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Economy & Business

A picture taken from a station of Dubai's Palm Monorail shows traffic on a road in Palm Jumeirah on Aug. 28, 2025.

Feature

Cheap oil, tighter finances, wars constrained Mid East economies in 2025

Low oil prices, tighter financial conditions and elevated geopolitical risk hampered growth across much of the Middle East and North Africa this year.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

View of Damietta Segas LNG Terminal, in Damietta, Egypt, which is an export terminal belong to Spanish Egyptian Gas Company.

Analysis

Egypt’s $35B Israel gas deal buys time, tests fragile energy partnership

The agreement is a critical stopgap as Cairo grapples with domestic power demands, but the last two years have tested Egypt-Israel energy cooperation in unprecedented ways.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Employees install new solar panels at the Kalyon Energy's Karapinar Solar Power Plant on December 02, 2021 in Karapinar, Turkey.

Turkey hits renewable milestone as solar surpasses gas in power capacity

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said in a statement that wind and solar capacity combined had risen to 39,215 megawatts by the end of November.

Latest News

Analysis

Gulf finance hubs race to expand as hedge funds flock to Dubai, Abu Dhabi

Traffic moves on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai on March 24, 2025.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Maersk resumes Red Sea passage after two-year halt amid easing Houthi threat

A ship sails along Egypt's Suez Canal near Ismailia, April 16, 2025.

Egypt lands $572M UAE-backed solar deal, expanding Gulf's clean-energy footprint

Solar panels in a Sinai desert, Egypt.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Sebastian Castelier

In Dubai, reporting on regional business

Jennifer Gnana

Gulf Correspondent

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

Participants attend the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, Abu Dhabi, Emirates, Nov. 11, 2019.

US, UAE sign clean energy partnership

The agreement unlocks $100 billion in financing.

Aramco exhibition section at the Misk Global Forum on innovation and technology held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Nov. 13, 2019.

Saudi Aramco continues to reap big profits

The Saudi oil giant has been investing in futuristic technology as it benefits from high oil prices.

Samer Haj Yehia (screen), chairman of Israel's Bank Leumi, attends a panel on the third day of the annual Future Investment Initiative conference, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 27, 2022.

Informal ties grow between Israel, Saudi Arabia

With the current rift between Washington and Riyadh, every baby step in informal relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia counts.

Picture taken on Feb. 6, 2018, shows a person holding a visual representation of the digital crypto-currency Bitcoin,

Israeli cryptocurrency market attempts to catch up with global pace

An Israeli crypto firm becomes the first in the country to get a capital markets license.

Panelists including Jordan’s Finance Minister, Emirates NBD’s Chief Economist, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Middle East and Central Asia Department Director, discuss the IMF’s newly released Middle East and North Africa outlook report on October 31, 2022.

Middle East countries must do more to recover, say IMF event panelists

While oil producing countries are projected to benefit from a windfall due to high energy prices, for others the coming years "will be more challenging than ever."

(From L to R) Moderator Joha Simpson, BBC world affairs editor broadcaster, author and columnist, UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei, Omani Oil and Gas Minister Mohamed Al Rumhi and Bahrain's Oil and Gas Affairs Minister Mohammed Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa sit on a panel during the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference), Abu Dhabi, Emirates, Nov. 7, 2016.

UAE warns against underinvestment in oil, gas at Abu Dhabi conference

The Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference also features more focus on decarbonization and hydrogen.

Vinifest returns to Lebanon with its first physical event since 2019, gathering dozens of wineries at the Beirut Hippodrome, October 2022.

Lebanon’s Vinifest returns as local wineries face uncertain future

The Middle East’s biggest wine industry showcase returns for its 13th edition with its first full physical event in three years, amid Lebanon's harsh economic conditions.

Tunisia economy

IMF loan unlikely to save Tunisia's economy

Funds from the global lender of last resort may be too little, too late.

Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud (L) and UAE's Minister of State and special envoy for climate change Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber.

Saudi Arabia to hold green forums in conjunction with COP27

Saudi Arabia will hold in November the second editions of the Middle East Green Initiative and Saudi Green Initiative summits in Sharm el-Sheikh, on the sidelines of the COP27, in what reflects the growing interest of regional countries to address the effects of climate change.

Twitter

Saudi prince to retain stake in Twitter after Musk takeover

Prince Alwaleed previously criticized Elon Musk’s plan to buy the social media giant, but later changed his tune.

Iranian men monitor the stock market at Tehran Stock Exchange on July 1, 2019. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Tehran's stock exchange set to decline further amid ongoing unrest 

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics

Israeli new shekels.

Israel to work with France against money laundering, terror financing

The memorandum of understanding signed last week between Israel and France is just part of the very extensive battle championed by Israel’s Money Laundering and Terror Financing Prohibition Authority against criminal money laundering and financing of terror activities.