Good morning, friends. We’re concluding the week with another brisk issue, led by updates on the latest jet lease order from Dubai Aerospace Enterprise and a flurry of PMI reports from our region. We also take a look at OECD’s latest global markets outlook — and what it might mean for the trajectory of global trade growth. Let’s dive right in.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Adnoc Gas plans to leave some 20% of output from its Ruwais LNG plant uncontracted, positioning the company to capture the upside from the spot market’s price volatility instead of locking all volumes into long-term contracts, the National reports, citing CEO Fatema Al Nuaimi.

Adnoc has been converting heads of agreement into sales agreements over the past year, inking offtakes with the likes of Shell, Indian Oil Corporation, Germany’s SEFE, German energy infrastructure firm EnBW, Malaysia’s state-owned oil and gas firm Petronas, as well as Japan’s Jera and Osaka Gas.

REMEMBER- Adnoc has already secured commitments covering more than 8 mn tons of the facility’s planned 9.6 mn tons annual capacity in just 16 months after the project’s final investment decision in June last year. The USD 7 bn project is scheduled to come online by the end of 2028, with Shell, TotalEnergies, BP, and Japan’s Mitsui each holding a 10% stake.

#2- The cargo rail connecting Islamabad, Tehran, and Istanbul (ITI) is set to resume operations on 31 December — a move that aims to boost Pakistan’s regional trade, the state-owned Iranian outlet Mehr News Agency reports. The train is set to provide faster, more cost-effective, and reliable transportation, as cargo can travel to Europe via Turkey along this route in 15 days.

It’s been a long time coming: A Pakistani official proposed relaunching the freight train nearlythree years ago. The ITI link has been suspended since July 2022, following disruptions caused by flooding that damaged the rail in the region of Balochistan. Prior to this, railway operations first began in 2009 but were suspended most of the time aftewards due to technical issues, before resuming only in December 2021.

Lots of rail action for Iran: Iran’s first train bound for Uzbekistan departed fully loaded with Iranian freight earlier this month. This came after Aprin dry port received the first scheduled Russian rail freight service, which is a boost for the International North-South Transit Corridor. Iran also signed a multilateral agreement with China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Turkey to expand cross-border freight flows, and is also working with Russia on the EUR 1.6 bn Rasht-Astara rail link that ties into routes connecting Russia, India, and Azerbaijan.

#3- Airbus trims annual delivery target after A320 mishap: Airbus has lowered its year-end jet delivery target by 3.7% after identifying fuselage panel issues with its flagship A320neo family model, according to a press release. The France-based planemaker now plans to deliver 790 jets, down from 820, while maintaining its financial targets.

Why it matters? Airbus’s A320 family is the world’s best-selling narrow-body model, recently surpassing its primary competitor in this category, the Boeing 737 family, to become the most-delivered model in the industry.

Inspections are required: Airbus alerted airlines that hundreds of its A320neo family jets — which also suffered software issues this week — must undergo inspection to screen for structural defects, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The defects are linked to faulty manufacturing, as the thickness of the exterior skin of the jets varies from specifications. About 460 airframes still in Airbus’s system will need to be examined. The remaining 168 airframes — those in use by customers — will also have to be checked, according to a presentation viewed by Bloomberg.

DISRUPTION WATCH-

#1- Output at Dana Gas’ Khor Mor facility in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has been fully restored after a recent attack disrupted operations, according to a press release (pdf). The company’s liquid storage tank was struck by a rocket last week, causing a fire and the suspension of operations to assess the damage. The authorities didn’t disclose who was responsible for the attack.

This isn’t the first attack this year, after a drone strike “targeted the [field’s] vicinity” inFebruary, though the company’s operations were unaffected. Later on in July, a series of drone attacks in the wider Kurdistan region slashed crude output by 140k barrels to 150k bbl / d and led some producers to temporarily halt production, Reuters reported.

#2- India’s largest carrier IndiGo has canceled 40 flights in Delhi and delayed another 700 across three of its busiest hubs yesterday, Reuters reports. The disruptions come on the heels of crew shortages caused by tighter pilot duty-time rules introduced in recent months, sources familiar with the matter, including an IndiGo pilot, told the newswire. The carrier, however, cited a mix of technology issues, airport congestion, and “operational requirements” as the causes of the delays.

Is it a good time for IndiGo? Not exactly: The Indian carrier, which operates 2.2k flights daily and controls more than 60% of India’s domestic market, saw on-time performance plunge to 35% on Tuesday, down from 60%.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices surged this morning amid signs that Ukraine’s recent attacks on Russian oil infrastructure have impacted supplies, Reuters reported. Brent crude futures rose USD 0.24 to trade at its lowest since October with USD 62.91 / bbl as of 03:49 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was up USD 0.29 to USD 59.24 / bbl.

#2- Baltic index’ upward trajectory continues: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — increased 9.4% to 2,845 points on Wednesday — recording its highest daily rise since 13 October. The capesize climbed 16.3% to 5,384, while the panamax index eased by 1.2% to 1,892 points, and the smaller supramax index inched up 3 points to 1,444.

DATA POINT-

Egypt’s LNG imports jumped 188% y-o-y in the first 11 months of 2025 to 7.8 mn tons, according to data seen by CNN Business. Full-year volumes are set to close out above 8.5 mn tons, CNN said, citing a government official, noting that these cargoes are in addition to ongoing Israeli gas imports to cover domestic demand.

In 3Q alone, imports jumped 169.2% y-o-y to 3.5 mn tons, becoming the main driver behind the Middle East’s surge in LNG imports to 7.2 mn tons over the same period, the outlet added, citing data from the Independent Commodity Intelligence Services.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Egypt will host the International Procurement Supply Chain Conference on Saturday, 6 December in Cairo. The event will gather over 1k delegates, more than 400 organizations, and over 30 global speakers to discuss the future of trade through keynotes and panel discussions. The discussions will center on Egypt’s transformation in the logistics sector, the future of smart ports and supply chains, as well as digital ecosystems.

Morocco is hosting the Rail Industry Summit on Tuesday, 9 December until Wednesday, 10 December in El Jadida. The two-day event will gather 130 exhibitors, 250 companies, and over 900 participants from 15 countries. It will feature business meetings, high-level conferences, and workshops focused on new market trends and future strategies.

Saudi Arabia is hosting the Saudi Airport Exhibition on Tuesday, 16 December until Wednesday, 17 December in Riyadh. Upwards of 10k global attendees are expected to participate in the event from over 100 countries. The two-day event will focus on airport-related innovation, and will feature participation from Saudia, SolitAir, and Amadeus.

Saudi Arabia is hosting SkyMove Air Cargo MENA on Tuesday, 27 January until Wednesday, 28 January in Riyadh. The event is expected to welcome more than 600 attendees from over 60 countries. The event will unite the whole air cargo value chain, analyze market trends, mitigate potential challenges, and leverage emerging windows.

The UAE is hosting the Middle East ProcureTech Summit on Tuesday, 27 January until Wednesday, 28 January in Dubai. The two-day event will spotlight the shifts in the procurement sector, paying special attention to digital and cloud procurement, and provide a networking platform for executives and industry innovators.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.

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