Economy and trade

French President Emmanuel Macron (L) and Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tarik pose during a meeting with business leaders in Paris on June 29, 2026.

Oman's sultan meets Macron in first France visit since 1989: What to know

French President Emmanuel Macron has been pushing against any form of toll for the Strait of Hormuz.

AFP via Getty Images

Traffic plummets through Strait of Hormuz after Iran, US trade fire

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz had recovered somewhat before renewed fighting between Iran and the United States saw traffic drop sharply over the weekend.

A student attends a training seminar at the Tourism Ministry Training center in the city of Riyadh on August 30, 2022.

Interview

Saudi labor localization will take ‘generation or two': Armada CEO

Around 70% of Saudi Arabia's population is 35 years old or younger, according to the kingdom’s General Authority for Statistics, providing ample opportunity for an educated and technology-savvy national workforce in the coming decades.

Olivier Badard

CEO of Armada Holding

A tourist boat passes near crude oil tankers, bulk carriers, and other vessels anchored off Port Sultan Qaboos in Muscat, Oman, June 19, 2026.

Analysis

Why the Hormuz oil shock never became an energy catastrophe

The US-Israel-Iran war produced a historic oil supply shock but not a severe global economic crisis, due to ample prewar supplies, China's energy pivot and strategic reserve releases.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Latest News

Oil falls below $74 as Hormuz traffic recovers after Iran war

Elke Scholiers/Getty Images

Explainer

Lebanon advances controversial $500K golden visa law: What to know

A picture shows the four seasons hotel in Beirut with the snow covered mountain of Sannine in the background on March 8, 2019.

Explainer

Qatar blast underscores challenges in race to restart Gulf energy flows

Qatar's Energy Minister and CEO of QatarEnergy Saad Sherida al-Kaabi speaks during a press conference in Doha on June 22, 2026.

Interview

US-Egypt fund makes case for economic statecraft in hard power era

A worker counts banknotes after filling up the tank of a vehicle at a petrol station in Giza on March 10, 2026.

Cornelius Queen

Cornelius Queen

Senior Vice President of the Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund

Journalists gather outside the Ankara courthouse on March 10, 2020 behind a banner reading in Turkish "journalism is not crime," to protest over jailing of journalists, sparked by the recent arrest of OdaTV's news director and a journalist's report on the funeral of a Turkish intelligence officer apparently killed in Libya. - The journalists were taken to an Istanbul court formally arrested them on suspicion of disclosing the identity of an intelligence agency official. RSF ranks Turkey 157th out of 180 cou

New banking regulations threaten press freedom in Turkey

Recent measures seeking to limit damaging information on the financial system pose new threats to press freedom in Turkey.

Lebanese bank official arrested for alleged currency manipulation

Lebanon's central bank denied the allegations; the Lebanese pound's value has decreased significantly amid the ongoing economic crisis.

Gulf’s megaprojects face delays, reassessment

Saudi Arabia has cut capital expenditure for a number of Vision 2030 projects amid a drop in oil prices and Chinese investment. Will other Gulf states follow suit?

An investor walks past a screen displaying stock information at the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia June 29, 2016. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser - S1AETMRJVXAC

Have taxes killed GCC economic integration?

Saudi Arabia's recent decision to increase its value-added tax by 200% could spell the end of chances for regional economic integration and policy coordination.

An employee tends to medical cannabis plants at Pharmocann, an Israeli medical cannabis company in northern Israel January 24, 2019. Picture taken January 24, 2019. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RC116A4F32D0

Israel gives final go-ahead for cannabis exports

Israeli Economy Minister Eli Cohen gives his final approval for the export of medical cannabis.

TEHRAN, IRAN - FEBRUARY 20, 2020: The final inspections are made on a Peugoet 206 car in the production line of Iran Khodro Car Factory on February 20, 2020 in Tehran, Iran. (Photo by Kaveh Kazemi/Getty Images)

Iran’s industry minister sacked amid crumbling economy

In a surprise move, Iran’s president dismissed his minister of industry as the sector is increasingly plagued by US sanctions, untamed inflation and corruption.

Iraqi Kurdish officers and policemen stand at the gate of the border between Iraqi Kurdistan and Iran, that partially reopened for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at the border between Iran and Iraqi Kurdistan in Halabja Province, Iraq May 3, 2020. REUTERS/Saman Mahmood - RC24HG9M4JY9

Iraq reopens 2 border crossings to help boost battered Iranian economy

Two of five Iranian-Iraqi border crossings reopen for both goods and individuals, to the benefit of Iran's sanctions- and coronavirus-hit economy, and of Iraqis in the south and in the KRG-run north.

An employee trims beard of a client as the other one gives him manicure, on the first day of the reopening of a hair salon which was closed since March 21 amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Istanbul, Turkey, May 11, 2020. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC2BMG9ZPB5E

Malls reopen, antivirus measures eased as Turkish economy teeters

Shopping malls, barber shops and some stores reopened across Turkey Monday as the government rolled backed coronavirus precautions with aims to bolster the battered economy.

Jordanian traders follow the market's movements at the Amman Stock Exchange on October 21, 2008. Jordan's King Abdullah II announced earlier this month a series of economic measures for his cash-strapped desert kingdom, where inflation and unemployment are both hovering around 15 percent. AFP PHOTO/KHALIL MAZRAAWI (Photo credit should read KHALIL MAZRAAWI/AFP via Getty Images)

Jordan reopens stock market after two months, value falls

Jordan's stock market resumed trading after a two-month shutdown amid the coronavirus crisis, but stocks continued to fall.

Shoppers walk in Istinye Park shopping mall in Istanbul May 17, 2013. Turkey hailed its second investment grade rating on Friday, seeing it as a seal of approval from international markets for a decade of economic reform. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS) - GM1E95H1GII01

Why is Turkey prioritizing shopping malls in reopening plan?

Ankara’s haste to reopen shopping malls may be an effort to revive sagging consumption, but it also has to do with a tight nexus between politicians and businesses in the country.

Employees work inside Uber's Centre of Excellence (COE) office in Cairo, Egypt October 10, 2017. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh - RC14851C04A0

Uber lays off 40% of Cairo office, largest in Middle East

The layoffs come amid global cuts as the coronavirus pandemic sees revenues drop.

With virus numbers low, Turkey turns to ailing lira

Nearly 83,000 people in Turkey have recovered from the novel coronavirus but as the government touts its success on the public health front, another fire has ignited: a record low in the lira as foreign investors flee.