Adversity can build character, but more often reveals it. Over the past few weeks, as Iran attacked civilian targets in the Gulf region, the world has seen the foresight of nations that have spent years preparing for such a possibility and their resilience in withstanding it. The UAE’s decades of forward-looking strategic investment across vital areas of national interest – from diversifying the economy, to building partnerships with global businesses and universities, to bolstering national defences – helped it to continue moving forward through the war.
The UAE is not alone. Smart investments across the region have positioned it not only to weather conflict but to continue growing in the years ahead, and to lead on so many of the big changes that are shaping the future, including advances in biotechnology, artificial intelligence and renewable energy.
On a visit to the UAE last year, I met leaders of sovereign wealth funds that Bloomberg has partnered with to help modernise and diversify the region’s capital markets and better connect them to global investors. This ongoing work, and the Gulf nations’ ability to invest in and support innovation and business growth, won’t be undone by the war. Neither will its strategic importance as a hub for trade, logistics and, increasingly, technology. These are among the many reasons why so many global businesses, including ours, continue to see the Middle East as a growing financial and commercial centre.
In recent weeks, capital flows have continued moving into and out of markets there. Major business deals continue moving forward. And all I’ve seen and experienced in the region has led me to the same conclusion as many other business leaders across the US and around the world: the region’s future remains bright.
Bloomberg’s presence there began as a single news desk in Dubai in the 1990s. Since then, our company has invested in the region and grown our teams there. We now have a network of five offices, covering all aspects of our work in finance, data and media.
The growth and diversification of our business have mirrored the extraordinary transformation that has taken place in the region, which has been built on the long-term vision of its leaders. The support that Gulf states have provided to attract new investments and nurture innovators gave rise to an extraordinary sense of optimism and possibility, and it has made the region a magnet for people from around the world.
That support has expanded since the start of the conflict, with measures to sustain lending and liquidity, alongside efforts to aid the tourism and hospitality industries. At the same time, continuing private investment underscores market confidence. These kinds of signals point to an economy that is continuing to move forward.
This is not the region’s first experience managing through a crisis in recent times. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the non-oil economy contracted, but it recovered to grow above pre-pandemic levels. The UAE has become a top-10 global exporter of goods, and as its foreign trade has grown, so have its ties to the world, including its $1.4 trillion technology investment commitment in the US.
The strengthening of those ties has had benefits that extend far beyond the Gulf. That was clear to see when I attended the Cop28 climate conference held in Dubai in 2023. Under the leadership of then-Cop president Dr Sultan Al Jaber, the conference yielded agreements on some of the most important pieces of the climate puzzle, including reducing methane emissions from oil and gas and reducing pollution from heavy industries.
While I was in Dubai, I visited its Museum of the Future. It’s a stunning example of the power of culture to attract visitors and residents who drive economic growth. Leaders across the region have embraced that power and built some of the world’s most spectacular new museums. That will soon include the Art Mill Museum under construction in Doha, which I had the chance to visit during last year’s Qatar Economic Forum, and the interfaith Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi, which fosters interfaith dialogue and inspires peaceful co-existence.
A lasting peace can’t come soon enough. But Iran will not be able to knock down what the nations of the Gulf have spent decades building up, because it will not be able to destroy the forward-looking spirit of innovation on which that work is built, and which the global business community will always value.
