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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 "crucial to develop boundaries" in between work and individual life and take short vacations to "detach" from the workplace.
Karim Benkirane, CCO of Du, said: "If you make the people you work with delighted, you will make the customer delighted, who will then make the investors happy."Ambareen Musa, CEO for Revolut GCC, stated the capability to "not worry" is the essential to finding a service for problems.
Today, we're assembling more than 3000 meetings in between financiers and 119 Gulf-listed companies with a combined worth of $2.4 trillion at the HSBC GCC Exchanges Conference 2026, in London. We're combining investors, business, exchanges, and policymakers to discuss what is altering in the area, and what follows, including the expansion and continuous development of the Gulf's capital markets, and the region's growing role in worldwide networks of capital and trade.
Saudi Arabia and UAE are poised to lead the Gulf area's financial growth in 2026, supported by strong private-sector performance, resistant domestic need and restored investment momentum, according to the current ICAEW Economic Insight Q4 2025 report, produced by Oxford Economics. The GCC is anticipated to outshine most global regions peers next year, with local GDP forecast to grow by 4.4%. Throughout the GCC, non-energy activity is projected to broaden by 4.1% in 2026, driven by strong labour markets, enhancing credit conditions and rising financial investment in technology and AI-related infrastructure.
Although oil incomes will be under pressure in the very first half of 2026, production is expected to increase again in the 2nd half of 2026, supporting the region's medium-term outlook, it stated. Saudi Arabia will stay a significant contributor to GCC momentum, with GDP forecast to grow 4.3% in 2026.
Growth will be supported by industrial expansion and policy reforms, consisting of relieved foreign ownership rules that aim to promote additional financial investment. The financial deficit is predicted to widen to 5.6% of GDP next year in the middle of softer oil prices, while the current five-year lease freeze in Riyadh aims to relieve inflationary pressures, though it might constrain future housing supply.
Strong domestic fundamentalsThe UAE is likewise placed for another strong year of efficiency, with GDP projection to increase 5.6% in 2026 as non-oil sectors continue to broaden. Tourist, trade and monetary services remain essential development chauffeurs, supported by population growth and sustained domestic demand. Dubai's economy grew 4.4% in the very first half of 2025, reflecting broad-based non-oil strength.
Oil production is expected to pick up again in the 2nd half of 2026, complementing continuous investment in facilities, innovation and global trade partnerships. Hanadi Khalife, the Head of Middle East, ICAEW, said: "This quarter's outlook strengthens how far the GCC has been available in building diverse, durable and worldwide competitive economies.
Scott Livermore, ICAEW Economic Advisor, and Chief Financial Expert and Handling Director, Oxford Economics Middle East, said: "Saudi Arabia and the UAE are getting in 2026 with strong foundations. Saudi non-oil activity is acquiring rate, supported by robust need and rising financial investment, even as financial pressures increase.""The UAE continues to take advantage of strong domestic basics, a sharp uplift in government spending and sustained diversification efforts.
GCC nations are rotating towards a method of 'strength over expansion' entering 2026, as the area prepares for an international landscape specified by softer oil rates, geopolitical fragmentation, and the rapid shift to an AI-enabled economy. According to a brand-new regional outlook by PwC, the GCC is relocating to insulate its growth from external shocks by deepening worldwide trade integration, protecting industrial supply chains, and performing a definitive shift from technology ambition to operational application.
The Competitive Benefit of Modernized Shared SolutionsNegotiations free of charge Trade Arrangements with China, the EU, and Japan are advancing, while talks with the UK have entered final drafting stages. The region is significantly placing itself as a main center for east-west trade through the IndiaMiddle EastEurope Economic Passage (IMEC). To support domestic manufacturing, securing critical minerals has ended up being a tactical priority.
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