Evaluating Legacy Systems and 2026 Business Strategies

El Houni asked the speakers to share what keeps them "on-point" at work and what guidance they have for the audience. Hamad Al Hajri, CEO and Creator of Snoonu stated it was "crucial to build limits" in between work and personal life and take brief holidays to "detach" from the office.

Karim Benkirane, CCO of Du, said: "If you make the people you work with delighted, you will make the customer happy, who will then make the investors delighted."Ambareen Musa, CEO for Revolut GCC, said the capability to "not stress" is the crucial to discovering a solution for issues.

Today, we're assembling more than 3000 conferences between investors and 119 Gulf-listed companies with a combined value of $2.4 trillion at the HSBC GCC Exchanges Conference 2026, in London. We're uniting financiers, business, exchanges, and policymakers to discuss what is changing in the area, and what comes next, consisting of the expansion and continuous development of the Gulf's capital markets, and the area's growing role in international networks of capital and trade.

Saudi Arabia and UAE are poised to lead the Gulf region's economic growth in 2026, supported by strong private-sector performance, durable domestic need and renewed financial investment momentum, according to the most current ICAEW Economic Insight Q4 2025 report, produced by Oxford Economics. The GCC is anticipated to outshine most international areas peers next year, with local GDP forecast to grow by 4.4%. Across the GCC, non-energy activity is forecasted to expand by 4.1% in 2026, driven by strong labour markets, enhancing credit conditions and increasing investment in technology and AI-related infrastructure.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Accelerating Regional Corporate Expansion through Strategy

Oil revenues will be under pressure in the very first half of 2026, production is anticipated to increase once again in the 2nd half of 2026, supporting the area's medium-term outlook, it mentioned. Saudi Arabia will stay a major contributor to GCC momentum, with GDP forecast to grow 4.3% in 2026.

Development will be supported by commercial expansion and policy reforms, consisting of eased foreign ownership guidelines that intend to stimulate additional investment. The financial deficit is projected to expand to 5.6% of GDP next year amid softer oil rates, while the recent five-year rent freeze in Riyadh intends to relieve inflationary pressures, though it may constrain future housing supply.

Strong domestic fundamentalsThe UAE is likewise placed for another strong year of efficiency, with GDP projection to increase 5.6% in 2026 as non-oil sectors continue to expand. Tourist, trade and monetary services remain essential development chauffeurs, supported by population development and sustained domestic need. Dubai's economy grew 4.4% in the first half of 2025, showing broad-based non-oil strength.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Oil production is anticipated to choose up again in the second half of 2026, matching ongoing financial investment in facilities, technology and global trade collaborations. Hanadi Khalife, the Head of Middle East, ICAEW, stated: "This quarter's outlook enhances how far the GCC has actually been available in structure diverse, resilient and worldwide competitive economies.

Scott Livermore, ICAEW Economic Advisor, and Chief Financial Expert and Managing Director, Oxford Economics Middle East, said: "Saudi Arabia and the UAE are entering 2026 with strong structures. Saudi non-oil activity is acquiring rate, supported by robust need and increasing investment, even as financial pressures increase.""The UAE continues to gain from solid domestic fundamentals, a sharp uplift in federal government spending and continual diversity efforts.

Methods for Scaling GCC Strategy in 2026

GCC countries are rotating towards a strategy of 'durability over growth' going into 2026, as the area prepares for a worldwide landscape specified by softer oil costs, geopolitical fragmentation, and the rapid shift to an AI-enabled economy. According to a brand-new regional outlook by PwC, the GCC is relocating to insulate its development from external shocks by deepening global trade integration, protecting commercial supply chains, and executing a definitive shift from technology ambition to operational execution.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Negotiations totally free Trade Arrangements with China, the EU, and Japan are advancing, while talks with the UK have gone into final preparing phases. The region is increasingly placing itself as a main hub for east-west trade through the IndiaMiddle EastEurope Economic Corridor (IMEC). To support domestic manufacturing, securing critical minerals has actually become a tactical concern.