Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after US President Donald Trump suspended plans for military strikes against Iran and announced that negotiations with Tehran would resume, raising hopes of reducing the risk of disruptions to global crude supplies.
Business travel and entertainment spending across the Gulf remained resilient this summer, with MENA business travel bookings rising 34.2% year on year, led by Saudi Arabia, according to data from Tumodo and Platinumlist.
As the world awaits details of a potentially punishing new round of US sanctions against Iran, Tehran has warned that it could shut the Strait of Hormuz and halt all oil shipments through the Arabian Gulf if neighbouring countries join President Donald Trump’s economic campaign against it.
Renewed Gulf export disruptions have derailed the global oil market recovery, prompting the International Energy Agency (IEA) to cut its 2026 supply and demand forecasts. Global oil demand is now expected to decline by 1.6 million barrels per day as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed.
The United States launched a second consecutive day of major military strikes against Iran on Tuesday, targeting about 90 military sites along its coastline, as Tehran retaliated by firing missiles and drones at US military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait, sharply escalating tensions across the Gulf.
Senior Saudi and United Arab Emirates officials on Tuesday reaffirmed the close ties between the two Gulf nations, highlighting their shared history, deep-rooted brotherly relations and the role of their leadership in advancing regional prosperity.
The Gulf hospitality sector is expected to begin recovering in the fourth quarter of 2026 as geopolitical tensions ease, although hotel occupancy is unlikely to return to pre-war levels before the end of 2027, according to S&P Global Ratings.
Developers across the Gulf region need to fundamentally rethink how luxury homes are designed and built, as rising heat stress exposes the limitations of construction materials and methods that were never engineered for this climate, said a top industry expert.
The share of professional job vacancies in the Gulf requiring artificial intelligence (AI) skills has nearly tripled over the past four years, but for much of the region's economy the technology has yet to make a meaningful impact on hiring, according to data from Middle East recruitment platform GulfTalent.
Oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz slowed to a near standstill on Thursday as renewed military exchanges between the United States and Iran shattered a three-week-old ceasefire, raising fresh concerns over energy supplies and regional security.
