From multi-billion sovereign wealth fund investments and record-breaking gold and silver prices, to volatile oil markets and subdued IPOs, these charts capture some of the key events and shifting global conditions that shaped the region in 2025.<\/p>\n
Macroeconomics<\/p>\n
Although non-oil activity has expanded across the region in recent years, a World Bank report showed that progress remains uneven. Leading the way are Bahrain<\/a> and the UAE<\/a>, where non-oil generated more than 80 and 70 percent respectively of GDP in the past decade.<\/p>\n Oman<\/a> and Qatar<\/a> are experiencing \u201cmoderate\u201d if \u201cvolatile\u201d diversification, while Saudi Arabia<\/a> and Kuwait<\/a> lag, with non-oil sectors comprising around half of GDP.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Middle East and North African sovereign bond prices rallied over the year, part of a wider relief resurgence<\/a> in so-called risk assets as US President\u00a0Donald Trump\u2019s\u00a0tariff policy<\/a>, which was widely anticipated to hurt global economic growth, proved less onerous than feared.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Metals<\/p>\n Commodities broke many price records in 2025<\/a>. It was gold\u2019s best annual performance since 1979, starting the year at around $2,624 an ounce and ending at $4,466.\u00a0<\/p>\n Silver started 2025 at around $30 a troy ounce and reached an all-time high of $78.97 on December 26. Copper prices jumped 30 percent, due in part to mining disputes and more demand for wiring in grid upgrades.\u00a0<\/p>\n Real estate<\/p>\n The cost of buying an apartment in central Istanbul has risen 103 percent over the past five years, from $1,492 per square metre in 2020 to $3,036 in 2025, Deutsche Bank\u2019s\u00a0Mapping the World\u2019s Prices\u00a0report said.<\/p>\n Dubai and Riyadh were two of the only cities to post faster rates of increase, at 122 percent ($7,602 per sq m) and 132 percent ($2,664 per sq m) respectively.<\/p>\n Sovereign wealth funds<\/p>\n Gulf\u00a0sovereign wealth funds<\/a>\u00a0invested a record $119 billion in 2025, buying into tech, infrastructure and businesses that may develop local economies. But further oil price declines could mean some funds will need to exit earlier investments to make new purchases in 2026.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Transport<\/p>\n The average price of an Emirates<\/a> ticket to London\u2019s Heathrow Airport jumped 17 percent year on year to $515, its highest level in seven years and the largest increase across all airlines<\/a>, according to an analysis of fares from 2019 to 2025 by aviation consultants Cirium.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n With an expected contribution of over AED180 billion ($50 billion) to GDP and double-digit growth in land values around station hubs,\u00a0the UAE\u2019s 1,200km national network Etihad Rail<\/a> is forecast to be a major economic catalyst.<\/p>\n