Trade India’s Jindal SAW to invest in Abu Dhabi facility Jindal SAW, a manufacturer of steel pipes for the energy, transportation and water sectors, will invest $118 million to expand its operations in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena). The company will establish a facility in Abu Dhabi for $105 million, with an annual production capacity of 300,000 tonnes of seamless pipe, the company […] June 11, 2025
Trade Nigeria’s $5bn Aramco loan delayed by oil price drop Nigeria and Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco are struggling to reach an agreement on a record $5 billion oil-backed loan after a recent decline in crude prices sparked concern among banks that were expected to back the deal, four sources told Reuters. The facility would be Nigeria’s largest oil-backed loan to date and Saudi Arabia’s first participation […] June 10, 2025
Opinion Trade Turkey can turn crisis into catalyst for global trade power Success requires abandoning traditional approaches for bold, decisive action June 9, 2025
Trade Trump tariffs squeeze UAE businesses as costs mount UAE businesses are starting to feel the impact of US tariffs, with cost pressures mounting and revenue forecasts dipping, industry studies have found. Around 65 percent of UAE-based companies surveyed by HSBC reported rising operational costs linked to tariffs announced by President Donald Trump in April. Some of the “Liberation Day” levies have since been […] June 9, 2025
Trade Talks begin on US-UAE trade pact as metal tariffs double UAE officials are to begin negotiations toward a bilateral trade deal with the United States as part of efforts to secure lower tariffs on Emirati steel and aluminium products in particular. Washington and Abu Dhabi have agreed to commence talks after the idea was floated during President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf in mid-May, […] June 5, 2025
Trade Italy’s billion-dollar jewellery sales lead trade with UAE Italian exports of jewellery to the UAE grew 24 percent in February over the same month last year, reaching €238 million ($268 million), according to the Italian Trade Agency (ITA). With overall sales of more than €1.22 billion in 2024, up 12 percent year-on-year, Italy remains the world’s third-largest supplier of jewellery to the Emirates, […] June 4, 2025
Manufacturing Gulf exporters may weather US metal tariff hikes A sharp increase in US tariffs on aluminium and steel imports may inadvertently benefit Gulf producers, thanks to their competitive energy advantage and expanding export footprint. President Donald Trump has announced plans to double tariffs on aluminium and steel imports to 50 percent starting on Wednesday, escalating his administration’s protectionist stance amid ongoing global trade […] June 4, 2025
Analysis Trade Gulf FDI into US states goes well beyond usual suspects Among the flashiest deals announced during US President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf in mid-May was Emirates Global Aluminium’s $4 billion investment pledge to build the first new smelter in the US in 45 years in Oklahoma. The tentative agreement, EGA said in a press release, is subject to the parties finalising “state and […] June 3, 2025
Opinion Entrepreneurs What can GCC startups learn from Africa? It would benefit both regions to build stronger ties with one another May 30, 2025
Trade Bahrain’s trade deficit widens as imports surge Bahrain’s trade deficit has widened by more than a quarter as non-oil imports have increased. The difference between exports and imports widened by 32 percent to BD166 million ($440.3 million) in April 2025, compared to BD126 million in the same month last year, state-run Bahrain News Agency reported, citing official data. The value of non-oil […] May 30, 2025
Trade EU launches UAE trade talks despite watchlist status The European Union has relaunched free trade talks with the UAE, even as it continues to keep the Gulf state on its money laundering watchlist, a designation that can pose risks for investors. In February last year the UAE was removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)’s grey list after being praised for reforms […] May 29, 2025
Analysis Trade Made in Saudi? Deal for Boeing F-15 parts still on the runway Boeing’s announcement that it may manufacture parts for fighter jets in Saudi Arabia highlights deepening commitments between the kingdom and the US, as well as the challenges of turning them into reality. During President Donald Trump’s trip to the Gulf this month, hundreds of billions of dollars of deals were signed in sensitive sectors such […] May 27, 2025
Trade GCC and Malaysia begin official FTA talks The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Malaysia have restarted negotiating a long-delayed free trade agreement (FTA) to strengthen economic and trade relations. “Malaysia considers the GCC to be one of its most valued trade partners in West Asia,” investment, trade and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said in a statement. The GCC comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, […] May 27, 2025
Trade Oman’s trade faces Q1 headwinds as oil exports fall Oman’s total foreign trade in the first quarter of 2025 declined by 10.4 percent year on year to $14.7 billion, dragged down by a 16 percent drop in oil and gas exports. Oil and gas exports fell to $9.6 billion in the first three months of this year, from $11.4 billion the same time last […] May 27, 2025
Analysis Trade Trump needs a good reason to walk the India-Gulf-Europe corridor President Donald Trump may reinvigorate efforts to establish a diplomatic and economic pathway from Europe to India through the Middle East. But trade advisers have told AGBI that, for the initiatives to gain fresh momentum in Washington, officials will need to outline more tangible benefits for the US. “The US is not part of the […] May 26, 2025
Editor's Insight Trade Trump’s tour heralds a new era in US-Gulf relations In The Arabists: The Romance of an American Elite Robert Kaplan reminds us of the episode in which April Glaspie, then US ambassador to Ba’athist Iraq and “an Arabist of the old school”, met Saddam Hussain in July 1990. Glaspie failed explicitly to tell the Iraqi dictator, who was massing troops on the border and engaging in […] May 23, 2025
Opinion Trade A Gulf perspective on Trump’s ‘palace in the sky’ Congressmen should perhaps ask themselves: is this so unusual, at least by standards in the Arabian Gulf? May 23, 2025
Opinion Trade Trump in the Gulf: There’s substance behind the hype Was it all just for show? The investment agreements 'signed' during the trip are clearly ludicrous May 22, 2025
Opinion Trade In the Gulf, the US outpaces China where it counts Gulf states know there is more to gain from denser cooperation with US defence and tech companies May 21, 2025
Trade Qatar to double US investments Qatar’s $526 billion sovereign wealth fund intends to more than double the value of its investments in the US, CEO Mohammed Al-Sowaidi said this week. At a conference in the Qatari capital, Doha, Al Sowaidi said the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) will be “probably buying more than double what we’ve been doing for the past […] May 21, 2025
Trade Japan is Qatar’s top international investor Japan was the top international investor in Qatar last year, contributing half of its foreign direct investment, official data published this week shows. Tokyo contributed almost $1.4 billion of Qatar’s total FDI in 2024, according to Invest Qatar’s 2024 report. Japan is the world’s second largest importer of liquefied natural gas and Qatar’s second biggest […] May 21, 2025
Analysis Finance The multi-trillion dollar deals agreed on Trump’s trip During his trip to the Gulf region from May 13 to 16, US president Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE and announced a series of deals across a number of sectors, which, according to the White House, added up to nearly $2.5 trillion. Artificial intelligence Saudi Arabia’s newly-established AI developer Humain said […] May 19, 2025
