Solely aggregation of news articles, with no opinions expressed by this service since 2009 launch on this platform.
Copyright to all articles remains with the original publisher and HEADLINES ARE CLICKABLE to access the whole article at source.
(Subscription by email is recommended,with real-time updates on LinkedIn and Twitter.)
Saudi Arabian information technology services firm Dar Al Balad Business Solutions Co. is pressing ahead with plans to list on the kingdom’s stock exchange despite the disruptions caused by the regional conflict.
A shareholder of the firm plans to offer 21 million shares, representing a 30% stake, according to a statement Tuesday. The institutional book-building will run between Apr. 26 and Apr. 30, with AlJazira Capital and Emirates NBD arranging the offering.
The first-time share sale is expected to fetch less than $75 million, according to people familiar with the matter. Representatives for the firm did not respond to a request for comment.
Dar Al Balad is the first in the Gulf to launch a share sale since the war broke out on Feb. 28.
Saudi Arabian stocks proved to be resilient throughout the conflict, with higher oil prices boosting heavyweights such as Aramco, even as production and exports have been hampered by a series of strikes on critical energy infrastructure.
Leading stock markets across the region have rebounded since the US and Iran agreed to a ceasefire earlier this month, though they’ve pared some of those gains amid uncertainty over the future of the peace talks.
Other Saudi firms, including a contractor and a real estate developer, are also pressing ahead with plans to list before their regulatory approvals expire in June, Bloomberg News has reported.
Initial public offering volumes have slumped across the Gulf so far this year — a slowdown that began even before the Iran war started.
Still, two smaller Gulf companies that have listed since the conflict began have posted strong gains: Kuwaiti convenience store operator Trolley General Trading Co. and Saudi Arabian miner Saleh Abdulaziz Al Rashed & Co., which are up about 42% and 30%, respectively.
Dar Al Balad was founded in 2001 by a former executive at chemicals giant Saudi Basic Industries Corp. and provides IT services and business solutions. It reported 315 million riyals ($84 million) in revenue and 51 million riyals in net profit in 2025, according to its prospectus.
Alterra, an Abu Dhabi-based investment vehicle that operates as a fund of funds, is overseen by the UAE and focused on clean energy investments. The vehicle, which has already announced deals with BlackRock Inc., Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. and TPG Inc., said in a statement on Tuesday the partnership with KKR is part of its commitment to invest in real assets that can accelerate decarbonization.
Details of the size of the financial commitment weren’t included in the statement.
Introduced at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai in 2023, Alterra is designed to enable blended finance by making it more appealing for private finance to back the energy transition through the use of de-risking structures. The UAE has said the model has the potential to unleash $250 billion of climate finance by 2030, much of which will be channeled into developing markets.
Growing demand for energy and an increased focus on the security of energy supply, as well as the increasing cost competitiveness of clean technologies, are driving investor demand for infrastructure across electrification, grid resilience and industrial decarbonization, Alterra said. KKR’s climate transition strategy invests in a number of companies that play into those themes from renewables, to energy storage and sustainable fuels, according to the statement.
The strategy is managed by KKR’s Charlie Gailliot and Emmanuel Lagarrigue.
Most Gulf equity markets ended marginally higher on Tuesday, supported by reports that Iran is considering attending peace talks with the United States, raising cautious hopes for diplomacy as the two-week ceasefire nears its end.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday that Tehran was "positively reviewing" participating in the talks in Pakistan, which is making efforts to U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, which has emerged as a major obstacle to reviving negotiations.
However, the official stressed that no final decision had been taken, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said continued U.S. violations of the ceasefire remained a serious impediment to the diplomatic process.
Iran's top negotiator and parliament speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, reiterated that Tehran would not negotiate under threat. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — which carries about a fifth of global oil supply — remained limited.
Dubai's main share index - which fell 2.1% in the previous session - closed up 0.3%, helped by a 0.3% rise in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties.
In Abu Dhabi, the index edged 0.2% higher. GCC equity markets stabilized as investor focus shifted to the next round of regional diplomacy, with improving expectations of de-escalation offering near-term support despite lingering geopolitical risks.
Oil prices are likely to remain volatile as the situation evolves, said Joseph Dahrieh, managing director at Tickmill.
"In the event of clearer diplomatic progress, UAE equities could be well-positioned to extend their recovery trajectory."
The Qatari index closed up 0.1%, with petrochemical maker Industries Qatar rising 0.8%.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia's benchmark index dipped 0.2%, with Saudi National Bank, the country's biggest lender by assets, losing 2.4%. Oil major Saudi Aramco eased 0.2%.
Brent crude futures edged down by 18 cents to $95.30 a barrel.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index gained 0.3%.
Gulf equities ended lower on Monday, on fears the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran could unravel after the U.S. seized an Iranian cargo vessel, while traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained largely suspended.
Hopes for a more lasting peace in the region dimmed after Iranian state media reported that Tehran had rejected fresh talks and would not take part in a second round of negotiations the U.S. had hoped to convene before the ceasefire expires on Tuesday.
Now in its eighth week, the war has triggered a historic shock to global energy supplies, sending oil prices soaring as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed.
Renewed Middle East tensions hit sentiment, with regional markets driven by geopolitical headlines and the Strait of Hormuz in focus after a shift in rhetoric over the weekend, said Daniel Takieddine, co-founder and CEO of Sky Links Capital Group.
Resilient domestic fundamentals may help limit the downside, while signs of de-escalation or strong earnings could support a rebound.
The United Arab Emirates has begun talks with the United States on a potential financial backstop should the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran deepen the Gulf nation's crisis, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
U.S. President Donald Trump had earlier warned that the United States would destroy Iran's bridges and power plants if Tehran refused his terms, repeating threats he had made throughout the war.
Iran, meanwhile, said any U.S. attack on its civilian infrastructure would trigger strikes on power stations and desalination plants in neighboring Gulf Arab states.
Gulf equities ended mixed on Sunday after U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran had committed a "serious violation" of the ceasefire, renewing uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz and the state of U.S.-Iran talks despite his insistence that a peace deal would happen.
Iran's armed forces turned back two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday after warnings over what Tasnim news agency described as "unauthorised transit."
Tehran said on Saturday it was tightening control over the Strait of Hormuz and warned mariners that the vital energy route was closed again, while President Donald Trump said Tehran could not blackmail the United States by shutting the waterway.
Neither side disclosed details on the state of negotiations on Saturday, just days before a ceasefire in the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran is due to expire.
On Friday, oil prices settled roughly 9% lower after Iran said commercial shipping could resume through the Strait of Hormuz for the duration of the ceasefire, and Trump said Tehran had agreed not to close the waterway again.
The developer said it launched "The Spine" in Madinaty, a project worth over 1.4 trillion Egyptian pounds ($27.09 billion) that it expects will generate more than 1.7 trillion Egyptian pounds in sales. At maturity, it aims to deliver over EGP 50 billion in annual recurring revenue.
For all my reporting life, I’ve dreaded one question: What is the price of oil — the real one? Invariably asked during a crisis, it demands a neat answer, a precise dollar-per-barrel figure. But each time my reply is anything but: It depends on what kind of crude we’re talking about, when it is being sold and where.
The Iran crisis is no different. Rather than offering a single price, what I can attempt is to shed light on today’s physical and financial oil markets, and why you can pick up a barrel of crude for $78 in Kansas or $286 in Sri Lanka.
In the midst of the latest Gulf conflict, oil has been an economic weapon and propaganda tool. Both Tehran and the US had been blockading shipments through the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway before at least a temporary reopening on Friday, and trying to jawbone the market in their favor.
Be wary of anyone saying one particular oil-price gauge matters more than the others. Whoever is betting on the cost of crude going up will argue Friday’s relief selloff doesn’t reflect reality, with shipping still severely disrupted. Those betting on a fall will have had their own views confirmed.
Over a Pricey Oil Barrel
Oil prices in the physical market have risen to an all-time high in nominal terms. But to surpass the 2008 peak in real terms, they would need to rise over $200
Source: Bloomberg
Broadly speaking, the oil market is split in two. The first part is the physical market, where real barrels change hands and they can be touched, smelled, almost savored. The second is visible only on computer screens. These are the printed financial contracts such as swaps, futures and options that change hands in electronic marketplaces. Traders call them paper barrels.
The financial and physical markets are, of course, linked. But they do different jobs. The former is where traders transfer oil-price risk. By nature, it’s anticipatory. Sometimes, it prices in expected supply disruptions days, weeks or even months before they happen. And it prices supply recoveries well before the black stuff flows again. It’s a window into a possible future, a distillation of probable outcomes. It isn’t, however, a forecast, just the price buyers are willing to pay today for a barrel that would be delivered in the future.
The physical market is where traders go to buy and sell straightaway the real stuff that goes into refineries. It reflects supply and demand right now. The key to prices is what kind of barrels are available, and how easily they can be accessed and shipped. It’s more about logistics than mathematical models.
Crucially, the supply of paper barrels is unlimited and that of physical barrels constrained, more so during a shock. Ilia Bouchouev, an ex-oil trader now at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, estimates the physical market has lost more than 10 million barrels since the war started. But the financial market has traded an extra billion barrels when all the different paper instruments are aggregated.
In normal times, the price of the financial and the physical markets are closely aligned, plus or minus certain differentials and ancillary costs. In these periods of calm, the easiest answer to “what’s the real price of oil?” is to look at any financial screen. Typically, all the paper benchmarks — Brent, West Texas Intermediate and Dubai — trade in unison, within a few dollars.
Want a Physical Barrel of Oil? Pay For It
Saudi Arabia is charging a record high premium over the benchmark for supply, reflecting the extreme tightness in the physical oil market
Sources: Saudi Aramco and Bloomberg
But these aren’t normal times. Physical prices have skyrocketed as refiners hunt for any barrels for immediate delivery. What used to trade a few cents above or below the paper benchmark is being sold at a premium of $10, $15, $20 or even higher. Saudi Arabia will sell its flagship Arab Light to European customers at a premium of $27.85 in May. Last month, it was a discount of 65 cents. “Physical transactions are under a lot of strain,” Josu Jon Imaz, chief executive officer of Spanish refiner Repsol SA, says.
And this is before adding ancillary fees, which don’t feel so ancillary any more. Freight costs that used to be $1 a barrel today set you back as much as $25. Insurance is a small fortune. These extra expenses don’t figure in the financial market because no one needs to physically move a paper barrel. But add them in and “the barrel of oil, door-to-door, is way above the headline price,” says HSBC Holdings Plc CEO Georges Elhedery.
This gap doesn’t mean the physical and financial markets are disconnected, or that the latter is broken, as many bloggers and Wall Street types claim. They’re simply doing different jobs and offering two different answers. In broad terms, the physical market tells the price from today to about 30 days ahead; the financial market usually from two months hence to 10 years out.
So what message is being conveyed? One of my go-to oil traders, who’s happy to impart (anonymously) the knowledge built over multiple crises, puts it simply: The physical market shows barrels are extremely tight today; but the paper market is saying that if you look at a distribution of possible outcomes a couple of months from now, there are many scenarios where that eases.
Oil Transportation Will Cost You a Barrel
The cost of shipping crude around the world used to be an afterthought – today it is so expensive that it cost more than one barrel of crude did a few years ago
Source: Bloomberg
The different timeframe is critical. In the early days of the war, the paper market was where the fears about the conflict’s impact showed up. The Brent contract surged to $120 in early March. But because of the excess supply sloshing about back then, its physical counterpart barely made it above $100. Now, the situation has inverted: The physical market is still pricing today’s scarcity; the financial market is pricing the end of the war.
The irony is that financial traders, oil speculators par excellence, have softened the Hormuz shock by pricing in its potential resolution. But oil refiners must live in the present. Security of supply overrides thoughts about price. My trader contact says refiners, particularly if state-owned, will pay whatever it takes to guarantee delivery. And they will do so in way that’s disproportionate to the actual oil shock because not having a barrel is existential — for a country’s energy needs and critical products — in a way that overpaying is not.
Geography matters to price, too. Colonial-era terminology still lives on in this market, with an imaginary vertical line dividing the world at the Suez Canal in Egypt. The current oil shock started east of there, and that’s where the physical market and shipping costs have been most affected. Back-of-the-envelope math suggests some eastern refiners are going to pay north of $175 for “landing prices” — the sum of the barrel cost, its transport expense and other elements.
The fallout is, however, moving westward. Asian refiners are shopping in the Atlantic basin, from Norway to West Africa. The cost of Dated Brent, the reference for the physical North Sea market, briefly surged to $145 this month.
Even if Hormuz reopens, as President Donald Trump promised Friday, the shock’s impact will spread further west. The US, the largest oil-producing nation, will become the barrel of last resort. This is the land of cheap oil. Its refiners are buying crude at absurdly low prices compared to Asia and Europe. And because they’re connected by pipeline, they pay regular transport costs.
How cheap is cheap? Look at the daily “Crude Oil Price Bulletin” posted by American traders, pipeline companies and refiners as a reference for physical purchases. In the April 15 edition, West Texas Intermediate was $87.77. Colorado Southeastern goes for $78.27. Wyoming Sweet is $84.87, and Nebraska Intermediate commands $77.77. A lucky refiner with access to Utah Sweet can get it for $76.98. Western Canadian Select, a benchmark for the Alberta oil sands, goes for about $72.
What's The Price of Oil? It Depends
The cost of a barrel depends of what kind of crude, when it is being sold and where. North America is far cheaper than the rest of the world
Note: Prices as settlement Apr. 15, 2026
Sources: Bloomberg, General Index, and Plains All American Pipelines LP
The ultra-low prices won’t last, however, unless Hormuz reopens fully. An armada of tankers is headed toward the US coast no matter what happens in the Persian Gulf in coming days. They’ll still load US crude even if the ceasefire holds. All things equal, North American oil costs would increase, and the rises elsewhere would be capped as eastern refiners access the US market. We’re already witnessing the start. Mars crude, pumped out of the Gulf of Mexico, is one of America’s more easily exportable varieties. Earlier this week, it went for $97.30 as it becomes the go-to US crude to ship.
I hope by now you recognize the difficulty of providing an easy answer on the “real” price of oil. And there are other factors to include, too.
First, should we refer to oil in nominal terms or real terms? In the latter, adjusted by the cumulative impact of inflation, oil prices would need to spike further to match previous crises. The nearly $150 record set in 2008 in both the physical and financial Brent markets is about $220 in today’s money.
And second, should we pay more attention to the price of the refined products consumers actually buy and less to the crude that refiners purchase? During an acute shock like the Hormuz shutdown, the cost of refined products such as gasoline and jet fuel rises faster than the stuff they’re made from. Politically and economically, that’s arguably much more important.
Ultimately, if cornered I’ll always say the physical market is king, and the price is always what’s paid today, not two months down the road. But I will insist on an average among regions, including North America.
On that basis, let’s say the real level this week was $125 or so. In a couple of months? There, probably, I’d listen to what the speculators are saying in the financial market. So far they’ve been proved right in judging the supply disruption and now the resolution. I agree, the price is headed lower.
Abu Dhabi is considering plans to consolidate Chinese assets housed within two of its wealth funds under a new entity, setting the stage for a radical overhaul of its investment strategy for the world’s second-largest economy.
The proposed investment vehicle will be jointly owned by the two wealth funds, L’imad Holding Co. and Mubadala Investment Co., according to people familiar with the matter. This would help avoid multiple Abu Dhabi vehicles competing for the same deals as the emirate looks to boost its exposure to China, the people said, declining to be identified discussing confidential information.
Details on structure and strategy are still under discussion, and no final decisions have been made on the consolidation. Representatives for Mubadala declined to comment, while Abu Dhabi’s ministry of foreign affairs and the emirate’s media office didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Such a move would bring a critical economic relationship under the ambit of two influential names within Abu Dhabi’s circles of money and power.
L’imad is overseen by Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed, a son of United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed who has taken on more prominent national security and economic roles over the past year. Mubadala is helmed by Khaldoon Al Mubarak, who has handled key relationships for Abu Dhabi, including China, for years.
Al Mubarak was among executives who accompanied the crown prince to China this week for meetings with President Xi Jinping.
L’imad has exposure to China via sovereign investor ADQ, which it absorbed this year, while Mubadala has deployed over $20 billion across more than 100 investments in China since 2015. The two entities have close links — Al Mubarak and his deputy at Mubadala are both part of L’imad’s board.
Abu Dhabi, home to about $1.8 trillion in sovereign wealth, has emerged as one of the world’s most consequential investors in recent years. Its funds — which also include the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority — have historically skewed toward the US and Europe. The city has committed to invest over a trillion dollars to America and tens of billions more to countries like France and Italy.
Ties with China have deepened in parallel, despite unease in Washington over some deals. Non-oil trade between the two nations surpassed $100 billion for the first time in 2025.
Earlier this year, Al Mubarak said Mubadala had historically been under-invested in Asia but is now expanding its footprint, citing strong performance in South Korea, Japan and China in 2025. The push aligns with the $385 billion fund’s plan, laid out in 2024, to double Asia exposure to about 25% by the end of the decade.
The crown prince’s visit came amid a two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran in a war that saw the UAE bear the brunt of the Islamic Republic’s attacks.
But the conflict hasn’t slowed Abu Dhabi’s appetite for dealmaking, and key entities have deployed billions across alternative asset managers, private credit, technology platforms and hospitality. This week, L’imad struck a $2.3 billion deal in Jordan, underscoring its role in advancing the emirate’s strategic relationships.
The fund’s board includes senior Abu Dhabi executives like Jassem Al Zaabi — viewed by some as one of the emirate’s most influential non-royals — though it is still being built from the ground up.
UAE stock markets ended higher on Friday, gaining for the second week, with Dubai at a six-week high and outperforming its regional peer Abu Dhabi, on prospects of peace in the Middle East. U.S. and Iran are likely to hold peace talks over the weekend in Pakistan, while a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel has taken effect. Hopes of peace have driven a global stock rally, while oil, a key component of the Gulf's economies, was pinned below $100 a barrel.
Brent crude was down 3.13% at $96.28 a barrel by 1144 GMT. U.S. President Donald Trump expressed confidence that an agreement with Iran could soon be reached to end the conflict, and urged the Tehran-aligned Hezbollah group to hold its fire.
Any credible path to easing maritime risks in the Strait of Hormuz would likely bolster regional risk appetite and support economic growth, said George Pavel, general manager at Naga.com Middle East.
Dubai's main share index rose 1%, led by gains in heavyweight real estate and financial stocks. It gained 4.8% for the week, its biggest in more than nine months. Top lender Emirates NBD Bank jumped 2% on Friday, while blue-chip developer Emaar Properties rose 1.1%.
Abu Dhabi's benchmark index edged up 0.03% and logged a weekly rise of 0.8%.
The index was supported by a 0.5% increase in Aldar Properties after the company announced the delivery of 9,000 value rental homes in Mohamed Bin Zayed City and Baniyas, with a gross development value of 2.8 billion dirhams ($762.32 million).
UAE's largest lender First Abu Dhabi Bank also rose 1.6%.
The index gains were tempered by a 0.5% decline in its largest firm, International Holding Company, and a 0.6% fall in UAE's third-largest lender Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank .
A newly created wealth fund overseen by Abu Dhabi’s crown prince has signed a $2.3 billion pact for a railway project in Jordan, highlighting the role the entity is likely to play in advancing the emirate’s strategic relationships.
L’imad Holding Co. will partner with multiple Jordanian entities to build and operate a railway line connecting phosphate and potash mines to the port of Aqaba, according to a statement Wednesday. Work on the 360 kilometer (220-mile) project is scheduled to begin in 2027 and be completed over five years.
“This is the biggest investment that Jordan has witnessed over the past 25 years,” the country’s minister of transport, Nedal Katamine, said by phone. “It’s the largest project concerning transport in Jordan, and among the largest ones in the region.”
L’imad’s involvement in the Jordan deal — an extension of a $5.5 billion agreement signed in 2023 — signals the central role the wealth fund is expected to play in Abu Dhabi’s dealmaking.
Its board is stacked with senior Abu Dhabi executives, including chief executive Jassem Al Zaabi — described by some as among the emirate’s most influential non-royals — and wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co.’s CEO, Khaldoon Al Mubarak.
The $2.3 billion deal is also the latest indication that Abu Dhabi is willing to keep deploying capital despite a regional conflict that’s impacted key energy infrastructure across the Gulf.
The United Arab Emirates has been an ally of Jordan and its royal family, and views the country as a buffer against regional instability. Jordan, which borders countries including Israel and Syria, has faced an influx of refugees and conflicts on its borders that have strained its limited resources.
Katamine said the railway project would boost employment, cut transportation costs, strengthen the country’s competitive edge in phosphate mining and help make the Aqaba port “a gateway into Jordan.”
Most Gulf equity markets ended higher on Thursday, as hopes for a deal to end the Iran war lifted sentiment, with investors also watching rising U.S. pressure on Tehran ahead of further talks.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the war launched with Israel in late February was nearly over, even as the shipping blockade he announced came into effect and traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained sharply below normal. Washington, meanwhile, warned it could impose secondary sanctions on buyers of Iranian oil ahead of further negotiations, just weeks after loosening enforcement of some Iran energy sanctions.
U.S. and Iranian officials were considering returning to Pakistan for further talks as early as this weekend, after negotiations on Sunday ended without a breakthrough. Pakistan's army chief arrived in Tehran on Wednesday as part of a mediation effort to keep the conflict from reigniting.
Dubai's main share index advanced 1.1%, led by a 2.6% rise in blue-chip developer Emaar Properties and a 4.1% jump in budget airline Air Arabia. Optimism over a potential resolution has lifted sentiment, but markets remain sensitive to geopolitical headlines, tempering a broader risk-on shift, said Hani Abuagla, senior market analyst at XTB MENA.
Strong domestic fundamentals in the UAE may support a return toward earlier highs, while further diplomatic progress could add momentum. "However, ongoing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz remain a key overhang, potentially capping near-term upside."
Meanwhile, the luxury hotel Burj Al Arab in the emirate will shut for about 18 months for its first major renovation since opening in 1999, with guests to be moved to nearby hotels, according to a staff member.
The work comes amid pressure on Dubai tourism from the Iran conflict; the hotel also sustained minor facade damage in March from drone debris.
In Abu Dhabi, the index finished 0.3% higher.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index lost 0.3%, with Saudi National Bank - the country's biggest lender by assets - down 3.2%. However, the index is up 1.9% for the week, its seventh straight weekly gain, outperforming regional rivals on higher oil prices and the kingdom's ability to reroute exports.
Brent crude futures climbed 67 cents, or 0.7%, to $95.60 a barrel.
The Qatari index eased 0.2%, hit by a 1.4% fall in Qatar Islamic Bank. Qatar - the world's second-largest LNG exporter - may extend its force majeure on gas supplies beyond mid-June, Italian importer Edison said, though it expects lost volumes to be replaced by U.S.
LNG rather than Russian gas. QatarEnergy cancelled 10 cargoes for Edison between April and mid-June after the war disrupted supplies. Iran's attacks knocked out 17% of QatarEnergy's LNG export capacity last month, its CEO said.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index rose 1.4%.
