Fertiglobe, the world’s largest seaborne exporter of urea and ammonia, reported a 31 per cent year-on-year surge in first-quarter adjusted core earnings on Wednesday, as higher prices and a focus on operational efficiency offset trade route disruptions.

The company, the exclusive ammonia platform for ADNOC and its global investment arm XRG, said adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to $342m for the quarter ended March 31.

Revenues climbed 32 per cent to $915m, while adjusted net profit attributable to shareholders nearly doubled to $145m, up 98 per cent from the previous year.

Chief executive Ahmed El-Hoshy said the performance demonstrated the “strength and resilience” of the platform despite a complex operating environment shaped by geopolitical conflict in the Middle East.

While own-produced sales volumes fell 12 per cent due to trade route disruptions from the UAE, the impact was more than offset by global nitrogen market tightness and peak seasonal demand in the Northern Hemisphere.

Fertiglobe noted that, excluding certain deferred sales from the prior year, own-produced volumes would have risen 5 per cent on an underlying basis.

Strategic gains

The company’s manufacturing improvement plan (MIP) pushed urea operating rates to 96 per cent, up significantly from 87 per cent in the same period last year. Its Egyptian facilities achieved record-breaking performance, with units operating at 105 per cent capacity.

A reduction in the tax rate for Fertil, a key subsidiary, further supported profitability.

Effective January 1, 2026, the rate was cut to 15-20 per cent from a previous 25 per cent, aligning the company more closely with regional peers.

Fertiglobe’s Growth 2030 outlook

Fertiglobe, which is currently advancing its ‘Grow 2030’ strategy, said it has already implemented initiatives representing approximately 43 per cent of the growth targets announced in May 2025.

The company remains optimistic about the near-term outlook, citing robust nitrogen market fundamentals and tight global supply.

Looking ahead, the company said near-term fundamentals for nitrogen markets remain strong, driven by in-season demand and constrained supply, partly due to ongoing regional conflict and elevated production costs.

Over the longer term, demand for urea is expected to grow steadily, with limited new supply entering the market.

Warfare is no longer confined to borders, battlefields, or even visible weapons. It is increasingly shaped in the invisible space where networks, data, and critical infrastructure intersect, a space where disruption can be as powerful as destruction. As cyber capabilities become embedded into military strategy, the distinction between civilian and defence domains is eroding, giving rise to a new era of hybrid conflict.

In this conversation, Andrea Multari, VP of Cyber Defence at CPX, traces how conflict has evolved from clearly defined physical domains into a multi-layered battlespace that includes cyber and space. He explains why cyber operations have become a decisive instrument of modern power projection, how recent conflicts have demonstrated the spillover between military operations and civilian systems, and why governments and businesses can no longer treat cyber resilience as separate from national security.

From the changing role of private sector operators on the front lines of conflict to the need for deeper public-private coordination, Multari lays out what it now takes to defend in an environment where escalation is often silent, continuous, and global in reach.

You began your career in the Italian Navy over three decades ago. How has the nature of warfare changed since then?

Thinking back to my early years as a naval officer, the operational world felt clear and well-defined. Military doctrine revolved around three physical domains: land, sea, and air. Technology supported these domains but did not shape them.

Today, that certainty has disappeared. Multi-domain operations (MDO) have expanded the battlespace to include space and, most disruptively, cyber.

Why has cyber emerged as such a disruptive force in modern conflict?
Cyber is unique because it permeates all domains. In modern hybrid conflicts, cyber operations blur the lines between military defence, national security, and the protection of civilian infrastructure.

Cyber is not “IT security in uniform”. It is an operational domain where states manoeuvre, project power, deny access, influence decisions, and create strategic effects, often without triggering open conflict.

Cyber operations today support kinetic military actions by degrading command and control, disrupting intelligence, and manipulating the information environment.

To what extent are the lines between military defence and civilian infrastructure now blurred?
What makes cyber fundamentally different from land, sea, air, and space is that its terrain is largely civilian-owned. Military systems depend on commercial telecommunications, cloud platforms, satellite services, and energy grids. This makes defending military cyber capability inseparable from defending the broader digital ecosystem, forcing us to rethink where national defence begins and ends.

In a hybrid conflict, there is no clean technical line. The boundary is defined by authority, intent, impact, and escalation—and it shifts constantly. Hybrid threat actors exploit this ambiguity, operating below the threshold of war and targeting civilian systems that are strategically vital but politically difficult to defend with military force.

Cyber is the ideal tool for this grey zone strategy. The recent US–Israeli operation against Iran and the subsequent cyber spillover into the Gulf region illustrate this dynamic clearly.

How was cyber integrated into recent military operations, and how did the resulting “cyber spillover” impact civilian infrastructure?
From the outset, cyber activity was integrated into a broader military campaign. Cyber effects disrupted coordination, isolated decision makers, and constrained Iran’s ability to respond. In this context, cyber functioned as a military domain, synchronised with kinetic planning and strategic signalling.

Iran’s response also blended kinetic and cyber operations, but the effects quickly extended beyond military networks, revealing the true complexity of hybrid conflict. Many affected systems, communications backbones, cloud services, aviation platforms, and digital government systems were civilian in ownership but military in relevance. This created heightened cyber pressure on public and private sectors across the region.

This reflects a core truth: in hybrid conflict, strategic effects are often achieved by targeting civilian infrastructure because it is so deeply intertwined with military capability. This grey-zone activity forced national authorities and private operators to respond long before any formal military escalation.

This seems to imply that private companies are now on the front lines. Is that accurate?
Absolutely. Perhaps the most revealing aspect of this conflict is the role of private organisations. Cloud providers, logistics firms, and technology vendors found themselves targeted not because they were combatants, but because they are deeply embedded in national and regional operations.

This underscores a hard reality: in hybrid conflict, private organisations become part of the operational terrain. Their networks and services are now integral to national security.

Given these realities, how should governments and businesses rethink their approach to cyber defence?
One thing is clear: cyber defence can no longer be divided into “military cyber defence” and “civilian critical infrastructure protection.” These are now interdependent components of national and collective security. Military cyber forces cannot operate effectively without resilient civilian infrastructure, and civilian operators cannot withstand sustained hybrid pressure without intelligence, coordination, and support traditionally associated with national defence.

Hybrid conflict demands deep, institutionalised collaboration between governments and the private sector. This requires joint preparation and planning, shared situational awareness, coordinated response mechanisms, and clear escalation pathways.

Resilience must be designed collaboratively, not improvised during crises.

What is your message for regional leaders navigating this evolving threat landscape?
Protecting critical infrastructure is a pillar of deterrence. Hybrid threats ignore borders, which means defences must be interconnected through alliances that share intelligence and coordinate responses.

Leaders must recognise that cyber conflict is a continuous societal condition, making cyber defence a permanent necessity, not just a wartime measure. The Crystal Ball initiative is a strong example of this necessary shift, acting as a collective intelligence-sharing platform to build global resilience against borderless threats.

How does your organisation, CPX, contribute to this effort?
CPX plays a key role in reinforcing the infrastructure of platforms like Crystal Ball and helping organisations turn that shared intelligence into actionable resilience. Our Threat Intelligence Center (TIC), operating under FalconWatch, is the largest of its kind in the UAE and consolidates insights from CPX, the National Security Operations Center, and the newly established Sectoral OT SOC. This integrated approach enables early detection of significant shifts in the threat landscape.

As global supply chains continue to reshape industries, the UAE’s automotive sector is undergoing a transformation aimed at helping drivers manage rising maintenance costs while improving overall service efficiency. From fixed-price service plans to data-driven dealership operations, industry players are rolling out solutions designed to bring greater cost transparency, predictability and convenience to car owners across the country.

One of the most notable developments comes from Service My Car, the UAE’s leading digital automotive service platform, which has introduced fixed-price car service contract plans to shield customers from future cost increases.

The initiative comes at a time when global shipping dynamics and logistics trends are influencing the cost and availability of spare parts in the UAE. As the automotive service sector depends heavily on international sourcing, fluctuations in procurement timelines and pricing have begun to impact service providers and customers alike.

Read more-Rising fuel costs drive surge in demand for EVs, hybrid vehicles in UAE

Industry observers note that these changes may lead to increased car service costs, variations in spare part availability, extended repair timelines and higher logistics expenses. For UAE drivers, this creates uncertainty around the long-term cost of vehicle ownership.

Service My Car’s newly launched plans aim to counter this uncertainty by allowing customers to lock in servicing costs for up to 12 months. By doing so, drivers can protect themselves from market-driven price fluctuations while gaining better control over their maintenance budgets.

“Global market dynamics are impacting multiple industries, including automotive servicing,” a spokesperson from Service My Car said. “Our goal is to offer affordable car service plans in Dubai that give customers both price protection and flexibility, so they can manage their vehicle maintenance with confidence.”

Flexible payments make maintenance more accessible

In addition to fixed pricing, the platform has introduced flexible payment options, enabling customers to spread the cost of servicing into manageable monthly installments. This approach reflects a broader shift in consumer expectations, where affordability and financial planning are becoming just as important as service quality.

The service plans include a range of benefits such as priority booking, reduced risk of unexpected repair costs and easier budgeting for vehicle maintenance. Installment options are also available through Tabby and Tamara, further lowering the barrier for customers seeking consistent car care without upfront financial strain.

With vehicle ownership in Dubai continuing to rise, demand for reliable and cost-effective maintenance solutions is growing in parallel. Regular servicing and preventative maintenance are increasingly viewed as essential strategies for avoiding costly repairs and ensuring long-term vehicle performance.

To further incentivise adoption, Service My Car is currently offering a 15 per cent discount on all car service contracts in Dubai for the remainder of the month, signaling a push to encourage early uptake of these cost-saving plans.

Dealers turn to data to improve efficiency and service

While service platforms focus on cost predictability, automotive dealerships across the Middle East are addressing a different but equally critical challenge: operational efficiency.

According to Keyloop, a leading provider of automotive retail solutions, 94 per cent of automotive dealers in the region are now turning to data and digitisation to enhance their operations, sales and after sales services.

The shift comes as dealers face mounting pressure from rising vehicle sales targets and increasing customer expectations. Traditional retail models, often reliant on fragmented systems and manual processes, are proving inadequate in an increasingly competitive market.

“Fragmented systems, manual processes and limited data visibility are affecting dealer performance in the region,” said Monzer Tohme, MD, MEA & APAC, Keyloop. “As sales volumes, brand portfolios and customer touchpoints increase, dealers across the region are facing growing pressure to modernise internal operations to maintain efficiency and service standards.”

Inefficiencies impact customer experience and revenue

Industry data highlights the scale of the challenge. Dealers reportedly lose up to 37 per cent of online leads due to missed or delayed follow-ups, while only 1 per cent of consumers describe the car buying experience as ideal. Additionally, 45 percent of customers are willing to switch brands due to poor aftersales service.

These inefficiencies are often linked to disconnected systems spanning sales, finance and aftersales operations, creating data silos that limit visibility and slow decision-making. As a result, improving internal processes has become a priority not only for operational performance but also for maintaining customer trust.

“There is a growing consensus among dealers that improved use of data and digital tools is crucial for strengthening operational efficiency,” Tohme explained. “There is a need for clearer, real-time visibility across sales, finance and aftersales workflows, as well as more consistent use of customer and vehicle data to support faster decisions and reduce manual intervention.”

UAE and Saudi Arabia lead regional growth

The urgency for transformation is underscored by strong market growth in the region. The UAE and Saudi Arabia recorded vehicle sales growth rates of 19.1 per cent and 6.6 per cent respectively in 2024, making them among the fastest-growing automotive markets globally. Together, the two countries sold a combined 1.16 million new vehicles, representing a market value exceeding $80bn.

This growth is being driven by rising consumer demand as well as long-term government investments in mobility and electrification. The UAE, in particular, is leading the GCC in electric vehicle adoption, with penetration rates reaching 6 per cent.

At the same time, the entry of new automotive brands, evolving business models and increasing regulatory requirements around data governance and transparency are adding complexity to dealer operations.

A shift toward smarter, scalable solutions

Against this backdrop, both service platforms and dealerships are aligning around a common goal: creating a more predictable, efficient and customer-centric automotive ecosystem.

For service providers like Service My Car, this means helping drivers plan ahead and avoid unexpected expenses through fixed pricing and flexible payment structures. For dealerships, it involves leveraging data and digital tools to streamline operations, improve customer engagement and support long-term growth.

“What we’re seeing across the region is a clear shift in priorities,” Tohme said. “Improving operational efficiency is no longer about incremental gains, but about building the foundations needed to operate at scale. In a rapidly evolving industry, the ability to access and act on reliable data across the entire vehicle ownership cycle has become central to business performance.”

As global market conditions continue to evolve, the UAE automotive sector’s dual focus on cost control and digital transformation is expected to play a critical role in shaping the future of vehicle ownership.

For drivers, the benefits are becoming increasingly clear: greater financial predictability, improved service experiences and access to smarter, more efficient automotive solutions.

With innovations such as fixed-price service plans and data-driven dealership models gaining traction, UAE car owners are better positioned than ever to manage costs and navigate the complexities of a rapidly changing automotive landscape.

Dubai Healthcare City Authority (DHCA) has broken ground on two projects, PIXEL DHCC and IBN SINA+, as part of a Dhs1.3bn ($354m) development programme aimed at expanding infrastructure in the emirate’s healthcare sector.

The projects, due for completion by November 2027, are a key step in the first phase of the programme and are intended to support Dubai’s push to position itself as a global hub for healthcare investment, the authority said in a statement.

PIXEL DHCC, designed by P&T Architects and Engineers, will be a LEED platinum-certified office building, the first of its kind within Dubai Healthcare City.

The nine-storey development will span 13,000 square metres and include office units and ground-floor commercial space.

IBN SINA+, designed by Design and Architecture Bureau, will be a purpose-built medical complex covering 5,800 square metres across five floors.

The shell-and-core facility is planned to house surgical, diagnostic, outpatient and medical office spaces, and will extend the existing IBN SINA facility.

The announcement was made during a ceremony attended by DHCA chief executive Issam Galadari and representatives from project partners, including International Foundation Group, along with other officials and stakeholders.

Developments to help strengthen the Dubai Healthcare City’s ecosystem

Galadari said the developments would help strengthen the free zone’s integrated ecosystem and attract investment, including foreign direct investment, while aligning with the emirate’s economic and sustainability strategies.

The authority added that it is also developing supporting infrastructure to improve accessibility and cater to the needs of the growing Dubai Healthcare City community.

With the UAE set to exit the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and OPEC+ from May 1, attention is now turning to a more immediate question for businesses and consumers: what happens to fuel prices in the UAE when May rates are announced.

The answer, based on current market dynamics, is far from straightforward.

A sharp rise already priced in

The UAE has already seen a significant surge in fuel prices heading into April, driven by global crude market volatility and geopolitical tensions.

Fuel prices for April 2026 were set at:

Super 98: Dh3.39 per litre (up from Dh2.59 in March)
Special 95: Dh3.28 (from Dh2.48)
E-Plus 91: Dh3.20 (from Dh2.40)
Diesel: Dh4.69 (from Dh2.72)

This marked one of the steepest month-on-month increases in recent years, reflecting a surge in global oil prices amid regional conflict and supply disruptions.

In effect, much of the geopolitical premium — including disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and inventory drawdowns — has already been priced into April rates.

Short-term outlook: limited immediate relief

Despite the UAE’s decision to leave OPEC, most analysts suggest that May fuel prices are unlikely to see a sharp drop.

This is because UAE fuel prices are linked to global crude benchmarks rather than domestic production policy alone. Monthly pricing is set by the UAE Fuel Price Committee based on international oil trends, exchange rates and supply-demand dynamics.

Global conditions remain tight, with crude markets are still dealing with:

• Disrupted supply flows due to regional conflict
• Depleted commercial and strategic inventories
• Strong demand for stockpile replenishment

As a result, even if the UAE gains more flexibility to increase production outside OPEC quotas, the global market — not domestic policy — will continue to dictate pump prices in the near term.

Dr Sahitya Chaturvedi, Secretary General of the Indian Business and Professional Council Dubai under the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, noted that UAE’s exit from OPEC comes at a time of elevated oil prices and significant global supply disruptions.

“The move comes amid elevated market conditions, with Brent crude at $111–113/bbl and WTI above $100/bbl, alongside a global supply disruption of over 10 million bpd. While this may drive short-term volatility, it also enhances future supply responsiveness,” he said.

Market signals suggest that prices could either:

• Remain elevated (if supply disruptions persist), or
• Ease marginally (if crude stabilises after April’s spike)

But a sharp correction appears unlikely in the immediate term.

Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said that several Gulf producers may take time to restore output to pre-war levels due to infrastructure damage and logistical challenges, while demand for replenishing depleted stockpiles is expected to remain strong.

“Against that backdrop, the UAE has seized the opportunity to exit OPEC, removing the production quota straitjacket that for years frustrated the oil-rich nation and limited its ability to fully utilise a steadily expanding production capacity,” he added.

According to Hansen, the market is likely to absorb additional UAE barrels in the near term, supported by depleted inventories and the need to rebuild reserves. However, he cautioned that the longer-term implications could be more significant.

Read: Analysts weigh UAE OPEC exit as supply dynamics shift