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Economy & Business

Flames burn at a facility belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco south of Riyadh

Explainer

Aramco HQ attack exposes Saudi defense gaps, infrastructure vulnerabilities

The Iran-linked Yemeni militants struck at the heart of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry this week amid an expanding campaign against key infrastructure.

Abdulrahman Alfozan in an undated photo

Who is Abdulrahman Alfozan, Saudi national charged in bugging OpenAI meetings?

The Saudi national who was arrested for allegedly planting a covert listening device at OpenAI’s offices has extensive experience working at leading technology companies in the US and serves as a venture partner at a Saudi venture capital firm.

TOPSHOT - Smoke rises from the direction of an energy installation in the Gulf emirate of Fujairah on March 14, 2026. Smoke could be seen rising from the direction of a major UAE energy installation on March 14, in what appeared to be the latest strike targeting the Gulf's petroleum facilities hours after the US struck Iran's Kharg Island. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images) /

Explainer

IMF projects Gulf rebound in 2027. Can energy production keep pace?

Restoring shipping access in the Strait of Hormuz is only part of the recovery, as Gulf producers also need to repair damaged infrastructure to avoid further disruption to production and exports.

Men walk at a terminal at Saudi Arabia's King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah on December 12, 2019. (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

Jeddah airport flights disrupted as Houthis escalate threats

Saudi Arabia’s busiest airport, Jeddah King Abdulaziz International Airport, saw widespread flight cancellations and delays on Tuesday.

Latest News

Analysis

How Manchester City fallout tests Gulf’s global investment model

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and Manchester City's Emirati owner and UAE Vice President Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Explainer

What Houthi airport attacks mean for Saudi Arabia’s aviation ambitions

A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft of Saudi airline Riyadh Air is pictured on the tarmac at King Khalid International Airport, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, June 7, 2026.

Saudi Arabia outlines oil export plans amid escalating Houthi attacks

Guests attend the 25th WPC Energy Congress, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 12, 2026.

Riyadh’s skies remain unsettled after deadly Houthi strikes

Cars drive past the gates of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Sept. 19, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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

Two pairs of US hundred dollar and Egyptian hundred pound notes are held before a window showing the skyline of Egypt's capital Cairo and the Nile river on January 16, 2023. - With Egypt's economy in crisis, the currency in freefall and inflation skyrocketing, the poor have been hit hard but the middle class is also teetering on the brink. The Egyptian pound has lost half its value against the dollar since March, following a devaluation demanded as part of a $3 billion International Monetary Fund loan agree

Egypt inflation drops to 31.5%, but food prices still rising

Annual inflation fell slightly in April compared to the previous month as the central bank readies its next decision on interest rates.

A general view shows 09 March 2004 the Shaybah mega-project, the first, and so far sole, oilfield development in Saudi Arabia's vast Al-Rub al-Khali desert, some 800 kilometers (500 miles) southeast of the eastern oil center of Dhahran. The Shaybah mega-project, which sits on top of some 15 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, more than a drop in the ocean of Saudi Arabia's estimated total reserves of about 260 billion barrels, has been producing oil to the tune of 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) for less

Saudi Aramco profit drops 19% on lower oil prices

Aramco has signed major deals with companies in China, the United States and South Korea recently, and OPEC+ recently announced a supply cut.

Lionel Messi PSG

Lionel Messi move to Saudi Arabia from PSG 'a done deal': Report

Jorge Messi said the decision on a transfer of the 2022 World Cup winner will not be taken until the end of the season.

Retired servicemen clash with soldiers outside Lebanon's central bank during a demonstration demanding inflation adjustments to their pensions, Beirut, Lebanon, March 30, 2023.

Lebanon’s angry depositors demand their money back from banks

Bank depositors staged a sit-in in Beirut to protest the banks' illegal policies imposed on their deposits amid a stifling economic crisis.

An aerial picture shows heavy traffic on two main highways in Kuwait City on March 27, 2023, after heavy rain the previous night caused flooding and road closures. (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT / AFP) (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)

How Kuwait’s political gridlock is hampering economic policymaking, competitiveness

Kuwait’s continued political gridlock has obstructed the government's ability to advance an effective economic policymaking and reform agenda.

Robert Mogielnicki

Robert Mogielnicki

Abu Dhabi's crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, left, shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping after witnessed a signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Monday, July 22, 2019. (Photo by Andy Wong-Pool/Getty Images)

In boost to China, UAE and Kuwait become 'dialogue partners' in Shanghai Cooperation Organization

The Gulf states made up half of the new partners at the annual Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting in 2023.

United Arab Emirates

A picture taken on April 29, 2023, shows a Palestinian fish vendor at a market in Gaza City.

Anger at Hamas brews as taxes increase in Gaza

Amid growing poverty in the Gaza Strip, the Hamas government imposed in the past year a further series of taxes and custom fees.

Retired servicemen try to remove the barbed wire barricade outside Lebanon's central bank during a demonstration demanding inflation-adjustments to their pensions in Beirut on March 30, 2023. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP) (Photo by JOSEPH EID/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon's finance minister questioned by European investigators

In a first, Lebanese Finance Minster Youssef Khalil was questioned today in the case against Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh and his brother, who are accused of embezzlement.

Moroccan Prime Minister

Analysis

UK 'obvious choice' as Morocco seeks to diversify trade

In recent months, a flurry of partnerships have been announced between the countries in sectors including transport and renewable energy.

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

Qatar Airways Cargo

Qatar Airways becomes first Middle East airline with cargo hub in Africa

The Qatar Airways Group, which owns Qatar Airways Cargo, already owns a 49% stake in RwandAir, Rwanda's national carrier.

Federal Reserve

Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia raise interest rates after US Federal Reserve

The Fed’s controversial and aggressive rate hikes to combat inflation could be coming to an end, and this will have ramifications for fiscal policy in the Gulf. Qatar initially said it would not raise rates, but later announced a rate hike.

Iranian employees of Saipa auto plant assemble a Tiba (Gazelle) car in the central city of Kashan on May 9, 2010. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad inaugurated the largest automobile factory in the Middle East with a capacity of producing 150,000 cars a year, creating 4,000 jobs directly and 20,000 indirectly in the region. The Saipa factory will produce a new small car called Tiba costing between 80 and 90 million Rials (8,000 to 9,000 USD) for lower-middle class population. AFP PHOTO/ISNA/ALIREZA SOTA

Iran's SAIPA signs $497 million car deal with Russia, Belarus

Iranian carmaker SAIPA will export vehicles to Belarus and Russia following a similar agreement with Venezuela.