This helped PwC’s Middle East business, which employs around 8,000 people in the region, increase its overall revenue by about 50pc to £1.6bn during the period.

This was much higher than the near 10pc growth recorded in PwC’s UK offices, after rising costs and a £100m investment into technology ate into profits.

The strong performance in the Middle East helped UK partners avoid a major pay cut as total profits dropped from £1.5bn to £1.3bn.

This meant that partners across the UK and Middle East were paid £906,000 on average in 2023, a decline of only 1.5pc from 2022.

The emergence of PwC Middle East as a key profit centre suggests it will likely continue to have strong influence over the business as UK consultants grapple with sweeping job cuts amid a dealmaking slowdown.

Saudi Arabia is all but certain to play a key role in the firm’s artificial intelligence strategy after partnering with ChatGPT-backer Microsoft to develop talent in the region, with the technology predicted to contribute $135.2bn (£108bn) to the Gulf State’s economy in 2030.

However, investment in the region has also led to controversy.

Drake & Scull, once of the biggest construction engineering firms in the UAE, last year issued a lawsuit against PwC over alleged audit failures after discovering a Dh5.50bn (£1.2bn) black hole in its accounts.

In 2018, PwC UK came under scrutiny after bidding for a major contract to help modernise Saudi Arabia’s military despite concerns about the country’s alleged war crimes and brutal airstrikes in the Yemen civil war.

The perception of increasing Middle Eastern influence is of concern to those who regard the election as a missed opportunity for PwC UK to pick the first female leader in its 175-year history.

Mr Amitrano, previously head of PwC’s consulting business in the UK, Europe and Middle East, said last month that he hoped his rivals would join his senior leadership team.

He added: “To be clear, diversity and inclusion will remain my number one priority as senior partner.”

The senior partner election result is understood to have come as a surprise to insiders, with Ms Hinton particularly emerging as a clear favourite during hustings held in Manchester and London.

Ms Hinton, PwC UK’s tax leader and global relationship partner for FTSE 100 clients, has been described as hugely popular among voters following her five year-run as the firm’s chief people officer until 2022.

A member of PwC’s UK management board, she was behind a post-pandemic flexible working policy which in 2021 allowed workers to choose their working hours and finish at lunchtimes on Fridays during summer months.