On 12 November 2026, Cisco reported its strongest revenue and earnings-per-share growth in more than 15 years. Revenue rose 24% to a record USD 18.5 billion, and its networking business grew 43% to USD 11.1 billion. Chief executive Chuck Robbins said Cisco is in the very early stages of a multi-year networking "supercycle".
Much of that growth comes from hyperscalers and large AI data-centre builds. Cisco now expects USD 9 billion of AI infrastructure revenue from those customers this financial year, more than double last year. But the effects reach every business that buys switches, routers, firewalls and servers, including small and mid-sized companies in the UAE and the wider GCC.
Why this matters if you are not building an AI data centre
When the largest buyers in the world order networking and server hardware at record levels, everyone else shares the same factories, components and shipping capacity. Two signals from this week are worth noting.
- Margins are under pressure. Cisco's gross margin fell to 63.7% from 65.5% a year earlier. Ahead of Palo Alto Networks' results, a Bank of America analyst expects its gross margin to slip, citing higher cloud and component costs, and Palo Alto's finance chief had already warned in September that memory and storage costs would keep rising.
- Demand is broad. Cisco reported double-digit growth in every region: 28% in the Americas, 18% in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and 21% in Asia Pacific.
Neither company has announced price rises or longer lead times for enterprise customers, and we are not predicting either. But rising costs and very strong demand are the conditions in which prices move and stock gets tight, and in our experience the businesses that plan early get the best choice of models and terms.
Five steps to take before the year ends
- List what is reaching end of life. Check the end-of-sale and end-of-support dates for your switches, firewalls, wireless access points and servers. Anything losing security updates in 2027 should be at the top of the list.
- Separate the urgent from the nice-to-have. Devices that face the internet, such as firewalls and VPN gateways, carry the most risk if they fall out of support. This autumn's run of firewall attacks shows why.
- Ask for quotes in the first quarter, not the third. Early quotes give you time to compare options and secure pricing before any changes. They also give you a realistic view of delivery times.
- Consider a phased rollout. Replacing the core and the edge first, then access switches and wireless later, spreads the cost across the year and reduces disruption.
- Look at certified refurbished hardware where it fits. For non-critical parts of the network, or to bridge a gap while new equipment arrives, quality refurbished hardware with a warranty can reduce costs.
A simple way to prioritise
- Replace first: firewalls, VPN gateways and other internet-facing devices that go out of support in 2027. These carry the highest security risk, because attackers target the network edge.
- Plan next: core and distribution switches, and servers running key systems. These are long-lead items, and a failure affects the whole business.
- Schedule later: access switches, wireless access points and branch equipment. These are easier to phase, and refurbished options are often suitable.
What vendor consolidation adds to the picture
The market is also changing shape. HPE completed its acquisition of Juniper Networks in 2025, and from 1 November 2026 HPE and Juniper partners operate under a single programme, HPE Partner Ready Vantage. If your network mixes brands, ask your supplier how roadmaps, licences and support will look over the life of what you buy.
Our view
A strong market for networking is good news for innovation, but it rewards buyers who plan. Starting your 2027 refresh conversations now costs nothing and keeps your options open.
If you would like help reviewing your installed equipment, checking end-of-life dates, or getting early quotes from Cisco, HPE, Juniper, Dell, Fortinet and other brands, contact our team.
