Egyptian currency touches five-year low Egypt’s currency weakened to 18.71 to the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, a five-year low, before strengthening again, Refinitiv Data showed. The pound was bid at 18.71 to the dollar, its weakest since Feb. 2, 2017, when it weakened to as low as 18.78 pounds. Egypt has been suffering from a shortage of foreign currency since […] June 9, 2022
Banking & Finance World Bank slashes global growth forecast The World Bank on Tuesday slashed its global growth forecast by nearly a third to 2.9 percent for 2022, warning that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has compounded the damage from the Covid-19 pandemic, and many countries now faced recession. The war in Ukraine had magnified the slowdown in the global economy, which was now entering […] June 8, 2022
Turkish lira weakens 0.5% against dollar The Turkish lira weakened some 0.5 percent against the dollar on Wednesday as concerns over rampant inflation were stoked by President Tayyip Erdogan’s pledge to continue cutting interest rates. The lira stood at 16.8550 against the U.S. currency at 0411 GMT, when compared to Tuesday’s close of 16.7650, slipping towards a record low it hit […] June 8, 2022
Ukraine and Gulf announce diplomatic and economic alliance Ukraine, the Gulf bloc and the Organisation of lslamic Cooperation (OIC) announced on Tuesday the establishment of a special Advisory Council. The Council, headed by the Ukraine President’s Office and Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will focus on political, diplomatic, economic and humanitarian cooperation between Ukraine and the Middle East. The Head of the President’s […] June 7, 2022
UAE economy’s growth for 2022 upgraded to 5.4% The UAE economy is set to grow by 5.4 percent this year, driven by the country’s success in containing the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE). The figure is higher than the 4.2 percent real gross domestic product (GDP) growth estimate made by the bank in April. […] June 7, 2022
Energy Saudi GDP grows 9.9% in Q1, beating flash estimate Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product grew 9.9 per cent in the first quarter, the fastest in a decade and more than a flash estimate last month of 9.6 per cent, official data showed on Tuesday. It was the fastest expansion since the third quarter of 2011 with the increase in oil production a key factor, […] June 7, 2022
Turkey’s annual inflation soars to highest since 1998 Turkey’s annual inflation rate jumped to a 24-year high of 73.5 per cent in May, fuelled by the war in Ukraine, rising energy prices and a tumbling lira — though thefigure was slightly lower than economists had feared. Inflation has surged since last autumn, when the lira slumped after the central bank launched a 500 […] June 3, 2022
UAE, Egypt and Jordan sign $10bn industrial power pact Abu Dhabi's ADQ to allocate $10 billion in investment for projects. Focus includes agriculture, pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals and textiles May 30, 2022
Economy Menap countries must work together to close GDP shortfall Economic cooperation in the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (MENAP) is a strategic must for continued regional prosperity and socio-economic development, says a new report. The introduction of bloc-wide common standards and free flow of capital, goods and services could help unlock up to US$230 billion in GDP, according to research from UAE […] May 26, 2022
Qatar pledges £10bn investment in key UK sectors The UK and Qatar have signed a new Strategic Investment Partnership which will see Qatar invest up to £10 billion over the next five years in key sectors of the UK economy including fintech, zero emissions vehicles, life sciences and cyber security. Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister, welcomed the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim […] May 25, 2022
Tourism growth stokes hopes of economic recovery The number of foreigners arriving in Turkey last month more than tripled from a year earlier, reinforcing expectations that a rebound in the sector will help repair an economy battered by a weak currency and high inflation. Sector representatives expect tourist numbers this year to return to around 2019 levels, leaving the 2020-21 coronavirus slump […] May 23, 2022
Analysis Rising inflation and falling tourism deals Egypt a ‘double whammy’ With inflation surging and the government forced to fix the price of bread to head off civil unrest, Egypt has felt the heat from the Ukraine crisis more acutely than most countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Higher commodity prices and the loss of tourism revenues from both Russian and Ukrainian […] May 23, 2022
Analysis Stars and strife: rebuilding UAE-US relations The passing of UAE President Sheikh Khalifa has prompted an outpouring of condolences and support from around the globe, with heads of state being hurriedly dispatched to Abu Dhabi. Particularly notable among these was the high-profile delegation sent by the US; headed by Vice-President Kamala Harris, it included nearly all of the administration’s top national […] May 19, 2022
Sweden seeks to overcome Turkish objections to NATO bid Sweden is formally applying for NATO membership, prime minister Magdalena Andersson said on Monday. “The government has decided to inform NATO that Sweden wants to be accepted as a member of NATO,” Andersson told reporters, adding that the application could be handed in on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. It will be synchronised with Finland’s request […] May 16, 2022
Health Egypt’s net foreign assets retreat further into the red Egypt’s net foreign assets (NFAs) dropped by 169.7 billion Egyptian pounds ($9.17 billion) in March, the sharpest decline since the coronavirus crisis broke out in February 2020, central bank data showed on Sunday. NFAs fell to a negative 221.3 billion pounds at the end of March from a negative 51.69 billion pounds a month earlier. […] May 15, 2022
Omani leader meets with Russian Foreign Minister in Muscat Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Muscat today, as the Russian politician toured the Sultanate. During the meeting, Lavrov conveyed the greetings of President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation to Sultan Haitham and wished the Omani people continued progress and prosperity, praising the country’s wisdom in dealing […] May 11, 2022
Exclusive Interviews UK-Gulf deal will be ‘tough nut to crack,’ says top Johnson ally The co-chairman of the UAE-UK Business Council and former chief strategic adviser to Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the upcoming UK-Gulf trade agreements could be delayed but bilateral opportunities remain immense Lord Udny-Lister, co-chairman of the UAE-UK Business Council and one of Boris Johnson’s closest political allies, cuts a distinguished figure amid the sumptuous surroundings […] May 10, 2022
Qatar’s emir to visit Iran and Europe to aid Iran nuclear pact Qatar’s emir will visit Iran, Germany, Britain and other European states starting this week on a trip expected to discuss efforts to revive Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal and energy security in Europe, a source briefed on the visit said on Sunday. Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, ruler of one of the world’s top natural […] May 9, 2022
Insight The UK-Saudi strategic trade partnership just got closer The UK’s withdrawal from the European Union and Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 plan are stimulating more and more investment deals May 9, 2022
Analysis Economy Lebanese elections spark fears of more instability The Lebanese government recently ordered the demolition of the blast-hit grain silos that were decimated during the August 4, 2020 port explosion. The silos absorbed much of the blast’s impact, saving sections of the city’s western residential areas from total devastation. The government has now determined that they must be removed amid reports that the tilting […] May 9, 2022
Analysis Russia-Ukraine fallout puts fragile ‘frontier’ economies in MENA at risk The fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war has just helped tip two of world’s poorest countries, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, into full-blown crises, and the list of those at risk – and the queue at the International Monetary Fund’s door – will only get longer from here. Countries such as Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt are at […] May 3, 2022
Afghan economy ‘dire’ as household incomes shrink The outlook for Afghanistan’s economy is dire with per capita income having fallen by over a third in the last four months of 2021 after the Islamist Taliban seizedpower and foreign forces withdrew, the World Bank said. “One of the poorest countries in the world has become much poorer,” said Tobias Haque, World Bank senior […] May 3, 2022
