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In the world's third-largest auto market, demand for hybrid cars is racing ahead of EVs, deepening the hold of Japanese carmakers in India. View More

In this articleETERNAL-INSWIGGY-INTMMARUTI-IN7269.T-JPHYUNDAI-INMAHM-INTMCV-INRNO-FRZE594-CNKIMTFKIMTFHMCUSBFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT .ido-promo__content { box-sizing: border-box; width: 100%; background-color: #f0f0f0; padding: 2px 20px 2px 20px; font-family: Lyon, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.66; } This report is from this week's "Inside India" newsletter, which brings you timely, insightful news and market commentary on the emerging powerhouse — Subscribe today Hello, this is Priyanka Salve, writing to you from Singapore.Welcome to the latest edition of "Inside India" — your one-stop destination for stories and developments from the world's fastest growing large economy.Indian consumers' desire to shift away from gasoline-based cars should have been Tesla and BYD's moment to shine in the world's third-largest auto market. But legacy carmakers that have dominated the Indian market for decades have an ace up their sleeve — hybrid cars.Enjoy!Any thoughts on today's newsletter? Share them with the team. The big story The demand for electric vehicles is surging worldwide, but Indian consumers are choosing a different ride — hybrid cars that don't need external charging. Hybrid cars are expected to reach 10% of total car sales in India in the financial year ending March 2027, while EVs are expected to account for 5%, according to a report by Indian research firm Care Ratings. Cost-conscious consumers who were previously buying diesel vehicles have started shifting to hybrids, Puneet Gupta, director at S&P Global Mobility with a focus on the Indian market, told CNBC.Hybrid vehicle sales have risen nearly fourfold in the world's third-largest auto market to 362,866 units in the financial year ending March 2026, from 98,010 units in the financial year ending March 2020, according to Care Ratings. Meanwhile, annual sales of electric vehicles were 131,865 units in the year to March 2026, the report, based on the Indian government's vehicle registration data, showed. "It's clear that hybrid cars are gaining traction [in India] faster than EVs in the passenger car segment," Diwakar Murugan, senior automotives analyst at Omdia, said in an email to CNBC. He added it was "remarkable" that hybrids are punching above their weight, having achieved strong growth with just eight models in the market so far, compared to more than 40 EV models.The shift away from internal combustion engine, or ICE, vehicles should have ushered global EV companies like Tesla and BYD into India, but it turns out that Japanese manufacturers, who already dominate India's auto space, are set to deepen their grip on the market by offering hybrid cars instead of pure EVs. Tesla has sold fewer than 400 cars while BYD has sold less than 7,000 in India since 2025, according to government data.Even in the EV space, automakers Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors, which primarily sell ICE cars, are the leading players. That's a stark contrast to BYD and Tesla's global dominance: in 2025, BYD became the world's top EV seller with 2.26 million units, while Tesla sold 1.64 million. Rise of hybrids In hybrids, Japan's Toyota and Maruti Suzuki — the Indian subsidiary of Suzuki Motor — are the top manufacturers in India, with popular models including the Toyota Innova Hycross and Maruti Grand Vitara, said Arun Agarwal, vice president of fundamental research at Indian brokerage Kotak Securities. These companies already dominate the broader Indian auto market, where the majority of their sales constitute ICE vehicles. Maruti Suzuki leads auto sales with more than 1.8 million cars sold in the 12 months ended March 2026, as per data from auto industry body the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, including 20,466 strong hybrids, as per data shared by S&P Global Mobility.Japanese-Indian joint venture Toyota Kirloskar Motors sold 366,896 cars, with 91,536 strong hybrids during the same period.Hybrid cars come in mild and strong variants depending on their battery capacity. Unlike mild hybrids, strong hybrids can drive solely on electric power — for short distances at low speeds — resulting in better fuel efficiency. NEW DELHI, INDIA - 2022/07/01: Press reporters seen around the vehicle during the launch. Toyota unveiled the new Urban Cruiser Hyryder at Hyatt Aerocity, Toyotas first Self-charging Strong Hybrid Electric SUV and the first of its kind, in the B SUV segment in India. (Photo by Pradeep Gaur/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images Given the increasing customer acceptance, experts said that over the next 12 months, more hybrid car launches are expected than in the last five years combined. "Hybrids don't require any behavioral change as consumers refuel at a petrol pump, just like they always have," said Murugan, adding that hybrids offer better mileage without the range anxiety of EVs.Experts told CNBC that this trend is likely to sustain, as many leading car companies in India are launching new hybrid models this year, attracting buyers looking for better fuel efficiency. Meanwhile, EV adoption in the country suffers from a lack of adequate charging infrastructure, limited access to affordable global EVs, and anxiety about resale value, Gupta said.Hyundai and Kia, French carmaker Renault, Honda and Maruti Suzuki are all planning to launch new hybrid models for the Indian consumer, analysts said.Meanwhile, despite a warming of ties between India and China and a trade deal between New Delhi and Washington, both Tesla and BYD await their share of the world's third-largest auto market as they continue to face sky-high duties. Need to know U.S. seeks bigger energy foothold in IndiaThe United States is stepping up efforts to sell oil and gas to India as the world's third-largest energy market grapples with supply disruptions from the Middle East and finds its alternatives shrinking after Washington ended waivers for Iranian and Russian crude.India, South Korea aim to deepen ties amid geopolitical uncertaintyTrade uncertainty with the U.S. and the push to diversify away from China make India and South Korea natural partners — but their relationship has yet to translate from intent into meaningful execution.Won't be surprised if there's 'one more term' before the U.S.-India trade agreementSarah Bianchi, former deputy U.S. trade representative and currently senior managing director at Evercore, said given the difficult issues involved in U.S.-India trade negotiations, there could be more change before a deal finally gets done.Coming up April 23: HSBC composite flash PMI for AprilApril 28: India's industrial output for March Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

Investors have been attuned to mainframe disruption threats from artificial intelligence, but IBM posted 51% growth in Z mainframe hardware revenue. View More

In this articleIBMFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT IBM CEO Arvind Krishna appears at a Diwali celebration in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Oct. 21, 2025.Allison Robbert | Bloomberg | Getty Images IBM shares slipped 6% in extended trading on Wednesday after the hardware, software and consulting provider reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter results but maintained full-year guidance.Here's how the company did in comparison with LSEG consensus:Earnings per share: $1.91 adjusted vs. $1.81 expectedRevenue: $15.92 billion vs. $15.62 billion expectedIBM's revenue grew 9% year over year in the quarter, according to a statement. Net income of $1.22 billion, or $1.28 per share, increased from $1.06 billion, or $1.12 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2024. Adjusted earnings exclude acquisition-related adjustments.Management reiterated its view for 2026, including over 5% revenue growth at constant currency and a $1 billion increase to free cash flow."I don't think we've ever raised guidance in a first quarter," IBM's finance chief, Jim Kavanaugh, told analysts on a conference call. He said executives believe the company should be "a prudent operator."Iran's war against the U.S. and Iran broke out on Feb. 28. IBM saw the strongest revenue growth in decades in the Middle East through the quarter, CEO Arvind Krishna said on the call."Middle East developments didn't impact us in the first quarter," Krishna said. "Uncertainties remain, but our diversity across businesses, geographies, industries, and large enterprise clients position us well." IBM's first-quarter software revenue grew 11% to $7.05 billion, higher than the $7.02 billion consensus among analysts polled by StreetAccount. Revenue growth from Red Hat Enterprise Linux, stemming from IBM's $34 billion Red Hat acquisition in 2019, decelerated from the fourth quarter, said IBM's finance chief, Jim Kavanaugh."I think that's a function of, you know, the federal lack of signings and the closure of the government in the fourth quarter that played through, but also a very dislocated hardware supply chain," Kavanaugh said.Management is looking out for supply chain impacts on Red Hat Enterprise Linux. "RHEL is tied to enterprise hardware placements overall," Kavanaugh said.Revenue from consulting, at $5.27 billion, was up 4%, coming in just shy of StreetAccount's $5.28 billion consensus. Read more CNBC tech newsNvidia backs AI company Vast Data at $30 billion valuationGoogle unveils chips for AI training and inference in latest shot at NvidiaSpaceX says it can buy Cursor later this year for $60 billion or pay $10 billion for 'our work together'Apple's elevation of silicon head Johny Srouji signals sprint to build in-house chips for all devices Infrastructure increased 15% to $3.33 billion, above the $3.16 billion StreetAccount consensus. IBM pointed to a 51% jump in Z mainframe hardware revenue, with the z17 mainframe model continuing to outperform prior cycles, the company said.As of Wednesday's close, IBM shares had declined about 15% so far in 2026, while the S&P 500 index was up 4% in the same period. The stock dropped 13% in a single day in February after artificial intelligence model builder Anthropic said AI could assist companies with modernizing code written in the COBOL programming language. Applications written in COBOL can run on IBM's mainframe computers. "AI strengthens the mainframe case, it does not weaken it," IBM's senior vice president of software, Rob Thomas, wrote in a LinkedIn post.In mid-March, IBM completed the $11 billion acquisition of data streaming software company Confluent. IBM now sees its operating pre-tax margin expanding by about 1%, despite closing the Confluent deal about two months earlier than expected, Kavanaugh said.WATCH: Citigroup's Boolani on IBM's upside: Will be an AI survivor and enabler watch nowVIDEO4:0104:01Citigroup's Boolani on IBM's upside: Will be an AI survivor and enablerPower Lunch Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said he expects others to quickly catch up to the power and performance of Anthropic's Mythos AI model. View More

In this articleIBMFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT IBM CEO Arvind Krishna speaks at the SXSW conference in Austin, Texas, on March 11, 2025.Andy Wenstrand | Sxsw Conference & Festivals | Getty Images International Business Machines CEO Arvind Krishna told CNBC on Wednesday that the Iran war and other geopolitical uncertainty are leading the company to guide cautiously.IBM beat analyst first-quarter earnings estimates on the top and bottom lines, but maintained guidance due to the macro uncertainty."Is there going to be an issue around oil as inflation goes up? Will that drive people to spend a bit less? If they spend a bit less, it's not a direct impact on me, but a lot of consumer companies are my clients, like Walmart. If people are buying less at Walmart, they're going to find a way to control their costs, so then they'll buy less," he said.Krishna noted that despite the Iran conflict, IBM's Middle East business did well.The company reported first-quarter revenue of $15.92 billion, beating the $15.62 billion consensus estimate from LSEG. Earnings per share came in at an adjusted $1.91, 10 cents better than expectations. Software beat, with Red Hat growth rebounding to 10%.Krishna said he is also cautious about growth concerns in Europe."That's the only place where I think there is some squinting because it is also a little bit of jadedness, right? You had the Covid shocks, you had the Ukraine war. So they've gone through these shocks a few times, and they actually come out okay. I think this time around is an open question," Krishna said. "I don't think anyone will know the answer for another month or two," he added. Read more CNBC tech newsNvidia backs AI company Vast Data at $30 billion valuationGoogle unveils chips for AI training and inference in latest shot at NvidiaSpaceX says it can buy Cursor later this year for $60 billion or pay $10 billion for 'our work together'Apple's elevation of silicon head Johny Srouji signals sprint to build in-house chips for all devices Mythos Anthropic's launch two weeks ago of its powerful new Mythos artificial intelligence model that is capable of finding security vulnerabilities at unprecedented speed and volume sent shockwaves throughout tech, but Krishna said others will soon follow."Somebody does a thing. It looks magical. It looks wonderful. We think it's the only thing. Three months later, somebody copies it and actually does it better," he said."I'd be surprised if somebody else hasn't already done it but hasn't bothered to claim it," he added.IBM shares plunged in April after the AI startup said its Claude Code tool could modernize legacy systems that run Common Business-Oriented Language. COBOL is a code system developed in the late 1950s that is regularly used in business data processing.The release of Mythos triggered a surprise meeting between Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Fed Chair Jerome Powell with the heads of the top U.S. banks over AI cyber concerns. Bessent and Vice President JD Vance held a call with tech CEOs like Anthropic's Dario Amodei, OpenAI's Sam Altman, xAI's Elon Musk and others about the same matter."It's a very big conversation, and there is no question that it can find and exploit vulnerabilities at a rate and pace that has not been seen so far," Krishna said. watch nowVIDEO4:0104:01Paul Meeks: Tesla and IBM are at the forefront of key technologiesMorning Call Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

The Trump administration is preparing to rescue ailing budget carrier Spirit Airlines. View More

In this articleUALFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT A Spirit commercial airliner prepares to land at San Diego International Airport in San Diego, California, U.S., January 18, 2024. Mike Blake | Reuters The Trump administration is in advanced talks for a financing package for Spirit Airlines as the carrier is facing the risk of a liquidation, according to people familiar with the matter.The deal could include $500 million in financing from the government, which could provide a path to give the government an equity stake in the carrier, said the people, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the talks. The senior financing would put the government ahead of other stakeholders in the airline, one of the people said.The iconic discounter Spirit has been challenged for years by rising costs, changing consumer tastes, an engine recall and a court-blocked plan to be acquired by JetBlue Airways two years ago. The surge in fuel prices since the U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran in February has added to Spirit's challenges."Spirit Airlines would be on a much firmer financial footing had the Biden administration not recklessly blocked the airline's merger with JetBlue," White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement to CNBC. "The Trump administration continues to monitor the situation and overall health of the U.S. aviation industry that millions of Americans rely on every day for essential travel and their livelihoods." Potential liquidation Spirit had been facing a potentially imminent liquidation, people familiar with the matter told CNBC last week, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss matters that had not yet been made public. The Dania Beach, Florida-based carrier in August filed for its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy in less than a year, after it struggled to increase revenue to cover rising costs.President Donald Trump hinted at potential government aid on Tuesday, telling CNBC's "Squawk Box," "Spirit's in trouble, and I'd love somebody to buy Spirit. It's 14,000 jobs, and maybe the federal government should help that one out."  Read more about Spirit Airlines' recent challengesSpirit Airlines could liquidate as early as this week, sources saySpirit Airlines plans to slash flights, fleet in bid to emerge from bankruptcy as early as springSpirit Airlines is on shakier ground after avoiding hard decisions in bankruptcyJudge blocks JetBlue-Spirit merger after DOJ’s antitrust challengeWho loses if JetBlue buys Spirit? Comedians The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the talks were in an advanced stage."We are hopeful that the government will recognize the needs for emergency funds especially in the current economic environment," a spokesperson for the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents Spirit's cabin crews, said in a statement. "The last thing our economy needs is tens of thousands more people out of work and the last thing the travelling public needs is fewer choices in air travel."The final terms of the deal and what the airline receives could still change.Spirit declined to comment on the talks. "We are operating our business as normal; Guests can continue to book, travel and use tickets, credits and loyalty points as usual," the airline said in a statement.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy appeared against the idea of a government rescue of Spirit on Tuesday."What we don't want to do is ‌put good money after bad, and there's been a lot of money thrown at Spirit, ‌and they haven't found their way into profitability," Duffy said in an interview with Reuters. "And so would we just forestall the inevitable and then own that?""What would someone buy?" Duffy asked in the interview. "If no one else wants ⁠to buy them, why would we buy them?"In February, Spirit said it expected to exit bankruptcy in late spring or early summer, telling a U.S. court that it would shrink and focus its planes on high-demand routes and travel periods. Pilot and flight attendant unions had also made concessions, including going on furlough in recent months, in a bid to help Spirit survive.But jet fuel prices have nearly doubled in some parts of the U.S. since then, further adding to challenges for Spirit and the rest of the airline industry. As a low-fare airline that also faces competition from larger carriers with their own no-frills, basic economy offerings, it has grown harder for Spirit to cover expenses. Spirit had introduced extra-legroom seats and other premium options to try to cater to higher-spending customers. Opposition to a government rescue Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who chairs the Senate Commerce Committee, wrote on X on Wednesday about the possible government rescue of Spirit, "This is an absolutely TERRIBLE idea."He said the government bank and automaker bailouts of the 2008 financial crisis were a "huge mistake" and that the "government doesn't know a damn thing about running a failed budget airline." He said the former Biden administration "killed" Spirit.Fitch Ratings senior director Joe Rohlena said Spirit would have a "difficult path" even with a government rescue."Even aside from the headwind of sharply higher fuel prices, Spirit's path back to sustainable cash generation depends on its ability to materially raise revenue, which will be difficult given intense industry competition and the airline's limited appeal to many travelers," he wrote.United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said he is against a government rescue of Spirit. Kirby has been critical of Spirit's business model for years, and said he thought that the airline would go out of business."Well-run airlines are still solidly profitable even in this environment," Kirby said on an earnings call on Wednesday. "As you see from United, I don't think this crisis is anywhere near big enough to caused the need for an airline bailout." Other government rescues The U.S. airline industry accepted more than $50 billion in taxpayer aid to weather the Covid-19 pandemic, which is still its biggest-ever crisis, but those funds weren't handed to one specific airline. Some of the aid gave the U.S. government stock warrants for airlines.Airlines also received a government bailout following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, but that money was also for more than one company. The U.S. in 2008-2009 also bailed out the auto industry during the financial crisis and took stakes in manufacturers. The Trump administration has taken equity stakes in some companies it deemed critical to national security like Intel and USA Rare Earth, though Spirit stands out as it is in bankruptcy. Read more CNBC airline newsBasic business class is here with new, stripped-down United Polaris faresPricy airfare, airport chaos test travelers' willingness to fly this yearAmerican is 'seriously considering' bringing back seat-back screens to narrow-body fleetUnited ditches economy seats to make room for bigger premium cabins with new layoutsFlights are already getting more expensive after a jet fuel spike. When should you book? Correction: This article has been updated to correct the name of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

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The BMW 7-Series gets one of the most extensive updates any model has received in company history, according to BMW. It will be the first to spearhead View More

In this articleBMW-DELCIDFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT watch nowVIDEO7:3707:37BMW is doubling down on its flagship sedan, as rivals pull backAutos BMW wants to keep making sedans in spite of U.S. tariff pressures on German imports and the far higher sales of sport utility vehicles, said Sebastian Mackensen, the company's North America chief. Mackensen made the comments in an interview on Tuesday, a day before BMW unveiled an updated version of its full-size 7 Series sedan, which includes a slew of design and technology features BMW had originally developed for its electric vehicles. The 7 Series vehicles will be the first without electric powertrains to come equipped with the new tech, which includes a panoramic heads-up display in the windshield and a voice assistant that uses artificial intelligence. Other upgrades include an enlarged drop-down screen that, along with a 36-speaker array, can essentially turn the rear seats into a small movie theater. Called "neue klasse" — German for "new class" — BMW had intended its EVs to meld futuristic designs with a software-driven vehicle platform, following EV makers such as Tesla, Rivian, Lucid and Chinese brands. "Already so many innovations have come to life that the company decided we need to bring those innovations into our entire lineup," Mackensen said. The 7 Series currently starts above $99,000 for the base model and runs up through a $168,000 starting price for the high-performance i7 M70 EV. "I would say it is really on the top of our product portfolio," Mackensen said. "It is the pinnacle of what we produce when it comes to luxury, but obviously always, always performance."However, since 2018, another full-size BMW, the X7, has rocketed past the 7 Series in the U.S. in terms of sales. In 2025 BMW sold nearly about twice as many full-size X7 SUVs as it did full-size sedans, if you combine sales of both the 7-Series with the similar, two-door, 8-Series. This reflects an industry-wide trend, as SUV sales have overtaken sedans by a wide margin. The X7, meanwhile, is made in Spartanburg, South Carolina, while the 7 Series, like all BMW sedans, is imported. Vehicles shipped to the U.S. from Germany carry a 15% tariff."This is definitely going to come into play," said Robby DeGraff, manager of product and consumer insights at AutoPacific. "I can't see BMW ever reallocating production of the 7 Series stateside, so the automaker is going to have to carefully keep tabs on demand and actual sales, to see how long it will be worth it to import the 7 Series." He added that the i7 is at even greater risk, given the pullback in U.S. EV sales.  'A showpiece' Though some of BMW's closest rivals — such as Mercedes-Benz and Porsche — still have full-size sedans, several premium and luxury automakers have pulled theirs from the U.S. market in recent years. Swedish maker Volvo stopped importing its S60 and S90 sedans in 2025. Lexus will discontinue the LS full-size sedan in the U.S. after the 2026 model year. German rival Audi said it will stop making the A8. It has been several years since American brand Lincoln made a sedan of any size. Mackensen said that means the 7 Series sedan has a lot of potential. "We obviously have a successful SUV lineup," he said. "But we have always been a very successful sedan brand. We have a healthy share of sedans in our overall sales. And we like sedans. A lot of BMW customers like sedans, and we have no intention to stop offering sedans also in the future."By some metrics, sedans don't have as strong a business case as SUVs do, said Stuart Pearson, head of automotive and mobility research at Oxcap Analytics. "If you were being just purely economical about it and not thinking about image and brand, just saying, 'Well, is this model worth the return?' You might say no," Pearson said.Pearson added that BMW does sell many lower-priced sedans. The 7 Series shares underpinnings with some of them, such as the smaller 5 Series, so the cost of producing it is incremental, And, he added, the 7 Series is a technological flagship. "I think they build these, these days, more to prove that they can than anything else," said Sean Tucker, managing editor of Kelley Blue Book. "The fastest version of the 7 Series right now has a 0 to 60 time of 3.5 seconds. That is absurd for a car this large. The rear seats are as luxurious as the front seats. ... This is everything BMW can build. It's a showpiece."A substantial share of customers are still considering sedans overall. According to an AutoPacific survey of 18,000 Americans who plan to buy or lease a vehicle in the next three years, 45% of prospective BMW customers said they were most likely to get a four-door sedan. That percentage is very similar, if not identical, to that of Mercedes-Benz and Audi."I don't think we're going to see BMW pull the plug on its 7 Series soon, or Mercedes-Benz kill the S-Class anytime in the near future," DeGraff said. "That, to me, would be a shocker. Those two brands really know their target audiences. Again, consumer choice is king in the luxury space."The U.S. alone accounts for about 30% of BMW's profits, Pearson said, and that's only grown as automakers have faced increasing pressure from Chinese automakers. "The U.S. is a critical market to BMW," Pearson said. "It's always been one of its more profitable markets." The brand has set "ambitious" overall sales targets in the U.S. for 2026, Mackensen said — though he wouldn't share specific numbers. In 2025, BMW was the top-selling luxury brand in the U.S., according to according to Kelley Blue Book. "We are bullish on BMW performance in the United States," he said. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

The United Arab Emirates has engineered one of the world's most resilient travel and tourism economies. This Mideast war may be its biggest rebound test. View More

Tourists and visitors walking around the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque the largest Mosque the United Arab Emirates, a key place of daily worship in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. There are 82 domes of seven different sizes and 4 minarets throughout, and has a large car park and a shopping mall underneath it.Andrew Aitchison | In Pictures | Getty Images The U.S. government's weighing of a financial lifeline for the United Arab Emirates posts bigger questions about what is in store for the booming Mideast economy post-war. The UAE has spent decades engineering one of the world's most resilient tourism economies, built on global connectivity and continuous infrastructure expansion. That model is now under acute stress due to the U.S.-Iran war and attacks Iran has launched targeting its infrastructure. Is this the "End of Dubai?" is a question already being asked by some who have closely followed the Emirates' rise. In the short term, it's not just energy infrastructure risks, with damage estimated at close to $60 billion already, that is hurting the economy. Regional conflict has had enormous impacts on travel demand and consumer spending across the Gulf, with the UAE — particularly Dubai — absorbing an outsized share of the shock.Early indicators suggest a rapid, synchronized pullback: fewer flights, rising hotel vacancies, Airbnb cancellations and complexities, and more cautious household spending patterns in the region."Daily losses in the Middle East region are at $600 million, with the UAE taking a big proportion of that hit," said Nancy Gard McGehee, professor of hospitality and tourism management at Virginia Tech.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday a currency swap arrangement — he indicated that UAE was not the only U.S. ally which was under consideration for support — could be managed by the Treasury or Federal Reserve. watch nowVIDEO2:0502:05Bessent: Many of our Gulf and Asian allies have requested currency swap lines in addition to UAEMoney Movers Many experts are cautious in betting against the UAE even though there are legitimate questions about the lasting impact on consumers and the tourist perception of the region.At the center of that disruption is Dubai International Airport — the world's busiest international hub — which, McGehee said, was "virtually shut down for weeks." Since the onset of the conflict, more than 30,000 flights have been canceled across the region, according to McGehee. The UAE's tourism model depends on constant motion: international arrivals, transit passengers, retail consumption, and short-term stays feeding a broader service economy. When that flow stalls, the effects cascade rapidly."Dubai hotel occupancy has plummeted by 70–80%," McGehee said, citing both security concerns and the visible presence of military infrastructure in key tourist zones. "Many hotels are opting to close for renovation to save on employment costs."Short-term rentals, often a flexible buffer in downturns, are also seeing sharp declines. Roughly 250,000 bookings were canceled in March alone, an unusually synchronized collapse across platforms.Alongside the collapse in inbound tourism, shifts in domestic consumer spending add additional pressure to the consumer economy in the region. Households across the UAE are moving into a more defensive posture by cutting discretionary purchases, delaying travel, and building savings amid uncertainty. This behavioral shift amplifies the external shock from lost tourism, weakening demand from both outside and within the country. window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";r.style.height=d}}}); In an economy where retail, hospitality, and services are deeply intertwined, that combination can accelerate downturn dynamics. But despite the severity of the disruption, gulf tourism markets have rebounded quickly after recent shocks — whether financial crisis, pandemic, or regional tensions — often aided by aggressive pricing, marketing campaigns, and infrastructure readiness. "It is important to recognize how the industry stepped up in the early days of the war, offering free stays to those stranded," McGehee said. "The government is also a strong supporter of tourism and will be ready to bounce back when things stabilize."Even as the recent ceasefire began to restore limited traffic, traveler confidence remains fragile, but a sustained ceasefire could restore more lasting confidence within a few months. For now, hotels are pivoting toward domestic and regional visitors, promoting staycations and discount packages to fill empty rooms. That shift reflects a core feature of the UAE model: flexibility in demand sourcing, even if international travelers ultimately remain a primary engine."Households are being careful with discretionary spending, retail and restaurant spending has gone down," said Armin Moradi, CEO and founder of Qashio, a spend management platform based in the region. In the short term, the calendar and weather don't favor a tourism boost. While the ceasefire means the chance of a temporary recovery from the second half of April until early June, Moradi described the prospect as "a small buffer" for hospitality and retail before the slower summer months when temperatures rise.At the same time, the disruption is reshaping the calendar of the global events economy that the UAE relies on, but maybe delaying revenue rather than erasing it. "Many industry events that normally take place in April and May will now be pushed to September through November," Moradi said, potentially leading to a surge in demand later in the year. "We should see a significant inflation in hotel bookings and travel costs to help with some recovery from the spring losses."Tourism is a fast-growing sector, just ask DisneyThe nearly $70 billion that tourism contributed to the UAE economy in 2025, a record level, according to a recent World Travel & Tourism Council estimate, accounted for nearly 12% of national GDP. That represented a 22% increase over the 2019 level, and is a big share of a broader Middle East tourism economy estimated at over $200 billion. Dubai — the region's tourism engine — also posted another record year, welcoming more than 19 million international overnight visitors in 2025, according to the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism. The UAE continues to position itself for long-term tourism growth, highlighting a tension between immediate disruption and structural ambition. One of the most closely watched developments is the planned Disney theme park in Abu Dhabi, part of a continued and broader push to deepen the country's appeal as a global entertainment destination. watch nowVIDEO8:2608:26Disney CEO Bob Iger on new Abu Dhabi theme park: A momentous occasion for the companySquawk Box The project has been repeatedly referenced by senior leadership at Disney as part of its international expansion strategy since the outbreak of the conflict, which some take as a signal of confidence in the UAE's long-term positioning as a tourism hub.Josh D'Amaro, chairman of Disney Experiences, highlighted the Abu Dhabi development during the company's March shareholder meeting, while Disney Experiences Chairman Thomas Mazloum reiterated its importance at a recent World of Frozen at Disneyland Paris event. A Disney spokesperson declined to comment.The UAE's model has long been built on global flows, welcoming millions of international visitors, serving as a transit crossroads, and anchoring a consumption-driven service sector. That same openness also creates vulnerability when external shocks hit. Travel demand is highly sensitive to perceptions of safety, and even temporary disruptions can have lingering effects on booking behavior."Travelers are still uneasy about going through the region and being stranded," McGehee said.Moradi echoed a common view among regional experts: the UAE's long-term positioning remains intact. "I believe it will recover rapidly," he said. "Seasonality does play a role with the hot summer, but the infrastructure for tourism is well established and the influx of tourism towards August to December will be catered for.""Developments have not halted," Moradi said, but he added, "some vanity projects might have been put on hold, and focus on short-term returns has increased due to immediate need for cash flow by businesses." "The UAE is one of the world's most financially resilient economies," its ambassador to the U.S., Youssef Al-Otaiba, said in a social media post on Wednesday. "Any suggestion that the UAE requires external financial backing misreads the facts," he added.The more difficult long-term challenges may come after the recovery begins.Some of the local economy is ex-pat in composition, and that has been affected by the war. "Due to uncertainty in home schooling and the wide adoption of distance learning, many families have moved to their home countries temporarily, with some not planning to come back," Moradi said. That outward movement is compounding the slowdown, not just in tourism but in everyday consumption, slowly shrinking the economy, with the first real impacts to be first visible towards August or September, he said."The biggest challenge to anticipate is the talent recovery," Moradi said. It is not only the ex-pats who have at least temporarily relocated, but the moves by businesses to cut costs in the short-term that may have an impact on the labor force in the region longer-term. "Due to rapid responses by businesses with layoffs, the difficulty of attracting talent once things turn back to normal will be significant," he said. watch nowVIDEO3:5503:55Dubai's residential real estate pullback: Iran War & other factors weighAccess Middle East Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

Instead of focusing on those numbers, investors are spooked by signs of a softening property insurance market, with competition increasing and rates declining. View More

In this articleCBFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Evan Greenberg, president and chief executive officer of Chubb Ltd., arrives for the morning session of the Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S., on Wednesday, July 10, 2019. Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images Chubb's stock is falling on Wednesday despite a big earnings beat and a slew of price target increases by Wall Street analysts.Instead of focusing on those numbers, investors are spooked by signs of a softening property insurance market, with competition increasing and rates declining. On Wednesday's earnings call, CEO Evan Greenberg noted those pressures by calling the aggressive lowering of prices in the industry to win new business "dumb."Chubb is intentionally shrinking its business in large accounts and excess and surplus lines, where it feels the price it's getting isn't adequate for the risk. Piper Sandler analyst Paul Newsome called Chubb's approach to softening prices "deliberate." "We think the takeaway from the quarter was that Chubb is more focused on profitability than growth," Newsome wrote. While that may be turning off some investors in the near term, it is "the right thing to do," said the analyst. Stock Chart IconStock chart iconChubb, YTD Most analysts were positive like Newsome.TD Securities analyst Andrew Kligerman credited Chubb's "exceptional underwriting" for its earnings beat. The company reported first quarter EPS of $6.82, against consensus expectations of $6.60 according to Refinitiv. Greenberg said he feels confident in the company's balance sheet, earnings power and liquidity position, despite the risk of rising inflation from the Iran war. "The impact of the war adds a degree of pressure to certain financial, fiscal, and economic strengths stresses, such as underlying inflation, fiscal deficits and sovereign debt, global supply chains, and financial valuations, including equity and credit, and a growing energy shortage, to name a few," Greenberg said. He described his geopolitical outlook as concerned, but said the impact of the war is "not something that I'm really wringing my hands about."Chubb has been named the administrator of the federal government's marine reinsurance for ships trying to transit the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, but Greenberg says so far no ships have taken advantage of it.The threat of cyber warfare conducted by Iran or its proxies have also put insurers on notice - and potentially opened new business opportunities. Greenberg says medium-sized companies are especially vulnerable - more targeted than small business because they have more money, and less capable and focused on a strong digital defense. Plus, he says Anththropic's Mythos exposed new vulnerabilities that can be exploited by AI. When it comes to fighting back, Greenberg said "The arms race is on." .  Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

Palantir is continuing to diversify its business beyond cornerstone military and defense contracts. View More

In this articlePLTRFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Jonathan Raa | Nurphoto | Getty Images Palantir announced a $300 million deal with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which will use the software company's technology to manage farmland as geopolitical risks threaten global supply chains.  The agreement builds on ongoing projects with the USDA and underscores Palantir's growing role inside the U.S. government as it goes beyond cornerstone defense contracts supporting U.S. military modernization. U.S. farmers are grappling with rising supply costs and are getting squeezed by an ongoing trade war between the U.S. and its major trading partners. That includes China, a key soybean purchaser, which temporarily crippled the market late last year. In December, President Donald Trump announced a $12 billion bailout aimed at helping farmers swept up in the trade war. But rising gas prices from the war in Iran amplified the pressure, causing fertilizer costs to spike due to shipping disruptions. That's forced many farmers to rethink what they produce, putting supply chains at risk. China's purchase of U.S. farmland in recent years has also drawn scrutiny from Washington and foreign policy experts. A recent research note published by the Foundation of Defense Democracies recommended that the USDA reform reporting requirements "embedded within the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) to prevent China and other adversarial countries from exploiting commercial land transactions to gain a strategic edge over the United States."The USDA's contract with Palantir signals its desire to address this issue by harnessing the company's digital tools.Palantir was founded in 2003 to scale U.S. defense capabilities in the wake of 9/11, and CEO Alex Karp has long touted the company's commitment to supporting U.S. warfighters. The company has recently gained recognition for its AI-powered Maven Smart System platform, which was used by the U.S. military in Iran. "The fact that you can now target more precisely … has shifted the way in which war is fought," Karp told CNBC at AIPCon in March. Palantir has also faced sharp criticism over the years for its work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security, including reports that its tools are being used by the government to surveil Americans, claims the company has denied.Karp hasn't been shy in addressing these claims – or in going after short sellers who bet against the stock. After a historic run that lifted the stock by more than 25-fold from 2022 through the end of 2025, Palantir shares are down 18% so far this year. Famed short seller Michael Burry has been betting against the company since the fall of 2025, calling it "wildly overvalued.""I do think this behavior is egregious and I'm going to be dancing around when it's proven wrong," Karp said about short sellers in November.WATCH: Here's how Alex Karp explains Palantir's role in modern warfare watch nowVIDEO2:5102:51Here’s how Alex Karp explains Palantir’s role in modern warfareTech Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.

The chip giant has increasingly become an investor of companies involved in the AI boom. View More

Vast Data announced a $1 billion funding round at a $30 billion valuation on Wednesday, with Nvidia among those backing the AI company.Founded in 2016, Vast makes software infrastructure for managing large amounts of data, with a focus on AI applications. The company says it supports projects powering millions of GPUs. Customers include CoreWeave, Mistral, the U.S. Air Force and Cursor.The fresh round sees Vast more than triple the $9.1 billion valuation it hit when it last raised in 2023.Record funding has already been raised this year by AI companies globally, with investors writing checks to the tune of $280.5 billion, according to Dealroom. More than $170 billion has been raised by OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI. Drive Capital and Access Industries led Vast Data's Series F. Fidelity Management and Research Co. and NEA participated, as well as Nvidia. The financing included primary and secondary capital. "The scale and speed of AI adoption are creating a new class of infrastructure company," said Chris Olsen, co-founder and partner at Drive Capital, in a statement. "VAST is emerging as the clear leader in this category, with the architecture and momentum to support the world's most demanding AI environments."The company said it surpassed $4 billion in cumulative bookings and exited the previous fiscal year with more than $500 million in committed annual recurring revenue.Nvidia has ramped up its financial backing of private startups in the past year as it has looked to cement its position at the heart of the AI boom.So far this year, the chip giant contributed to major funding rounds for AI labs OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI, alongside others, including neocloud Nscale and autonomous driving company Wayve. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.