Middle East

The landscape of hotel bookings is undergoing a transformative shift, with direct bookings increasingly challenging the role of intermediaries and encouraging customers to choose a more personalised approach, particularly business travellers. This…

Emirates Airlines has solidified its position in the United Arab Emirates with a remarkable turnaround, reporting soaring profits after a challenging period, and is set to extend its share in airlines in 2023. The airline’s success can be attributed…

With the World Health Organisation declaring the pandemic to be over in early 2023 and with COVID-19 restrictions no longer in place the outlook for travel in Israel is much brighter. This has led to a surge in inbound arrivals and outbound…

Outbound departures are expected to nearly reach pre-pandemic numbers in 2023. This is largely due to the high cost of domestic travel which is encouraging locals to travel abroad. Once the skies were reopened after the pandemic restrictions were…

During 2023, the local government has been trying to make significant changes to the judiciary system in Israel which would limit. Under the government’s so-called “reasonableness” bill, which was passed into law in July 2023, the Supreme Court will…

Booking is set to see a full recovery to pre-pandemic sales levels in current value terms in 2023. However, a major factor driving value growth in both leisure and business bookings has been inflation driven price increases.

Airlines have rebounded strongly in 2023 with sales seeing a full recovery in current value terms while passenger numbers are expected to come close to pre-pandemic levels by the end of the year. With the pandemic declared over by the World Health…

Authoritarianism and corruption mar Iran’s economic freedom, which is repressed, but regional relations are improving. Sanctions are expected to continue to weigh heavily on the economy, which is exacerbating currency weakness and adding to…

Ageing, urbanisation and migration remain the major drivers shaping the global population. The number of seniors worldwide was increasing in 2022 and is expected to continue growing to 2040. The number of births is declining globally due to falling…

Electronic wearables is the winning category in Saudi Arabia in 2023, with double-digit volume growth. This is thanks to the success of smartwatches, which dominate activity-monitoring technology, as consumers value the analysis connected to health…

Smart wearables is set to be the most dynamic performer within wearable electronics in volume growth terms in 2023. Mainly represented by smartwatches, the category has continued to benefit from increasing appreciation for the convenience,…

E-readers continue to struggle as demand is practically non-existent. The device fails to gain consumer’s interest over the popularity of ubiquitous smartphones and tablets, through which consumers can also access e-books. Added to which, the…

In keeping with its results throughout the review period, wireless speakers is set to be by far the most dynamic category within portable players in volume growth terms in 2023. It continues to benefit from the increasing consumer preference for…

With a very low tax burden and reforms aimed at the business landscape, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) enjoys economic freedom, although the state’s grip on society continues. Oil production cuts will moderate economic growth in the short term, but…

Smartphone sales in Saudi Arabia have been facing a dip in the post-pandemic landscape, after the boost to electronics sales seen during the era of COVID-19. The top brands in the country, namely Samsung (from United Matbouli Group in KSA) which is…

Despite stubbornly high inflation and a slowdown in the Israeli economy, smartphones is poised to record a modestly improved performance in volume sales terms in 2023. The category has been somewhat insulated from more cautious attitudes to spending…

In-car entertainment is seeing structural declines, as separate navigation systems become defunct. In current times, most new cars, including non-luxury vehicles, come equipped with voice-enabled in-car GPS. Owing to the need for navigation, this…

In-car entertainment in Israel has continued to contract in volume terms in 2023, with all categories set to register negative results in this respect. Demand for these products is in long-term decline, mainly because new mid- and higher-priced cars…

Growth for digital cameras and camcorders continues its downward trajectory, owing to the mass consumer preference for smartphone cameras, coupled with continuous technology upgrades in the newer models of digital cameras pushing up prices.…

Sales of imaging devices in Israel have continued to fall sharply in 2023, with the digital cameras and digital camcorders categories both poised to register double-digit declines in volume terms. Demand for these product types has been shrinking for…