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Economy & Business

Saudis shop for fresh products at a market in Riyadh on Feb. 18, 2026, on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Saudi Arabia.

Analysis

Alternative supply routes emerge as Iran war tests Gulf food security

Roughly 61 million people in the Gulf rely on established food supply chains, many of which have been upended since the United States and Israel launched their attack against Iran on Feb. 28.

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

Young wheat shoots emerge from moist soil in farmland near Zakho, Iraqi Kurdistan region, Dec. 19, 2025.

Iran war hits fertilizer supplies as Fitch warns prices could rise some 25%

Higher prices and availability, due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, are raising food security concerns globally as well as in the Middle East.

Commercial vessels are pictured offshore in Dubai on March 11, 2026. AFP via Getty Images

Oil jumps above $100 as energy crisis called worst in history: What to know

The latest spike is the second time in a week that oil prices have climbed above $100 a barrel.

Sakis Mitrolidis / AFP via Getty Images

Group of 32 states to release 400M barrels of oil reserves: What to know

The move would mark the agency's largest ever release of oil reserves to stabilize the global market.

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

Latest News

Analysis

Oil-price hikes from Iran war threaten Turkey's rate cuts in inflation fight

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Airlines gradually restore Middle East flights, Gulf still heavily grounded

An Emirates Airbus A380 passenger aircraft prepares for landing at Dubai International Airport in Dubai on March 8, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

Oil swings steady as Aramco warns of 'catastrophic' Hormuz disruption

Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Analysis

Oil crisis stokes inflation risks for Mideast as Iran war exposes importers

Smoke and flames rise at the site of airstrikes on an oil depot in Tehran on March 7, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

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

OREN ZIV/AFP via Getty Images

Israel's Netanyahu shakes off credit downgrade as deficit grows

Last week, Israel reported that its 12-month trailing deficit widened to 8.1% in July, from 7.7% in June.

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Oil markets take wait-and-see approach amid Israel-Iran tensions

Despite fears of regional conflict upending oil markets, some experts say that Gulf oil facilities or crude oil tankers would have to be hit directly for any major upheaval to the market in the near term.

Sebastian Castelier

By Sebastian Castelier

In Dubai, reporting on regional business

A picture taken on July 14, 2022, ahead of a visit by the United States president to Saudi Arabia, shows hostesses in a car manufactured by US electric vehicle maker Lucid Group.

Analysis

Will Saudis’ $1.5B cash infusion help Lucid compete with Tesla?

The Saudi-backed electric vehicle maker Lucid has never been profitable, but the kingdom remains strategically committed to it amid the growing EV market in the Gulf.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente , Jack Dutton

Employees install new solar panels at the Kalyon Energy's Karapinar Solar Power Plant, Karapinar, Turkey, December 2, 2021.

UK, Poland guarantee $272M loan for Turkey's second-largest solar project

The seven solar power plants will have an aggregate power-generating capacity of 390 Megawatt peak and service Bor-Nigde, Gaziantep and Sanliurfa-Viransehir provinces.

PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi Aramco CEO predicts 1.6-2M bpd oil demand rise after sharp price fall

The bullish perspective follows the price of Brent crude falling amid the global stock downturn and coincides with Aramco buying a more than $700 million stake in a Saudi energy complex.

Passengers look at the flight board at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv on Aug. 6, 2024.

Travelers scramble as airlines cut flights amid fear of Iran-Israel war

Germany's Lufthansa extended a suspension of services to Tel Aviv, Tehran, Beirut, Amman and Erbil to Aug. 13.

Refinery Sarir in Libya.

Libya’s largest oil field sees output reduction after shutdown by protesters

The Sharara field in southwestern Libya, which pumped out nearly 270,000 barrels per day of crude on Saturday, fully halted production Monday and was running at reduced production Tuesday due to ongoing protests.

Customers wait outside currency exchange stores on Aug. 5, 2024, in Tokyo, Japan.

Global stocks tank over fears of Middle East war, US recession

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 lost 3.1% while the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite Index lost 3.7% of its value after markets opened in New York Monday morning.

A customer buys US dollars in exchange for Turkish lira at an exchange office in Ankara, Turkey, July 20, 2023.

Turkey’s annual inflation slows down to 9-month low of 61%

The drop in the second consecutive month was slightly more than the estimates.

PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi PIF signs deals worth up to $50B with six Chinese institutions

As one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, the $925 billion Saudi PIF is already heavily invested in China.

A picture taken on Jan. 17, 2016, shows the headquarters of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia's SABIC sees second quarter profit rise by 85% to $580M

The company's results are encouraging news for the petrochemicals sector, which has been weathering a downturn since the COVID-19 pandemic.

KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN - JULY 17: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris attends a moderated conversation with former Trump administration national security official Olivia Troye and former Republican voter Amanda Stratton on July 17, 2024 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. (Photo by Chris duMond/Getty Images)

US election drama raises stakes for Mideast economic powers eyeing 2025