develop limits" in between work and individual life and take short holidays to "detach" from the workplace.

Karim Benkirane, CCO of Du, stated: "If you make the individuals you work with happy, you will make the client pleased, who will then make the investors pleased."Ambareen Musa, CEO for Revolut GCC, said the capability to "not stress" is the crucial to finding a service for problems.

This week, we're convening more than 3000 meetings between financiers and 119 Gulf-listed business with a combined worth of $2.4 trillion at the HSBC GCC Exchanges Conference 2026, in London. We're uniting investors, companies, exchanges, and policymakers to discuss what is altering in the area, and what comes next, including the expansion and continuous development of the Gulf's capital markets, and the area's growing function in worldwide networks of capital and trade.

Saudi Arabia and UAE are poised to lead the Gulf area's economic expansion in 2026, supported by strong private-sector performance, durable domestic need and renewed investment momentum, according to the current ICAEW Economic Insight Q4 2025 report, produced by Oxford Economics. The GCC is anticipated to outshine most global areas peers next year, with regional GDP forecast to grow by 4.4%. Across the GCC, non-energy activity is forecasted to expand by 4.1% in 2026, driven by strong labour markets, improving credit conditions and rising financial investment in technology and AI-related facilities.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Industrial Excellence: a Key Driver for Regional Growth

Oil profits will be under pressure in the first half of 2026, production is anticipated to rise again in the second half of 2026, supporting the area's medium-term outlook, it stated. Saudi Arabia will remain a significant contributor to GCC momentum, with GDP projection to grow 4.3% in 2026.

Growth will be supported by industrial growth and policy reforms, consisting of reduced foreign ownership rules that aim to promote more financial investment. The fiscal deficit is predicted to expand to 5.6% of GDP next year in the middle of softer oil costs, while the recent five-year rent freeze in Riyadh aims to reduce inflationary pressures, though it may constrain future housing supply.

Strong domestic fundamentalsThe UAE is also positioned for another strong year of efficiency, with GDP projection to rise 5.6% in 2026 as non-oil sectors continue to broaden. Tourism, trade and financial services stay essential growth chauffeurs, supported by population development and sustained domestic demand. Dubai's economy grew 4.4% in the very first half of 2025, showing broad-based non-oil strength.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Oil production is anticipated to get again in the second half of 2026, matching continuous financial investment in infrastructure, innovation and global trade collaborations. Hanadi Khalife, the Head of Middle East, ICAEW, said: "This quarter's outlook enhances how far the GCC has actually can be found in structure varied, resistant and internationally competitive economies.

Scott Livermore, ICAEW Economic Consultant, and Chief Financial Expert and Handling Director, Oxford Economics Middle East, said: "Saudi Arabia and the UAE are going into 2026 with strong structures. Saudi non-oil activity is getting rate, supported by robust demand and increasing investment, even as fiscal pressures increase.""The UAE continues to gain from solid domestic fundamentals, a sharp uplift in government spending and sustained diversification efforts.

How to Scale Regional Operations in 2026

GCC nations are rotating towards a technique of 'resilience over expansion' getting in 2026, as the area prepares for a worldwide landscape defined by softer oil rates, geopolitical fragmentation, and the fast transition to an AI-enabled economy. According to a new regional outlook by PwC, the GCC is transferring to insulate its development from external shocks by deepening international trade integration, securing industrial supply chains, and carrying out a definitive shift from technology aspiration to functional application.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Settlements totally free Trade Arrangements with China, the EU, and Japan are advancing, while talks with the UK have entered final drafting phases. The region is increasingly placing itself as a main hub for east-west trade through the IndiaMiddle EastEurope Economic Passage (IMEC). To support domestic manufacturing, protecting important minerals has become a tactical top priority.