Author: Arabian Media staff
Image: Getty Images Qatar’s real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 3.7 per cent in Q1 2025 compared to the same period a year earlier, with strong gains in the non-hydrocarbon sector, the Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported, citing data from the National Planning Council (NPC). GDP at constant prices reached QAR181.5bn in Q1 2025, up from QAR175bn in Q1 2024, according to the National Statistics Centre. The non-hydrocarbon sector accounted for 63.6 per cent of real GDP, or approximately QAR115bn, an increase from 62.6 per cent in the same quarter last year. Qatar GDP: Sectors showing growth Growth in…
Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up to the Artificial intelligence myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.A two-year-old Swedish artificial intelligence start-up that promises to make programming an app as easy as writing a few sentences is nearing a valuation of almost $2bn, in the latest sign of investor fervour for AI coding businesses. Lovable is set to attract more than $150mn in new funding less than six months after its previous round, according to people familiar with the deal, making it one of Europe’s fastest-growing AI start-ups. Venture capital group Accel was leading the round, with existing…
Sharjah’s property sector recorded more than 25 per cent increase in foreign investment in the first quarter of 2025, driven by growing interest in freehold ownership, long-term visa options, and strategically located projects such as Ajwan Khorfakkan. This is according to the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq). “Sharjah is building a strong momentum for freehold ownership, boosted by Shurooq,” said Yousif Ahmed Al-Mutawa, chief real estate Officer at Shurooq. “The Ajwan launch in Khorfakkan reflects the demand for freehold designated projects, where international and regional buyers can invest.” Official figures support the trend. According to WAM, the total value…
Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldParamount has agreed to pay $16mn to settle President Donald Trump’s $20bn defamation lawsuit against its CBS News division, potentially clearing an obstacle as Shari Redstone seeks to move ahead with the sale of her family’s company to Skydance.The payment will be made to Trump’s future presidential library, marking the second time since the November election that he has won damages from a major news organisation. In December, Disney-owned ABC paid $15mn to Trump’s presidential library to settle a defamation…
In the fifth of this six-part series of The Economics Show, Martin Wolf, the FT’s chief economics commentator, and Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman discuss the way American politics is crashing against both the guardrails of a stable, democratic system and the rules and norms of the postwar economic order and how this could jeopardise the importance of the US on the world stage.Paul Krugman’s Cultural Coda: Stephen Sondheim: “We had a good thing going”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTbrbiM-slg&list=RDNTbrbiM-slg&start_radio=1Martin Wolf’s Cultural Coda:Jonas Kaufmann: Freiheit from Beethoven’s Fideliohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvfhmGsFMEoSubscribe and listen to this series on The Economics Show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever…
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.A battle between ministers and the pharmaceutical industry over drug prices has forced the UK government to delay publication of its long-awaited plan for the life sciences.The release of the “life sciences review”, initially scheduled for Monday, was delayed in large part because both sides had been unable to reach an agreement over a contentious review of drug pricing, according to three people familiar with the matter.“It’s such a significant matter — it would be an elephant in the room if it…
Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldContainer ships are some of the biggest and heaviest vessels on the sea. But piloting a container shipping line recently has been akin to being on a fishing boat in the roughest of weather.The squalls have included US President Donald Trump’s on-off tariffs, port congestion, the Israel-Iran war, and the Houthi rebels in Yemen threatening to close off the Red Sea, not to mention the lasting effects of the disruption caused by Covid-19. Simon Heaney, senior manager for container research…
Image credit: WAM/Website Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has completed a series of rapid traffic improvement works aimed at enhancing connectivity between Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Khail Road via Al Meydan Street. Read-Dubai’s new road upgrade: Smoother flow between Sheikh Zayed, Al Wasl As part of the project, the RTA widened the exit from Sheikh Zayed Road to Al Meydan Street from one lane to two. The bridge over First Al Khail Road was also expanded from three to four lanes, boosting capacity for vehicles travelling between Al Khail Road, Sheikh Zayed Road, Al Meydan Street, and Al…
Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the worldThe writer is director of economic policy studies at the American Enterprise InstituteZohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist who won last week’s Democratic mayoral primary in New York City, was asked by NBC News if “billionaires have a right to exist”. His response: “I don’t think that we should have billionaires.”Mamdani has this backwards. We should want more billionaires, not fewer — and certainly not none.To support his view, Mamdani argued that any one person having “so much money in a…
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.A series of mysterious limpet mine attacks on oil tankers has shaken the shipping world, prompting speculation that the explosions were part of a state-backed sabotage campaign. Five vessels have been hit by deliberate blasts this year, with the latest incident flooding the engine room of the Greek-owned tanker the Vilamoura last week as it sailed off the coast of Libya. All the vessels called at Russian ports within weeks of the attacks, prompting some security experts to suggest that Ukraine had…