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 The Human Resources Development Fund was a strategic partner in the Global Labor Market Conference in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Human Resources Development Fund Reveals 24 Deals Worth $400ml to Support Employment

The Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) is implementing 24 active agreements to support employment-related training in high-growth sectors, with a combined…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business A boat carries people as a Houthi fighter keeps watch on the deck of the Galaxy Leader cargo ship, seized by the Houthis offshore of the al-Salif port on the Red Sea in the province of Hodeidah, Yemen, 05 December 2023 (issued 06 December 2023). (EPA)

Shippers Mask Positions, Weigh Options Amid Red Sea Attacks 

A number of container ships are anchored in the Red Sea and others have turned off tracking systems as traders adjust routes and prices in response to maritime…

Business One of the refinery companies affiliated with “Saudi Aramco” (SAMREF)

World Economic Forum Includes Yanbu Refinery into Industrial Lighthouses Network

The World Economic Forum (WEF) announced, on Monday, the inclusion of Saudi Aramco’s Yanbu Refinery within the “Industrial Lighthouses” network, in…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The Saudi economy witnessed a transformation as the non-oil sector seized a growing share of the gross domestic product. (SPA)

Moody’s Expects Saudi Non-Oil Sector to Grow 3-4 Percent Annually until 2030

Moody’s Analytics expected Saudi Arabia’s non-oil GDP to grow between three and four percent annually until 2030, as the Kingdom is enhancing spending to…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business An aerial view of Marrakech, Morocco November 10, 2021. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg/File Photo

Morocco to Hit Record Tourism Arrivals despite Headwinds

Morocco's tourism industry looks set to have had a record year, boosting the wider economy, despite September's earthquake and what sector professionals see as…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The rules aim to regulate the licensing provisions for BNPL companies. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

SAMA Issues Rules to Regulate BNPL Companies

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) announced the issuance of rules regulating postpaid (Buy now, pay later - BNPL) companies, in line with SAMA’s supervisory and…

Business Saudi Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor Dr. Abdullah Abuthnain meets with Libyan Minister of Labor and Rehabilitation Ali Al-Abed Al-Rida in Riyadh. (SPA)

Libyan Minister: We Are Seeking to Benefit from Saudi Experience in Labor Market

Libya has reached an agreement with the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development to prepare a memorandum of understanding to “benefit from the…

Business  The Wonder Garden area during the 2023 Riyadh Season (Riyadh Season Media Center)

Riyadh Season Generates Thousands of Job Opportunities, Record Revenues

Less than two months have passed since the launch of the fourth edition of the Riyadh Season. The event is considered one of the basic pillars of the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business A Suez Canal Authority (SCA) tugboat works to salvage a navigational emergency and technical malfunction sustained by a container vessel “ONE ORPHEUS” during its transit through the Suez Canal in Egypt December 6, 2023. (Suez Canal Authority/Handout via Reuters)

Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority Monitoring Tensions in Red Sea 

Egypt's Suez canal authority said on Sunday it was closely monitoring the impact of tensions in the Red Sea after recent attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi…

Business The new facility will be used for testing a spectrum of chargers and software. SPA

EVIQ Launches State-of-the-Art R&D Facility for Electric Vehicle Chargers in Saudi Arabia

EVIQ, the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Company, a newly launched joint venture between the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Saudi Electricity Company …

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Türkiye's central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan said she is living with her parents because of housing inflation (AFP)

Türkiye's Central Bank Invites Foreigners to Buy Lira Bonds

Türkiye's central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan said its monetary tightening cycle has ended and called on foreigners to invest in lira-denominated…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The Saudi Investment Recycling Company (SIRC) logo

World Bank Delegation Visits Saudi Investment Recycling Company

A high-level delegation from the World Bank has visited the headquarters of the Saudi Investment Recycling Company (SIRC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business The "CMA CGM Palais Royal", the world's largest container's ship powered by natural gas, sails in the bay of Marseille, southern France, on December 14, 2023. (Photo by Christophe SIMON / AFP)

Shipping Firms to Avoid Suez Canal as Red Sea Attacks Increase

Two major freight firms including MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co, the world's biggest container shipping line, on Saturday said they would avoid the Suez Canal…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Several agreements were signed on the sidelines of the Global Labor Market Conference. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Women Occupy 42.5% of Saudi Arabia’s Middle, Senior Positions

Saudi Deputy Minister of Human Resources for Localization Eng. Majid Al-Dahawi revealed that 26 agreements have been signed to support the empowerment and…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business FILE PHOTO: Crude oil drips from a valve as a worker walks past at an oil well operated by Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA in Morichal July 28, 2011. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo

Oil Prices on Track for First Weekly Rise in 2 Months

Oil prices rose on Friday, on track to notch their first weekly rise in two months after benefiting from a bullish forecast from the International Energy…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business A worker sweeps a walkway in a temple during a snowfall in Beijing on December 14, 2023. (AFP)

China’s Economy Forecast to Slow Sharply in 2024, World Bank Says, Calling Recovery ‘Fragile’ 

China's economy grew at a 5.2% pace in the first three quarters of the year and showed signs of improvement in November, with factory output and retail sales…

Business Saudi Arabia recorded a slight increase in its inflation in November, reaching 1.7 percent on an annual basis. (SPA)

Inflation in Saudi Arabia at its Lowest in Nearly 2 Years

Saudi Arabia recorded a slight increase in its inflation in November, which reached 1.7 percent on an annual basis. However, this rate remains near the lowest…

Bandar al-Mosalam (Riyadh)
Business The meeting in Riyadh discussed a number of issues, including ways to enhance cooperation and strategic partnership between Saudi Arabia and the World Bank. SPA

Saudi Economy Minister, World Bank Review Kingdom’s Economic Reforms

Saudi Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal bin Fadhil Alibrahim has met with the delegation of the Executive Council of the World Bank Group, which is on a…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business The Saudi flag. Asharq Al-Awsat

Communications, Information Technology Ministry Named Best Workplace among Saudi Ministries

The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology has been named best workplace among ministries in the Kingdom, according to the Great Place to Work…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business The inauguration was attended by several Bahraini ministers and senior Saudi and Bahraini officials. (SPA)

Saudi Fund for Development Inaugurates Al-Fateh Street Development Project in Bahrain

Saudi Arabia and Bahrain inaugurated on Thursday the “Al-Fateh Street” development project in Bahrain. The inauguration was held in the presence of…

Business The COP28 concluded on Wednesday (AP)

COP28 Concludes by Approving UAE Climate Agreement

The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) concluded its work on Wednesday, after representatives of nearly 200 countries, in addition to the…

Mosaed al-Zayani (Dubai)
Business  Saudi Human Resources and Social Development Minister Ahmed Al-Rajhi addressing the audience during the opening of the first Global Labor Market Conference held in Riyadh from Dec. 13-14 (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Al-Rajhi to Asharq Al-Awsat: Saudi Arabia Pioneers Interest in Artificial Intelligence

Saudi Arabia is among the first countries to embrace Artificial Intelligence (AI), Human Resources and Social Development Minister Ahmed Al-Rajhi told Asharq…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business The International Monetary Fund announced on Wednesday that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been selected to Chair the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC). (SPA)

Saudi Arabia Selected as IMFC Chair

The International Monetary Fund announced on Wednesday that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been selected to Chair the International Monetary and Financial…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Global Investment Promotion Conference was held in the Chinese city of Shenzhen - SPA

Ministry of Environment Discusses Aquaculture Sector Investment with 60 Chinese Companies

The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture discussed ways to enhance investments between the Kingdom and China in the aquaculture sector with…

Asharq Al Awsat