Business

    – Abu Dhabi recorded the largest progress globally in the 2026 Global Real Estate Transparency Index published by real estate services firm JLL. According to survey details released by government regulatory authorities, the UAE capital advanced eight spots to 33rd

    The international financial community maintains a highly positive outlook on the economic trajectory of the United Arab Emirates. Recent macroeconomic assessments published by the World Bank Group indicate that the sovereign state will experience robust expansion over the next two

    Economic growth across developing Asia and the Pacific is forecast to slow to 5.0% in 2026. The region expanded 5.5% in 2025, according to the Asian Development Bank’s latest outlook. The new 2026 estimate stands 0.1 percentage point above the

    Remittances from Egyptians working abroad reached about $29.7 billion in the first seven months of 2026. The Central Bank of Egypt said inflows rose 28.1% from about $23.2 billion during January through July 2025. The figures cover money sent home

    China kept its benchmark lending rates unchanged in September, maintaining the one-year loan prime rate at 3.0%. The over-five-year LPR remained at 3.5%, according to the official September 20 fixing. Many lenders use the longer-term rate as a reference for

    Sports

    Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal and Erling Haaland are among the 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or. Organizers announced the men’s shortlist on September 8 before the awards ceremony in London on October 26. Ousmane Dembélé, Rodri and

    Technology

    OpenAI has released the GPT-5.6 model family and introduced ChatGPT Work, an agent designed for longer and more complex assignments. The family includes GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra and Luna. Each model targets a different balance of capability, speed and cost. OpenAI

    Emirates said customers have made more than one million connections to Starlink Wi-Fi since the service entered its fleet seven months ago. The Dubai-based airline said passengers have used more than one petabyte of data through the satellite internet service.

    Amazon CEO Andy Jassy met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and announced plans to invest $48 billion in India from 2026 to 2030. The plan includes an additional $13 billion for artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure. The

    Japan has released a draft revision of its Artificial Intelligence Basic Plan that calls for wider global cooperation on AI risks. The proposal focuses on cyberattacks, model safety, misinformation and governance of high-performance AI. The Cabinet Office opened public comments

    India and France adopted the India-France Innovation Roadmap 2030 during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Emmanuel Macron in Nice on June 14, widening cooperation across artificial intelligence, trade, defence, space, education and health research. The two leaders

    Nvidia has signed artificial intelligence and data centre agreements with major South Korean companies, widening its role in the country’s AI infrastructure buildout. The agreements involve SK Hynix, SK Telecom, NAVER and Doosan Group. The companies did not disclose financial terms.

    South Korea has launched a 1.115 trillion won, or about US$665.5 million, Industrial Growth Fund to expand financing for manufacturing innovation, artificial intelligence adoption and technology  commercialization across key industries. The fund was introduced on May 18 at an industrial finance

    ABU DHABI: Space42 said the localisation of assembly, integration and testing for its Foresight synthetic aperture radar, or SAR, satellites shows the UAE is deepening its industrial capability in space technology, as the company ties a series of recent Earth observation milestones