Turkey lifts veil on unemployment data, revealing bigger army of jobless A new, broader set of labor statistics has exposed a big gap between Turkey’s official unemployment rate and the actual joblessness in the crisis-hit country. Turkey
Rights group criticizes Jordan over debt imprisonment Human Rights Watch has highlighted the plight of poor Jordanians imprisoned for failing to pay back loans taken out to meet basic needs. Jordan
COVID accelerates evolution of Gulf economies The economic policy response to COVID-19 is an acceleration of specific trends already underway across the Gulf Cooperation Council members, variously affecting tax policy, labor market regulation and immigration policy. Saudi Arabia
Iran receives COVID-19 vaccine from Cuba Iran enjoys warm relations with the Latin American state and the two countries are also developing a coronavirus vaccine together. Iran
How long can Turkey afford growing refugee bill? The monthly bill of hosting the Syrian refugees in Turkey has shot up to $500 million, in a further strain on the country’s already struggling economy. Syria
After political shake-up, is Turkey heading for economic crisis? By sidelining Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has taken full control of the political reins but ambiguity about his economic policies is creating concerns. Turkey
Beware of the failure of Yemen’s central bank The Central Bank of Yemen continues to set new policies to tackle the rising inflation and devaluation of the Yemeni rial, knowing its policies will not be effective as long as there is no political will to stabilize the situation. Saudi Arabia
Gaza's first food truck brings out the hungry and curious Two unemployed brothers are finding success operating Gaza's first food truck. Palestine
Does Iran’s 'resistance economy' welcome foreign money? In Iran, the hard-line take on the “resistance economy” has led to misunderstandings about the concept, with pro-government economists emphasizing the need for consensus on how to develop the economy. Iran
'Angels' chasing investments in Turkey Generous government subsidies are bringing more angel investors that support new entrepreneurs with capital infusion and counseling to Turkey. Turkey
Kurdish conflict reaches Turkish kitchens The Kurdish conflict in southeast Turkey has badly hurt farming in the region, worsening the country’s already acute meat production shortage. Turkey
Will US terrorism finance law do more harm than good in Lebanon? The recently passed US law to fight terrorism financing targets Hezbollah, but it could put all of Lebanon in the line of fire. Lebanon
Israeli pioneer fashion returns to Tel Aviv The newly rebooted Ata fashion line is finding a market in the young generation with its unique brand of Israeli utilitarianism and nostalgia for the early days of the state. Israel
US officials circle globe to explain Iran policy but fail to persuade Obama administration officials are making strenuous efforts to convince foreign banks that they can return to Iran, but are failing to overcome fears of heavy fines and new sanctions. Iran
How Turkey plans to boost halal tourism The second international halal tourism conference, held in Konya, gave a boost to Turkey’s determination to improve its performance in the growing Muslim travel market. Turkey
Palestine to raise concerns about settlement-based teams at FIFA conference The Palestinian Football Federation is planning to raise the issue of five Israeli soccer teams located in the occupied territories on the grounds that these teams are violating FIFA statutes. Palestine
