Good morning, wonderful people. We hope the workweek got off to a great start for you yesterday.

It’s day two of the EFG Hermes One on One Conference, the largest gathering of its kind devoted to emerging and frontier equities.

Some 670 investors from 250 global institutions are meeting face-to-face with senior execs from more than 215 companies in industries through Thursday. Presenting companies are from industries ranging from food and fintech to banking and petrochemicals. Companies from 29 countries will be attending.

Investors and corporates participated in EFG Hermes’ unique live poll at the closing of yesterday’s opening session, which also included an interview with our friend Mahmoud Mohieldin, the World Bank’s senior vice president for the 2030 Development Agenda, United Nations relations, and partnerships as well as a panel on what artificial intelligence means to emerging markets and the finance industry.

We have the rundown on the poll in this morning’s news well and will have more coverage from the gathering in the days ahead.

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

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS-

#1- We’re in for more gloomy weather: The rain will continue this week across all emirates, with a significant chance of thunderstorms, reports the National Center of Meteorology. Temperatures are also expected to drop as low as 9°C in some parts of the country.

#2- It’s official — we’re getting shorter work days in Ramadan: Both the private and public sector will have their usual working days shortened by two hours, according to the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources and the Human Resources and Emiratisation ministry. We’re looking at a 9am-2:30pm workday from Monday to Thursday, and a 9am-12pm schedule on Friday.

#3- Your bus ride in Sharjah just got a little more expensive: Sharjah bus fares have increased by up to AED 3 on some routes, Khaleej Times reports. Fare hikes came into effect last Friday, 1 March, after the news of rising fuel prices at the end of February.

#4- The Sharjah Municipality will issue permits for non-Muslim communities to prepare and sell food during daylight hours in Ramadan, including displaying food in front of stores before Iftar, Sharjah24 reports.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- The UAE’s PMI figures are out today shortly after we dispatch this morning’s issue.You can find the PMI survey here once it’s out and read our breakdown in tomorrow morning’s issue. The non-oil sector continued to grow in January, 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 bookbuilding process for car parking space manager Parkin kicks off today.Retail investors will have until next Tuesday, 12 March to subscribe to the IPO, while the subscription period for institutional investors wraps on Wednesday, 12 March. The Dubai Investment Fund will be selling 749.7 mn shares, with trading set to begin on 21 March, according to the recently-established company’s prospectus (pdf).

#3- Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah will be in town today for his first state visit since taking office in December, Kuwait’s Kuna reports, citing the UAE’s ambassador to Kuwait.

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

#5- The Culture Summit Abu Dhabi wraps up today, Wam reports. The event, themed A Matter of Time, features participants from 90 countries engaging in keynote speeches, creative talks, and cultural performances.

#6- The MRO Middle East event concludes tomorrow in Dubai. The two-day event saw key decision makers from airlines, MROs, OEMs, lessors, and suppliers spanning all aspects of the aviation industry’s supply chain.

#7- The World Police Summit is underway and runs 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.

#8- Forbes’ annual 30/50 summit is also underway, running through Friday. Meg Ryan andShania Twain will be among those headlining the event spotlighting the Forbes 30 Under 30 and 50 Over 50 lists, coinciding with International Women’s Day, Forbes previously reported.

#9- The Dubai Entertainment Amusement & Leisure Exhibition opened its doors yesterday. The three-day trade show will welcome global exhibitors in entertainment and amusement, before wrapping this Thursday.

#10- The Dubai Sugar Conference kicked off yesterday at the InterContinental Dubai Festival City Hotel and will close on Thursday. The conference highlights the growing focus on sustainability in the sugar industry post-COP28. The conference’s discussions will touch on declining sugar prices, health risks of non-sugar sweeteners, and potential in biofuels and biopolymers. Geovane Consul, CEO of BP Bunge Bioenergia, will deliver the keynote address at this year’s conference.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Egyptian developer Hassan Allam eyes UAE expansion: Egypt-based construction group Hassan Allam Holding is planning to expand its projects in the Emirates as part of a strategy to double regional operations, the group’s CEO Hassan Allam told Asharq Business. The construction firm currently has contracts worth approximately USD 2.5 bn in the pipeline. Hassan Allam is eyeing markets including Saudi Arabia, Oman, Libya, and Iraq to propel its regional expansion.

#2- EFG Hermes expects smaller IPOs to dominate GCC markets in the coming year, with the private sector becoming the main issuer seeking capital, EFG Hermes head of Investment Banking Mostafa Gad tells Reuters. The Increased transactions will likely come primarily from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, with an increasing level of activity noted in Kuwait, while Oman is gaining heightened attention from global banks, according to Gad.

#3- The UAE is set to host a special meeting in June to secure increased financialcommitments for climate action ahead of COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, Bloomberg reports. The summit aims to raise the existing target of USD 100 bn annually, which will “require vast amounts of private capital as well as government money.”

#4- The government of Sharjah is set to clear AED 69.4 mn in debt for 131 citizens convicted in financial cases, under directives of Sharjah ruler Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Wam reports. The Sharjah Debt Settlement Committee greenlit the latest batch within the emirate’s debt relief program, which saw Sharjah cancel some AED 1.2 bn in debt for 2.3k citizens.

#5- Newly approved Nafis budget: Abu Dhabi Vice President Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan approved an AED 6.4 bn budget for the Nafis Emiratisation program during the 2024 meeting of the Emirati Talent Competitiveness Council (ETCC), Wam reports. The Nafis program, launched in 2021, has a target of integrating 36k Emirati citizens into the private workforce by 2024 as part of the Emiratisation goals for the private sector. The program will also target the employment of 1k citizens in the education sector starting 2024, with aspirations to reach 4k employees by 2027.

DATA POINT-

#1- Dubai’s hotel occupancy rates came in at 83.1% in January, outperforming regional and international cities, including Medina, Mumbai, and Hong Kong, Mubasher reports, citing data from commercial real estate information provider Co-Star. January occupancy rates are more than three percentage points higher than figures recorded in January 2023, and were a record high for Dubai’s January performance since pre-pandemic levels in 2020. Growth came despite the emirate opening 3k new hotel rooms throughout the year.

2023 recap: Average hotel occupancy rates in Dubai were one of the highest globally in 2023, standing at 77.48%, up 2.18% from an occupancy average of 75.3% in 2019, prior to the pandemic.

#2- Non-Arab foreign investors poured some AED 3.4 bn into UAE stock markets in the first two months of 2024, with stocks on the DFM receiving AED 2 bn and those on the ADX reeling in AED 1.38 bn, Al Khaleej reports. The DFM is up 6.13% year-to-date, while the ADX is down 3.4% y-t-d.

#3- Dubai Multi Commodities Center’s(DMCC) portfolio of Chinese companies grew 25% y-o-y, with 852 Chinese companies registering in the freezone in 2023, according to a statement. The number of active Chinese companies positions DMCC as “home to over 14%” of some 6k Chinese businesses operating in the UAE, the freezone said.

#4- Local air traffic climbed 14% y-o-y in February,with a record 2.9k air movements recorded in a single day of the month, Assistant Director-General of the General Civil Aviation Authority’s Air Navigation Services Sector Ahmed Al Jallaf told Wam (watch, runtime: 2:30). Al Jallaf forecasts air traffic will continue to trend upwards in 2024 on the back of national airlines’ airport and fleet expansions. Air traffic increased 19% y-o-y in 2023, with over 134 mn passengers recorded traveling through UAE airports during the year (up 33% y-o-y, and 5% compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019).

#5- The regional commercial airfleet is set to expand 51% to over 2.2k aircraft within a decade,according to a report from consulting firm Oliver Wyman. Meanwhile, the global airfleet is projected to increase by 28% to 36.4k aircraft by 2034. Prior to the covid-19 pandemic, the global fleet was expected to hit 39k by 2023, but “this won’t happen until 2036, with Covid wiping out six years of growth,” the report reads.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Apple has been slapped with a USD 2 bn fine by the European Commission for breaching EU antitrust laws by preventing music streaming apps from informing iPhone users about cheaper subscription options paid for outside iPhone apps. The whopping fine for “abusing its dominant position” is designed to deter Apple and other giant companies from taking similar actions in the future. (Reuters | CNBC | Associated Press)

While over in the states, Trump’s legal battles are once again making the front pages: The Supreme Court overturned a ruling by Colorado’s top court that prohibited Donald Trump from running for president in the state on the basis of an anti-insurrection clause in the US constitution. Only Congress has the constitutional power to take a candidate off the ballot under the 14 amendment, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled. (Reuters | Bloomberg | Associated Press | CNBC | BBC | Guardian)

HAPPENING THIS WEEK-

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

#2- Sharjah Airport Authority will present Sharjah Airport’s expansion plans at ITB Berlin2024, which kicks off tomorrow and runs until Thursday, Wam reports. The event gathers tourism and travel industry leaders from 165 countries.

#3- The Future Women Leaders Forum 2024 will take place on International Women’s Day this Friday, 8 March, at Fairmont Dubai, reports Gulf News. Organized by Gulf News and women’s empowerment organization Being She, the forum brings together women leaders to amplify regional and international initiatives for gender equality.

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