Good morning, friends, and welcome to the first full workweek after Ramadan and the Eid break. We hope you got enough time to rest during the break — judging by the endless conference schedule in the UAE this week, there won’t be much of that over the next few weeks.

There’s two big stories this morning: The continued slowdown in growth momentum for the non-oil sector in March, and the easing of corporate tax requirements for investors. Plus: The UAE is working with India on an energy hub in Sri Lanka; Morocco’s Aldiktal is investing in new hospitals in the UAE; and Dubai’s real estate sector continued to grow in 1Q 2025.

HAPPENING THIS WEEK-

#1- UP FIRST- It’s the first day of the EFG Hermes One on One here in Dubai. The One on One is the largest investor conference focused on emerging markets — and it’s difficult to imagine a more opportune time for companies and equity investors to chew the fat than now: Global markets are roiling in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s bid to reshape the post-Second World War economic order.

On stage this morning: Central Bank of Egypt Deputy Governor Ramy Aboulnaga will offer what’s being billed as an “inside view into Egypt’s economic reset” in a fireside chat. Next up will be a panel discussion in partnership with the Dubai Financial Market on the role of capital markets in bringing to life the UAE’s long-term vision. On stage will be DFM and Nasdaq Dubai CEO Hamed Ali and Dubai Economic Development Corporation CEO Hadi Badri. The DEDC is a unit of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism.

Fund and portfolio investors from around the world will join top company execs for the world’s biggest live poll of investor sentiment. The EFG Hermes Live Research Poll caps off the morning before participants break out for one-on-one meetings in which company execs meet face-to-face with investors.

BY THE NUMBERS- We expect this morning that fund managers representing more than 250 global institutions will meet this week with top execs from 220 companies spanning 12 countries.

Companies from our part of the world are the stars of the show. Among the top UAE firms attending:

  • ADNOC Group (and its listed units)
  • Aldar Properties
  • Alef Education
  • Alpha Dhabi
  • Amanat
  • e&
  • Emaar Properties
  • FAB
  • Fertiglobe
  • Lulu
  • Lunate
  • Parkin
  • Pure Health
  • RAK Bank
  • Taaleem
  • Talabat

** We’ll have full coverage tomorrow and throughout the rest of the week.

#2- Turkey-UAE consultations on Africa are taking place today in Abu Dhabi, Turkey’s state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reports. The talks will focus on the latest developments in Africa and explore potential avenues for economic cooperation and investments across the continent. The UAE’s Foreign Minister Shakhboot bin Nahyan Al Nahyan and Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Burhanettin Duran will co-chair discussions.

Background: The regular consultations are part of a bilateral agreement made during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 2022 visit to the UAE, with the first round taking place in October of 2023.

#3- The Geo-Spatial Week is underway in Dubai at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center, kicking off yesterday and running until 11 April. The week-long event will welcome experts in photogrammetry, remote sensing, and spatial sciences.

#4- The AIM Congress 2025 is kicking off today and running through to Wednesday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center. The event will bring together senior executives, government officials, and global investors to foster investment collaboration to drive global economic development. Attendees can expect forums, panel discussions, workshops, and a startup competition, Wam reports.

#5- Middle East Energy will also kick off today and run through to Wednesday at the Dubai World Trade Center. The exhibition and conference brings together industry leaders, and energy professionals to discuss the energy transition, sustainability practices, innovations in power generation, renewable energy, and energy efficiency.

#6- The World Local Production Forum begins today and runs until Wednesday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center. The World Health Organization-backed event will bring together global leaders to discuss localized, sustainable, and diversified medicine production, and strategies to enhance access to quality assured health products.

#7- The Fujairah Bunkering and Fuel Oil Forum (FUJCON 2025) is also taking place today through Wednesday at DoubleTree by Hilton Fujairah. Organized by S&P Global Commodity Insights, in collaboration with the Fujairah government, the Port of Fujairah, and the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone, the event will bring together energy leaders to discuss geopolitical and decarbonization impacts on shipping and bunkering, fuel quality, market trends, and technological advancements.

#8- AWS GenAI Loft Dubai 2025 kicks off today and runs through to Friday, 11 April at Dubai International Financial Centre’s (DIFC) Innovation One building. The five-day event will see industry startups, business leaders, investors, developers, and AI enthusiasts attend workshops and lectures on generative AI technologies and their practical applications across industries.

#9- The two-day World Crisis and Emergency Management Summit will kick off tomorrow in Abu Dhabi, state news agency Wam reports. Under the theme Together Towards Building Global Resilience, the event will bring together global leaders to discuss improving international cooperation in crisis management, emergency planning, and risk prediction. The event will also feature two exhibitions — Crisis Management Technologies and Generation Readiness — to showcase new sector-specific technological tools.

🌤️WEATHER- It’s going to be a partly cloudy — though still hot — day today, with the mercury hitting 37°C in Dubai, before cooling to 26°C overnight. In Abu Dhabi, temperatures will peak at 31°C, with an overnight low of 25°C.

HAPPENING NEXT WEEK-

Syrian President Ahmed Al Sharaa is set to make his first visit to the UAE next week, with plans to stop in Turkey as well, Reuters reports, citing a Foreign Ministry statement. Al Sharaa assumed presidency in January after the toppling of former president Bashar Al Assad, and the new administration has been working to mend ties with both Arab and Western leaders as it looks towards the lifting of Western sanctions. He already visited Saudi Arabia in February.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- UAE says RSF-linked companies not licensed or operating in the country: The UAE has said an investigation concluded that seven companies sanctioned by the US for alleged ties to Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) do not hold active business licenses or operate in the Emirates, state news agency Wam reports.

Background: In January, the UAE’s Justice Ministry launched an investigation following the US Treasury’s designations, which linked the firms to RSF leader Mohamed Dagalo. The UAE says it is continuing to monitor for suspicious activity in line with national laws, The National reports.

The companies: The US sanctioned Capital Tap Holding, Capital Tap Management Consultancies, Capital Tap General Trading, Creative Python, Al Zumoroud and Al Yaqoot Gold & Jewellers, Al Jil Al Qadem General Trading, and Horizon Advanced Solutions General Trading, accusing them of having ties to the paramilitary group and supporting its war agenda.

#2- Iraq’s Khor Mor gas field expansion project could be completed as early as 1Q 2026, UAE-based Dana Gas and Crescent Petroleum said in a joint statement (pdf), as they make headway on construction and commissioning. The USD 1 bn project is slated to boost capacity at the gas field by 50%. The partners also approved Pearl Petroleum’s USD 160 mn project to develop the Chemchemal field — expanding production levels to produce up to 71 mn standard cubic ft (scfd) in 2026.

About Khor Mor: The gas field produced some 525 mn scfd of natural gas in early March, up some 75% since 2017. Khor Mor supplies fuel for some 75% of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s electricity generation, serving some 6 mn in the region.

#3- DLD and Vara to modernize real estate tokenization regulations: The Dubai Land Department (DLD) and Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) signed an agreement to build a regulatory framework governing the use of virtual assets in real estate transactions, according to a statement.

The details: The agreement aims to improve the regulatory environment for virtual asset use in real estate transactions while protecting investor rights and expanding opportunities — particularly for small investors. It will also facilitate pilot projects to test and manage associated risks, aiming to boost the sector’s economic contribution.

REMEMBER- DLD earlier this month launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenization project, becoming the first real estate registry in the Middle East to tokenize property title deeds. The project is expected to drive AED 60 bn in tokenized property transactions by 2033.

DATA POINTS-

#1- UAE gets top rank for entrepreneurship: The UAE has been ranked first globally in Global Entrepreneurship Monitor ’s (GEM) 2024-2025 report (pdf) for the fourth year in a row, according to an Economy Ministry statement.The report — which surveyed 56 economies this year — places the UAE at the top of the National Entrepreneurship Context Index (NECI).

Ambition is also strong: Some 75% of early-stage entrepreneurs in the UAE expect to create at least six jobs over the next five years and 83.2% plan to integrate technology into their business. New business owners also outnumber existing ones by four-to-one, however two in five adults surveyed expressed an intention to start a business.

Behind the ranking: The emirates have held the top spot since 2021 in GEM’s rankings in terms of a favorable entrepreneurial ecosystem. The report name-checked the Economy Ministry’s USD 8.7 bn Projects of the 50 initiative and regulatory reforms, like the Commercial Companies law, as helping boost foreign direct investment and foreign ownership of firms. The UAE also leads in “ease of starting a business,” with 76% of respondents seeing good business prospects for their sector.

#2- Abu Dhabi transport saw significant growth in 2024, with public bus journeys exceeding 90 mn rides and maritime transport carrying over 168k passengers, according to Abu Dhabi Media Office. More than 28 mn passengers passed through the emirate’s airports in 2024. The Municipalities and Transport Department invested AED 3.4 bn in key mobility and road network projects during the year.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s still all about the global market turmoil in the foreign press, with virtually every outlet leading with expectations of markets extending their slump tomorrow as futures fall.

US President Donald Trump and his administration have indicated they plan to stay the course on tariffs despite global concerns over a possible economic recession and the response from markets, sending S&P 500 futures contracts down 2.9% and Nasdaq futures down 3.9%. The two indices have wiped tns in market value since the tariffs were announced last week. The flat 10% global tariff has since kicked in on Saturday, while the country-specific reciprocal tariffs are kicking in on Wednesday.

Commodities also extended their losses last night, with Brent crude falling 3.1% to USD 63.53 and West Texas Intermediate slipping 3.4% to USD 59.9, below breakeven price for shale producers. Copper also fell more than 5% to USD 4.14. Meanwhile, Asian markets faced a brutal sell-off at market open, with Japan’s Nikkei plunging 8%, triggering a circuit breaker. We dive into the impact of the tariffs on regional markets as well in this morning’s Planet Finance, below.

Trump dismissed the global response and said that “sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something,” while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said over 50 countries have reached out to the US for negotiations, while signaling that any talks would take time. Trump also didn’t seem too concerned about inflation, saying he doesn’t expect the US to “lose a tn USD for the privilege of buying pencils from China.” (Bloomberg | FT | NYT | CNBC)

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MARKET WATCH-

Opec+ countries have until 15 April to comply with production cuts and submit revised compensation plans if they have not complied, according to a statement. The move comes as the group moves forward with production hikes this month at three times more than originally planned, with the UAE poised to see its production quota rise to 3.5 mn barrels per day in 2025, up from the current 2.9 mn, after the oil cartel agreed to raise its production quota last year.

REMEMBER- Opec+ nations who have exported more than agreed upon levels of oil will reduce oil output in the coming months to compensate for overproduction. The output reductions will come primarily from Iraq, Kazakhstan, and Russia, however Algeria, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Oman are also part of the compensation plan.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The Machines Can See Summit will take place on Wednesday, April 23 and Thursday, April 24 as part of Dubai AI Week at the Museum of the Future in Dubai. The summit will feature keynote speeches exploring AI in robotics, agentic systems, safe cities, ROI in AI, and ethics by industry leaders from organizations including Dubai Police, SAP, e&, Mubadala, Amazon, and Oxford University.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

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