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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

Vice President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (C) attends the opening of the Global Business Forum on Africa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 1, 2017.

UAE, Tanzania sign double tax avoidance deal

The Emirates is also pursuing renewable energy projects in the southern African country.

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi employment numbers improve

Unemployment in Saudi Arabia is higher than in other Gulf states, but the labor market is showing signs of strength in other areas.

The Sultanate of Oman (R) and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (L).

UAE, Oman boost ties with deals on high-speed rail, combating financial crimes

The agreements are in line with the UAE’s foreign policy, which prioritizes regional partnerships.

United Arab Emirates

COMESA,

Saudi Arabia partners with Senegal on railway, desalination plant

The UAE, Israel and Turkey have also upped their engagement with African states in recent years.

Turkey economy

Erdogan initiates economic gestures ahead of Turkey's critical elections

Turkey’s president has stepped up economic pledges to the electorate ahead of next year’s polls, which loom as the toughest test of his two-decade rule.

US President Joe Biden (L) and Israel's caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid, take part in a virtual meeting with leaders of the I2U2 group, which includes, US, Israel, India, and the United Arab Emirates, at a hotel in Jerusalem, on July 14, 2022. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

American investment in Mideast to stay focused on larger economies amid Ukraine war

Howard J. Shatz

Howard J. Shatz

An Egyptian woman shops at a fruit market in Cairo on March 17, 2022.

Egyptian households turn to credit as inflation bites

In the past, locals used to buy only durables in installments. Today, breadwinners buy clothes, schoolbooks, stationery and groceries on credit.

Lebanese depositors queue to withdraw money from a Fransabank branch as banks partially reopened following a week of closure due to security concerns, Beirut, Lebanon, Sept. 26, 2022.

Lebanese depositors irate over closed banks

Banks in Lebanon have been shut down for nearly a week amid fears of a bank run.

BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images

New EV deliveries from China expand even as Israeli car market shrinks

Fewer new cars are being delivered to Israel, but among them, Chinese electric vehicles are surging.

APM Terminals.

Jordan’s port in Aqaba signs $242 million investment deal

The agreement with the Dutch firm APM Terminals could help increase trade through the Red Sea port.

David Hecker/Getty Images

Qatari oil, gas exports up 100% in 2022

Qatar is working to export more gas to Europe in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Residential buildings are seen unilluminated in the evening on Sept. 10, 2022, in Berlin, Germany.

UAE to help Germany reduce dependence on Russian gas

Qatar is also reportedly close to supplying the European country with natural gas amid the Ukraine war.

United Arab Emirates