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S&P Global: Saudi Arabia’s Insurance Market Is a Major Driver of Revenue Growth in Gulf Region

 Traffic jam on a street in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
 Traffic jam on a street in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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S&P Global: Saudi Arabia’s Insurance Market Is a Major Driver of Revenue Growth in Gulf Region

 Traffic jam on a street in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
 Traffic jam on a street in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Islamic and Takaful insurance companies in the Gulf Cooperation Council region continue to benefit from favorable growth prospects, mainly driven by high demand for insurance in Saudi Arabia, the largest Islamic insurance market in the region, according to a report by Standard & Poor’s Global credit ratings agency.
Credit Analyst at S&P Global, Emir Mujkic, said: “While we expect overall credit conditions for Islamic insurers will remain stable over the next 6-12 months, consolidation will likely remain a hot topic among smaller and midsize players. About one-fifth of Islamic insurers in Saudi Arabia and about one-third in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) merged in recent years.”
He added that competition is expected to pick up in some markets, with anticipated interest rate cuts starting from September and potentially more volatile capital markets that could lead to “a sharp decline in earnings in 2025 if Islamic insurers fail to maintain their underwriting discipline.”
S&P Global estimated the Islamic insurance sector in the GCC region to expand by about 15 to 20 percent in 2024, with revenues exceeding USD 20 billion.
It also expected the Saudi market to remain the main driver of revenue growth in the GCC region.
“We expect the Saudi market, similar to the past two years, will be the main driver of topline growth in the GCC region. This is because Saudi Arabia, the GCC region’s largest Islamic insurance market, continues to benefit from higher economic growth. At the same time, authorities proceed with reducing the number of uninsured vehicles and have introduced new mandatory medical covers, leading to additional insurance demand and premium income,” the agency said in its report.

The Islamic insurance sector in the GCC region has expanded significantly over the past five years. Revenue growth was particularly strong during 2022-2023, when the sector increased by about 20 to 25 percent annually. This was mainly driven by the market in Saudi Arabia, which expanded by about 27 percent in 2022 and another 23 percent in 2023, the report stated.

 

 

 

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BP Reports Huge Profit Rise in First Quarter

The BP (British Petroleum) logo is seen at a gas station in Washington, Oct. 25, 2007. (AP)
The BP (British Petroleum) logo is seen at a gas station in Washington, Oct. 25, 2007. (AP)
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BP Reports Huge Profit Rise in First Quarter

The BP (British Petroleum) logo is seen at a gas station in Washington, Oct. 25, 2007. (AP)
The BP (British Petroleum) logo is seen at a gas station in Washington, Oct. 25, 2007. (AP)

British energy giant BP on Tuesday reported a sharp increase in profits in the first quarter as crude oil prices soared amid the Middle East war.

Oil prices have risen since the start of the US-Iran conflict on February 28, often swinging violently in response to the war's ever changing headlines.

BP's profit after tax jumped to $3.8 billion for the January-March period from $687 million in the same period a year earlier, London-listed BP said in an earnings statement.

The closely followed underlying profit figure more than doubled to $3.2 billion from $1.4 billion the previous year, a figure that "reflects exceptional oil trading contribution", the statement said.

"Overall, our business continues to run well. This was another quarter of strong operational and financial delivery, and we made further progress towards our 2027 targets," said CEO Meg O'Neill, who was appointed at the end of last year to replace Murray Auchincloss.

The group had announced in mid-April that it expected to benefit from rising oil prices, noting that the price of Brent North Sea crude, the international benchmark, averaged $81.13 a barrel in the first quarter, up from $63.73 in the fourth quarter of last year.

Oil prices have been volatile due to the war, coming close to $120 a barrel in March, which BP traders were able to profit from.

The company said in mid-April that each one dollar variation in the price of a barrel has a $340 million on its annual operating profit before tax.

BP "has been working relentlessly to keep our assets producing safely, reliably and efficiently," while working "in an environment of conflict and complexity," O'Neill said.

The American CEO took up her post in early April with a mission of implementing a recovery plan for the struggling group, whose profit after tax in 2025 plunged 86 percent year-on-year to $55 million.

BP's performance has generally fallen behind that of its rivals in recent years, and last year the company mounted a boardroom shakeup after slashing clean energy investment and pivoting back to its more profitable oil and gas business.

O'Neill plans to reorganize the company, clearly separating its upstream and downstream activities.

Her aim is to make BP "a simpler, stronger, more valuable company," she said Tuesday.

"Now, we have to capitalize on the opportunity that exists across our portfolio, simplifying how we work, unlocking growth and driving improved returns," she added.

Business

China Leaders Urge Self-Reliance to Combat Economic ‘Difficulties’

Light reflects off buildings at sunset in Beijing on April 27, 2026. (AFP)
Light reflects off buildings at sunset in Beijing on April 27, 2026. (AFP)
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China Leaders Urge Self-Reliance to Combat Economic ‘Difficulties’

Light reflects off buildings at sunset in Beijing on April 27, 2026. (AFP)
Light reflects off buildings at sunset in Beijing on April 27, 2026. (AFP)

China's leaders urged greater self-reliance in the technology sector and industrial chains and stronger domestic demand to combat "difficulties and challenges" facing the economy at a high-level meeting, state media said Tuesday.

The calls came during a meeting of the ruling Communist Party's Politburo, a top decision-making body headed by President Xi Jinping, according to a summary published by state news agency Xinhua.

The world's second-largest economy has struggled to mount a robust comeback since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, with a protracted debt crisis in the once-booming property sector and sluggish consumption weighing on activity, even as exports boom.

Noting "a strong start" to the year, officials at the meeting also acknowledged that "the economy faces certain difficulties and challenges, and the foundation for its sustained steady and positive growth still needs to be further consolidated".

"Efforts must be made to promote scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening," Xinhua said.

Leaders also called for "continuously expanding domestic demand", as well as moves to "stabilize the real estate market" and employment, the report added.

Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, said the meeting showed that "the government is aware of the difficulties" facing the economy.

While last quarter's overall growth outpaced forecasts, momentum is set to slow during the second quarter due to external uncertainties and higher energy prices, Zhang wrote in a note.

"The key issue to watch in the coming months is how resilient China's exports will be," he added.

"If export growth stays resilient, I think the policy stance will stay unchanged in Q2. If export growth turns negative, I'd expect further policy support from the government."

Business

Thailand Projects Lower Growth, Fewer Tourists Due to Middle East War

A clothes vendor prepares her displays as she opens up for business at Mahanak Market in Bangkok early on April 20, 2026. (AFP)
A clothes vendor prepares her displays as she opens up for business at Mahanak Market in Bangkok early on April 20, 2026. (AFP)
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Thailand Projects Lower Growth, Fewer Tourists Due to Middle East War

A clothes vendor prepares her displays as she opens up for business at Mahanak Market in Bangkok early on April 20, 2026. (AFP)
A clothes vendor prepares her displays as she opens up for business at Mahanak Market in Bangkok early on April 20, 2026. (AFP)

Thailand's economic growth and tourist arrivals are forecast to drop this year as the Middle East war roils global energy prices, the finance ministry said Tuesday.

The country's GDP growth is projected to dip to 1.6 percent, the ministry said in a statement, down from 2.4 percent in 2025.

Growth in the Southeast Asian nation is anemic, with the tourism sector vital but arrivals yet to return to their pre-Covid highs.

The government said in February that this year's growth forecast was between 1.5 to 2.5 percent.

Thailand expects about 33.5 million foreign tourists this year, about two million fewer than previously estimated, the ministry said on Tuesday.

Tourists from Europe and the Middle East have declined as a result of the US-Israeli war against Iran, which began two months ago and has driven up fuel prices, the ministry added.

Visitors from the Middle East fell by a third in March compared to the same month last year, and European arrivals dropped around four percent, while tourists from other Asian nations rose six percent, according to Thai tourism ministry figures.

Thailand received nearly 33 million foreign visitors in total last year.

The country's core inflation was forecast to hit three percent this year, up from an earlier estimate of 0.3 percent.