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Economy & Business

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Here's what to know about Iraq's corruption as Zaidi launches crackdown

Watchdogs and financial institutions regard Iraq as a significantly corrupt country as the new prime minister works to recover public funds.

AFP via Getty Images

Traffic plummets through Strait of Hormuz after Iran, US trade fire

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz had recovered somewhat before renewed fighting between Iran and the United States saw traffic drop sharply over the weekend.

A student attends a training seminar at the Tourism Ministry Training center in the city of Riyadh on August 30, 2022.

Interview

Saudi labor localization will take ‘generation or two': Armada CEO

Around 70% of Saudi Arabia's population is 35 years old or younger, according to the kingdom’s General Authority for Statistics, providing ample opportunity for an educated and technology-savvy national workforce in the coming decades.

Olivier Badard

CEO of Armada Holding

A tourist boat passes near crude oil tankers, bulk carriers, and other vessels anchored off Port Sultan Qaboos in Muscat, Oman, June 19, 2026.

Analysis

Why the Hormuz oil shock never became an energy catastrophe

The US-Israel-Iran war produced a historic oil supply shock but not a severe global economic crisis, due to ample prewar supplies, China's energy pivot and strategic reserve releases.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Latest News

Explainer

Gulf states push incentives for investors, expats after war dents image

FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

Explainer

After UAE and Qatar, could Iraq be next to leave OPEC?

A worker at a market for fuel oil and automotive fuel on March 17, 2026, in Erbil, Iraq.

Explainer

Syria’s energy push could soon get a major boost from Chevron: What to know

Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

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 fans react as they watch on a screen the Qatar 2022 World Cup Group C football match between their national team and Mexico, at the Marsool Park in Riyadh, on November 30, 2022. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudi Arabia’s sports ambitions take center stage as MENA countries eye 2030 World Cup

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

TALANT KUSAIN/AFP via Getty Images

Abu Dhabi logistics firm expands into Kazakhstan

The Central Asian country has important strategic value for Iran, Turkey and other countries in the region.

JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images

Israel expected to increase natural gas drilling in 2023

Faithful to his past energy policies and on the backdrop of the global energy crisis, Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu is likely to expand exploration for natural gas off Israel's shores.

Nishimura

Japan strengthens energy ties to Saudi Arabia, Oman

Oman wants to increase its natural gas exports, and Saudi Arabia continues to show interest in clean energy and carbon capture technology.

Shoppers walk past jewellery shops in the Taiba gold market in the capital Riyadh on June 29, 2020, after authorities announced a 10% increase in the VAT rate, to reach 15%, starting from first of July. (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Gulf tax landscape ushers in a new era

Sebastian Castelier

Sebastian Castelier

In Dubai, reporting on regional business

A photograph taken in Dubai on January 4, 2022 shows the world's highest skyscraper Burj Khalifa. (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

2022 in review: Reforms, Ukraine war drive boost in UAE’s real estate market

Improved regulatory policies and diplomatic measures amid the Ukraine war have welcomed foreign direct investment and boosted the UAE real estate market in 2022 above the global average. 

An aerial view shows the town of Ghadames, a desert oasis some 400 miles southwest of the capital Tripoli, Libya, Oct. 19, 2021.

Oil pollution threatens Libyan oases

The populated areas near the oil fields in northeast Libya are suffering from pollution resulting from oil-related operations, in the absence of any action from authorities.

Sunset shot showing a row of electricity pylons in the desert, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Getty Images)

Analysis

2022 in review: Saudi-China, Qatar-Germany deals cap Middle East's energy developments

Hydrogen power, oil price fluctuations and electric vehicles could feature prominently in the region in 2023.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

An Iraqi man counts Iraqi dinars as he exchanges them for US dollars at a money exchange office, Baghdad, Iraq, Dec. 12 2007.

Iraq's Central Bank moves to strengthen dinar against US dollar

The plan includes a measure to buy more Chinese yuan. Other states are also considering using the yuan more.

A general view shows headscarves for sale at Khan al-Khalili market, Cairo, Egypt, May 20, 2016.

Secondhand clothes offer Egyptians respite as inflation skyrockets

With living expenses rising and temperatures dropping and inflation surging to a five-year high of 18.7%, many Egyptians are looking to buy secondhand clothes at Wekalat al-Balah, Egypt's most famous used clothing market in the center of Cairo

The Evergreen leaves the Suez Canal for the Mediterranean after the signing of the settlement contract, Ismailia, Egypt, July 7, 2021.

Egyptian official says Suez Canal 'not for sale' amid fears of foreign investment

The chairman of Egypt's Suez Canal Authority has responded after a parliamentary session discussing a private fund linked to the waterway sparked widespread criticism.

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Egypt raises interest rates to end 2022

Inflation continues to increase in Egypt and the Central Bank is uncertain about 2023.