, Columnist
Only Donald Trump Wins From Saudi-Qatar Feud
Gulf standoff is bad for western companies, not least the luxury sector.
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Saudi Arabia's boycott of Qatar is playing havoc with Western markets and businesses, which for years relied on deep-pocketed Gulf investors to heal the scars from the financial crisis. The longer it drags on, the worse it's likely to get.
While the House of Saud has failed to entirely cut off its geopolitical rival from access to food, funding and fuel, the pressure has effectively turned Qatar's sovereign wealth fund from a globe-trotting buyer to a domestic defender. The Qatar Investment Authority has so far injected almost $40 billion out of total reserves of $340 billion to support the domestic economy, according to Bloomberg News.