Good morning, friends, and happy hump day. We have plenty for you to dig your teeth into this morning, including several 1H wrap-ups — one on venture capital funding in the region, another on trading performance on the UAE’s exchanges, and another on IPO activity.

PLUS- We take note of more investments from Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, and a AED 3.9 bn facility for Dubai Metro Blue Line.

WEATHER- The mercury peaks at 44°C in Dubai, before cooling to 35°C overnight. In Abu Dhabi, temperatures peak at 39°C before cooling to 31°C overnight.

HAPPENING TODAY-

President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is heading to Turkey for talks with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which will explore boosting cooperation as well as other regional issues of interest, state news agency Wam reports. The visit will also mark the first meeting of the UAE and Turkey’s first high-level strategic council, Turkish Communications Director Burhanettin Duran said on X.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Momentum seems to be picking up for IPOs and share sales in 2H 2025 after a relatively quiet start to the year, with several share sales being prepped for after the summer, Bloomberg reports. Dubai’s Alec Construction has been holding investor meetings as it eyes a c. USD 500 mn IPO, the business news information service reports, citing people familiar with the matter, while sovereign wealth fund Mubadala is mulling a follow-on offering for state telco Du, likely to take place after the summer.

What else is in the pipeline? Abu Dhabi AI firm AIQ’s has been sounding out investors for a potential IPO, while Etihad Airways, IHC’s 2PointZero, and other real estate players including Arabian Construction, Dubizzle Group, and hospitality group Five Holdings have all been said to be close to an IPO. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Investment Group (ADIG) is eyeing listings for its financial unit and energy subsidiary and Amanat Holdings is looking to float its education and healthcare units. Shisha producer Advanced Inhalation Rituals is also rumored to potentially IPO.

For a refresher on IPO activity in 1H 2025, we have a rundown in this morning’s Planet Finance, below.

#2- Inflation across the Gulf is set to moderate in 2H 2025 amid falling oil and shipping prices as geopolitical tensions ease and as the US Federal Reserve is expected to resume its rate-cutting cycle, Emirates NBD said in a recent report (pdf). Inflation across the bloc has been modest so far in 2025, averaging 1.3% y-o-y from January to May, marking a slowdown from 1.8% recorded last year.

Housing is set to keep inflation in Dubai and Saudi Arabia slightly higher than their peers, as new initiatives like the first-time home buyer program in Dubai and more relaxed foreign real estate ownership rules in the Kingdom boost demand, the report said.

REFRESHER- Dubai’s annual inflation remained steady in June, coming in at 2.37%, the Dubai Statistics Center data recently showed. The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) slightly lowered in June its inflation forecast for the UAE for 2025 down by a 0.1 percentage point to 1.9, which it attributed to a “continuous downward trend in transportation costs” and “moderating energy prices.”

#3- Fujairah is kicking off construction of a 77km rainwater drainage network as part of a package of upgrades to its internal roads, state news agency Wam reports. The upgrades include a 1.2 km tunnel in the Al Sharia area, and another 1.4 km one near Sheikh Khalifa General Hospital, as well as road lighting, signage, speed bumps, parking, and pedestrian crossings.

DATA POINTS-

#1- UAE accounts for 34% of MENA sustainable bond issuances in 1H: The UAE issued USD 3.2 bn in green, social, sustainable, and sustainability-linked (GSSS) bonds in 1H 2025, making up 34% of total regional activity, Zawya reports, citing Bloomberg’s Capital Markets League Tables. Notable issuances included a USD 700 mn greek sukuk from Tabreed and USD 500 mn one from real estate developer Omniyat.

The regional picture: Saudi Arabia led the region with USD 6.3 bn in issuances, while overall regional GSSS volume declined 4.4% y-o-y to USD 9.5 bn, amid a slowdown in activity from Egypt and Qatar. Islamic instruments made up USD 6.8 bn of the total, while AT1 sukuk reached USD 3.2 bn — the highest 1H figure in five years.

REMEMBER- The UAE and Saudi Arabia are expected to lead sustainable bond issuances in the region this year, with total volumes forecast at USD 18-23 bn. On a wider scale, the UAE’s debt issuance saw an uptick in 1H despite a regional slowdown. Sukuk markets, however, as set to regain momentum in 2H, driven by refinancing needs.

#2- The UAE now accounts for 3% of all foreign purchases of US residential real estate — its highest ever share — tying with Brazil, Columbia, and Nigeria in the latest National Association of Realtors (NAR) International Transactions in US Residential Real Estate report (pdf). This puts the UAE in the top 10 countries of foreign buyer purchases, and it also came fifth in terms of foreign clients selling US residential property.

The increase comes as foreign buyers picked up 78.1k US homes over the past year, up 44% y-o-y, with total transaction value reaching USD 56 bn, according to NAR. Buyers from China led the pack, accounting for 15% of purchases, followed by Canada at 14%. Florida, California, Texas, and New York remained the most popular states.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

There’s no single big story abroad this morning, but a mix of new tariff updates, rising inflation in the US, and increased violence in southern Syria are getting a lot of attention.

Tariffs on pharma and semiconductor chips could come as soon as this month, with the pharma tariff coming in low at first before US President Donald Trump hikes them a year later once pharma firms have gotten a chance to regroup. Trump had previously floated a tariff on pharma that could reach as high as 200%, and said he plans to impose a 50% tariff on copper. (Bloomberg)

Trump says we can expect two or three more trade agreements to be struck before 1 August, when reciprocal tariffs are set to go into effect, name-checking India as one that could materialize soon.

The US also reached an agreement with Indonesia that will see Indonesian imports face a 19% tariff, in exchange for bns in USD worth of committed purchases, including of Boeing jets and US energy. (Reuters | Guardian)

ALSO- The impact of tariffs seem to have started to trickle down to consumers, with consumer prices rising 0.3% in the US last month. The latest data suggests the US Federal Reserve will keep holding off on rate cuts until inflation is back in check. (Wall Street Journal | Reuters | Financial Times)

CLOSER TO HOME- Israel attacked military targets in Syria and Lebanon, killing 12 people in Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, including several Hezbollah fighters, and ramping up tensions with the Syrian government, which condemned the attacks on the southern city of Sweida. Sweida had seen an escalation of violence amid clashes between Druze — who dominate the city — and Bedouin groups that have killed more than 100 people, according to the Syrian government. (Guardian | BBC | New York Times)

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