The UAE is viewed as the world’s most “strong and stable economy”, boosting its standing in the leading global soft power ranking, it was revealed on Thursday.
Saudi Arabia is also enjoying “stronger perceptions” after vast investment in football and tourism.
Israel lost ground in the annual “soft power” ranking, which measures the strength of a nation’s brand and its ability to influence others by persuasion rather than force of arms.
Gulf nations are the biggest climbers since the index, unveiled in London on Thursday, was launched in 2020 by consultancy Brand Finance.
The UAE came 10th for the second year in a row in an expanded list now covering all 193 UN members. The US remained top.
"Global appreciation for the UAE is strengthening every day," said Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, who thanked government officials for their work to develop the nation.
"Thousands of work teams in all fields continue day and night to achieve all of this. Our appreciation to everyone."
The UAE received a 10/10 score for “strong and stable economy”, ranking first in that category, and scored highly for future growth potential and generosity. Its score of 59.7 out of 100 was up compared to last year.
In a separate ranking of which countries could most be recommended as a place to invest, work, study, visit or buy products, the UAE was the strongest Middle East performer on all five counts.
"Being a strong and stable economy is the most important factor," said Brand Finance's chief executive David Haigh. "It's a very important measure in terms of reputation and influence."
Analysts also highlighted the UAE’s hosting of the Cop28 climate talks last year, which put it in a global spotlight.
Saudi Arabia rose one place to 18th and is “seeing stronger perceptions following significant investments in tourism and football”, the report found.
Qatar was 21st and Turkey 25th, with Ankara credited with using its soft power to try to mediate in regional conflicts.
The rising soft power of Gulf nations reflects higher scores in the ‘influence and reputation’, ‘international relations’ and ‘business and trade’ categories.
It follows “conscious efforts to grow their soft power through nation branding projects, diplomatic initiatives and by hosting major events”, analysts said.
At a time of conflict and tense international relations, a robust economy is of ever greater value to a country’s brand, the report found.
“This trend explains the continued dominance of the world’s largest economies like the US and China, as well as smaller developed economies like Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates at the top of the ranking,” it said.
Hard and soft power
Nations wielding hard military might saw a drop in their soft power. Russia slipped three places to 16th, while Israel has fallen five spots to 32nd, as the wars of Ukraine and Gaza continue.
The ranking shows the importance of a “strategic approach to nation branding” where defence spending tends to have more priority, said Mr Haigh.
“While global hard power expenditure was a record $2.2 trillion in 2023 and expected to rise in 2024, we estimate that the combined spending by nation brands on communications is less than $1 billion,” he said.
The rankings are based on a survey of about 170,000 people from more than 100 countries.
The US and Britain held their positions as the top two, while China jumped to third.
American standing has recovered during Joe Biden’s presidency after a “serious erosion” in Donald Trump’s term, Mr Haigh said.
The US is top of the league on nine counts, including its influence on science and entertainment, but is viewed as less safe and friendly than before.
November’s expected Trump-Biden rematch “will be momentous in terms of future direction for the US and how the nation is perceived globally”, Mr Haigh said.
Japan stayed fourth while China’s rise pushed Germany down to fifth, with economic turmoil damaging the status of Europe’s richest country.
David Lammy, Britain’s shadow foreign secretary, told delegates that “this is the time to invest in soft power” as he criticised the UK government for making cuts to the BBC, the British Council and development aid.
“I lament where the UK finds itself at this point in time. I do want to see Britain reconnected once more with the global community,” he said.
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
MEDIEVIL%20(1998)
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Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The%20specs
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White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
Under 19 World Cup
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch
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.”
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
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Power: 450hp
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
