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Gulf

The PwC Tower, or Libeskind Tower, Milan, March 12, 2021.

Analysis

Can Gulf states slash costly reliance on Western consultancies?

A one-year ban on PwC acquiring work in Saudi Arabia has highlighted the Gulf states' dependency on Western firms and the need to develop local consultancies and talent.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Employees of Aramco oil company work in Saudi Arabia's Abqaiq oil processing plant on September 20, 2019.

Analysis

Can Saudi Arabia afford giga-projects with oil prices under $75 per barrel?

Riyadh could soon run a current account deficit as oil revenue declines amid huge spending commitments toward ambitious Vision 2030 projects. Saudi-led OPEC has also deferred an output increase plan to allow more time to reach desired oil prices.

Jennifer Gnana

Samuel Wendel

By Jennifer Gnana , Samuel Wendel

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

UAE's final unit of Barakah nuclear reactor hooked to grid: What we know

The Emirates is the only Gulf country with a nuclear power program, though neighboring Saudi Arabia also has atomic power ambitions.

United Arab Emirates

A cargo ship is docked at the port of Yemen's Huthi-held city of Hodeida on July 28, 2024. Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudi entity denies its ship hit as Houthis claim attack on Greek tanker

Saudi Arabia's national shipping company Bahri denied reports that its tanker Amjad came under attack by the Houthis, the Yemeni armed group that has stepped up attacks on oil tankers in the Red Sea.

Latest News

Analysis

Telegram CEO's arrest spotlights UAE’s investment-based citizenship laws

MUNICH, GERMANY - JANUARY 24: Pavel Durov of Vkontakte speaks during the Digital Life Design conference (DLD) at HVB Forum on January 24, 2012 in Munich, Germany. ence and culture which connects business, creative and social leaders, opinion-formers and investors for crossover conversation and inspiration. (Photo by Nadine Rupp/Getty Images)

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

Heavy floods hit Dubai, airport as Oman toll rises to 18

Dubai's roads were badly hit by the heavy downpours

Agence France-Presse

Oman launches $5 billion 'Future Fund' in sign of economic progress

HAITHAM AL-SHUKAIRI/AFP via Getty Images

Al-Qaeda attack in Yemen kills 2 members of southern forces

Security forces deploy near Aden International Airport in Yemen's southern city on April 14, 2023 during a prisoner exchange between the internationally recognised-government and the Sanaa-based Huthi rebels.

A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

ADNOC boosts Middle East IPO activity as Saudi Aramco debates next moves

Amid an enduring global IPO slump, the Middle East continues to produce new listings in 2023 — headlined by Abu Dhabi’s national oil company ADNOC with the largest IPO globally of Quarter 1.

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Kemi Badenoch

UK business minister heads to Gulf to discuss GCC trade deal

Kemi Badenoch will meet her counterparts in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE as well as the new GCC secretary general in a five-day trip.

Brooks Koepka of Smash GC hits a tee shot on the sixth hole during Day Three of the LIV Golf Invitational - Tulsa at Cedar Ridge Country Club in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, May 14, 2023.

Saudi-funded LIV Golf celebrates Brooks Koepka’s PGA win

The breakaway league, which is backed by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, has been experiencing poor TV ratings, though its golfers are performing well at major tournaments.

People attend the International E-Sport Gamers forum "Next World", in the Saudi capital Riyadh, on September 7, 2022. - Much like with Formula One and professional golf, Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter has in recent years leveraged its immense wealth to assert itself on the eSports stage, hosting glitzy conferences and snapping up established tournament organisers. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudi Arabia set to outpace Egypt, UAE in gaming market growth

Saudi Arabia is becoming an attractive investment destination for gaming and esports companies and, along with UAE and Egypt, is forecast to generate $3.1 billion in gaming revenue by 2025.

Matthew Gardell

Matthew Gardell

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images

Qatar emir skips Assad's Arab League speech in Saudi Arabia

The leaders of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt publicly praised Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s participation in the summit after Syria was readmitted to the Arab League.

An employee of the Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) looks at 25 January 2005 the Gathering Center No.15 of al-Rawdatain field, 100 kms north of Kuwait City, following its inauguration just three years after coming under explosion. The KOC affiliated center came under fire by the eve of 2002 due to an oil leakage from the main pipe that protrudes from the Center. According to the emergency plan the center was immediately suspended from action. The oil leakage that reached the gas boosting station 130 and neighbourin

Kuwait’s political crisis is undermining energy growth and options

Some major changes are needed if Kuwait hopes to reach its oil production goals anytime soon.

Gerald Kepes

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy trends

Alejandro Garnacho of Manchester United scores the team's second goal whilst under pressure from Nelson Semedo of Wolverhampton Wanderers during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Old Trafford on May 13, 2023 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Qatari royal submits last-ditch $6.2 billion offer for Manchester United

The updated offer, submitted Tuesday, is believed to be close to £5 billion ($6.2 billion) but shy of the current owners’ £6 billion ($7.4 billion) valuation for the soccer club.

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio seen during the G7 Foreign Ministers Meeting at the Weissenhaus Grand Village Resort on May 13, 2022 near Oldenburg in Holstein, Germany. The three-day conference is focusing on the current Russian war in Ukraine. The foreign ministers of Ukraine and Moldova are also attending. (Photo by Georg Wendt - Pool/Getty Images)

Analysis

Meet Italy’s Luigi Di Maio, EU’s first envoy for Gulf region

Not everyone in Italy and France is welcoming the nomination of former Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio as the European Union's new envoy to the Gulf region.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

This picture shows fuel trucks parked near silos at the Saudi Aramco oil facility in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea city of Jeddah, Nov. 24, 2020.

Petrochemicals take center stage in Gulf’s new oil playbook

Building on experience gained from decades of exporting low value crude oil that fueled the global economy, Gulf countries beef up production capacities of higher value petroleum products to bring a greater chunk of the oil’s value chain closer to home.

This picture taken on on Feb. 1, 2021 shows a view of the downtown Dubai skyline, with Burj Khalifa, as seen from the Dubai Frame vantage point.

Lebanon: Death of citizen in UAE custody sparks controversy

The death of a Lebanese businessman in the custody of UAE authorities risks further straining relations between the two countries.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) shakes hands with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman prior to a meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on February 20, 2019. - Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received a warm welcome in India on February 20, with Riyadh eager to demonstrate it is not an international pariah after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October. (Photo by MONEY SHARMA / AFP) (Photo credit should read MONEY SHARMA/AFP via Getty Images)

In Saudi, US embraces a West Asia architecture with India, UAE

New relationships across the continent may promote both economic development and security.

This picture shows the swimming pool of a luxury villa for sale on one of the Palm Jumeirah man-made island, on the coast of the Gulf emirate of Dubai, on May 19, 2021. - Dubais property market is powering out of a six-year malaise as "lockdown dodgers" and wealthy international investors drive a buying frenzy that is breaking records and fuelling an economic recovery. Luxury villas are the hottest segment in the market, with European buyers in particular seeking homes on Dubais signature Palm Jumeirah man-

Dubai’s real estate, cost of living conundrum creates opportunities for Gulf rivals to capitalize

The UAE’s red-hot real estate market could price out many expats and drive them towards neighboring countries, greatly impacting the regional competition to become a global business hub.

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech