Drive My Car!                                                                     16 January 2026

Further news this week on two of Dubai’s mega projects – Dubai Creek Tower and Binghatti’s US$ 8.17 billion Mercedes Benz City. Emaar has announced that the tender for the construction of Dubai Creek Tower will be launched within the next three months. Speaking at the Dubai International Project Management Forum 2026, Mohamed Alabbar said the tower’s design had undergone several revisions, resulting in what he described as a “beautiful” new concept. The tower has long been on the drawing board, but it now seems that it is Emaar’s intention to reposition the tower as a defining feature of Dubai’s next phase of urban growth. The tender announcement is expected to draw interest from leading global contractors, particularly as large-scale developments regain pace across the region, and is an indicator that points to growing investor confidence in Dubai’s long-term real estate and tourism fundamentals.

Latest details from Binghatti estimate that the twelve-tower project, located in Meydan,  will deliver 13.39k homes, ranging from studios to five-bedroom residences and penthouses. The breakdown includes 6.32k studios, (starting prices at US$ 436k), 4.96k one-bedroom units, (US$ 708k), 1.65k two-bedroom homes, (US$ 817k), 0.43k three-bedroom units, (US$ 1.36 million) and eighteen four- and five-bedroom residences. The developer noted that the project will be self-financed through its own equity and free cash flow. The architectural scheme spans nearly nine to ten million sq ft and brings Mercedes-Benz’s design philosophy, known as “Sensual Purity,” into an urban environment. Facilities will include a large, landscaped park, family pools, infinity pools and splash zones, as well as gyms, yoga areas, outdoor training decks and sky jogging tracks. It will also host twelve specialised sporting clubs offering activities such as padel, squash, climbing, archery, Pilates, spin studios and golf simulators. It will also house a ballroom, event hall, private screening lounge, e-sports lounge and concierge services.

There is no doubt that a combination of the country’s low inflation rate, (at around an estimated 1.3%), 4.0% plus economic growth, growing population, estimated at year end to be 4.08 million), and dipping mortgage levels has lifted Dubai’s residential market to new higher levels. With growth expanding, lower interest rates and a 6.0% hike, to 4.32 million, in the emirate’s population this year, Dubai’s property market is set for another positive year. Data from DXBinteract reveals the three leading developers in 2025 were Emaar, Damac and Binghatti, generating sales of US$ 17.93 billion, US$ 9.78 billion and US$ 7.08 billion. Emaar claimed the top spot for the largest number of homes under construction – 51.03k units – as the developer launched fifty-four projects, delivered twenty-seven projects and 7.32k units in 2025. However, when it came to overall sales volume, Emaar – with 13.15k units – came third behind Binghatti’s 17.06k residences and Damac’s 15.93k. At the top end of the market, selling properties over US$ 4.09 billion, (AED 15 million), the three leaders were Nakheel – with total sales of US$ 4.60 billion, (six hundred and seventy-two deals), Emaar (US$ 4.28 billion – six hundred and eighty transactions) and Meraas, (US$ 2.59 billion – two hundred and eighty-nine). At the other end of the scale, the affordable sector, (sales under US$ 545k), the leading two were Binghatti and Damac – with 14.63k transactions, garnering US$ 4.41 billion, and 6.83k deals, valued at US$ 2.29 billion

Q4 witnessed sales transactions worth a record US$ 51.08 billion – the highest ever quarterly return, helped by a record December posting of US$ 17.44 billion. Last month, and driven by a triple whammy of premium prices, limited supply and high demand from international buyers, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Marina and Downtown Dubai accounted for a marked share of the upscale sector. Meanwhile, Jumeirah Village Circle was the dominant player in the mid-market sector, especially notable in the off-plan developments.

In 2025, total sales value, 28.0% higher on the year, topped US$ 149.0 billion – its strongest residential year on record; there was also a 20.0% uplift in transactions to 203k. Studios and one- to two-bedroom apartments accounted for 77% of transactions, while 72% of deals fell within the US$ 136k – US$ 817k,  (AED 500k – US$ 3 million) range. 65% of total attractions were found in the off-plan arena, with 53% of total value, driven primarily by apartments. Apartment and villa/townhouse sales both climbed last year, with a 29.0% annual rise to US$ 88.56 billion and by 26.0% at US$ 60.22. During 2025, average sale prices rose 12.0% to US$ 456 per sq ft.

Bayut and Dubizzle reports show that, last year, average sale prices per sq ft rose by 9% – 29% for apartments and up to 28% for villas, with luxury areas posting gains of 4% to 16%; rental yields remained attractive at between 7% to 10% in budget communities. In the affordable apartment sector, which led the gains, Dubai Silicon Oasis posted the highest jump after Blue Line Metro news, with prices up 29% per sq ft, followed by Arjan, DAMAC Hills 2, and Dubai South, with prices up between 9% -25%. Mid-market apartments in Jumeirah Village Circle, Business Bay, Al Furjan and Arabian Ranches 3 saw increases of up to 11%, driven by steady family demand and handovers. Similar returns were noted in the villa sector; Dubai South and Dubailand recorded over 20% growth in affordable housing units, following project completions, with mid-tier villa prices in Murooj, Al Furjan and Bliss at Arabian Ranches 3 climbing between 17% to 28%. Luxury villa districts, including Arabian Ranches, Dubai Hills Estate and DAMAC Hills, saw up to 16% rises, supported by tight supply in premium locations. Dubai Investment Park and Dubai Silicon Oasis posted increases in per sq ft to US$ 211 and US$ 409.

Rental yields continued their upward momentum last year and will continue to do so in 2026, albeit at a slower pace. Affordable apartments in International City, Dubai Investments Park, and Discovery Gardens posted robust yields of between 9% – 10%, slightly higher than those found in mid-tier locations – for example, rents in Living Legends, Town Square, and Al Furjan posted returns of between 7% to 9%. Town Square registered rentals at 7.72% for mid-tier apartments. Meanwhile, rents found in luxury apartments in Al Sufouh, DAMAC Hills and Green Community exceeded 7.62%. In the villa sector, DAMAC Hills 2, Serena and International City led affordable yields above 5.4%, with rentals in the mid-market sectors rising at slightly higher levels, as exemplified by returns of 5% to 7% in locations such as in JVC, Mudon, and Town Square. Luxury villas in Mohammed Bin Rashid City, Al Barsha and Al Barari achieved over 5.8%. the rental market segment, the apartment winners were Dubai Marina in the luxury market, JVC (mid-tier) and International City (budget); the latter saw rents at US$ 14.4k, (the segment’s biggest jump). For villas, Al Barsha topped the luxury villas, with Al Furjan and DAMAC Hills 2 strong in the mid- and affordable segments; mid-tier villas rose by an average 15%.

In the off-plan sector, most of the action in villas was dominated by the major developers, with DAMAC Lagoons, The Valley by Emaar and Mohammed Bin Rashid City the leading three in the luxury sector. Arabian Ranches 3, Mudon and Nad Al Sheba were dominant in the mid-market sector with R. Hills, Chevalia Estate and Verona for budget villa projects.

For ready properties, the top apartment locations for luxury, mid-tier and affordable were Dubai Marina, JVC and International City, with the leading developers being DAMAC Lagoons, Al Furjan and DAMAC Hills 2. For short-term rentals, Dubai Marina, Downtown Dubai, and Meydan City dominated the luxury apartments sector. At the high-end of the villa market, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Hills Estate, and DAMAC Hills were the three top developers. JVC, Business Bay and Al Barsha saw strong mid-tier apartment interest, with DAMAC Hills 2 leading budget villas.

An agreement, between AMIS GPD Development and high-end jewellery and watchmaker Jacob & Co, will result in the group’s seventh development in the emirate: the latest will be another luxury property community in Meydan, positioned as a premium residential address.

AMIS’ existing portfolio spans a range of residential offerings, including boutique apartment communities and private villa enclaves in Meydan, with distinctive names such as The Woodland Residences, Woodland Terraces, Woodland Crest and Derby Heights. Exact details about design features, finishes and pricing for the new Jacob & Co – branded villas will be revealed at a later event.

This blog agrees with Elie Namaan, CEO and co-founder of Ellington Properties, who reckons that new house buyers in Dubai often underestimate how quickly these costs add up, especially often forgetting add-on costs. For most first-time buyers, total cash required at completion typically falls around the US$ 109k mark, (AED 400k) for a US$ 409k, (AED 1.5 million) purchase, depending on financing structure and lender fees. Home prices below US$ 1.36 million, (AED 5 million), normally require a minimum down payment of 20%, (AED 272k); for a unit of US$ 409k, a down payment of US$ 82k, (AED 300k) is normally required. Other payments include the likes of the Dubai Land Department transfer fee of 4% at registration, mortgage registration charges of 0.25% on the loan amount, alongside valuation fees, trustee office costs, agency commission, bank administrative charges and VAT. Despite these potential drawbacks, the market is still buoyant and interest in first-time home ownership remains strong – maybe stronger.

Speaking at Dubai’s 1 Billion Followers Summit, its founder Mohamed Alabbar told his audience that Emaar going public was “the stupidest idea we ever did” but that it was a tough but crucial decision and helped the firm’s growth and discipline. He noted that the heightened scrutiny and pressure on its performance had become a double-edged sword, challenging at times but ultimately making the company stronger. He compared having to publish financials every quarter to public exposure but also argued that public markets imposed a discipline Emaar could not have achieved otherwise. He noted that ‘shareholders don’t care about excuses’, with little tolerance for explanations, and are only interested in results, but having to work in that environment has forced Emaar to become leaner, more resilient and far more disciplined, even during periods of rapid growth. He has always been anti-meetings saying, “it is all garbage”, and “if you want something from me, just pick up the phone”. He believes in the UAE, commenting that “the UAE is aggressively growing. Our ecommerce business is booming, our property is on fire, but we have to catch up. Instead of fifty buildings, we need to build one hundred buildings.” Beyond the UAE, he pointed to expansion opportunities in Eastern Europe, the ME, Indonesia and Bangkok.

Over the year, major expansions will be seen at the Mall of the Emirates which will include two hundred and forty new luxury shops and significant entertainment, dining and social spaces. Furthermore, it is reported that Dubai could see a further six new shopping malls this year, including:

Dubai Square Mall     Dubai Creek Harbour            2.6 million sq ft

Sobha Mall                 Sobha Hartland                    339k sq ft

Liwan Mall                  Wadi Al Safa 2                       114k sq ft

Villa Square               Wadi Al Safa 5                       124k sq ft

South Bay Mall          Dubai South Residential       200k sq ft

Dubai Square             Dubai Creek Harbour                        Mega – details TBD

Dubai International Airport (DXB) remains the world’s busiest airport in terms of airline seating capacity, combining domestic and international operations to accommodate an estimated 5.5 million seats in January 2026 — up about 4.0% compared to a year earlier. DXB was followed by Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, (with 4.9 million seats), Tokyo Haneda Airport (HND), London Heathrow (LHR), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and Seoul Incheon (ICN). Cirium’s 2025 On-Time Performance Review shows that Aeromexico is rated the world’s most punctual airline, followed by Saudia, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS), Brazil’s Azul Airlines, and Qatar Airways, Last month, OAG data showed China Southern Airlines topping the major airline category for punctuality, with nearly 90% of its flights arriving on time, followed by Hainan Airlines and China Eastern Airlines. Cirium ranked Istanbul Airport as the world’s most punctual major hub, followed by Santiago International Airport, Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport, Guayaquil International Airport in Ecuador and Brasilia International Airport.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed was full of praise for the exceptional performance of Dubai Chamber of Commerce, as it welcomed 72k new companies to bring its total portfolio to 292k. Furthermore, its members’ exports and re-exports surpassed US$ 97.0 billion – a 15.1% increase, compared to 2024. Dubai’s Crown Prince commented that “these results reflect not only strong business performance, but also rising global confidence in Dubai’s dynamic and forward‑looking economic ecosystem. Dubai continues to set new economic benchmarks, with each achievement bringing us closer to the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33”.

Nigeria and The Philippines have both signed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements with the UAE. Under the deals, tariffs and trade barriers will be reduced, investment flows increased, and new opportunities created in key sectors including technology, agriculture, energy and precious metals. As with other trade agreements, they are expected to strengthen supply chains, boost public and private-sector cooperation, and support SMEs expanding into global markets. President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed described the deal as a landmark in UAE-Nigeria relations, saying it reflects the UAE’s commitment to strengthening global trade partnerships and unlocking new opportunities for shared economic growth and development. Bilateral non-oil trade, in 2024, topped US$ 4.3 billion in 2024 – 55% higher on the previous year; in the first nine months of 2025, trade trended higher, reaching US$ 3.1 billion.

President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, meeting with the leader of Philippines, Ferdinand R Marcos Jr., expressed confidence that the CEPA would represent a major step forward in bilateral cooperation, contributing to both countries’ shared development goals and reflecting the UAE’s ongoing commitment to building global partnerships. They also explored ways to strengthen cooperation, particularly in the fields of the economy, trade, investment and renewable energy. In 2024, bilateral non-oil trade totalled US$ 940 million, whilst the first nine months of 2025 posted a 22.4% hike to US$ 854 million. The UAE is the Philippines’ top export market among Arab and African countries, as well as its seventeenth largest trade partner globally.

CEPAs are a central pillar of the UAE’s foreign trade strategy, which aims to raise non-oil foreign trade to US$ 1.1 trillion by 2031. To date, thirty-two agreements have been processed, (fourteen of which have entered into force), underlining the UAE’s commitment to open, rules-based trade, as a driver of economic growth, diversification and global business opportunity. In 2024, the programme contributed to the UAE’s record non-oil trade figure of US$ 810 billion, up 14% on the year.

According to the latest Henley & Partners index, the UAE’s passport is the world’s fifth strongest passport in 2026, moving  up five positions compared to last year. It shares this position with Hungary, Portugal, Slovakia, and Slovenia but is ahead of the likes of New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Canada, Iceland, and the US. A UAE passport holder has access to visa-free and visa-on-arrival access to one hundred and eighty-four countries. Singapore tops the list, with access to one hundred and ninety-two nations, followed by Japan/South Korea, in second place, with Denmark/Luxembourg/Spain/Sweden in third.

A major boost for Creators HQ after news that it would be collaborating with Amazon which will see UAE-based content creators being able to launch and scale their own products on the online shopping platform, globally. The partnership was announced during the fourth edition of the 1 Billion Followers Summit, the world’s largest summit dedicated to the content creation economy. The Amazon Creators Foundry will provide eligible content creators, within the Creators HQ network, with comprehensive, end-to-end support, leveraging Amazon’s expertise, infrastructure and seller tools; it will also be able to list and sell their products on Amazon stores available globally. Participants will receive comprehensive education and mentorship, covering online retail fundamentals, product ideation, digital marketing and customer acquisition strategies, and brand building in the digital age, in addition to gaming and entertainment commerce opportunities. There is no doubt that this initiative, by nurturing a new generation of innovators, will help shape the future of commerce and drive the growth of the UAE’s digital economy.

Another initiative was announced at the 1 Billion Followers Summit, Creators HQ, the first dedicated creators’ hub in the UAE and the ME, has launched a US$ 1.36 million, (AED 5 million), “Social Content Fund”, in partnership with monetisation platform Alfan to support family content. Funding will be for high-quality creative content production that supports family cohesion and promotes positive societal values. Creators will gain support from both Creators HQ and Alfan through education and training, focused on content creation and monetisation, as well as access to monetisation tools and to “alfan.io”, Alfan’s monetisation platform. The fund will encourage outstanding content creators from outside the UAE to relocate to the country and provides comprehensive relocation support.

With the triple aims of strengthening investor protections, improving clarity for businesses and supporting the growth of a regulated digital assets ecosystem in DIFC, the Dubai Financial Services Authority has seen its updated Crypto Token Regulatory Framework take effect. One of the most noteworthy amendments pushes the responsibility form the regulator to the individual company. In future, firms offering crypto-related financial services in DIFC must carry out their own documented assessments to determine whether a crypto token meets the DFSA’s suitability criteria. Consequently, the DFSA will no longer publish a list of recognised crypto tokens. The updated framework has also introduced enhanced safeguards for investors, refined conduct and operational requirements, and proportionate reporting obligations that reflect the current state of the global digital assets market.

Having added 250k new companies in 2025, the UAE can now boast a portfolio of 1.4 million companies and plans an almost 50% jump to bring that number to more than two million over the next decade. Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Tourism pointed out that the number of SMEs, owned by UAE citizens, had grown by 63% in the past five years. He added that flexible economic policies and new laws supporting business growth and expansion in new sectors, have been major contributors to the economy.

The DFM opened the week on Monday 12 January on 6,226 points, and having gained one hundred and twelve points, (1.8%), the previous week, closed ninety points higher (1.4%), to close the week on 6,226 points, by 16 January 2026. Emaar Properties, US$ 0.06 higher the previous week, gained US$ 0.02 to close on US$ 3.94 by the end of the week. DEWA, Emirates NBD, DIB and DFM started the previous week on US$ 0.78 US$ 8.00, US$ 2.57 and US$ 0.46 and closed on US$ 0.80, US$ 8.31, US$ 2.58 and US$ 0.46. On 16 January, trading was at one hundred and ninety-three million shares, with a value of US$ one hundred and fifty-six million dollars, compared to one hundred and forty-six million shares, with a value of US$ one hundred and twenty million dollars, on 09 January.

By 16 January 2026, Brent, US$ 3.31 (5.5%) higher the previous week, gained US$ 0.78, (1.2%), to close on US$ 64.38. Gold, US$ 213 (4.7%) lower the previous week, gained US$ 85 (1.9%), to end the week’s trading at US$ 4,582 on 16 January. Silver was trading at a record US$ 88.80 – US$ 8.82 (11.1%) higher on the week.  

February will see BP announcing its full year’s results that will see it write down the value of its green investments; the energy giant notified the LSE that “the fourth-quarter results are expected to include post-tax adjusting items relating to impairments…in the range of US$ four billion to five billion, primarily related to our transition businesses.” Last month, its chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, left with ‘immediate effect’; he had orchestrated a radical strategic shift into green energy that resulted in sustained underperformance in BP’s share price. In early 2024, he was responsible for the cancellation of a target to develop 50 gigawatts of renewables and also slash output, by 40%, over the ensuing five years from its core oil and gas business by 2030. He had been under pressure to reverse many of BP’s ‘green’ commitments, but his actions continued to displease shareholders, and he had to go to be replaced by Meg O’Neill, a US national, now living in Perth Australia, and is the current CEO for Woodside Energy.

Reports show that  UK’s EG Group, founded in Blackburn, is looking at a US$ 9.0 billion stock market listing in New York – another blow for the UK’s FTSE. The energy forecourts’ giant’s three main shareholders are TDR Capital, the London-based private equity firm, with about 50%, and the brothers, Mohsin and Zuber Issa, each with a 25% stake. It has invited several banks – including Barclays, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley – to bid for selection ahead of a flotation expected to take place this year. With its global headquarters shifting to Charlotte, North Carolina, bankers believe a US listing is more logical than a London flotation. EG Group employs about 33k people and operates roughly 4.3k sites, with the US being its biggest market.

This week, the owners of the UK’s RAC, with about fifteen million members, have launched a process expected to culminate in a US$ 6.7 billion sale or stock market listing of the breakdown recovery service later this year. The three leading investors are buyout firms CVC Capital Partners, Silver Lake Partners and the Singaporean state investment fund GIC. Founded in 1897 and formerly known as the Automobile Club of Great Britain, the RAC employs thousands of people.

UK media reports indicate that Abu Dhabi’s Arabian Gulf Steel Industries is considering the acquisition of Speciality Steels UK, that used to be a kingpin of Sanjeev Gupta’s Liberty Steel empire. Last summer, the plant closed after it was found to be “hopelessly insolvent” and fell into the hands of the Official Receiver. The private Abu Dhabi company is among a small number of parties which have lodged proposals to take control of the SSUK business which until last summer was owned by the metals tycoon Sanjeev Gupta’s Liberty Steel empire. The SSUK business operates sites at Rotherham and Stocksbridge, in South Yorkshire, and across its operations employed close to 1.5k people when it collapsed last summer. A number of other parties have also expressed interest in buying the operations in recent months.

Henry Solomon Wellcome, an American and UK pharmaceutical entrepreneur, founded the pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome & Company with his colleague Silas Burroughs in 1880; this was one of the four large companies to eventually merge to form GlaxoSmithKline. The Wellcome Trust was founded in accordance with the will of Henry Wellcome, and has become one of the world’s largest private biomedical charities. On his death, in 1936, at the age of eighty-two, Wellcome vested the entire share capital of his company in individual trustees, who were charged with spending the income to further human and animal health.  Latest figures indicate that the Trust has become a US$ 53.74 billion endowment fund, and has 2.72k active grants, valued at US$ 9.83 billion, in addition to a cash balance of US$ 4.98 billion. In its latest report, it intimated that cash accounts for 8.9% of its portfolio, (more than double its ‘usual’ balance), so as to be ready for any market crash and the potential share bargains it might throw up. It also noted that it wanted “the option to step up into any market dislocations”, and that since global share values were “at or near all-time highs”, it was therefore keeping its supply of cash and highly liquid government bonds “elevated”.

 In the three-year period YTD, shares in the FTSE 100’s Whitbread have dipped 14.0% over the stewardship of Domnic Paul since his appointment as chief executive in January 2023; over that period, the London bourse has witnessed an average 30% increase. The Group not only owns Premier Inn but also a string of restaurants including Beefeater and Brewers Fayre. Latest figures indicate that Premier Inn’s total accommodation sales were 2.0% higher on the year, in the quarter ending 27 November, and that Revenue per Available Room in the UK rose 3.0%. Despite the improvement in the financial results, Whitbread warned that “the government’s proposed changes to business rates are damaging to the overall sector and will impact future investment and job creation”. Meanwhile, there could be some buying interest, with reports that US activist investor, Corvex Management, now has a 6.0% interest in the UK company.

The Indian National Statistics Office forecast that the country’s economy is expected to grow 7.4% in the fiscal year ending in March, slightly higher than the administration’s 6.3% – 6.8%. initial projection. This latest forecast will be used by the Treasury, as an indicator for the 2026 budget due to be announced on 01 February. Over the past two years, the economy had grown by 6.5% and 9.2% last year. Private consumption, which accounts for about 60% of GDP, was seen expanding by 7% on the year – 0.2% lower compared to a year earlier.  Both government spending and private investment are expected to move higher in the 2025/2026 fiscal year; the former more than doubling from 2.3% to 5.2%, and private investment by 0.7% to 7.8%. An expected 2.5% hike, to 7.0%, will see manufacturing climb 7.0% next fiscal year, whilst construction will head in the other direction – by 2.4% to 7.0. This year, growth in farming, employing more than 40% of the Indian working population, will dip 0.5% to 4.1%.

Having evaluated three hundred and twenty global airlines, AirlineRatings.com has come up with a list of the leading airlines. AirlineRatings noted that much of their criteria remained consistent year on year, but that turbulence prevention now carries greater weight in its methodology, reflecting the fact that turbulence remains the leading cause of in-flight injuries.A feature of this year’s report is that only four points separate number one to number  fourteen, (and 1.3 points between number one to number six). The list of safest full-service airlines includes:

• Etihad
• Cathay Pacific
• Qantas
• Qatar Airways
• Emirates
• Air New Zealand
• Singapore Airlines
• EVA Air
• Virgin Australia
• Korean Air
• STARLUX
• Turkish Airlines
• Virgin Atlantic
• ANA
• Alaska Airlines
• TAP Air Portugal
• SAS
• British Airways
• Vietnam Airlines
• Iberia
• Lufthansa
• Air Canada
• Delta Air Lines
• American Airlines
• Fiji Airways

After the 2008 GFC, banks were subject to very robust regulations after many had flouted the weak rules that allowed them to bring the global economy to its knees. Slowly, but surely, it seems that those halcyon days are returning, as Donald Trump begins to unravel all these regulations, making it easier for banks to again peddle their customers’ money to invest in risky assets again.

Goldman Sachs posted a 25.0% surge in Q4 equities trading revenues to US$ 4.4 billion – a Wall Street record and a record for stock trading by a bank; trading revenue rose 12.5% to US$ 3.1 billion. Goldman’s Q4 fees from investment banking jumped 25.0% to $2.58 billion, including the US$ 56.5 billion leveraged buyout of Electronic Arts and Alphabet’s US$ 32 billion acquisition of the cloud security firm Wiz. Goldman’s Q4 profits rose 12.0% to US$ 4.6 billion. All the US mega banks – including Goldman, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and Citigroup – have benefitted from a looser regulatory environment brought in by the Trump administration, and also lower interest rates and robust cash balances. Shares of Goldman, which have surged 63.0% over the past twelve months, gained another 3.8% in morning trading in New York, after its quarterly figures were released. This is definitely the period for such establishments, all reporting higher investment banking fees in 2025, to “fill their boots”.

After months of negotiations that have seen opposition from politicians and rival bidder Paramount Skydance, Netflix is preparing to make an all-cash offer for Warner Bros Discovery’s studios and streaming businesses. Initially there were offers on the table including Netflix’s US$ 82.7 billion deal of cash and stock for Warner Bros’ film and streaming assets, and Paramount Skydance offer of US$ 108.4 billion in cash for the whole company, including its cable TV business. Warner Bros continues to favour Netflix’s deal despite amendments to Paramount’s bid, including a US$ 40 billion equity backing by Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and father of Paramount CEO David Ellison; it argues that Paramount’s offer hinges on a significant amount of debt financing.

The Trump administration is not just taking apart regulations but attacking whole regulatory agencies that date back to the 2008-09 financial crisis and were meant to keep banks from giving in to their worst impulses. Regulators have also made it easier for banks to again peddle in risky assets, such as cryptocurrency, and President Donald Trump paused enforcement of foreign anti-bribery rules. Deregulation is again the name of the game with the cycle having gone full circle, so that once again bankers can make their fortunes almost at their own leisure. To make matters even better, they are operating in an economic environment of falling interest rates, a continuing bull share market, a surging bond market, (posting its best year since 2000), and precious metals batting out of the park. Last year, bank shares traded almost double that of the US market overall. Jamie Dimon must be well pleased with his performance this year, with the JP Morgan CEO being rewarded with a pay packet estimated at US$ 770 million – being a combination of salary, bonuses, dividends, stock grants and appreciation in his allotment of the bank’s shares. The bank’s stock rose 34% last year. The CEOs of Citi and Goldman Sachs fared a little worse and had to make do with more than US$ 100 million each whilst Richard Fairbank, CEO at Capital One, made more than US$ 300 million, which included US$ 30 million, after the Trump administration waved through the lender’s acquisition of Discover Financial. Some may call all this ‘obscene’.

With the possibility of Donald Trump going ahead with his proposal that he would cap credit card borrowing rates at 10%, the stock market took action with share values in both MasterCard and Visa dipping more than 2.0%.  All major banks were impacted, posting losses that saw American Express lose 4.3%, Citigroup 4.1%, JPMorgan Chase 2.5% and Bank of America, 2.5%. With US card operations accounting for about 11% of Barclays’s profits, the bank shed 3.0% in early London trading. There is no surprise to hear from the bank players that this will not happen and the days of 30% plus rates will remain – which bank would walk away from this cash pot? The conundrum facing the government is whether interest rate caps would help consumers or curb access to credit. The US President has already called for a one-year 10% cap on credit card interest rates, starting next Tuesday, 20 January, providing details on how he plans to make companies comply, but with no further details on its modus operandi.

Last week, Jerome Powell revealed he was the being investigated by the US Department of Justice over his testimony to Congress about the renovation of a Fed building. The Federal Reserve chair has irked Donald Trump for some time now, for being too slow to cut interest rates. and it is no secret that he has been planning his downfall with the latest being to indict him. Last night, Powell came out fighting, calling the move a “pretext” to gain more influence over the central bank and monetary policy, adding that “this is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions – or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation”. Market reaction seemed to be indifferent, with little movement seen on the bourses, the greenback and gold. However, there was a powerful message of support from eleven of the world’s central bankers including the BoE’s Andrew Bailey, ECB’s Christine Lagarde along with from central bank heads from Canada, Australia, Sweden and France, confirming they stood “in full solidarity with the Federal Reserve System and its chairman”. They concluded that “the independence of central banks is a cornerstone of price, financial and economic stability in the interest of the citizens that we serve. It is therefore critical to preserve that independence, with full respect for the rule of law and democratic accountability”.

Another week and yet another U-Turn for the stuttering Starmer administration – this time the abandonment of its September 2025 mandatory digital ID project. It appears that Ministers made the announcement without having a comprehensive strategy of how to sell the policy to the public; it was a disaster from the very beginning, and the result was a political backlash. This was déjà vu for the Labour hierarchy who thought that it would go ahead unlike the original scheme introduced by Tony Blair which sank on the back of public concerns about civil liberties and privacy. 

All evidence showed that support for the measure dramatically fell after its announcement. Now, Sir Keir Starmer has made his thirteenth U-turn in government and will no longer make digital IDs mandatory. Originally, digital IDs were going to be required for right-to-work checks as a part of a crackdown on illegal migrant working. In September, the prime minister said that the proposed mandatory system would serve the government in being able to “know who is in our country” and would prevent migrants from slipping into the shadow economy illegally.  The government has said that it is still committed to mandatory digital right-to-work checks and a consultation to start within weeks will explore which verification checks could be used. Even with a Commons’ majority of one hundred and fifty-eight seats, there were concerns that a Labour rebellion could result in at least a political embarrassment for the prime minister who leads a team with a serious lack of “political judgment” and “strategic thinking”. Studies have seemingly shown that Rachel Reeves’ now iconic US$ 29.54 billion may have dwindled by 63.6%, to US$ 10.74 billion, by a double whammy of a series of government U-turns and a marked decline in net migration.

The Office for National Statistics reported that the UK economy, in November, rose by 0.3%, even though there was consumer concern ahead of the late November budget. The noted improvement in industrial production was largely attributable to Jaguar Land Rover restarting manufacturing, following its close down due to a September cyber-attack. On a rolling three-month basis, growth was at 0.1% – compared to the revised zero growth for the October quarter. It seems that the services was the only sector to post any growth, as manufacturing remained in negative territory; construction remained a problem area, with its largest fall in almost three years, as housing was worst hit; this does not bode well for the government’s 1.5 million home target by the end of parliament.

After the Starmer administration introduced a US$ 0.04 per mile charge for electric cars, an AutoTrader report indicates that nearly 50% of potential UK EV buyers were rethinking their plans. In the report, it found that the two main obstacles to buying these vehicles were the purchase price, (17% higher than traditional vehicles), and low household income. It expects that 62% of motorists are considering buying an electric car, as their next vehicle, split with the percentage dipping to 48%, when household income was less than US$ 53.5k, but 73% for those with income over that figure. Interestingly, the research found that while 72% of seventeen to thirty-four-year-olds were considering going electric, the proportion fell significantly to 35% for the over-fifty-fives. There was also a 10% difference between men and women in the likelihood of going electric. It is hard to disagree with Nathan Coe, Autotrader’s chief executive, that the decision by Rachel Reeves to introduce this tax was “incoherent and inconsistent” with government policy of promoting EVs. Drive. My Car!