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
Will Turkey and Iran find common ground in Iraq? Developments in Iraq, coming soon after a visit by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Turkey, might be forcing a change in Turkey's approach to jihadist groups. Iraq
Turkey's Greens protest Erdogan's airport plans The world's biggest airport is planned for Istanbul and will come at an ecological cost. Turkey
Israel's settlement tourism Following a vast campaign designed to rebrand the West Bank settlements as tourist attractions with guided tours to biblical sites, and to open it up to the Israeli mainstream, the region has become popular with tourists from Israel and overseas. Palestine
Deficit overpowers Lebanon's draft budget Amid political and security crises in Lebanon, the issuance of the 2014 draft budget by the Ministry of Finance was a positive sign, but many questions remain about how major economic problems will be addressed. Lebanon
Foreign investors spark Turkish stock rally Defying expectations, foreign investors buy $705.59 million in Turkish shares in May. Turkey
Russia, Qatar compete in natural gas market Russia and Qatar differ on Syria but are considering means of mitigating their natural gas rivalry in the Gas Exporting Countries Forum. Qatar
Refugees help spark Turkish trade with Syria Despite the war, Turkish-Syrian trade is growing in several sectors, fueled in part by the influx of Syrian refugees. Syria
Iraqi entrepreneurs strike it rich reselling goods on Facebook Iraqi entrepreneurs have launched Facebook pages selling US and European products to Iraqis, who usually do not have access to international goods. Iraq
How Turkey lost its influence in Iraq Ankara's tilt toward the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has undermined its once considerable influence in Iraq. Iraq
Turkish inflation at its 'worst' before expected slowdown Turkey’s inflation shot up to a two-year high in May, but a slowdown is expected to begin in June. Turkey
Will Sisi move beyond 'cold peace' with Israel? The pending gas deal between Israel and Egypt might be an economic necessity for President-elect Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Egypt
Lebanon's debt grows with political stalemate A report by Merrill Lynch has downgraded Lebanon's financial standing because of its external debt and political paralysis. Lebanon
