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Trade news from the Middle East. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

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Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla with the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Britain's Princess Anne, Princess Royal attend a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace, London, during the state visit to the UK of the Emir of Qatar, Britain, December 3, 2024.

Qatar to invest £1bn in UK climate tech

The Qatari and British governments have announced a spate of deals as the Gulf country’s emir arrived in the UK on a two-day state visit. Officials announced on Wednesday that Qatar will invest £1 billion ($1.27 billion) in climate technology in the UK, with British engineering firm Rolls-Royce a key beneficiary. The investment is expected […]

Massad Boulos seen with Donald Trump during an election campaign visit to Dearborn, Michigan. Boulos is father-in-law to Trump's daughter Tiffany

What Massad Boulos can do for US-Middle East trade

The rise of a Lebanese tycoon and Trump in-law to the White House suggests business links and personal ties between the US and the Middle East will be front and centre for the new administration. Incoming US President Donald Trump announced on social media on Sunday that Massad Boulos, the father-in-law of his daughter Tiffany, […]

Kuwait currently holds $4bn in deposits with the Central Bank of Egypt

Kuwait renews $2bn deposit with Central Bank of Egypt

Kuwait has renewed a $2 billion deposit with Egypt for an additional year, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said in its latest external report.   The deposit, scheduled to be due in April 2024, will now mature in April 2025. The Gulf nation currently holds $4 billion in deposits with the CBE. While one tranche […]

A worker at a lithium mine. Saudi Arabia's cooperation with China could turn competitive in the race for such critical minerals

Critical minerals become a Middle East battleground

Saudi Arabia’s efforts to boost domestic processing of so-called critical minerals could redraw the mining industry’s regional and global supply chains, industry observers say. Critical minerals are defined as materials required for a country’s strategic industries where there is a risk of interruption to supply. They include lithium, for making batteries, platinum, used in fuel […]

Shoppers look at Apple electronics in a Dubai store. Its phone and laptop sales are down in the Gulf

Apple, HP and Dell lose market share in Gulf

Apple, HP and Dell are losing market share in the Gulf, analysts have told AGBI, but their weakening position appears to be due to the allure of their rivals rather than a boycott of American brands. The region’s relatively wealthy, young and tech-savvy consumers are an attractive target for makers of smartphones, tablets and computers. […]

Iskenderun, where the Oman Investment Authority and Turkish pension fund Oyak are to build a new container port, was damaged by an earthquake in 2023

Oman and Turkish pension fund launches $500m JV

A new container port in the southern Turkish city of Iskenderun is to be the first project in a joint venture worth $500 million between one of Turkey’s leading retirement funds and Oman’s sovereign wealth agency.  The Oman Investment Authority (OIA) and the Turkish military pension fund Oyak plan to invest in a range of […]

EU GCC FTA, EU Gulf trade

EU and GCC officials aim to resume FTA negotiations

European and Gulf officials are holding “informal” efforts to “revive” and even “upgrade” negotiations over a free trade agreement between the two blocks. Efforts towards such an agreement are three and a half decades in the making, Luigi Di Maio, the EU’s special envoy to the Gulf has said. “I have to say it’s a […]

Moscow, Russia. 21st Dec, 2022. Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the launch ceremony of the Kovykta gas field and part of the Power of Siberia gas pipeline from Kovykta to Chayanda via video link from the Kremlin

Turkey asks US to allow payments to sanctioned Russian bank

Turkey is seeking an exemption to new sanctions imposed against Moscow by the Biden administration that would mean payments for imports of Russian natural gas are blocked, potentially cutting energy supplies and undermining the Turkish economy.  Washington announced sanctions against Gazprombank, which is part-owned by Russian state gas producer Gazprom, on November 21 this year. […]

Saudi Arabia is currently importing much of its copper to meets its annual demand of 365,000 mtpa

Saudi Arabia secures $9bn to unlock mining potential  

Saudi Arabia has announced investment agreements with global mining companies worth SAR35 billion ($9.32 billion), as the country seeks to capitalise on its estimated $1.3 trillion worth of untapped mineral resources. India-based Vedanta will build SAR7.5 billion copper facilities at Ras Al Khair Industrial City, including a greenfield smelter and refinery with a capacity of […]

The UAE's construction sector remains a key economic driver, underpinned by continued government investment in major infrastructure projects

UAE’s non-oil economy to grow nearly 5% in 2024

The UAE’s non-oil economy is projected to grow by 4.7 percent in 2024, thanks to economic diversification and fiscal surpluses that help overcome global challenges, a senior executive of UBS Global Wealth Management has said. The non-oil sector is heading towards sustainable growth, supported by a booming tourism and real estate sectors, increased government spending […]

Expo City is at the heart of Dubai’s ambitions to double annual events from 300 to 600 by 2033

Major trade shows to relocate to Expo City Dubai

Dubai is to relocate its major trade shows next year from the World Trade Centre to the sprawling Expo City, 20 miles away. The move is a significant step in transforming the Expo City site into a centre for big events, businesses and sustainable living, a senior official has confirmed. “As of next year, all […]

Bahrain hopes its International Commercial Court will draw in new businesses and high-net-worth individuals

Bahrain arbitration court strengthens Singapore ties

Bahrain is seeking to emulate the success of a Singapore-based arbitration panel by launching its own International Commercial Court. It will target ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family offices, which are private wealth management advisory firms serving multi-generational wealthy families. The specialised arbitration centre is modelled on the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC) and is to be […]

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO director-general, said the potential escalation of conflicts in the Middle East could lead to further increases in transport and energy costs

WTO predicts Middle East trade slowdown in 2025

Lower oil prices, the potential for conflicts to escalate and the impact of a Trump presidency are factors supporting the World Trade Organization’s prediction that trade in the Middle East will slow down in 2025, experts have said.  In its latest Global Trade Outlook and Statistics report, the WTO said Middle East exports will grow 5 […]

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, right, with China's President Xi Jinping. The report says Saudi Arabia could learn from Beijing's economic development

Beijing ‘exploits’ Iran, says US advisory panel

American officials have identified the Middle East, and particularly the GCC, as crucial turf in superpower competition between the US and China, singling out energy and advanced technology as the main fields where a tug-of-war is taking place. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a 25-year-old Congressionally-mandated independent US government agency, dedicated an entire […]

DP World chairman and CEO Sultan bin Sulayem met with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in January

DP World CEO shrugs off threat of US tariffs

A prominent Dubai business leader has downplayed the threat of tariffs from the incoming US administration of Donald Trump. Sultan bin Sulayem, chairman and CEO of DP World, one of the world’s largest port operators and a flagship enterprise of the emirate of Dubai, said on Monday that he was unfazed by Trump’s proposed blanket […]

Bahrain International Airport near Manama: British Airways says it is halting flights to Bahrain and Kuwait due to supply chain issues

Bahrain seeks reversal of BA route cut

Talks are underway between Bahrain and UK officials in a bid to reverse a decision by British Airways to cease flights to the Gulf state. The UK’s flag carrier announced earlier this month that it would be stopping direct flights to Bahrain and Kuwait as a result of supply chain pressures, which it is said […]

September 19, 2023, New York City, New York: (NEW) President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Speaks at UN 78th GA in New York.

Nigeria nears trade deal with Saudi Arabia

Nigeria is looking to finalise a $5 billion bilateral trade facility with Saudi Arabia, it said, following a meeting between its president, Bola Tinubu, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh. The pair met on the sidelines of the joint Arab-Islamic Summit, which was convened to discuss the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. Following the meeting, […]

Fertiglobe dropped to a loss in Q3 after its own-produced sales volumes fell

Fertiglobe logs net loss, weeks after Adnoc buys stake

Fertiliser maker Fertiglobe has reported a net loss of $10.4 million for the third quarter of 2024 – a sharp drop from the $39.6 million profit generated in the same period last year. The Abu Dhabi company’s revenue in Q3 2024 fell to $495.6 million versus $525 million in Q3 2023. Analysts had estimated a […]

Sales agents taking bids at a Sotheby's auction in London. The 2025 auction will mark the opening of the company's Riyadh office

Sotheby’s pins hopes on Saudi auction launch

Sotheby’s is to open an office and stage its first auction in Saudi Arabia next year.  The new branch will be located in the Faisaliah Tower in the capital Riyadh. The auction will take place on February 8, 2025 in the Unesco World Heritage site of Diriyah.  Prior to the auction, an exhibition featuring the […]