Oil & Gas Kurdistan to resume oil exports next week Oil exports from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region will resume next week, Iraq’s oil minister said on Monday, resolving a near two-year dispute as ties between Baghdad and Erbil improve, potentially adding more supply to the oil market and weighing on prices. The oil flows were halted by Turkey in March 2023 after the International Chamber […] February 18, 2025
Banking & Finance Iraq bans five local banks from US dollar deals Iraq’s central bank will ban five more local banks from engaging in US dollar transactions following meetings with US treasury officials. The move is in line with efforts to combat money laundering, dollar smuggling and other violations, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Sunday. Meetings were held in Dubai last […] February 17, 2025
Oil & Gas Opec sticks to growth forecasts despite Trump policies Opec on Wednesday stuck to its forecast for relatively strong growth in global oil demand in 2025, saying air and road travel would support consumption and potential trade tariffs were not expected to impact economic growth. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a monthly report, said world oil demand will rise by 1.45 […] February 13, 2025
Oil & Gas Marine fuel sales in Fujairah revive on Red Sea diversions Global marine fuel sales jumped in 2024 after attacks by Yemen’s Houthis starting in late 2023 prompted most shipping companies to divert vessels around southern Africa rather than through the Red Sea, according to data and analysts. Singapore bunker volumes logged fresh highs of 54.92 million tonnes in 2024, or about 955,000 barrels per day (bpd), while […] February 13, 2025
Trade Turkey lifts Syria trade barriers to spur growth Turkey has lifted trade and transit restrictions on Syria at the countries’ border, the trade ministry said on Tuesday, progressing with plans to expand trade after the fall of Syrian leader Bashar Al-Assad. Goods exported or imported between the two neighbours or transited through Syrian border crossings will now be subject to the same conditions as those […] February 12, 2025
Economy Sanctions on Syrian banks choke economic recovery Western sanctions on Syria’s banking sector are preventing critical investments in the war-ravaged economy, the country’s investment chief said. This is despite huge interest from Syrian and foreign investors since the fall of Bashar Al-Assad. “Sanctions have stopped everything. Right now, they are primarily on the Syrian people and are increasing their suffering,” Ayman Hamawiye, […] February 11, 2025
Banking & Finance Lebanon bonds rally to near-5-year high with new government Lebanon’s international bonds rallied more than one cent on Monday, two days after a new government was formed. The country’s dollar-denominated bonds jumped 1.1 cents to being bid at around 18.3 cents across most maturities, the highest level since March 2020, Tradeweb data showed. The latest rise extends a sharp turnaround for the bonds, which have lingered […] February 10, 2025
Oil & Gas Pakistan weighs revising terms of Qatar LNG deal Pakistan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) pact with Qatar allows for either party to initiate renegotiation talks next year but no decision has been taken on whether to do this, Pakistan’s petroleum minister told Reuters. Musadik Malik was clarifying comments made to a parliamentary committee on energy, as reported in local newspaper The News, which had […] February 10, 2025
Artificial Intelligence UAE and France to invest up to $50bn in AI data centre France and the United Arab Emirates agreed on Thursday to a framework accord for a 1 gigawatt data centre dedicated to artificial intelligence (AI) that represents investments of between $30 billion-$50 billion, the French presidency said. President Emmanuel Macron hosted his Emirati counterpart Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan on Thursday evening ahead of a summit […] February 7, 2025
Oil & Gas Aramco raises prices as demand from Asia grows Saudi Aramco, the world’s leading oil exporter, has sharply increased crude prices for March shipments to buyers in Asia. Demand from China and India is rising as US sanctions disrupt Russian supply. Aramco raised the official selling price for flagship Arab Light crude by $2.40 to $3.90 per barrel above the Oman/Dubai benchmark average, Saudi […] February 6, 2025
Oil & Gas Adnoc moves its US investments to XRG Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s investments in the US now sit within its new international investment arm, XRG, Adnoc’s CEO said on Tuesday, as the oil giant moves to build up a business focused on lower carbon energy and chemicals. The US investments are in an ExxonMobil hydrogen plant and in NextDecade’s liquefied natural gas […] February 5, 2025
Oil & Gas Iraq’s compensation plan will aid Kurdish oil exports Iraq’s parliament on Sunday approved a budget amendment to subsidise production costs for international oil companies operating in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. The move aimed is at unblocking northern oil exports, lawmakers said. The amendment sets the rate at $16 per barrel, up from an earlier proposal for $7.9 per barrel for transport and production costs, […] February 3, 2025
Oil & Gas Trump’s tariffs will not move oil prices, says Goldman Sachs The new tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on imports from Canada, Mexico and China are likely to have a limited near-term impact on global oil and gas prices, Goldman Sachs said in a note on Sunday. “Potential tariff-driven decline in US natural gas imports from Canada is too small to significantly raise US […] February 3, 2025
Energy Oil up 2% after US tariff may kick off trade war Oil prices jumped on Monday after US president Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, raising fears of crude supply disruption from two of the biggest suppliers to the US, but the prospect of lower fuel demand capped gains. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $73.97 a barrel, up $1.44, or […] February 3, 2025
Oil & Gas Opec+ to take joint stance on Trump oil policy The Opec+ group of leading oil producers is set to discuss President Donald Trump’s efforts to raise US oil production and take a joint stance on the matter, Kazakhstan said on Wednesday. Trump last week laid out a sweeping plan to help maximise oil and gas production, including by declaring a national energy emergency to speed up permitting […] January 30, 2025
Trade Edge Group invests in Israeli defence supplier UAE state-owned defence conglomerate Edge Group has bought a 30 percent stake in Israeli military supplier Thirdeye Systems for $10 million. The deal is a rare public investment by an Emirati company in Israel since the Gaza war began 15 months ago. Edge will also put an additional $12 million into a new, majority Edge-owned […] January 29, 2025
Artificial Intelligence Tech sell-off deepens as DeepSeek triggers AI rethink Technology shares fell on Tuesday on the day after a global market rout sparked by the emergence of a low-cost Chinese artificial intelligence model, with investors questioning the sky-high valuation and dominance of AI bellwethers. Shares of Nvidia, the poster child of the AI boom in recent years, dragged US stocks lower, sinking 17 percent on Monday and wiping $593 […] January 28, 2025
Banking & Finance Bank of Singapore in Dubai hiring drive Bank of Singapore has made six new appointments in Dubai to enhance its advisory and product services in the region and double its Middle East business. One of Asia’s biggest private banks, Bank of Singapore wants the region to contribute up to 20% of overall revenue and private banking assets over the next three to […] January 27, 2025
Economy Turkey cuts interest rate by 250 basis points Turkey’s central bank cut its key interest rate by 250 basis points to 45% as expected on Thursday, carrying on an easing cycle it launched last month alongside a decline in annual inflation that is expected to continue. The central bank indicated it would continue to ease policy in the months ahead, noting that it anticipated a rise in trend inflation in January, […] January 23, 2025
Oil & Gas Saudi Aramco buys first cargo of US crude Saudi Arabia’s state oil company Aramco bought its first cargo of WTI Midland, a US crude oil grade that underpins the global Brent benchmark, oil-index publisher S&P Global Commodity Insights said on Wednesday. Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, snapped up the cargo on Tuesday in the so-called Platts trading window, buying from trading firm Gunvor. Platts […] January 23, 2025
Media & Advertising KHC would consider TikTok stake if Musk bought in Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal’s investment company Kingdom Holding (KHC) would be interested in investing in ByteDance’s TikTok if Elon Musk or others offered to buy it, CEO Talal Ibrahim al-Maiman told Al Arabiya TV on Wednesday. The search to find a buyer for the Chinese-owned popular short video app continues after it went dark and […] January 22, 2025
Finance Pakistan agrees to $1bn loan from Middle Eastern banks Pakistan has agreed terms for a $1 billion loan with two Middle Eastern banks at a 6-7 percent interest rate, its finance minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told Reuters on Tuesday, as the South Asian country searches for more financing. “With two institutions we have now gone forward in signing up the term sheet – one bilateral […] January 22, 2025
