Maximising Operational ROI through Strategic Market Research

To reverse a decade of compromising overall factor efficiency, regional labour market policy is moving from simple job development to handling active workforce transitions. Governments and companies are scaling short, modular training programmes and micro-credentials in data analytics and digital operations to equip workers for emerging roles. Workplace-based learning and apprenticeship-style paths are ending up being more common as companies integrate AI tools into daily workflows.

With oil costs forecasted to typical $55-60 per barrel in 2026, regional federal governments are heightening their focus on expense discipline and personal capital mobilisation. Fiscal policy is pivoting toward the monetisation of state-owned assets in logistics, energies, and desalination to reroute funds towards higher-impact investments. While loaning through sukuk and sustainability-linked bonds is anticipated to increase to money tactical deficits, the focus stays on enhancing non-oil profits frameworks.

PwC Middle East economic policy and technique partner Jing Teow said: "Having currently mobilised capital and policy at scale, GCC governments are now concentrated on shipment. In 2026, the priority is strengthening economic strength through more safe and secure trade and financial investment relationships, reliable AI release, managed labor force transitions and disciplined fiscal policy in a more challenging and fragmented global environment.".

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Saudi Arabia and UAE are poised to lead the Gulf region's economic growth in 2026, supported by strong private-sector efficiency, resilient domestic need and renewed financial investment momentum, according to the newest ICAEW Economic Insight Q4 2025 report, produced by Oxford Economics. The GCC is anticipated to outshine most worldwide areas peers next year, with local GDP forecast to grow by 4.4%. Throughout the GCC, non-energy activity is predicted to expand by 4.1% in 2026, driven by strong labour markets, improving credit conditions and rising financial investment in technology and AI-related facilities.

Although oil revenues will be under pressure in the first half of 2026, production is expected to increase again in the second half of 2026, supporting the area's medium-term outlook, it mentioned. Saudi Arabia will remain a significant contributor to GCC momentum, with GDP forecast to grow 4.3% in 2026.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Optimising Corporate ROI through Strategic Business Planning

Growth will be supported by industrial growth and policy reforms, consisting of eased foreign ownership rules that aim to promote additional investment. The fiscal deficit is projected to widen to 5.6% of GDP next year in the middle of softer oil costs, while the current five-year lease freeze in Riyadh intends to ease inflationary pressures, though it may constrain future real estate supply.

Strong domestic fundamentalsThe UAE is also positioned for another strong year of performance, with GDP projection to rise 5.6% in 2026 as non-oil sectors continue to expand. Tourism, trade and financial services remain key growth chauffeurs, supported by population growth and sustained domestic demand. Dubai's economy grew 4.4% in the first half of 2025, showing broad-based non-oil strength.

ANSR July GCC PRs 50DR+

Oil production is expected to get again in the second half of 2026, matching ongoing investment in infrastructure, innovation and international trade collaborations. Hanadi Khalife, the Head of Middle East, ICAEW, said: "This quarter's outlook reinforces how far the GCC has actually can be found in building varied, resilient and globally competitive economies.

Scott Livermore, ICAEW Economic Consultant, and Chief Economist and Handling Director, Oxford Economics Middle East, stated: "Saudi Arabia and the UAE are going into 2026 with strong foundations. Saudi non-oil activity is acquiring rate, supported by robust need and rising investment, even as financial pressures increase.""The UAE continues to gain from solid domestic basics, a sharp uplift in federal government costs and continual diversity efforts.

Key Tips for Operational Excellence in the GCC

What distinguishes 2026 from preceding years is not merely the velocity of technological change, though that acceleration is real, but rather a fundamental shift in how business envisage their GCCs' function. The is expected to grow to 4 hundred thirteen billion dollars by 2040, however this growth masks a more profound change.

Instead, they ask whether these centers drive development, own profit-and-loss responsibility, and add to competitive distinction. In 2026, the most effective GCCs will act like internal start-ups, nimble, cross-functional, insight-driven, and deeply aligned with global business results. This shift from execution to ownership represents possibly the single most significant strategic recalibration in the GCC design's advancement.

This week, we're assembling more than 3000 conferences between financiers and 119 Gulf-listed companies with a combined worth of $2.4 trillion at the HSBC GCC Exchanges Conference 2026, in London. We're uniting financiers, business, exchanges, and policymakers to discuss what is changing in the area, and what follows, including the expansion and ongoing development of the Gulf's capital markets, and the region's growing function in international networks of capital and trade.