Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan have agreed to raise their bilateral trade volume to $200 million by 2027, setting a clear target to expand economic cooperation following talks in Islamabad between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Sadyr Zhaparov.

The two leaders discussed strengthening ties across trade, energy, connectivity, and security, with both sides expressing commitment to building a more structured economic partnership. “Pakistan offers a strategic gateway to global markets through Karachi, Gwadar and Port Qasim,” Prime Minister Sharif told the visiting delegation as he encouraged Kyrgyz businesses to pursue joint ventures in sectors including trade, education and health.

President Zhaparov underscored the importance of the partnership given Kyrgyzstan’s location in the heart of Eurasia. He said the country’s membership in the Eurasian Economic Union and its GSP+ status could help provide Pakistan with broader access to European and regional markets.

The current trade volume stands at roughly*$5 million, but the two sides said they expect to scale this up significantly through improved market access, transport links and investment opportunities. The meeting also reviewed progress on the CASA-1000 electricity project, which would transmit surplus power from Central Asia to Pakistan. Kyrgyzstan has completed its section of the line, while Pakistan’s portion is under way.

Connectivity featured prominently in the discussions, including steps to operationalize the Quadrilateral Traffic in Transit Agreement (QTTA), intended to provide road access between Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan through China. Both sides highlighted the importance of transport corridors and regional infrastructure for supporting trade and supply chains.

Educational cooperation was also addressed. Around 8,500 Pakistani students currently study medicine in Kyrgyzstan, and the two governments agreed to create a joint certification mechanism for medical graduates seeking employment in either country.

Zhaparov invited Pakistani investors to explore opportunities in Kyrgyzstan’s hydropower, logistics, agriculture, tourism and halal sectors. He also noted recent developments in the country’s digital economy, including the launch of Kyrgyzstan’s national stablecoin, and signalled openness to collaboration on virtual assets.

The visit concluded with the signing of 15 agreements and MoUs spanning energy, agriculture, education, culture and tourism. One of the key outcomes was the establishment of sister-city relations between Islamabad and Bishkek.

A neutral outlook, based on teady economic conditions and expectations of solid credit growth in markets such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia, has been issued for Middle East banks in 2026, according to Fitch Ratings.

The agency stated that banks are likely to maintain “sound profitability” despite an anticipated decline in interest rates, while sustaining stable asset quality, strong liquidity positions, and capital buffers commensurate with their risk profiles.

Fitch noted that two-thirds of the Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) assigned to Middle East banks are investment grade, driven largely by the likelihood of sovereign support. “Around 62% of IDRs are based on potential sovereign support, with a further 33% linked to standalone credit strength,” the agency said in its statement. Only 5% of ratings stem from potential shareholder support.

The widespread of IDRs — ranging from ‘AA-’ to ‘CCC’, with the lowest concentration in Iraq — reflects the region’s varied sovereign risk landscape.

Rating outlooks for banks across the Middle East are “virtually all stable”, according to Fitch. The only exceptions are Omani banks, which carry a positive outlook in line with the sovereign, and Bahraini banks, which remain on a negative outlook for the same reason.

UAE-based ruya bank says digital-native institutions will drive the next phase of growth in Islamic finance, as global Shariah-compliant assets exceed $4.5 trillion and are projected to reach $6.7 trillion by 2027.

The bank’s model blends digital infrastructure with ethical accountability. Its retail platform offers Shariah-screened portfolios including equities, ETFs, sukuk, gold and digital assets. For smaller businesses, ruya provides fully digital Shariah-compliant financing, targeting a segment often underserved by conventional lenders.

ruya’s Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) system allows fintech partners to integrate Islamic-compliant products into platforms focused on youth, women and micro-enterprises. 

The bank has also linked its business model to environmental commitments through “Nature Protect,” an initiative that conserves one square foot of primary forest for every Dh1,000 held by a customer over a decade. 

Taiwan plans to open a tourism office in Indonesia next year as it looks to capture a greater portion of one of the world’s fastest-growing outbound travel markets. 

More than 200,000 Indonesians visit Taiwan each year. Taiwan is looking to ramp up those figures by establishing an on-the-ground presence in Jakarta in 2026. 

Lin Hsin-jen, Taiwan's deputy representative in Indonesia, described the Southeast Asian country as a market Taiwan can no longer afford to overlook, noting that the country of 280 million is not only "the world's largest Muslim tourism market," but also one of the region's most reliably growing economies.

"For Taiwan, this is our new blue ocean for tourism," Hsin-jen told the Central News Agency (CNA). 

Taiwan also consistently ranks second or third worldwide in global surveys evaluating Muslim-friendly tourism destinations, he added.

"Visitors can shop, enjoy mountains and rivers, and experience culture - all in one place. In this way, Taiwan's tourism products are a perfect match for the Indonesian market."

Taiwan is also strengthening industrial and trade ties with Indonesia, Lu Feng-ching, director of the economic division of the Taipei Economic and Trade Office (TETO) in Indonesia, told CNA.

This year, Taiwan and Indonesia signed a design cooperation agreement aimed at expanding exchanges in exhibitions, professional judging and young designer talent, he said.

An agreement on halal promotion was also inked, enabling Taiwanese food, beverages, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals certified by the Taiwan Halal Integrity Development Association to enter Indonesia without additional certification.

This agreement not only promotes bilateral trade, but also opens doors to Middle Eastern markets, Feng-ching said.

Taiwanese businesses are expanding their footprint across Indonesia, with roughly 2,000 companies active in manufacturing and services, across shoe, textile and electronics manufacturing to financial services, telecommunications and transport.

The scope of educational exchanges with Indonesia through scholarships and specialized programs has also been broadened, according to Grace Ou, director of the education division at TETO.

The Taiwan government launched a new initiative in 2023 offering dual-degree programs, where students from Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand spend two years studying in their home countries and two years in Taiwan, with the goal of enabling them to stay and work in Taiwan after graduation, she said.

The Middle East is emerging as a critical hub for AI data centre development, benefiting from its structural and geographical merits, amid rising demand for AI infrastructure. 

The region’s strategic location offers a vantage point, placing it within a 2,000-mile radius of over three billion people, enabling it to serve Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Global South, with non-latency-sensitive AI inferencing at scale, according to a Boston Consulting Group report. 

Data centre power needs are forecasted to rise from 86 GW in 2025 to 198 GW by 2030, placing the Middle East at the forefront of supplying scalable, cost-efficient AI compute capacity. 

The Middle East’s competitive cost structures, including up to 50% lower leasing rates, low power tariffs, and advanced cooling systems, pare ownership costs. At the same time, economies such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE continue to press ahead with new data centre launches. 

“The Middle East is undergoing a pivotal transformation as it positions itself to become a global hub for AI infrastructure,” said Thibault Werlé, managing director at Boston Consulting Group.

“With strategic investments, progressive digital policies, and ambitious national visions across Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia, the region is building the foundation for scalable, next-generation AI compute.” 

Regional economies have undertaken major initiatives to bolster their efforts in reshaping the Middle East’s AI infrastructure landscape. 

Saudi Arabia has launched Humain, a Public Investment Fund company with a targeted 1.9 GW AI data centre capacity, along with partnerships with tech giants including Nvidia and AWS, to develop multi-hundred-megawatt AI campuses. 

Neighbouring UAE plans to host a 5GW AI campus in its capital under the US-UAE AI Acceleration Partnership and is importing 500,000 GPUs for regional and US partners, supported by Microsoft’s USD $15.2 billion investment in AI and cloud infrastructure. 

The Qatar Investment Authority has invested heavily in advancing the country’s AI ambitions, including a $3 billion platform with Blue Owl Capital to accelerate international expansion of AI and cloud infrastructure. Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund has also participated in Anthropic’s $13 billion funding round, aimed at meeting growing demand from enterprises.  

Regional governments must create streamlined, unified investment packages that integrate key inputs such as land, power, water, and connectivity within clear, time-bound frameworks, the report suggested.

“Expanding a diverse ecosystem of business and financing models, including hyperscalers, GPU-as-a-Service providers, equity platforms, and bond-backed investments, will be critical to enabling flexibility for market entrants,” the report added. 

The International Islamic Financial Market (IIFM) released the 14th edition of its annual sukuk report, revealing that global sukuk issuances totaled $205 billion in 2024, with international sukuk reaching their highest level since inception.

According to the report, international sukuk issuances rose 24.5% year-on-year to $65.6 billion, supported by improved global liquidity and lower funding costs. However, short-term sukuk declined to $59.1 billion, reflecting reduced domestic issuance and a shift away from short-term instruments.

The report also found that outstanding global sukuk reached $902.8 billion in 2024, with most issuances originating from Bahrain, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Indonesia. Emerging markets such as Türkiye, Pakistan, Qatar, Oman, and several African economies are expected to play a larger role in the coming years.

Dr. Ahmed Rufai, acting CEO of IIFM, said hybrid and intangible asset sukuk will be central to the industry’s future growth. “Standardizing documentation for these instruments is the cornerstone of a more mature and stable Islamic finance ecosystem,” he said, noting that harmonization would enhance transparency, reduce issuance costs, and support cross-border financing.

Halal Products Development Company, a Public Investment Fund company has inked a partnership with DinarStandard, a US-based advisory and research firm, to advance halal innovation.

The agreement, signed at the London Halal Forum 2025 held on November 20-21, reinforces a shared commitment to strengthen industry capabilities, and accelerate global growth through research, strategic development, and impactful collaboration.

The cooperation will help accelerate the development of the halal economy and foster innovation, as well as cement Saudi Arabia’s position as a global centre of excellence for the halal sector. 

Established in 2022, HPDC aims to localise knowledge, technology and innovation for the development of halal products as well as develop the local halal production industry through partnerships with domestic and international players.

The PIF subsidiary promotes investment and economic opportunities for the industry by introducing services, including specialized advisory. 

DinarStandard specializes in government innovation, the global halal economy and the social impact space. Since 2008, it has supported over 30 government entities, investment institutions, industry leaders, and multi-laterals from over 12 countries worldwide. 

DinarStandard is also the parent company and owner of Salaam Gateway. 

The US Department of Commerce said on Wednesday that it has authorised the export of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) chips to two companies in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Abu Dhabi-based tech firm G42 and Public Investment Fund (PIF) subsidiary Humain are both slated to receive American semiconductors, equivalent of up to 35,000 Nvidia Blackwell chips (GB300s).

The approvals are contingent on both companies meeting “rigorous security and reporting requirements”, the commerce department said in a statement. 

The purchase will promote “continued American AI dominance and global technological leadership”, the statement read. 

UAE’s Ambassador to the US, Yousef Al Otaiba, welcomed the authorization as  ”another milestone” in the partnership between both nations. 

“The authorization follows sustained engagement between both governments and reflects the confidence that underpins our collaboration in advanced technology and national security," Ambassador Otaiba said in a statement.     

Peng Xiao, Group CEO of G42, said the announcement marks a defining moment for the company and its partners as they segue from planning into execution. 

"Our shared infrastructure model sets a new benchmark for secure, high-performance computing that is designed to serve the needs of both nations. What we build in the UAE, we will continue to match in the US, maintaining symmetry and trust at every layer," added Xiao. 

The milestone accelerates foundational projects already underway in the UAE, including Stargate UAE, the 1GW AI compute cluster. 

The cluster forms part of the UAE–US AI Campus, an AI infrastructure hub that will include 5GW of capacity for AI data centres in Abu Dhabi, enabling US hyperscalers to offer latency-friendly services to companies operating within 2,000 miles of the UAE. 

Humain announced early Wednesday that it would deploy up to 600,000 Nvidia's AI chips in Saudi Arabia and the US over the next three years. 

Palm Azgar Finance Company, a licensed financial services provider based in Riyadh, has announced the launch of PUSD, a stablecoin issued through its British Virgin Islands affiliate and fully backed by UAE dirhams (AED) and Saudi riyals (SAR) reserves. The digital asset maintains a 1:1 peg with the U.S. dollar, with reserves held in regulated, Shariah-compliant Gulf institutions.

The company said PUSD is designed to provide a secure, transparent, and accessible bridge between Islamic finance and the global digital economy. Monthly third-party audits will verify that fiat currency reserves fully back each token.

The stablecoin is expected to debut on major cryptocurrency exchanges later this year, enabling faster cross-border payments, decentralized finance (DeFi) participation, and institutional use. According to Palm Azgar, the structure of PUSD ensures users maintain full control over their assets, with no freezing or blacklisting capabilities built into the system.

Founded in Riyadh, Palm Azgar Finance develops Shariah-compliant digital asset solutions aimed at expanding financial inclusion. Its newly launched product, Palm USD (PUSD), reflects growing regional interest in blockchain-based financial tools that combine transparency, Islamic finance compatibility, and real-world asset backing.