Business

World Food Prices Dip in October, but Remain Higher Than a Year Ago

Business A worker carries loaves of bread for sale at a bakery in the capital city of Cairo, Egypt November 4, 2026. (Reuters)

World Food Prices Dip in October, but Remain Higher Than a Year Ago

World food prices edged lower in October as weaker import demand contributed to monthly declines in cereal, dairy and meat prices, but were still nearly 6%…

Business Copper at the Aurubis copper smelting and refining plant in Hamburg, Germany. (Reuters)

Copper Falls, Set for Worst Week Since March on AI Rout

Copper dropped on Friday and was set for its biggest weekly drop in London since March, as a rout in technology stocks battered markets. Benchmark three…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Workers walk at Kalyon Karapinar solar power plant in Karapinar, Konya province, Türkiye, Oct. 14, 2026. (AP)

Emerging Economies Set to Match Advanced Nations’ Renewable Capacity Additions, IEA Says

Emerging ‌and developing economies outside China are expected to add as much new renewable energy capacity as advanced economies for the first time over…

Business Gold bracelets displayed in a shop window on Green Street, east London, UK, April 30, 2024. (AFP)

Gold Drops Over 1% on Higher Oil Prices; US Payrolls Data in Focus

Gold prices slipped on Friday as oil prices rebounded, fanning inflation worries and higher-for-longer interest rate expectations, while investors awaited key…

Business A pumpjack operates near Bakersfield, California, on Oct. 16. (AFP)

Oil Set for Sharp Weekly Drop but Middle East Supply Concerns Provide Floor

Oil prices are set for a sharp weekly drop on expectations of a de-escalation of the Iran war after US President Donald Trump's party suffered election losses,…


Business Saudi Arabia announced the discovery of seven oil and gas deposits. SPA

Saudi Arabia Announces Discovery of Oil, Gas Deposits

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman announced on Monday the discovery of seven oil and gas deposits in the Kingdom's Eastern Province and Empty…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business A motorbike drives past buildings destroyed during previous Israeli military fire on the southern Lebanese village of Aita al-Shaab, near the border with northern Israel on June 29, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (Photo by AFP)

Lebanon Extends Deadline for Licensing Round for Offshore Oil, Gas Fields

Lebanon's energy ministry has extended a deadline for companies to bid for exploration rights for offshore oil and gas fields in its third licensing round…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Business A woman takes pictures as a ferry sails on the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Türkiye, 29 June 2024. EPA/ERDEM SAHIN

Türkiye Says Aims to Rein in Tax Breaks, Target Avoidance in Reform Plan

A drive by Türkiye 's government to modernize the country's tax system will seek to boost revenue by tackling tax avoidance and scrapping incentives that are…

Asharq Al Awsat (Ankara)
Business The euro rose after the first round of France's snap election put the far-right in pole position. Reuters

Euro Rises after France's First-round Vote; Yen Fragile

The euro rose on Monday after the first round of France's snap election put the far-right in pole position, though by a smaller margin than projected, while…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Marked ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a cart at the Krastsvetmet non-ferrous metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia March 10, 2022. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo

Gold Holds Ground as Slowing Inflation Boosts Fed Rate Cut Bets

Gold prices held steady on Monday after data showed US inflation subsided in May, bolstering hopes that the Federal Reserve will start cutting interest rates…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business FILE PHOTO: A view shows oil pump jacks outside Almetyevsk in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia June 4, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk//File Photo

Oil Prices Climb on Summer Demand Optimism

Oil prices climbed on Monday, supported by forecasts of a supply deficit stemming from peak summer fuel consumption and OPEC+ cuts in the third quarter,…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business A view shows buildings and the Kingdom Centre Tower in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, January 1, 2017. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser/File photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Saudi Arabia's Net Foreign Direct Investment Rises 5.6% in First Quarter

Net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to Saudi Arabia rose 5.6% to 9.5 billion riyals ($2.53 billion) in the first quarter of 2024, government data…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business This picture shows Aramco tower (C) at the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) in Riyadh on April 16, 2023. (AFP via Getty Images)

Aramco Signs Over $25 Billion of Deals for Main Gas Network, Jafurah Gas Field

Saudi Arabia's state oil company Aramcohas signed contracts worth more than $25 billion for the second phase of the expansion of its Jafurah gas field and the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business A night view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (SPA)

GASTAT: Unemployment Rate in Saudi Arabia Stabilizes Relatively at 3.5% in Q1 2024

The Saudi unemployment rate in the first quarter of 2024 reached 7.6%, compared to 7.8% in the fourth quarter of 2023, said the General Authority for…

Business  A voter prepares to cast a ballot at a polling station for the first round of the parliamentary elections in Paris, Sunday June 30, 2024. (AP)

France’s Finances to Come under Further Strain Whoever Wins Election

Already under scrutiny from ratings agencies, financial markets and Brussels, France's public finances are likely to come under more strain no matter what the…

Business Tajik Investment Minister Sultan Rahimzadeh.

Riyadh, Dushanbe to Implement Investment Projects in Energy, Industry and Mining Sectors

Tajik Investment Minister Sultan Rahimzadeh revealed ongoing efforts with Saudi Arabia to find mechanisms for implementing investment projects in the energy,…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)
Business IsDB Allocates $368.98 Million for Development Projects in Türkiye, Turkmenistan, and Suriname

IsDB Allocates $368.98 Million for Development Projects in Türkiye, Turkmenistan, and Suriname

The Islamic Development Bank's (IsDB) Board of Executive Directors approved the allocation of $368.98 million for new development projects in several member…

Business A general view of Kuwait City November 10, 2012. REUTERS/Stephanie Mcgehee

Fire Breaks Out at Kuwait's al-Zour Refinery, Production Unaffected

A limited fire broke out in a storage area belonging to Kuwait's al-Zour refinery, but production was not affected, state-owned Kuwait Integrated Petroleum…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pauses before speaking during a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels, on June 20, 2023. (AP)

European Companies Signing More than $42 Bln Worth of Deals in Egypt

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday European companies were signing more than 20 new deals or MOUs worth a total of more than 40…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business People walk past the Sandton Convention Center, which hosted the BRICS Summit, in Johannesburg, South Africa August 19, 2023. REUTERS/James Oatway

BRICS Countries Back Grain Exchange Idea

The BRICS group of countries have supported an initiative to set up a grain exchange, Russian Minister of Agriculture Oksana Lut said on Friday. The exchange…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business A Chinese flag flutters outside the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) building on the Financial Street in Beijing, China February 8, 2024. (Reuters)

China, Peru Completed 'Substantial Negotiations' to Upgrade FTA

China and Peru have achieved "substantial conclusion of negotiations" on the upgrading of a free trade agreement between both countries, Chinese state media…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The Saudi Minister of Communications and Information  met in Washington with the US Secretary of Commerce. SPA

Saudi Arabia, US Discuss Supporting Growth of Digital Economy in the Region

Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Eng. Abdullah bin Amer Al-Sawah has met in Washington with the US Secretary of Commerce, Gina…

Asharq Al Awsat (Washington)
Business Inflation is receding after spiking in the first quarter as 525 basis points worth of rate hikes from the Fed since 2022 cool domestic demand (Reuters)

US Inflation Cools in May, Boosting Hopes of Fed Rate Cut

US monthly inflation was unchanged in May as a modest increase in the cost of services was offset by the largest drop in goods prices in six months, drawing…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business FILE PHOTO: Gas pipelines are pictured at the Atamanskaya compressor station, facility of Gazprom's Power Of Siberia 1 project outside the far eastern town of Svobodny, in Amur region, Russia November 29, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo

Gazprom to Start Exports to China from far East in 2027

Russia's Gazprom will start annual pipeline gas exports to China of 10 billion cubic metres (bcm) in 2027, its boss Alexei Miller told an annual shareholders'…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives for a ceremony in Beijing marking the 70th anniversary of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence /AFP

China Planning 'Major' Reforms Ahead of Key Political Meeting

Chinese President Xi Jinping said Friday the ruling Communist Party was planning and implementing "major" reforms, ahead of a closely watched political…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The logo of Saudi Aramco is pictured outside Khurais, Saudi Arabia October 12, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo

Saudi Aramco to Buy 10% Stake in Renault-Geely Thermal Engines Venture

Saudi Aramco will buy a 10% stake in a thermal engines joint venture between French carmaker Renault and Chinese automaker Geely, the companies said on Friday,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dhahran)
Business This aerial picture shows Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Türkiye, April 25, 2020. (AFP Photo)

Türkiye Welcomes Removal from Key Money-laundering Watchlist

Türkiye on Friday welcomed a decision by an international watchdog to remove it from a so-called “ gray list ” of countries that have not fully implemented…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The Saudi Central Bank continues to monitor new methods of financial fraud in the Kingdom (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia Seeks to Protect Bank Accounts by Monitoring New Methods of Financial Fraud

In light of the rapid technical developments the world is witnessing, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic, the Kingdom has been able to safely provide a…

Bandar al-Mosalam (Riyadh)
Business Police officers wearing face masks guard the US Capitol Building in Washington, US, May 14, 2020. (Reuters)

IMF Says US Needs to Tackle Debt despite Robust Growth

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday called on the US to raise taxes to curb rising debt levels while applauding "robust, dynamic" growth in the world's…

Asharq Al Awsat