The Business Year (TBY), a global media and research group, has launched the UK-GCC Strategic Dialogue 2026, a flagship initiative designed to boost economic cooperation between the United Kingdom (UK) and the member states of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Distributed globally through various leading platforms including Bloomberg Terminal, Factiva, FactSet, and LSEG Workspace, reports published by The Business Year provide exclusive visibility.
They offer critical insights tailored for business leaders, government officials, and policymakers shaping the future of international trade and investment.
TBY also organizes high-impact events to its influential publications, that extend these vital conversations by bringing together top-level policymakers, investors, and CEOs from key markets worldwide to foster collaboration and strategic partnerships.
Inside the UK-GCC Strategic Dialogue
The UK-GCC Strategic Dialogue combines a strategic economic report with a high-level forum to be conducted at London’s Guildhall in April 2026. Taking place at a pivotal moment in UK-GCC relations amid deepening trade ties, ongoing free trade agreement negotiations, shifting global dynamics, and growing Gulf investment interest in the UK, the aims to spotlight new avenues for collaboration across trade, investment, innovation, and sustainable development between the two regions.
The initiative is being developed in strategic partnership with UK Export Finance, Oman’s Ministry of Commerce and Investment Promotion, the Arab British Chamber of Commerce, and TechUK, with TheCityUK.
This report will be published in the first quarter of 2026, with print and digital editions circulated via TBY’s global channels, partner platforms, and TBY’s regional events across the GCC. It will also be circulated at the Guildhall event on April 14, 2026.
Purpose and Vision of the dialogue
Through a combination of exclusive interviews and the flagship Guildhall event, the UK-GCC Strategic Dialogue aims to foster long-term partnerships, amplify the role of the UK and GCC as engines of innovation, and showcase shared ambitions in energy transition, technology, and sustainable growth.
Ayşe Hazır, Chief Executive Officer at The Business Year, said that, “For 15 years, The Business Year has been building bridges between markets. The UK-GCC Strategic Dialogue is a natural evolution of that mission: bringing together the people and ideas shaping the next chapter of trade, innovation, and global partnership.”
Participants and Contributors at UK-GCC Strategic Dialogue
Confirmed and engaged contributors, participating across the report and the Guildhall forum, include senior ministers, CEOs, and policymakers such as: HE Jassem AlBudaiwi, Secretary General of the GCC; HE Qais bin Mohammed Al Yousef, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion of Oman; Tim Reid, CEO, UK Export Finance; Dame Sue Langley, Lady Mayor of the City of London; Patricia Yates, CEO, VisitBritain; Nicola Watkinson, Managing Director, International, TheCityUK; and Julian David, CEO, TechUK.
Other prominent contributors include the CEOs and senior executives of UK and Gulf corporates such as Diageo, Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz), Mace, CCC, Serco, King Abdullah Economic City, Roshn, SAP Saudi Arabia, and many more, further enriching the Dialogue’s cross-sector perspective.
