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The UAE stopped issuing visas to Nigerians in 2022 after Dubai's Emirates suspended flights due to delayed repatriation of funds

UAE issues visas for Nigerians after two-year hiatus

The UAE government has started issuing visas for Nigerians after a halt of nearly two years. The governments of the UAE and Nigeria reached an agreement to resume travel between the two countries, Nigeria’s information minister said in a post on social messaging platform X. The UAE stopped issuing visas to Nigerians in 2022 after […]

The new cabinet was announced by UAE vice president and prime minister, and ruler of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum

Sheikhs Hamdan and Abdullah named UAE deputy PMs

Dubai crown prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan have been named deputy prime ministers in a major UAE cabinet reshuffle. Sheikh Hamdan will also serve as the defence minister, while Sheikh Abdullah will continue as minister of foreign affairs, the UAE state-run Wam news agency […]

Workers at a textile factory in Bilbeis, Egypt. S&P Global says businesses may soon be able to expand their output

Egyptian business confidence improves but pessimism remains

Egyptian businesses reported significant new sales for the first time since 2021 in June but are still more pessimistic than optimistic, according to the latest purchasing managers index (PMI) report. The survey released by S&P Global reported a headline PMI of 49.9, the highest in almost three years and just shy of the 50.0 mark […]

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi poses for a group photo with Egypt's new cabinet

New oil and finance ministers in Egyptian cabinet reshuffle

The Egyptian government has conducted a long-awaited cabinet reshuffle resulting in a series of new appointees to important ministries including foreign affairs, finance and petroleum. A handful of existing ministers expanded their portfolios. Abdel Fattah El Sisi, the Egyptian president, swore in the new cabinet, which will be led by the incumbent prime minister Mostafa […]

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has sacked the governor of the central bank five times in as many years

Turkish court rules president cannot sack central bank chief

A ruling by Turkey’s highest court striking down the president’s authority to dismiss the head of the central bank is being downplayed by Turkish officials. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has sacked the governor of the central bank five times in the past five years. Turkey’s justice minister has insisted the Constitutional Court’s decision did not invalidate […]

Mehmet Şimşek, Turkey's finance minister, did not reveals the new tax rates. Stock market earnings were formerly taxed at 10%

Turkey to tax crypto and stock market earnings

Turkey is planning to tax income earned from cryptocurrency and stock market trades, as the government seeks new revenue streams to help shore up its public finances. The measures were part of a package unveiled by the finance minister Mehmet Şimşek at a gathering of senior officials of the ruling Justice and Development Party on […]

Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter crash following a trip to the Azerbaijan border

Oil prices steady following death of Iranian president

Oil prices remained steady on Monday morning following the death of Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi, who was killed over the weekend in a helicopter crash in mountains near Iran’s border with Azerbaijan. Brent crude rose less than 1 percent percent at $84.37 a barrel – slightly below the estimated breakeven price at which Saudi Arabia, […]

Saudi defence spending

Saudi Arabia world’s fifth biggest arms buyer in 2023

Saudi Arabia remains the world’s fifth largest arms buyer, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The think tank’s latest report said that Saudi Arabia spent $76 billion on arms in 2023, a 4 percent increase on the previous year, making it the biggest spender after the US, China, Russia and India. The kingdom’s […]

A dedicated cybersecurity team can help to tackle threats, but only 32% of organisations in the energy sector have one

UAE is a ‘prime target’ for ransomware attacks

The UAE is a “prime target” for ransomware attacks, the country’s Cyber Security Council has warned. Its 2024 State of the UAE Cybersecurity report says the Emirates’ rapid digital transformation has increased its vulnerability to cyberattacks, including ransomware incidents and distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks. “The broader Middle East region” is a target for […]

As part of his March budget, the UK's Jeremy Hunt announced plans to abolish the country's 200-year-old non-dom tax status

UK’s non-dom shake-up to attract high earners to Gulf

There is likely to be an influx of expats and returning nationals to the Gulf as a result of the UK’s abolition of non-domicile tax status from April 2025, experts told AGBI. ‘Non-doms’ live in the UK but claim to have a permanent residence in another country, so they do not pay tax on overseas […]

Kuwait's new emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah swears the constitutional oath

Kuwait forms first government under new emir

Kuwait has formed a government headed by Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Sabah al-Salem al-Sabah, the state news agency said, the country’s first cabinet after the death of its previous ruler, Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah. Sheikh Mohammed appointed new ministers for oil, finance and foreign affairs in the first cabinet formed under Kuwait’s new Emir Sheikh […]

Khalaf Al Habtoor's group says it has invested close to $1bn in Lebanon

Khalaf Al Habtoor escalates dispute with Lebanon

Emirati businessman Khalaf Al Habtoor has escalated his feud with the Lebanese authorities by launching an investment treaty dispute against the country. The legal notice of the dispute alleges that Beirut’s treatment of his conglomerate, Al Habtoor Group, breaches the investment treaty between the UAE and Lebanon. Under the 1999 agreement, Lebanon committed to protect […]

A security guard at newly constructed housing in Riyadh. Increasing homeownership is a Vision 2030 target

Saudi mortgage lending rises despite GDP slowdown

Saudi banks’ mortgage lending to individuals and businesses rose in the third quarter, up 13 percent on 2022, despite a slowdown caused by lower oil prices and oil output cuts.  A bulletin released this week by the central bank reported loans of SAR591.7 billion ($158 billion) to individuals and SAR155.5 billion to companies in Q3. […]

An Abu Dhabi Police car. Danilo Coppola was arrested in the emirate on December 6

Abu Dhabi arrests man wanted by Italy for financial crimes

Emirati police have arrested an Italian businessman who is wanted in connection with financial crimes in his home country. Danilo Coppola, 56, was stopped on December 6 at a shopping centre in Abu Dhabi. Local sources said the arrest followed an Interpol alert – a sign of the UAE’s growing co-operation with international law enforcement. […]

The UAE bankruptcy law seeks to 'strike a balance between the rights of creditors and the interests of debtors'

UAE sets up bankruptcy court to rule on disputes

The UAE is overhauling its bankruptcy and restructuring law, introducing a specialist court to oversee disputes. The legislation – formally Federal Law Decree No 51 of 2023 – comes into force on May 1, 2024, and replaces the 2016 bankruptcy framework. It will emphasise the importance of amicable resolutions, broadening the scope for debtors to […]