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Economy & Business

Solar panels in a Sinai desert, Egypt.

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

Gulf companies have been increasing their investments in North African renewable energy.

CASABLANCA, MOROCCO - AUGUST 20: In this handout image from Populous, digital renderings of the proposed Stade Hassan II stadium in Morocco, projected to be the largest football stadium in the world with 115,000 capacity are depicted on August 20, 2024 in Casablanca, Morocco. The stadium design is by Populous and Oulalou + Choi (Photo by Populous via Handout/Getty Images)

Morocco’s markets rise as World Cup spending fuels largest IPO in decades

Shares in SGTM jumped by 10% on Dec. 16 after the construction firm raised roughly $550 million from its IPO, underscoring demand in a market that has featured few new listings in recent years.

His Royal Highness Crown Prince Al-Hussein bin Abdullah II (R) meets with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Jordan, on Dec. 16, 2025.

India’s Modi eyes closer ties with Jordan, Oman during visits

Modi’s two-day visit to Jordan made investments and economic cooperation a central piece of the talks with Amman.

Latest News

Egypt secures Qatari investment boost, launches first SCZONE industrial deal

Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan El Khatib speaking at the Egyptian-Qatari Investment Forum in Cairo, Egypt on Dec. 14, 2025 (State Information Service)

Analysis

Yemen’s oil heartland fuels new conflict as STC seeks new political power

Yemeni employees walk at the Aden oil refinery company in Yemen's port city of Aden on Sept. 29, 2015.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Turkey, US push toward $100B trade goal as Bolat heads to Washington

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) shakes hands with President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Oval Office at the White House on September 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump has signaled that the U.S. might lift a ban on F-35 sales to Turkey during Erdogan's first visit to the White House since 2019. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

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

Workers tasked with putting out the fire in an oil well, set ablaze by retreating Islamic State (IS) jihadists, assemble a water pipeline in the town of Qayyarah.

Iraq plans to reopen own oil pipeline as talks to restart Kurdish route stall

The move to reopen the pipeline will irk the Kurdistan Regional Government, as it introduces a rival route to a section of the pipeline in Kurdistan that has been shut for a year and is a crucial economic source for the semi-autonomous region.

Palestinian solidarity murals can be seen on the International Wall on the Falls Road on March 18, 2024, in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Ireland wealth fund to divest from 6 Israeli companies in blow to relations

The amount of Ireland's divestment is relatively small, but it is part of the wider effects of the Gaza war on Israeli businesses.

dnata loading meals onto an Etihad aircraft.

Gulf firms set sights on Western airports with Investcorp, dnata deals

The Emirati sovereign fund Mubadala is also reportedly considering an event in London’s Heathrow Airport — another sign of Gulf interest in the West’s airports.

United Arab Emirates

EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images

McDonald’s to buy its Israel franchise amid Gaza war, global backlash

McDonald’s sales have been impacted by the Gaza war and its franchises in Israel and the Arab world are reeling from the conflict in different ways.

Emloyees walk inside the Maaden Aluminium Factory in Ras Al-Khair Industrial area near Jubail City, 570 kms east of the Saudi capital Riyadh, on November 23, 2016.

Saudi Arabia-South Korea ties grow with industry push, pivot east

Saudi Arabia is seeking to become a hub for traditional and electric vehicles, and the kingdom’s relations with South Korea are growing in several sectors.

Office building of ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company) in Abu Dhabi.

What’s behind Abu Dhabi’s $13 billion investment in gas?

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is seeking more foreign partners as it aims to boost gas production capacity.

United Arab Emirates

A man monitors the board at Tadawul, the Saudi stock exchange, Riyadh, Dec. 12, 2019.

Analysis

Could Saudi Arabia spark tech startup IPO boom in Middle East?

With startups outside the Gulf focused on survival amid a funding drought, the Saudi pipeline could boost investor interest in companies typically seen as too risky.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Mounir

Interview

Incoming legislation to make 'big difference' for Egypt's fintechs, MNT-Halan CEO says

Mounir Nakhla told Al-Monitor that although financial inclusion has increased in Egypt over the past few years, much of the country's population is still unbanked.

Mounir Nakhla

Mounir Nakhla

CEO of MNT-Halan

In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Navy, suspected pirates indicate their surrender with a white cloth on the bow of the Japanese-owned commercial oil tanker M/V Guanabara March 6, 2011 in the Arabian Sea.

Analysis

Why Houthi Red Sea attacks could inspire more piracy in Indian Ocean

Since November, more than 20 pirate hijackings have taken place in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin, adding to the current financial burden on shipping companies.

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

Attendees wearing traditional dress arrive at the Grand Palais Ephemere for the Riyadh 2030 reception event to promote Riyadh's candidacy for 2030 World Expo, in Paris on June 19, 2023. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images)

Growing Middle East economic and investment cooperation caught between tailwinds and headwinds

Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Saudi private equity investment peaked at $4B in 2023 amid rising buyouts

The kingdom's deep-pocketed sovereign wealth fund was involved in the top three private equity transactions between 2019 and 2023.

HAITHAM AL-SHUKAIRI/AFP via Getty Images

Oman launches $5 billion 'Future Fund' in sign of economic progress

Oman’s economy is improving by some metrics as the Gulf state seeks to diversify.