Author: Suhail Hasan

The 15th Abu Dhabi-Singapore Joint Forum (ADSJF) was held today in Singapore where it was Co-Chaired by Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Chairman of Abu Dhabi’s Executive Affairs Authority, and with Dr. Tan See Leng, Singapore’s Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and Industry. The Forum which is a part of the official visit of H.H. Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi was graced by ambassadors, senior officials from the two countries and delegation from the government and private sectors. From this note, it is evident that each of these objectives was…

The gross domestic product for the UAE is expected to exceed $ 5% in year 2025 as stated by Michael Bolliger the Chief Investment Officer of the Emerging Market at UBS Global wealth management. In an online press briefing with WAM, Bolliger envisions it at 4 per cent in 2024 in line with the latest assessment of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) with projection on UAE’s GDP growth rate to hit 5.1 percent in 2025. According to Bolliger, there are several trends on the international level influencing the economic expectations for the GCC countries, at least in concerns to oil…

As the Middle East’s largest hypermarket chain, LuLu Retail Holdings Plc is preparing for a massive IPO on the Abu Dhabi stock exchange that is tipped to be one of the heftiest offerings in the region for the year. LuLu’s owners intend to float 2.58 billion shares which is 25 per cent of the company’s stake, the offering opens on October 28. The true cost will be established on 6 November while the firm will go public on 14 November. Lulu Group which was started by the prominent Indian businessman AbdulRI Zamzami alias Yussuf Ali in early 1990s when the…

Over the next few years, the Dubai’s oil-rich Sheikhdom is expected to invest a whopping $100 billion in India said Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. The sectors that can hope for huge investments include renewable energy sector, power transmission projects, data centre and artificial intelligence (AI). Addressing the media during the 12th session of the India-UAE high-level joint task force on investments in Mumbai Goyal listed current investment efforts and future potential in manufacturing and other fields. At the moment, the total of direct equity investments of UAE is slightly under $20 billion while the investment in India…

The UAE has effected major changes to its Value Added Tax regime that it hopes to improve its investment climate and attract more firms. Some of these amendments are as follows: Regarding the correction of these amendments, these amendments are part of the ongoing reform process in the country’s tax system, namely: Key exemptions and necessary new rules aimed at stimulating economic development and harmonizing with the norms and standards of the International Convention. Key VAT Amendments The Ministry of Finance has revealed Cabinet Decision no 100 of 2024, which entails some changes on the Executive Regulations of Federal Decree-Law…

DMCC, the world’s number one free zone and Government of Dubai’s official commodities trade association, has now attracted over 500 Italian companies, up 6% this year, 2024. This came after the DMCC recently completed the Made For Trade Live roadshow, which it conducted in Milan and Rome to showcase the opportunities in goods that include jewellery, luxury, and fashion. Italian foreign trade reached $6.3 billion for the same year and using Dubai as a gateway to the world, DMCC helps Italian companies to trade beyond $9.3 billion to the UAE in 2023. The incentive business environment in the free zone…

FTAA has released new dates for filing of Corporate Tax Returns and payment for the Corporate Tax Payable. The new deadline laid down to be December 31, 2024 concerns short tax periods up to February 29, 2024. This extension was allowed by Decision No. 7 of 2024 under the Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 On the taxation of Corporations and Businesses. The change to the Conduit Development aims to help those business especially those with First Tax Period of less than 12 months to meet their tax obligations. FTA Director-General Khaled Ali Al Bustani insisted on the readiness of…

A recent survey by Dubai Design District (d3) and Dubai Media City in conjunction with Monstarlab put the size of the global digital creative economy at AED27tn ($7.3tn). This puts Dubai in the center of this rapidly evolving sector, which is spear-headed by technologies like AI, Web3, and VR. Also, the new Digital Creative Economy 2024 war paper shows that the global income for creative economy is expected to be 11% per annum up to AED 27 trillion by 2030. This paper distributed an anonymous online questionnaire to 400 professionals working in the design and media industries, focusing on the…

The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) today successfully conducted the periodic review of the general index and Islamic index as of September 23, 2024. The DFM conducts these reviews frequently to maintain the efficiency and up-to-date information of its indices which are widely used of market performance. The new stock weights for both of the indices will be implemented during today’s trading period, being Monday. This review is one of the ways that DFM remains committed to offering a clear and effective channel for market operations to foster the independence of investors. The general index, and the Islamic index, in particular,…

Economic outlook for the UAE: Oxford Economics predicts that the country’s economy will grow at an even quicker clip than previously expected to 4.8% by 2025 as non-oil sectors continue to perform well. As and sampled learn from Scott Livermore, Chief Economist and Managing Director of Oxford Economics Middle East, non-oil economy in UAE is projected to rise by 4.6% year-on-year in 2024 driven by increases in travel and tourism. When talking to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Livermore pointed to DXBs unprecedented visitor numbers and traffic as well as tourism as the main drivers of the growth with the…