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Economy & Business

A pumpjack stands idle in the Huntington Beach oil field, with port cranes visible in the distance, on April 23, 2026, in Huntington Beach, California.

Oil surges past $120 to war-time high as Trump rejects Iran overture

Benchmark Brent crude surpassed $120 per barrel on Wednesday, reaching the highest levels yet seen during the US-Israel-Iran war.

An Iraqi money dealer counts Iranian rial banknotes bearing a portrait of the late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at an exchange office in Baghdad on Feb. 3, 2012.

Iranian rial hits new record low as blockade, war take toll: What to know

The rial had another collapse in late 2025, triggering massive protests and riots in the country that were ended by a forceful government crackdown.

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

UAE’s OPEC exit rattles cartel as Gulf alliances shift

OPEC's fourth-largest producer will leave the cartel on May 1, marking the most significant departure in the group’s history as the war changes Abu Dhabi's relationship priorities.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

MUMEN KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images

Why UAE's decision to leave OPEC is major shift for cartel

The UAE accounts for 12% of OPEC's output, but tensions had been simmering over intragroup rivalries and the country wanting to export more oil.

United Arab Emirates

Latest News

First LNG tanker transits Strait of Hormuz since Iran war began

Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP via Getty Images

Pistachios reach highest prices in eight years amid Iran war

An Iranian grocer sells pistachios imported from Iran at a Persian products shop in the Gulf emirate of Dubai on July 10, 2019. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

UAE’s cash request tests US ties as Iran war strains Gulf financial muscle

A view of Dubai Marina in Dubai on March 3, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

IEA delivers grim gas supply forecast as oil notches 15% weekly rise

A liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker is moored at a LNG berth in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, prefecture April 8, 2026.

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

Israel technology

Report: Israel tech sector still among world’s strongest

Judicial fallout and layoffs have not hurt the industry's world standing, according to a report from Dealroom.co and Tel Aviv Tech.

A vendor sells traditional sweets at a market in the southern city of Sidon (Saida) on March 23, 2023 as Muslim devotees shop during the holy fasting month of Ramadan. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP) (Photo by MAHMOUD ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Grueling Ramadan for Lebanon's Muslims as prices, dollarization bite

As all goods are priced in dollars this year, food prices have skyrocketed, making the holy month more burdensome for the Lebanese whose wages are limited while the value of the local currency continues to deteriorate.

An Egyptian girl takes part in wheat harvest in Bamha village near al-Ayyat town in Giza province, some 60Km south of the capital on May 17, 2022. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Egypt’s new grain security strategy put to test as Ukraine war enters second year

Egypt's new strategy to cope with major grain supply disruptions from the Ukraine war has worked well in its first year. But there are still challenges ahead.

Marc Español

A woman reacts as retired servicemen protest to demand inflation-adjustments to their pensions outside Lebanon's central bank headquarters in Beirut on March 30, 2023. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH EID/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon on cusp of network blackout as dispute grows with telecom workers

The Lebanese government has threatened to take over the country’s state-run telecom company with the help of the army as workers continue to strike for a salary increase.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan in Saint Petersburg on October 11, 2022. (Photo by Pavel Bednyakov / SPUTNIK / AFP) (Photo by PAVEL BEDNYAKOV/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images)

UAE Central Bank revokes license of Russia's MTS Bank as sanctions tighten

The Central Bank of the UAE plans to close the Russian bank’s operations within six months from the date of the decision.

KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images

UAE, Qatar lead Middle East in 2023 global foreign investment ranking

The United Arab Emirates sat in the top position among MENA markets and ranked 4th globally.

Karen Young event

The Economic Statecraft of the Gulf Arab States: A book talk with Karen Young

Register now for this in-person event in Washington, DC on Monday, April 3.

Cairo peddler

Egypt raises interest rates again as inflation continues to creep up

The Central Bank of Egypt’s rate hikes have so far been unable to curb inflation.

AFP via Getty Images

China settles first LNG trade in yuan with UAE deal

China has held several discussions with countries in the Middle East and North Africa about conducting trade using its local currency.

ALI AL-SAADI/AFP via Getty Images

International oil firms stop operations as Iraqi-Kurdish oil dispute continues

A Kurdish official told Al-Monitor that the Kurdistan Regional Government disagrees with an Iraqi government proposal to resolve the issue, as the stoppage of oil exports to Turkey threatens the autonomous region's economy.

The national flags of Saudi Arabia (R) and China are displayed from a road lamp at Tiananmen square in Beijing on February 21, 2019. - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is on a visit to China from February 21 to 22. (Photo by WANG Zhao / AFP) (Photo by WANG ZHAO/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudis joining Shanghai Cooperation Organization as China bromance blossoms

Russia, China and a number of former Soviet states in Central Asia created the SCO in 2001 to counter US hegemony in the region.

Egyptian man looks at Qatari LNG carrier

Analysis

North Africa diesel exports to Europe surge as Russia digs deeper into Ukraine

Europe has been looking for alternative sources of oil and gas in light of Western sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine war.

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