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Economy & Business

A Syrian citizen exchanges old banknotes for new notes released and distributed by the central bank, at a bank in the capital, Damascus, on Jan. 3, 2026.

Interview

UK fintech brings foreign currency accounts to Syrians at home

The launch comes as Syria’s new government attempts to stabilize the country’s shattered economy following the January 2025 rise to power of President Ahmed al-Sharaa after the ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad.

Jag Vasant, an Indian-flagged tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) that transited through the Strait of Hormuz amid the Middle East war, remains docked at an offloading terminal along the coast in Mumbai on April 1, 2026.

Uptick in Chinese tankers transiting Hormuz amid Trump-Xi summit

President Donald Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday, a meeting closely watched in Iran.

United Arab Emirates

Pictured in this undated image is the Al-Thawra oil field in Raqqa governorate, as rehabilitation works continue to restore production capacity.

Syria restores Raqqa oil field in former ISIS stronghold: What to know

Before Syria's civil war erupted in 2011, national oil production stood at between 400,000 and 500,00 barrels per day before falling to under 100,000 bpd during the conflict.

Latest News

Aramco profits jump 26% as Hormuz disruption chokes supply

Guests stand at the Aramco booth during the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 3, 2025.

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

EU restores economic pact to pursue fuller trade ties with Syria

Kaja Kallas

China’s overland trade routes offer Iran wartime economic lifeline: What to know

CN-STR / AFP via Getty Images

What to know about Iran's 'Persian Gulf Strait Authority' to control Hormuz traffic

In this picture obtained from Iran's ISNA news agency on May 4, 2026, the Iran-flagged tugboat Basim sails near a ship anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran.

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

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

A general view taken on January 6, 2015, shows the Mellitah Oil and Gas terminal on the outskirts of Zwara in western Libya.

Reports: Libya denies cutting gas exports to Italy

Italy wants Libya to boost its gas exports to Europe in an effort to reduce the continent’s energy dependence on Russia.

A general view of Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq oil processing plant on September 20, 2019. - Saudi Arabia said on September 17 its oil output will return to normal by the end of September, seeking to soothe rattled energy markets after attacks on two instillations that slashed its production by half. The strikes on Abqaiq - the world's largest oil processing facility - and the Khurais oil field in eastern Saudi Arabia roiled energy markets and revived fears of a conflict in the tinderbox Gulf region. (Photo by Fay

Middle East poised for breakthrough in European energy markets

Gerald Kepes

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy trends

An army cadet looks through the window of a bus parked outside Sri Lanka's presidential palace in Colombo.

Flydubai suspends flights to Sri Lanka as Emirates, Etihad keep flying

Sri Lanka is experiencing mass unrest over its deteriorating economic situation.

Iran economy

Unprecedented inflation hammers Iran

Iranians have grown accustomed to high inflation and rising prices, yet recent macroeconomic trends are unprecedented.

TOPSHOT - Lebanese wait to fill their gas cylinders in the southern city of Sidon amidst a deepening economic crisis, on August 10, 2021 - Lebanese lined up in long queues to stock up on cooking gas following warnings of imminent shortages, as an economic crisis eats away at supplies of basic imports.Lebanon, grappling with an economic crisis branded by the World Bank as one of the planet's worse since the mid-19th century, has been hit in recent months by a wave of shortages of basic items from medicine to

Lebanese cook over wood as high gas prices persist

Desperation is one of the few commodities Lebanon does not lack as the financial burden of securing necessities such as cooking gas grows heavier.

Beirut airport

Passenger traffic increases in Beirut airport

The Lebanese government is banking on Lebanese abroad to visit the country and spend money amid the continued economic crisis.

Workers sort oranges at the MAFA farms pack house on January 31, 2021 in Cairo, Egypt.

Egypt’s monthly inflation falls for first time in 2022

The Central Bank of Egypt declined to raise interest rates again last month. Annual inflation is still up from last year.

Flags are set up during Israel's Negev Summit attended by the US Secretary of State, alongside Foreign Ministers of Israel, Egypt, Bahrain, the UAE, and Morocco, at Sde Boker in the southern Negev desert on March 28, 2022. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel likely to see accelerated capital influx, especially from new regional alliances

Daniel Frankenstein

Daniel Frankenstein

AD Ports signed a joint venture agreement with SEG, one of the largest oil and gas companies in Uzbekistan.

Emirati port operator, Uzbek oil company to open trade hub, cooperate on freight

Other Middle Eastern states are also seeking better economic relations with Central Asia.

Kurdish oil

Oil services companies stop work in Iraqi Kurdistan after court ruling

Iraq’s supreme court recently ruled that the autonomous part of northern Iraq cannot conduct oil deals independent of the federal government, resulting in significant tension.

Dubai skyline

UAE signs free trade agreement with Indonesia after deals with India, Israel

The UAE has a similar deal in the works with a South American country next.

Gaza food

Price hikes worsen food insecurity in Palestine

Thousands of Palestinian families are facing the threat of food insecurity, as a result of the significant rise in the prices of basic commodities, while officials fail to address the issue.