While chief executive officers across the world have expressed concerns about the potential for artificial intelligence (AI) to displace jobs, particularly at junior levels, CEOs in Qatar see AI as a powerful driver of job creation.‘PwC’s 29th Global CEO Survey: Qatar findings’ showed that CEOs here believe that the integration of AI technologies can lead to the emergence of new roles and opportunities, fostering an environment where innovation and growth can thrive.The survey pointed out that this “overall confidence in AI use among businesses” in the country mirrors the government’s firm resolve in utilising AI “as a cornerstone of [Qatar’s] economic and strategic future, including the steady development of the nation’s AI ecosystem as part of its broader digital transformation agenda.“Its leadership has embedded AI across government, energy, healthcare, education, and urban development sectors,” the survey noted.“In Qatar, 84% of CEOs report having clearly defined roadmaps for AI initiatives, 81% cite a strong organisational culture that supports AI adoption, and 77% say they have access to the right technology environment to integrate AI at scale,” according to the survey.“As a result, AI is being embedded across core business functions, from demand generation and fulfilment to support services and directly into products, services, and customer experiences. Nearly three-quarters of CEOs in Qatar have reported increased revenue as a direct impact of AI, significantly higher than 29% of their global peers,” the survey continued.Bassam Hajhamad, Qatar Country senior partner and Consulting lead, PwC Middle East, stated: “CEOs in Qatar are entering the next phase of growth with exceptional confidence, clarity of direction, and long-term purpose. Sound economic diversification policies, a strong focus on non-hydrocarbon sectors, and sustained investment in human capital continue to reinforce Qatar’s forward-looking vision.”Hajhamad added: “As new investment opportunities open, business leaders are scaling AI, pursuing strategic acquisitions, and aligning closely with national priorities to drive efficiency and build a more innovative, resilient, and competitive economy.”According to the survey, CEOs in Qatar take a different view from chief executives globally, who are concerned that AI may displace jobs, particularly at junior levels.“Many see AI as a catalyst for net job creation. This confidence reflects not just corporate optimism, but alignment with Qatar’s broader national workforce strategy,” the survey emphasised.It also stated, “The Qatar Digital Agenda 2030 aims to create more than 26,000 jobs in the Information and Communications Technology sector by 2030 and increase the ICT contribution to non-oil GDP by QR40bn. There are targeted programmes to attract, develop, and retain digital talent, ensuring that workforce growth keeps pace with technological ambition.“Early initiatives, such as the ‘Ouqoul’ platform, are expected to evolve by 2026 into more data-driven tools that support national workforce planning, streamline the hiring of graduates from universities in Qatar, support private-sector recruitment beyond nationalisation programmes, and help employers access a broader pool of qualified talent.”The survey stated that Qatar “envisions a bold and distinctive future" by 2030, shaped by strategic foresight and innovation across sectors. It also reported that “nearly half of the CEOs surveyed in Qatar” viewed innovation as a critical component of their business strategy, the same as their global peers, but they demonstrated a significantly higher appetite for experimentation and collaboration.In addition, “68%” of CEOs indicated they were open to testing new ideas with customers or end-users (against a global average of “31%”); “93%” would collaborate with external partners, such as research and academia, to accelerate innovation (vs “33%” globally); and “32%” would tolerate high risk in innovation projects (ahead of “25%” globally).“The mindset is already translating into outcomes: more than half of CEOs (52%) report that over 10% of their revenues now come from new products or services. Innovation hubs, such as the TASMU Innovation Lab, connect public-sector priorities with Qatar’s growing R&D ecosystem and global technology partners, helping translate experimentation into tangible, scalable solutions,” the survey added.

Rising tensions between the US and Iran have already driven oil prices to a six-month high. Oil traders are watching for any escalation that could disrupt crude production in Iran or prompt its government to block a critical shipping route used by several major energy exporters in the region.The US has deployed a vast array of military forces in the region, and President Donald Trump has said he’s considering a limited strike on Iran as he pressures its government to come to a quick deal limiting its nuclear program. An attack — or a move by Iran to restrict access to the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil — could have consequences for global oil markets. How significant is Iran’s oil industry?Iran’s influence has diminished in recent years due to prolonged sanctions and limited foreign investment. Overall, the country accounts for about 3% of global supply, producing roughly 3.3mn barrels per day.Iran began developing its oil industry at the start of the 20th century, under the watch of a British government eager to secure reliable supplies. Decades later, the nation became a founding member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and rose to become the group’s second-largest producer. At its peak in the mid-1970s, Iran ranked among the world’s most important oil suppliers, responsible for more than 10% of global crude production.That dominance unraveled after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, when the new regime expelled foreign companies from the oil industry, curbing investment and outside expertise. The country’s crude output slumped and never reached peak levels again.Iran did ramp up exports after the Iran-Iraq War ended in the late 1980s, to support economic growth. European and US majors eventually sought to reenter the sector. But those efforts collapsed in 2018, when the first Trump administration pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal — an international agreement to limit and monitor the nation’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief — and reimposed sanctions.**media[421124]**Today, Iran is the fourth-ranking oil producer within Opec, behind Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates, according to January production data. Who buys Iran’s oil?In the face of international sanctions, Iran now relies on China to take about 90% of its crude exports, which are sold to independent refiners at a steep discount.While official customs data suggests China hasn’t imported Iranian crude since mid-2022, barrels are shipped via opaque trading networks and a “dark fleet” of mostly aging tankers. Those flows reached nearly 1.25mn barrels per day in January, compared with 898,000 a year earlier, data from analytics and ship-tracking form Kpler Ltd show.Other countries that have continued to buy Iranian cargoes include Syria. How could a new conflict affect the global oil market?A large share of Iran’s production — up to 2mn barrels a day — goes to Chinese refineries, which would be forced to seek alternative supplies in the event of major disruption of that output.But the bigger risk lies in the threat to the Strait of Hormuz, the backbone of global oil supply. Why is the Strait of Hormuz so important?The Strait of Hormuz is the narrow waterway that connects the Arabian Gulf with the Arabian Sea. The Iranian government previously said it has the ability to impose a naval blockade during periods of heightened geopolitical tension, though it has yet to effectively block the waterway. If it were to disrupt this key trade chokepoint, shipments of oil, liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas from Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE would be at risk.Some 16.5mn barrels of oil a day flow through the strait, including the bulk of Iran’s exports. Saudi Arabia exports the most via the waterway, at roughly 5mn barrels per day, but it can divert shipments by using a 746-mile pipeline that runs across the kingdom from east to west to a port in the Red Sea, where the oil is loaded onto vessels for onward transport. The UAE can likewise bypass this chokepoint by moving its 1.5mn barrels a day through a pipeline that ends at the Gulf of Oman.A shutdown of the Hormuz Strait would likely disrupt Asia-bound oil flows from the Middle East. In June, when tensions in the region escalated during a 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, the benchmark rate for a supertanker carrying 2mn barrels of crude from the Middle East to China spiked. How important is oil for Iran’s economy?Oil exports remain a central pillar of Iran’s economy, despite years of efforts to reduce dependence on crude and diversify into heavy industry, textiles and mining.The oil industry contributed roughly 2 percentage points to Iran’s GDP growth in 2023 — a year in which the economy expanded about 5% — underlining how much oil drove overall growth.While sanctions have forced Iran to sell its oil at steep discounts to international benchmarks in order to attract buyers, the country still earned an estimated $2.7bn in revenue in November alone, based on Bloomberg calculations using a discounted oil price of $45 a barrel, after shipping and other costs.Still, Iran’s oil revenue could come under further strain if Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran — which includes a series of US sanctions since he took office — deters Chinese buyers. Earnings would face additional pressure if Iran’s government cuts prices to compete with heavily discounted Russian crude.