Driving Regional Industrial Expansion through Innovation

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 limits" between work and personal life and take brief vacations to "detach" from the workplace.

Karim Benkirane, CCO of Du, stated: "If you make the individuals you work with delighted, you will make the consumer delighted, who will then make the investors delighted."Ambareen Musa, CEO for Revolut GCC, said the capability to "not worry" is the key to discovering a solution for issues.

Today, we're convening more than 3000 meetings between investors and 119 Gulf-listed business with a combined value of $2.4 trillion at the HSBC GCC Exchanges Conference 2026, in London. We're combining financiers, business, exchanges, and policymakers to discuss what is altering in the region, and what comes next, consisting of the expansion and ongoing advancement 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 region's financial expansion in 2026, supported by strong private-sector efficiency, durable domestic demand and renewed investment momentum, according to the current ICAEW Economic Insight Q4 2025 report, produced by Oxford Economics. The GCC is anticipated to surpass most global areas peers next year, with regional GDP forecast to grow by 4.4%. Throughout the GCC, non-energy activity is projected to expand by 4.1% in 2026, driven by strong labour markets, improving credit conditions and increasing financial investment in technology and AI-related facilities.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

The Operational Advantages of Advanced Strategy Research

Oil incomes will be under pressure in the first half of 2026, production is anticipated to rise once again in the second half of 2026, supporting the region's medium-term outlook, it specified. Saudi Arabia will stay a major contributor to GCC momentum, with GDP forecast to grow 4.3% in 2026.

Growth will be supported by industrial expansion and policy reforms, including reduced foreign ownership rules that aim to promote further financial investment. The fiscal deficit is forecasted to widen to 5.6% of GDP next year amid softer oil costs, while the recent five-year rent freeze in Riyadh intends to ease inflationary pressures, though it may constrain future housing supply.

Strong domestic fundamentalsThe UAE is also placed for another strong year of efficiency, with GDP forecast to rise 5.6% in 2026 as non-oil sectors continue to expand. Tourist, trade and financial services stay key growth chauffeurs, supported by population growth and continual domestic need. 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 pick up again in the 2nd half of 2026, matching ongoing investment in infrastructure, innovation and international trade partnerships. Hanadi Khalife, the Head of Middle East, ICAEW, said: "This quarter's outlook reinforces how far the GCC has can be found in structure diverse, resilient and worldwide competitive economies.

Scott Livermore, ICAEW Economic Advisor, and Chief Financial Expert and Managing Director, Oxford Economics Middle East, stated: "Saudi Arabia and the UAE are going into 2026 with strong structures. Saudi non-oil activity is acquiring rate, supported by robust demand and rising financial investment, even as fiscal pressures increase.""The UAE continues to benefit from strong domestic fundamentals, a sharp uplift in government spending and continual diversification efforts.

Operational Excellence: a Key Driver for Regional Success

GCC nations are rotating towards a method of 'durability over growth' entering 2026, as the area prepares for an international landscape specified by softer oil costs, geopolitical fragmentation, and the fast transition to an AI-enabled economy. According to a brand-new regional outlook by PwC, the GCC is relocating to insulate its development from external shocks by deepening international trade integration, protecting industrial supply chains, and performing a definitive shift from technology aspiration to operational application.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Settlements totally free Trade Agreements with China, the EU, and Japan are advancing, while talks with the UK have gotten in final preparing phases. The area is significantly positioning itself as a main hub for east-west trade through the IndiaMiddle EastEurope Economic Corridor (IMEC). To support domestic production, protecting critical minerals has actually become a strategic concern.