Live updates: Follow the latest on Trump's Gulf trip
Qatar Airways has signed an agreement to buy up to 210 Boeing aircraft in a deal that US President Donald Trump said is the "largest" in the US plane maker's history.
The deal for 787 Dreamliners and 777X widebody planes, part of wider aviation and defence agreements between the two countries, was signed by Qatar Airways chief executive Badr Al Meer and Boeing chief executive Kelly Ortberg during Mr Trump's visit to Doha on Wednesday.
"Kelly ... congratulations to Boeing. Get those planes out there. Get them out there," Mr Trump said.
The White House later said that the agreement for the 787 Dreamliners and 777X aircraft, along with jet engines by US giant GE Aerospace, was valued at $96 billion.
The "landmark" order for the aircraft and engines will create 154,000 US jobs annually, totalling more than one million jobs in the US during the course of production and delivery of the "historic" deal, the White House said.
"This is Boeing’s largest-ever widebody order and largest-ever 787 order," the White House said.
Boeing said the deal included a firm order of 160 planes - 130 787 Dreamliners and 30 777Xs. It also included options for an additional 50 787s and 777Xs.
"After two consecutive years of record-breaking commercial performance and with this historic Boeing aircraft order we're not simply chasing scale, we're building strength," Mr Al Meer said.
The building of the 787s and 777s for the order will continue into the next decade, said Stephanie Pope, president and chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
Qatar Airways currently operates more than 150 Boeing planes, including 777 and 787 passenger jets and 777 freighters. With this purchase, Qatar Airways will become the largest 787 Dreamliner operator in the Middle East, the statement said.
GE Aerospace said that the deal for more than 400 engines, including 60 GE9X and 260 GEnx with additional options and spares, is its largest ever for widebody turbines.
Airlines in the Gulf such as Dubai's Emirates are major buyers of widebody aircraft that help them connect intercontinental routes. Emirates airline during the Dubai Airshow in 2014 placed an order for 150 Boeing 777X aircraft valued at $56 billion at list prices, which was a record order at that time.
"Qatar Airways, like the other two big Gulf super-connectors [Emirates and Etihad Airways], has large ongoing fleet replacement and growth needs," Richard Aboulafia, managing director of Washington-based aviation consultancy AeroDynamic Advisory, told The National.
"Timing the Boeing part of these orders with President Trump’s visit was politically savvy, but it’s still the same order they’d place without the political fanfare."
Boeing, the biggest US exporter of manufactured goods, got a much-needed boost with its biggest-ever aircraft order. The commercial win comes at an opportune time for the plane-maker that had a crises-riddled year in 2024, with Mr Ortberg leading restructuring efforts during his first year on the job since his appointment in August 2024.
Boeing shares jumped to their highest levels in 15 months after Mr Trump’s announcement. The stock gained 1.2 per cent at 9.20pm UAE time.
The agreement comes as Mr Trump aims to seal corporate deals with close allies to boost his image as a successful dealmaker. The pact also comes after Mr Trump's tariffs announcements last month tested his country's global trade alliances, roiled markets, worried investors and spurred international governments to negotiate their own customised trade deals with the US.
The UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar were all subject to a 10 per cent “reciprocal” tariff announced by Mr Trump last month. Economists argue the region will not be hugely affected by these levies.
Qatar Airways, a major Boeing customer, has boosted its orderbook as it expands its global route network amid strong long-haul travel demand. The airline is a major Boeing customer but also has significant Airbus fleet of narrowbody and widebody jets.
The airline is benefiting from booming demand for leisure and business trips, connecting major international destinations through its hub in Doha. Hamad International Airport, the airline's home base, in March unveiled the completion of Concourses D and E, an expansion that will increase the hub's capacity to more than 65 million passengers annually.
Mr Trump signed an agreement with Qatar to generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion, according to the White House. The US President also announced economic deals totalling more than $243.5 billion between the US and Qatar − including the deal with Boeing and GE Aerospace.
Mr Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE this week is part of a diplomatic sweep through the region. He is due to arrive in the Emirates on Thursday.
Saudi Arabia committed to investing $600 billion in the US through a series of deals in energy, defence, technology, infrastructure and critical minerals. This included Boeing signing a $4.8 billion deal with Saudi Arabia's plane leasing company AviLease for 30 737-8 passenger aircraft. The deals were signed on Tuesday during Mr Trump's visit to Riyadh.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
PRIMERA LIGA FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Saturday
Atletico Madrid v Sevilla (3pm)
Alaves v Real Madrid (6.15pm)
Malaga v Athletic Bilbao (8.30pm)
Girona v Barcelona (10.45pm)
Sunday
Espanyol v Deportivo la Coruna (2pm)
Getafe v Villarreal (6.15pm)
Eibar v Celta Vigo (8.30pm)
Las Palmas v Leganes (8.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Valencia (10.45pm)
Monday
Real Betis v Levante (11.pm)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
Generational responses to the pandemic
Devesh Mamtani from Century Financial believes the cash-hoarding tendency of each generation is influenced by what stage of the employment cycle they are in. He offers the following insights:
Baby boomers (those born before 1964): Owing to market uncertainty and the need to survive amid competition, many in this generation are looking for options to hoard more cash and increase their overall savings/investments towards risk-free assets.
Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980): Gen X is currently in its prime working years. With their personal and family finances taking a hit, Generation X is looking at multiple options, including taking out short-term loan facilities with competitive interest rates instead of dipping into their savings account.
Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996): This market situation is giving them a valuable lesson about investing early. Many millennials who had previously not saved or invested are looking to start doing so now.
SPECS
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
DC%20League%20of%20Super-Pets
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