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Economy & Business

Haitham AL-SHUKAIRI / AFP via Getty Images

Oman enters Gulf AI race with new special economic zone in Muscat

Oman will create an AI-focused special economic zone in Muscat governorate.

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

Latest News

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

MUMEN KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

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

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

A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022.

Abu Dhabi announces nearly $1 billion drilling contract

Oil and gas remain a major part of the Emirati economy, despite recent investments in renewable energy and green technology. The contract comes as the UAE gets ready to provide gas to Germany amid the war in Ukraine.

United Arab Emirates

Iran rials

Iran wants to use national currencies with Caspian states

At the Caspian Economic Forum, Iran promoted the idea, which would allow it to evade international financial sanctions.

Russian nuclear energy in the Middle East heats up

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy

In this file photo taken on Oct. 22, 2019, boats are pictured along the riverbank and off the water of the Nile River.

Egypt venture capital firm for startups develops solutions to climate change

The Climate Resilience Fund targets nature-positive and sustainable projects that address mainly land and sea misuse.

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Egypt restricts dollar withdrawals amid liquidity crunch

Egypt’s foreign reserves have fallen considerably amid the economic crisis and Russia-Ukraine war.

Workers hang their laundry out to dry on the railings of their labor accommodation, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, May 27, 2022.

UAE touts new domestic workers law

The UAE, like other Gulf countries, has faced criticism for its treatment of foreign workers.

United Arab Emirates

Inmates performing in a band are seen during a government-guided tour for the media,at the Correctional and Rehabilitation Center in Badr city, east of Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 22, 2022.

Egypt's released political prisoners get economic aid

A presidential initiative puts former political detainees on economic track after their release.

Russian tourism

Egypt freezes Russian MIR payments to avoid US sanctions

Acceptance of MIR bank cards would have eased Russian tourists’ payments inside Egyptian hotels and resorts.

Egyptian farmers harvest wheat in Bamha village near al-Ayyat town in Giza province, Egypt, May 17, 2022.

Egypt claims wheat self-sufficiency despite Ukraine war

Over the past three months, Egypt has bought 3.5 million tons of wheat from local farmers as it works to achieve self-sufficiency and weather the effects of the global crisis caused by the Russian war on Ukraine.

Israel gas

More gas discovered off coast of Israel as Lebanon talks falter

Energean’s discovery follows a setback in the US-mediated negotiations between Israel and Lebanon over their maritime border.

MENA gas

The natural gas substitution: The Middle East's opportunity to replace Russian gas to the EU

Iranians walk past Sepah Bank in the capital Tehran, on June 15, 2022. - Iran has been wrestling with rampant price growth for years, exceeding 30 percent annually every year since 2018, according to the International Monetary Fund. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran's banking sector faces hurdles to reconnect to global financial system post-sanctions

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics