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Economy & Business

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrives to attend the second day of the first Syrian-Emirati (United Arab Emirates) Investment Forum, at the People's Palace in Damascus on May 12, 2026. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Ports and infrastructure: UAE embraces new economic order in Syria

UAE-Syrian ties have moved faster than expected, with Abu Dhabi embracing President Ahmad al-Sharaa and relations shifting from normalization to investment opportunities.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Abu Dhabi on May 15, 2026, and was warmly received by the UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the airport. The PM is shown being accorded a Guard of Honor upon his arrival.

UAE unveils $5B India investment push during Modi visit: What to know

India and the UAE signed deals related to energy supplies and maritime security, further strengthening ties amid the war in the region.

United Arab Emirates

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

Latest News

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

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

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

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

This picture taken on Nov. 17, 2019, shows the Liberia-flagged container ship RDO Concord sailing through Egypt's Suez Canal.

Ukraine war drives more traffic to Egypt's Suez Canal, increasing revenues

Although Egypt is being adversely affected by the war in Ukraine, the Suez Canal is benefiting greatly from Western countries sailing into the Gulf in search of oil.

Dubai airport

Dubai airport’s passenger traffic reaches pre-pandemic levels

Air travel in the UAE has returned to normal after the industry suffered major losses due to virus-related travel restrictions.

United Arab Emirates

This photo illustration shows Chinese 100 yuan notes in Beijing on Jan. 14, 2020.

Egypt considers issuing bonds in China’s yuan

Saudi Arabia may also price oil sales in the Chinese currency.

n Emirati man follows the market's movement at the Dubai Financial Market.

UAE meets $400 million target in first bond auction

The Emirati government decided to sell bonds in dirhams to boost the local banking sector and diversify financially.

United Arab Emirates

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson (R) and Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani.

Russian ambassador to Iraq: ‘No objections’ to Kurdistan Region exporting gas to Europe

Elbrus Kutrashev spoke to the Kurdish news outlet Rudaw about plans to export natural gas from the autonomous part of northern Iraq to Europe in response to the war in Ukraine.

KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images

Passenger traffic at Abu Dhabi airports triples, aided by travel from India

The quarterly results from airports in Abu Dhabi indicate that the air travel industry in the United Arab Emirates has recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic.

United Arab Emirates

Palestine COVID

World Bank praises Palestinian easing of COVID rules, criticizes Israeli control

The international financial body recommended several governance reforms for the Palestinian Authority to increase economic growth.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (L) and Heir to the Throne of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, May 9, 2022.

UAE, Greece sign $4.2 billion agreement

The UAE and Greece have become close allies in recent years.

United Arab Emirates

Eid Yosri, an artifact replica craftsman, poses for a photo with a mini sarcophagus of his own creation.

Egypt, EU sign development grants worth 138 million euros

The European Union has provided Egypt with numerous grants in recent years, while also criticizing the country on some human rights issues.

JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images

British company announces new gas discovery off Israeli coast

Israel’s relatively new natural gas supply plays a major role in the country’s relations with its neighbors in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

French rice farmer Bernard Poujol holds a stalk of rice in a rice field, Saint Gilles, France, Oct. 12, 2017.

Egyptian scientist creates new rice variety that requires less water

An Egyptian scientist and head of the National Rice Development Project at the Ministry of Agriculture invented a new type of rice that does not need much water, after the Egyptian government announced that the country is suffering from water poverty.

People walk past Saint-Vincent de Paul Cathedral on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in Tunis on Dec. 14, 2021.

International pressure compounds Tunisian economic crisis

There are international and local concerns over the political and economic situation in Tunisia, which is hoping for a deal with the IMF in return for implementing reforms that are rejected by the powerful UGTT labor union.