Abu Dhabi airports passenger numbers rise 13.1% in H1 2025

Abu Dhabi airports saw a 13.1% y/y rise in passenger numbers in the first half of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024, amounting to 15.8m passengers. The majority of these came through Zayed International Airport, which experienced an 11.4% ytd y/y rise in the number of flights. Over the course of the first six months of the year Abu Dhabi airports have added 16 new destinations to the network.

The US Conference Board leading index declined by 0.3% m/m in June, falling to a value of 98.8, after remaining flat in May. The June print means that the index fell by 2.8% in the first half of 2025, an increase in the pace of decline seen in the second half of 2024. The performance of the S&P 500 was the primary component supporting the leading index in June, although this wasn’t enough to offset declines in sentiment and new orders.

US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, yesterday called for a review of the “entire Federal Reserve institution”, arguing that while the central bank’s independence and autonomy were important, that there was “persistent mandate creep into areas beyond its core mission”. The comments come after previous criticism by President Trump of Fed Chair, Jerome Powell, for not cutting rates by more.

CPI inflation in Kuwait ticked up to 2.32% in June, from 2.25% the preceding two months. Prices were up 0.3% m/m, roughly twice the pace of the previous month. Food prices remained a notable driver of price growth as they were up 5.1% y/y, up from 4.7% in May.

Today’s Economic Data and Events

No key data releases

Fixed Income

US Treasuries rose on Monday, with rising concern about the 1 August trade-deal deadline spurring demand for safe haven assets. The 10yr yield declined 4bps to 4.3777%, while the 2yr yield was broadly unchanged at 3.8608%.

Tariff concerns were evident across European bonds markets, with 10yr yields falling widely. The 10yr Bund yield fell by over 8bps to 2.611%, while French 10yr yields declined by 10bps to 3.292%.

The Central Bank of the UAE raised AED 27.6bn in its regular Mbill sale at the start of the week with total orders of nearly AED 40bn, representing a bid-cover ratio of 1.4x. The bank sold AED 3.8bn of 28-day Mbills at a yield of 4.55%; AED 4bn of 56-day Mbills at a yield of 4.56%; AED 4.3bn of 140-day Mbills at a yield of 4.56% and AED 15.5bn of 308-day Mbills at a yield of 4.49%.

Reports suggest that Arada is in the market to price a USD 500m Islamic bond, with proceeds likely to be used to acquire new land.

FX

The dollar followed treasury yields lower, with the spot index falling 0.6% on the day. EURUSD gained 0.6% to reach 1.1694, while USDJPY fell almost 1% to 147.38. GBPUSD gained 0.6% to 1.3493.

In emerging markets, USDINR rose 0.16% to reach 86.2988, while USDZAR declined 0.5% to 17.6208.

Equity Markets

The S&P 500 rose to its highest ever level on Monday, gaining just over 0.1% on the day, while the NASDAQ rose 0.4%. The Dow Jones, in contrast, saw a small fall (-0.04%). A plethora of earnings results are due to be released this week, including the likes of Alphabet and Tesla.

European equity markets were mixed on the day. The Eurostoxx 50 and CAC 40 both fell 0.3%, while the FTSE 100 rose 0.2% and the DAX gained 0.08%.

Locally, the DFM fell 0.8% and the ADX declined by 0.5%. The Tadawul gained 0.15%.

Commodities

There were small declines in oil futures on Monday, with Brent crude falling 0.1% to USD 69.21/b and WTI falling 0.2% to USD 67.2/b.

Gold gained 1.4% closing at USD 3397.05 per ounce, driven by investor concerns around tariffs.