Economy & Business - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Business and Economy Cover Image

Economy & Business

An attendee walks past signage displayed inside the venue for the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) in Bangkok on October 14, 2026. (Photo by ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP via Getty Images)

Syria to rejoin Arab group at IMF, leaving Russian-led constituency

Syria will rejoin the Arab constituency at the International Monetary Fund beginning Nov. 1 and has applied for membership in the EBRD.

Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova returns the ball to Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina during their WTA Finals tennis tournament in Riyadh on November 5, 2025. (Photo by Fayez NURELDINE / AFP via Getty Images)

Explainer

From Six Kings Slam to FIFAe finals, Saudi Arabia's events derailed by war

Some of Saudi Arabia’s flagship events — across sectors including culture, entertainment and sports — have been canceled or postponed following deadly Houthi attacks over the weekend.

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.

Latest News

Explainer

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

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) /

Jeddah airport flights disrupted as Houthis escalate threats

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)

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.

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

Moroccans raise placards as they gather in front of parliament in the capital Rabat to protest against rising prices, on February 20, 2022. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Inflation in Maghreb will continue to undercut real wages and feed social discontent

Francisco Serrano

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

A view of the platform of the Leviathan natural gas field in the Mediterranean Sea.

Israel, Cyprus to resolve disagreement over maritime gas field

Most of the disagreement points between Israel and Cyprus over the joint Aphrodite-Yishai natural gas reservoir have been resolved, and an agreement is apparently imminent.

Saudi staff are pictured where the Financial Sector Conference was held in Riyadh on April 24, 2019.

Is Saudi Arabia changing approach to cryptocurrencies?

Although Saudi Arabia seems to be warming to cryptocurrencies, it is unlikely to displace the UAE as the region’s crypto hub anytime soon.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (R) receives his Syrian counterpart Faisal Mekdad in Tehran, on July 20, 2022.

Syria and Iran lower tariffs per free trade agreement

Syria and Iran signed a free trade deal more than 10 years ago but are still working out the details. The two countries are not major trade partners despite being political and military allies.

Halfaya oil field in the al-Kahla district in the city of Amara south of Baghdad on July 26, 2022.

Abu Dhabi port operator signs oil transport deal with Iraqi firm

AD Ports Group is seeking to expand its international business, recently making agreements in Egypt and Uzbekistan to this end.

A customer holds US dollar banknotes outside a currency changer as Turkey's economy is suffering its biggest economic crisis in decades, Istanbul, Turkey, Sept. 6, 2022.

Turkish inflation passes 83% as Erdogan eyes further rate cuts

Despite a galloping inflation topping 83%, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has doubled down on his controversial monetary policy, urging the central bank to cut its policy rate to single digits by the year-end.

An aerial view of the city of Zahle in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley, photo taken during a press tour by the Lebanese air force, July 1, 2021.

From homes to guesthouses: some Lebanese find ways to survive economic meltdown

Despite Lebanon's worst financial crisis since its civil war, guesthouse investment is growing as rural tourism soars, generating much-needed revenue for its cash-strapped citizens and empowering local communities and talents.

A man walks past a money exchange company, Beirut, Lebanon, Oct. 1, 2019.

Lebanon to shift to new official lira-to-dollar exchange rate

Lebanon is shifting to a new official exchange rate to the US dollar, three years after an unprecedented financial and economic crisis that has plunged a large portion of its population under the poverty line.

NASSER AL-HARBI/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi Arabia’s industrial sector can expect boost into 2023

The Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources reports that the kingdom has been accelerating its economic diversification efforts.

Ali Metwally

By Ali Metwally

A view of the platform of the Leviathan natural gas field in the Mediterranean Sea is pictured from the Israeli northern coastal city of Caesarea on December 19, 2019. - Israel has approved the export of gas from its offshore reserves to Egypt, a spokeswoman said on December 17, with a major reservoir expected to begin operations imminently. The approval by Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz was part of a long process under which Israel will transform from an importer of natural gas from Egypt into an exporter

Egypt ‘primary actor’ in next phase of East Med natural gas development

Gerald Kepes

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy trends

Vice President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (C) attends the opening of the Global Business Forum on Africa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 1, 2017.

UAE, Tanzania sign double tax avoidance deal

The Emirates is also pursuing renewable energy projects in the southern African country.

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi employment numbers improve

Unemployment in Saudi Arabia is higher than in other Gulf states, but the labor market is showing signs of strength in other areas.