UAE hookah company seesaws on Nasdaq launch

• AIR Global listed as AIIR
• Shares hit high of $13.4
• Company serves 90 markets

Shares in flavoured tobacco company AIR Global fluctuated significantly during the company’s first day of trading on the Nasdaq in New York on Monday.

The Dubai-based manufacturer of hookahs, vape products and molasses swung between a high of nearly $13.40 and a low of $9.40, closing the day at $10.50.

The stock regained ground in after-hours trading.

AIR’s listing, with the ticker symbol AIIR, came after what was formally known as Advanced Inhalation Rituals merged with Cantor Equity Partners III, a special purpose acquisition company (Spac) backed by US investment company Cantor Fitzgerald.

A Spac is used to raise capital through an initial public offering for the purpose of acquiring an operating company.

Global spending on flavoured tobacco molasses, accessories and infrastructure stands between $15 and $19 billion and is estimated to grow around 5 percent on a compound annual rate from 2025 to 2030, according to global consultancy Arthur D Little.

“What originated centuries ago as a cultural ritual is now emerging as a modern, social experience embraced by both its core traditional consumers and a new generation of consumers in Western markets,” Stuart Brazier, AIR’s chief executive, said in a statement.

AIR serves 90 markets globally from manufacturing plants in the UAE, Poland, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, and has experienced some supply chain disruptions from the Iran war, Brazier told AGBI last month. This has resulted in higher costs but no drops in production.

In response to Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the company has pivoted to trading via overland routes and Jeddah port, on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast.

The Nasdaq composite was down 0.5 percent on Monday amid a broader decline in tech-related stocks.

• Dubai shisha maker targets May listing on US Nasdaq
• Shisha smokers turn to healthier alternatives
• Dubai shisha maker AIR agrees to Nasdaq listing

Brazier said in an interview with AGBI last month that he remained optimistic about the rest of the year in spite of regional instability, especially as demand grows in less affected markets such as the US and Europe.

“At times of stress, in the same way that maybe people drink a little more scotch, they might enjoy a few more shishas as well,” he said.

AIR reported net revenue of $400 million in 2025, a 6 percent increase over the previous year. Profits rose to $47 million from $34 million in 2024.

Its operations, including hookah tobacco brand Al Fakher, counted about 14 million consumers worldwide as of 2024.

AIR executives are expected to ring the Nasdaq opening bell on Thursday.