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

Business and Economy Cover Image

Economy & Business

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Home to many of the world's largest wheat importers, the Middle East and North Africa face acute food security risks as the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts global fertilizer flows and pushes up prices.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

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.

Latest News

Analysis

UAE’s OPEC exit rattles cartel as Gulf alliances shift

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

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)

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 Syrian beekeeper prepares medicine to inject into hives at a bee farm in the rebel-controlled town of Hamouria, in the eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Oct. 2, 2016. Honey is used as a homoeopathic treatment for burns and wounds.

Syrians resort to herbal medicine amid drug crisis

The deteriorating living conditions in northwestern Syria and the expensive medical consultations and medicines have prompted Syrian patients to resort to herbal medicine to treat their diseases.

Iraq oil

Russian invasion of Ukraine has sharp impact on Iraq's economy

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has caused shortages of food in Iraq and forced the government to pay more in gasoline subsidies, but the high price of crude oil plus sanctions on Russia has opened new opportunities for Iraq.

Guests attend the opening ceremony of the annual Future Investment Initiative conference.

Saudi Arabia announces $600 million in new investment from startups, venture capitalist

Foreign direct investment in Saudi Arabia slowed later in 2021 after a promising start, and some entities are reluctant to invest there due to the human rights situation.

KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images

OPEC remains committed to oil production agreement with Russia

The Biden administration has been unable to get Gulf states to increase oil production to bring down prices and some European states are seeking alternatives to Russian natural gas.

MOHAMMED MAHJOUB/AFP via Getty Images

Oman's fiscal outlook improves as oil prices surge

Efforts to put public finances on a healthy footing and tackle chronic budget deficits have started to pay off, facilitated by a sharp increase in oil prices, Oman’s main export.

Ayadi Tayyiba

First women-run dairy factory opens in Gaza's Rafah

Women who are the sole breadwinners of their families are working in the newly-opened women-only dairy factory in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip.

Egyptian workers harvest wheat in Saqiyat al-Manqadi village in the northern Nile Delta province of Menoufia, Egypt, May 1, 2019.

War in Ukraine pushes Egypt to ramp up wheat production

The Egyptian government is working to increase local wheat production to reach self-sufficiency, after the Russian war on Ukraine added many challenges to secure the country's needs for food security.

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images

Bank of Israel may raise interest rates soon

Media reports indicate that Israel’s central bank will soon raise rates to counter rising inflation.

A Saudi Arabian airlines Saudia plane is pictured on the tarmac of the Ataturk Airport on April 4, 2019, in Istanbul.

Saudi Arabia resumes visa on arrival for US, EU visa holders

The kingdom greatly relaxed its visa rules before the pandemic in an effort to boost tourism.

Saudi economy

Saudi Arabian export stats show mixed results in non-oil commerce

Saudi Arabia is working to diversify its economy, but figures from January show it remains dependent on foreign oil sales.

Egyptian men work in a bakery at a market in Cairo, Egypt, March 17, 2022.

Egypt seeks to contain price hikes caused by Ukraine crisis

Egypt is dealing with soaring prices of bread and food products.

AFP via Getty Images

How Russia demanding gas payment in rubles will affect the Middle East

Germany is considering buying gas from Qatar amid the war in Ukraine and the United States has been pushing the Gulf state to send more gas to Europe.