Business - Al-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Business

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.

Jordanian detainees look on through the window of a rehabilitation centre in Zarqa, 30 kilometres east of Amman, on July 11, 2018. (Photo by Khalil MAZRAAWI / AFP) (Photo credit should read KHALIL MAZRAAWI/AFP via Getty Images)

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.

Saudi female employees work at the customers service desk at a hypermarket, newly launched by the operator LuLu and run by a team of women, in the Saudi Arabian port city of Jeddah, on February 21, 2021. (Photo by Amer HILABI / AFP) (Photo by AMER HILABI/AFP via Getty Images)

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.

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.

Latest News

Jordan reinstates partial lockdown as coronavirus deaths spike

A policeman holds a stop sign in an almost deserted avenue in the Jordanian capital Amman, during a lockdown due to the coronavirus panemic, on February 26, 2021. (Photo by Khalil MAZRAAWI / AFP) (Photo by KHALIL MAZRAAWI/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel-Egypt relations advance in baby steps

A Israeli police car is park in front of the Egyptian Embassy in the city of Tel Aviv on September 11, 2011, two days after Egyptian demonstrators went on the rampage in Cairo, breaking into the Israeli embassy and forcing the personnel to be evacuated. The trouble followed several weeks of protests outside the Israeli embassy in Cairo after 5 Egyptian border police were shot dead last month by the Israeli military during a search operation for militants who shot at an Israeli bus in Israel, close to their

Sign up to our Daily Briefing

Keep up with Al-Monitor's top stories with a morning digest from across the region.

First court victory for opponents of Jerusalem cable car project

Former Halkbank executive resigns as head of Istanbul stock exchange

Grapfics and numbers of trade markets are screened on the floor of the Borsa Istanbul on May 22, 2018 in Istanbul. - Turkey's embattled currency, the Lira, on May 22 hit new historic lows against the US dollar after Fitch ratings agency expressed concerns over the central bank's independence in the wake of comments by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

The handcuffs of inmates are seen during a play at a public theatre in Lima, June 20, 2012. About 20 young inmates of Ancon prison put on stage their own theatrical script, based on their testimonies in jail, outside prison after four months of rehearsal. The event, organized by prison authorities, aims to help them reintegrate into society when they get released in future. REUTERS/Enrique Castro-Mendivil (PERU - Tags: SOCIETY CRIME LAW) - RTR33Y1I

Israeli criminals make their way to Morocco

Lacking an extradition treaty with Israel, Morocco has become an unlikely sanctuary for Israeli mobsters looking to make money or avoid police investigations.

Assem al-Tamimi, a Palestinian doctor and Hijama specialist, treats patients at his clinic in the West Bank city of Hebron August 8, 2009. Hijama is a traditional Islamic treatment method that involves creating a vacuum on the skin by placing inverted cups on parts of the body and drawing blood from an incision on the skin. REUTERS/Nayef Hashlamoun (WEST BANK HEALTH IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR26IKP

Hijama, bloodletting as a traditional medicine, remains popular in Iraq

Hijama, a form of traditional medicine that involves removing "bad blood" with suction cups, remains popular in Iraq due to its foundation in culture and religion.

A ship is docked at Al-Basra oil terminal, next to a Central Meeting and Manifold Platform belonging to Iraq's Southern Oil Company in the Middle East Gulf November 27, 2013. The Southern Oil Company is preparing a new Central Metering and Manifold Platform to increase oil export capacity. It will be operational in the first quarter of next year, according to Associate Director Mahmoud Abdul Amir. Picture taken November 27, 2013. REUTERS/Essam Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: ENERGY) - RTX163G7

Iraq seeks to become regional trade hub

As its economy continues to struggle, Iraqi officials are working to improve the country's transportation sector to make it an international trading hub.

Turkey's European Affairs Minister Egemen Bagis addresses a joint news conference with European Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule (R) after EU-Turkey accession talks in Brussels November 5, 2013. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir (BELGIUM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX150NB

Turkey and EU attempt to re-energize ties

Despite their half-century of hot-and-cold relations, Ankara and the European Union are trying to mend fences for Turkey's EU membership bid.

01 Animal Carts Al-Monitor.jpg

Animal carts collect Gaza's garbage due to siege

A lack of fuel has sidelined garbage trucks in Gaza, prompting officials to switch to animal carts for collection.

A storekeeper places money in the drawer of the cash register at his shop in Tehran May 4, 2008. With Western banks cutting ties with the Islamic Republic, it is becoming more and more difficult to transfer funds to the country of 70 million people. Tehran's increasing financial isolation is forcing some to bring in money by hand in thick wads of $100 bills on the plane from Dubai, the Gulf's financial centre, or elsewhere. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN) - RTX5GRN

Rouhani’s first budget reflects realism, discipline

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s budget submission to the parliament implies hope for sanctions relief and private sector investment.

Two men display tattoos on their arm and neck while standing in front of an Iranian painting at a shopping centre in northern Tehran September 21, 2006. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN) - RTR1HM9D

Tattooed in Tehran

Iranian officials are actively trying to stem the appeal of tattooing, which is illegal but increasingly popular among youths.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

An Iranian man walks past a BMW displayed at a car shop in central Tehran March 1, 2012. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tags: SOCIETY BUSINESS TRANSPORT) - RTR2YP9L

Economic scorecard for Rouhani's first 100 days

The Iranian president may feel under pressure to expand government benefits, but it should stay focused on growth strategies.

Pioneering woman starts Arab Israeli news site

Ghada Zoabi, founder of Bokra, the first daily news site for Israeli Arabs, launches a cooperation project between her e-paper and an Israeli lifestyle online magazine.

Baghdad-Erbil oil dispute: Agreeing to disagree, for now

As the Erbil-Baghdad oil controversy drags on, it remains unclear how ties will be affected between Ankara, Erbil and Baghdad.

Foreign and Palestinian activists hold Palestinian flags as they march through a supermarket in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Modiin Illit October 24, 2012. Some 50 activists marched through the supermarket and tried to block a road in the settlement on Wednesday during a protest against Jewish settlements and in a call to boycott settlement products. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST FOOD TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR39IM8

Israeli leaders oblivious to Europe's message on boycott

The Israeli leadership risks boycotts beyond West Bank products with its failure to fully appreciate the extent to which the EU distrusts Israel's stated desire for a peace settlement.

Musicians perform on stage in Manger Square, outside the Church of the Nativity, the site revered as the birthplace of Jesus, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem December 1, 2013. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (WEST BANK - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX1605A

Bethlehem gets assist from UNESCO for Christmas season

UNESCO's recognition of the Church of the Nativity as an Endangered World Heritage site has brought much needed funds to revamp the once-popular tourist destination.