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Economy & Business

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UAE steps in to support banks as war pressure builds: What to know

The United Arab Emirates' banks have seen their stocks plummet since the war erupted on Feb. 28.

United Arab Emirates

The city skyline is pictued in Dubai on March 11, 2026. The oil-rich Gulf has borne the brunt of Iran's attacks in response to US-Israeli strikes that sparked the Middle East war, with Tehran targeting US assets but also civilian infrastructure. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Iran war tests Gulf dealmaking as foreign investors assess risks

A multibillion-dollar pipeline sale in Kuwait has emerged as one of the early signs that the Gulf’s dealmaking machine is taking a hit from the US-Israel-Iran war.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

The city skyline is pictured in Dubai on March 11, 2026.

Analysis

How long can markets hold their bet on Gulf resilience as war drags on?

A prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz and continued assaults on Gulf energy infrastructure are likely to lead to regionwide credit deterioration, experts say.

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

Aluminum ingots in the Aluminium Dunkerque plant of the American Industrial Partner group on Jan. 13, 2022, in Loon-Plage, near Dunkirk, France.

Iran war hits Gulf aluminum exports, risking nearly 10% of global supplies

The Gulf region is a critical hub for aluminum production, supplying roughly 8% to 9% of global output, with disruptions linked to the war now set to ripple through industrial supply chains.

Latest News

IEA's Asian members begin deploying emergency oil reserves

A fuel pump is seen while refuelling a car at a gas station on March 13, 2026 in Kobe, Japan. Japan will release oil reserves to address the rise in gasoline and other petroleum products prices starting next Monday, said Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae. The International Energy Agency (IEA) stated that its member countries agreed to release the largest volume of emergency oil reserves in its history, responding to the disruption in energy markets caused by the Middle East War. (Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe/G

Analysis

How Russia stands to win, lose as Iran war squeezes Gulf oil exports

Lukoil

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

Alternative supply routes emerge as Iran war tests Gulf food security

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.

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

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

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

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

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman al-Saud arrives for the 186th Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting in Vienna on June 3, 2023. (Photo by JOE KLAMAR / AFP) (Photo by JOE KLAMAR/AFP via Getty Images)

OPEC oil export revenues surpass $870 billion, highest in decade

The revenues from the Organization of Oil Petroleum Exporting Countries peaked in 2012, when they reached $1.2 trillion.

TOPSHOT - A Saudi man talks on his mobile under the shade of solar panel at a solar plant in Uyayna, north of Riyadh, on March 29, 2018. On March 27, Saudi announced a deal with Japan's SoftBank to build the world's biggest solar plant. / AFP PHOTO / FAYEZ NURELDINE (Photo credit should read FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

The future of renewable energy generation in the Gulf

There is a global race to build clean energy infrastructure, and the Gulf states are excelling as key competitors in this race.

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy

Egypt state-owned

Egypt receives $1.9 billion from sale of state-owned companies

Egypt started selling state-owned entities in response to its economic crisis. Gulf states have hinted that they may not support Egypt as much as they have in the past.

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 11: Chief Operating Officer of the PGA Tour Ron Price arrives for a Senate Homeland Security Subcommittee on Investigations hearing examining the business deal between the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia's LIV Golf on Capitol Hill July 11, 2023 in Washington, DC. In early June, the PGA Tour and LIV Golf announced plans for a framework agreement to create a new global golf entity, which will be heavily funded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. (Photo by Dr

Congress grills PGA Tour on relationship with Saudi Arabia’s LIV Golf

US Senator Richard Blumenthal, who led the hearing on the deal between the Saudi Public Investment Fund and the US golf circuit, told Al-Monitor that many questions remain unanswered.

Shopkeepers fix the price tags of rice at a market in Karachi on Jan. 6, 2023.

Pakistan thanks 'brotherly' Saudis for $2 billion ahead of IMF bailout decision

Pakistan received Saudi Arabia's $2 billion deposit a day before the International Monetary Fund is expected to approve a $3 billion bailout on Wednesday that the country desperately needs.

Patrick Baldwin #7 of Washington Wizards is defended by Ben Sheppard #26 of Indiana Pacers during the first quarter of a 2023 NBA Summer League game at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 08, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)

Qatar Investment Authority buys 5% of NBA's Washington Wizards owner

It is the first investment by a sovereign wealth fund in a US sport and the latest move by a Gulf state to increase its influence in sports.

This picture taken on September 12, 2021 shows a view of the company offices of "al-Gameya", a tech startup the runs an app to facilitate for strangers to create an informal money-pooling association to provide access for money in time of need, points a screen showing to the application's online portal at the company offices, in Egypts capital Cairo. - Cash-strapped Egyptians fearful of banks have long relied on a "gameya" to access money in time of need, but now tech startups are cashing in on the practice

Egypt’s startup ecosystem tests its resilience amid economic turbulence

Egypt’s startup scene has shown its resilience amid severe economic woes.

Marc Español

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (2R), Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi (L) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary General Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi (2L) arrive for a joint press conference following a meeting of Sergei Lavrov with his counterparts of the GCC member states in Moscow on July 10, 2023. (Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

In Moscow, Russia's Lavrov welcomes Gulf states' rapprochement with Iran

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Russia and GCC countries will expand their cooperation together in areas of economic trade, defense, security, energy and politics.

exterior of the headquarters of the Bank of Israel, the country's central bank, in Kiryat Ben-Gurion in Jerusalem.

Israel pauses interest rate hikes, first time in a year

The Bank of Israel signaled it could raise rates in the future, as inflation remains above the target range.

Basra Oil Company's Director General Bassem Abdul Karim (R).

In Iraq and Algeria, TotalEnergies signs major deals

The deal between Iraq and TotalEnergies has been delayed for years and aims to help Iraq fix its longstanding power issues.

Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

UAE sees higher Chinese car sales as China faces decline at home

China relied on overseas markets to maintain 56% of its vehicle sales in June, and the Middle East is a hot spot.

United Arab Emirates

This picture taken on April 18, 2023 shows the Green Hydrogen Plant built by Spanish company Iberdrola in Puertollano.

Analysis

Morocco's agricultural independence to get boost from green ammonia plant

The project by the state-owned company in Tarfaya will help the North African country meet the domestic demand for the compound, which is a crucial ingredient in nitrate fertilizers.

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