Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. It’s a relatively measured start to this first work week of March, although we’re certain things will pick up pace throughout the day and the rest of the week.

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT-

We’re in for another rainy couple of days: Rain is expected to fall over most of the country today and tomorrow, along with a chance of lightning and thunder, The National reports, citing the National Center of Meteorology. Temperatures in Dubai and Abu Dhabi will hover around 28°C during the day, before dropping to 16°C overnight, according to the center.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- A handful of us are in Dubai for EFG Hermes’ One on One, which kicks off today and will run through Thursday. The event will see some 670 investors from 250 global institutions meet face-to-face with senior execs from more than 215 companies in industries spanning from food and fintech to banking and petrochemicals. Companies from 29 countries will be attending.

We’ll have coverage for you on the ground starting tomorrow and continuing into next week.

** If you’re in Dubai and want to have coffee or pitch us on an interview, hit us up on 1×1@enterprisemea.com.

#2- The Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority Hackathon is making its way to Sharjah for the Sharjah and Ajman leg today and tomorrow at the Higher Colleges of Technology Sharjah, and then wrapping up with the Dubai Hackathon between 6-7 March at the Higher Colleges of Technology in Dubai, Wam reports.

#3- The Culture Summit Abu Dhabi kicked off yesterday, and will wrap tomorrow, Wam reports. The three-day event, themed A Matter of Time, features participants from 90 countries engaging in keynote speeches, creative talks, and cultural performances.

DATA POINTS-

#1-The DFM recorded third-highest monthly gain in the GCC in February: The DFM General Index marked its fourth consecutive monthly gain during February, rising 3.4% during the month. Gains in the financial (+5.5%) and real estate (+9.8%) sectors — the market’s largest — supported the overall positive trend, according to Kamco’s GCC Markets Monthly Report (pdf).

Top performers: Commercial Bank of Dubai took the lead in monthly gains during February, registering a 46.2% increase in share price, followed by National Industries Group, which saw a 31.9% gain, and Union Properties, which saw a 26.8% gain.

The general ADX index dropped 2.7% during the month, contributing to a 3.4%decrease in YTD performance. The healthcare index registered the largest decline of 14.7% throughout the month, with all of its component stocks registering lower prices, including three companies with declines exceeding 10%, the report reads. On the upside, the real estate index saw the biggest gain among the indices with a 5.9% increase, primarily influenced by an 8.4% increase in Aldar Properties ’ share price.

Month-to-month, the Sharjah Ins. Company recorded the highest increase with a 27.4% gain in its share price, followed by Rapco Investment at 21.2% and Feeding Company at 17.6%. Meanwhile, Eshraq Investments experienced the most significant decrease, with a 32.2% drop, and was trailed by Abu Dhabi National Takaful at 25.5% and Multiply Group at 21.5%.

#2- Inter-Arab trade comprises some 10-11% of global trade at USD 700 bn,Secretary-General of the Union of Arab Chambers Khaled Hanafi told Wam (watch, runtime, 11:30) on the sidelines of the WTO Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi. Hanafi described this figure as “modest,” adding that this can be remedied by improved standardization of specifications and enhanced logistics as well as continued strong contribution from the private sector. “The private sector in the Arab region makes up a significant percentage of GDP, in some cases over 75%. Policy-making has to take this reality into account,” Hanafi said.

#3- Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (Diez)’s operating income grew 64.6% y-o-y in 2023, on the back of net assets pooling a total value over AED 20.8 bn, and an 8.1% y-o-y increase in revenues, reports the Dubai Media Office.The authority’s affiliated economic zones Dubai Airport Freezone, Dubai Silicon Oasis, and Dubai CommerCity witnessed a 15.3% y-o-y increase in registered companies during the period, with personnel climbing 30.5% y-o-y to reach 70k in 2023.

Diez’s economic zones also noted key sector growth, with the financial and insurance sector growing 106.9%. Administrative and support services came in second in growth, rising 93%, while professional services and scientific solutions grew 89.6%, transportation and storage increased 48.3%, and wholesale and retail trade rose 24.4%.

WAR WATCH-

Israel’s massacre of over 100 Gazans waiting for aid sparks international outcry: Israeli forces shot dead at least 112 Palestinians and wounded at least 280 in Gaza as they waited for aid delivery on Thursday. When asked if the massacre will complicate ceasefire talks, US President Joe Biden told reporters, “I know it will,” and said the matter was “tragic and alarming” on calls with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and Qatar’s Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.

The UAE— along with France, Germany, the UK, and other nations — have called for an international inquiry into the event.

Ramadan truce up in the air after Israel skips Cairo peace talks: Israel skipped ceasefire talks in Cairo yesterday after Hamas refused its request for a list of hostages who are still alive, Israeli news outlet Ynet reports. Despite Israel boycotting the talks, the Hamas delegation that did arrive in Cairo yesterday for negotiations through Egyptian, Qatari, and American mediators to reach a ceasefire before the start of Ramadan, said that a truce could be made in the next two days if Israel agrees to its demands.

OIL WATCH-

The UAE extended its 163k barrels per day (bbl / d) voluntary oil production cut through 2Q 2024, in alignment with Saudi Arabia and Russia, Wam reports. Saudi Arabia and Russia-led Opec+ agreed on Sunday to extend oil output cuts, boosting market support amidst global economic growth concerns, Reuters reports. The country will maintain its oil production at 2.93 mn bbl/d until June of this year. This decision is in addition to its April 2023 decision to cut output by 144k bbl/d in April, until December 2024.

KSA and Russia led the way: Saudi Arabia is expected to extend its voluntary oil curbs of 1 mn bbl/d applied from July last year to June, maintaining production at 9 mn bbl/d, Saudi state news agency SPA reports, citing an unnamed source. Meanwhile, Russia plans to slash output by an additional 471k bbl/d until June, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in a statement.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Mubadala Capital plans on establishing a stock exchange in Brazil through its subsidiary, Americas Trading Group (ATG), to rival the B3, Bloomberg reports, citing an unnamed source. ATG intends to establish a new exchange in Sao Paulo by 2025, aiming to enhance competition, potentially reduce listing and trading costs for companies in Brazil. The initiative, yet to be officially announced, is under discussion.

REFRESHER- Mubadala Capital acquired ATG in February 2023 and appointed Claudio Pracownik as CEO, expressing intentions to support the development of regional capital markets and expand ATG’s business. In 2013, ATG planned to launch an exchange through a partnership with NYSE Group known as ATS. However, the project never came to fruition.

#2-Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) shareholders approved the issuance of sukuk worth up to USD 5 bn, according to an ADX disclosure (pdf). Last November, the bank debuted its USD 500 mn green sukuk, which was the world’s first USD-denominated green sukuk, on both the London Stock Exchange’s International Securities Market and Sustainable Bond Market.

#3- Emirates Airlines President Tim Clark expressed concerns over delivery delays of its Boeing 777X orders, Sky News Arabia reported. The Boeing 777X was originally expected to be delivered to the airlines in 2020, but has now been postponed to October 2025, according to Clark.

Lots of criticism for Boeing: Amid delivery delays, quality concerns, and regulatory scrutiny after a piece of fuselage from a Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. However, Clark believes that Boeing can still recover.

Boeing needs to take a hard look at its governance model: “They really need to do this. Whether this means a change in the governance model, I don’t know. When you change the governance model, it invariably involves changing the people around the old governance model,” Reuters quotes Clark as saying.

REMEMBER- Emirates sent engineers to oversee Boeing production in early February, warning that the US plane manufacturer is in the “last chance saloon,” according to Clark told the Financial Times. The Dubai-based flag carrier will send its own engineers to inspect the production line of the Boeing 777 jet and its supplier Spirit AeroSystems after seeing a “progressive decline” in the manufacturer’s standards.

BIG STORY ABROAD-

OPEC+ extends production squeeze: OPEC+ producers led by Saudi Arabia and Russia yesterday agreed to extend voluntary oil supply cuts of 2.2 mn barrels per day (bpd) for another three months until the end of 2Q 2024 in a bid to prevent a global surplus and stabilize market prices. “The decision sends a message of cohesion and confirms that the group is not in a hurry to supply volumes, supporting the view that when this finally happens, it will be gradual,” the salmon-colored paper quoted Jefferies analyst Giacoma Romeo as saying. (Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | NY Times | CNBC)

MEANWHILE IN NON-US ELECTION NEWS- Iran’s parliamentary elections registered a record-low voter turnout of 40.6% in a poll dominated by hardliners. (Financial Times | Reuters | The Guardian | Washington Post)

HAPPENING THIS WEEK-

#1- The UAE’s PMI figures will be out tomorrow morning. The non-oil sector continued to grow inJanuary, albeit at a slower pace as output growth slowed to a five-month low. Dubai’s PMI figures will be out next Monday.

#2- The UAE will host the MRO Middle East tomorrow and Wednesday in Dubai. The two-day event will bring together key decision makers from airlines, MROs, OEMs, lessors, and suppliers spanning all aspects of the aviation industry’s supply chain.

#3- The World Police Summit also kicks off tomorrow, running until this Thursday, at the Dubai World Trade Center. The event will welcome over 20k global law enforcement and security industry professionals to explore solutions to mitigate crime.

#4- Forbes’ annual 30/50 summit will return to Abu Dhabi tomorrow, running through Friday. Meg Ryan and Shania Twain will be among those headlining the event spotlighting the Forbes Under 30 and 50 Over 50 lists, coinciding with International Women’s Day, Forbes previously reported.

#5- The Dubai Entertainment Amusement & Leisure Exhibition also opens its doors tomorrow. The three-day trade show will welcome global exhibitors in entertainment and amusement, before wrapping on Thursday, 7 March.

#6- Beyond Global Trade kicks off on Thursday, 7 March, at the Edition Hotel, Dubai. The event focuses on using blockchain technology in conventional trade.

#7- Sharjah Airport Authority will present Sharjah Airport’s expansion plans at ITB Berlin 2024, which kicks off tomorrow and runs until Thursday, Wam reports. The event gathers tourism and travel industry leaders from 165 countries.