Business

Mega Projects Drive Growth for Saudi Small and Medium Factories

Business A factory in Madinah’s industrial city. (SPA)

Mega Projects Drive Growth for Saudi Small and Medium Factories

Mega projects in Saudi Arabia are offering increasing opportunities for small and medium-sized factories to expand their businesses and integrate into local…

Sara bin Shamran (Riyadh)
Business Majnoon oil field near the Iraqi city of Basra (Reuters)

Iraq Oil Output Exceeds 5 million bpd

Iraq produces more than 5 million barrels of oil per day (bpd), Oil Minister Basim Mohammed told state news agency INA on Saturday. According to Reuters, Iraq…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva speaks during the Annual Meetings Plenary at the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) in Bangkok on October 16, 2026. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)

IMF: Any Slowdown in AI-driven Growth Would be Factor for Central Banks

Central bankers around the world would need to consider any slowdown in AI-driven growth as they assess steps in their fight against inflation, International…

Asharq Al Awsat
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 Iraq Seeks to Expand in Gas Investment, Renewable Energy Production

Iraq Seeks to Expand in Gas Investment, Renewable Energy Production

Iraq’s Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar announced Saturday that Iraq would rely on green energy to invest in gas and produce renewable energy. During his…

Asharq Al Awsat (Baghdad)
Business World Bank Lauds Egypt's Investment in Technology

World Bank Lauds Egypt's Investment in Technology

Egypt would not have been able to confront the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic had it not undertaken many reforms, said a World Bank official. The…

Lamia Nabil (Cairo)
Business Saudi Arabia, Germany Look to Expand Qualitative Investments

Saudi Arabia, Germany Look to Expand Qualitative Investments

Presenting the mega investment opportunities available in Saudi Arabia, Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih on Friday stressed that investment prospects in the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Oil Rallies towards $73 on Tight US Supplies, Biden-Xi Call

Oil Rallies towards $73 on Tight US Supplies, Biden-Xi Call

Oil rose towards $73 a barrel on Friday, supported by growing signs of supply tightness in the United States as a result of Hurricane Ida and as US-China trade…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business  EU Okays ITA, Orders Alitalia to Repay 900 Mln Euros Illegal State Aid

EU Okays ITA, Orders Alitalia to Repay 900 Mln Euros Illegal State Aid

EU competition regulators on Friday gave the green light to Alitalia's successor Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA) and also ordered the Italian flag carrier to…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business $154 Million Worth Emirati-French Investment in New Abu Dhabi Terminal

$154 Million Worth Emirati-French Investment in New Abu Dhabi Terminal

Abu Dhabi Ports and shipping company CMA CGM Group have formed a joint venture and signed a 35-year concession agreement to develop and operate a new terminal…

Asharq Al Awsat (Abu Dhabi)
Business GCC Unified Customs Law Amended to Fight Counterfeit Import

GCC Unified Customs Law Amended to Fight Counterfeit Import

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states, including Saudi Arabia, have recently passed several amendments to the GCC Unified Customs Law, official…

Bandar al-Mosalam (Riyadh)
Business Saudi Arabia to Host Middle East Poultry Exhibition, Conference

Saudi Arabia to Host Middle East Poultry Exhibition, Conference

The Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture has announced holding the first Middle East Poultry Exhibition and Conference under the theme: …

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Egypt Becomes Africa Finance Corporation’s 32nd Member State, With a Potential of US$1 Billion of Investments

Egypt Becomes Africa Finance Corporation’s 32nd Member State, With a Potential of US$1 Billion of Investments

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has welcomed Egypt as its newest member state. Egypt’s Prime Minister, H.E. Dr Mostafa Madbouly, committed North Africa’s most…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Aramco Expands its Industrial Investment Program

Saudi Aramco Expands its Industrial Investment Program

Saudi Aramco has announced a significant expansion of its industrial investment program, Aramco Namaat, with the signing of 22 new Memoranda of Understanding …

Asharq Al Awsat (Dhahran)
Business World Defense Show in Riyadh: 85% of Space Allocated

World Defense Show in Riyadh: 85% of Space Allocated

The World Defense Show, the global defense and security event to be held in Riyadh, has already allocated 85 percent of its space amid a broad international,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Oil Holds Steady on Slow Return of US Supplies

Oil Holds Steady on Slow Return of US Supplies

Oil prices were little changed on Wednesday following overnight losses from a stronger dollar and demand concerns, with a slow production restart in the US…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business DIFC Achieves 27% Increase in Active Registered Companies during H1

DIFC Achieves 27% Increase in Active Registered Companies during H1

Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) has achieved its ‘2024 Strategy’ growth targets three years ahead of schedule. The total number of active…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dubai)
Business ADQ Says Plans to List Abu Dhabi Ports on Stock Exchange

ADQ Says Plans to List Abu Dhabi Ports on Stock Exchange

State-backed holding company ADQ said on Tuesday it plans to list Abu Dhabi Ports Co on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) before the end of the year. The…

Asharq Al Awsat (Abu Dhabi)
Business Abu Dhabi Wealth Fund to Focus on Tech, Climate Change

Abu Dhabi Wealth Fund to Focus on Tech, Climate Change

Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) sees technology and climate change as key investment areas for its post-COVID-19 strategy, it said in its 2020 annual…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Government Committee to Encourage Private Sector Firms to List on Saudi Stock Exchange

Government Committee to Encourage Private Sector Firms to List on Saudi Stock Exchange

An economic gathering revealed the formation of a government committee that includes the Capital Market Authority, the Ministry of Commerce, the Small and…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)
Business Aramco Inaugurates First Saudi Fiberglass Facility

Aramco Inaugurates First Saudi Fiberglass Facility

Saudi Aramco inaugurated the first fiberglass rebar plant in the Kingdom, which is expected to localize the industry and reduce steel rebar consumption, as a…

Asharq Al Awsat (Al-Dammam)
Business MoU Aims to Invest in Saudi Education Sector

MoU Aims to Invest in Saudi Education Sector

The Saudi Ministry of Education, represented by the General Department of Investment and Privatization, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Spain Launches First Ever Green Bond

Spain Launches First Ever Green Bond

Spain was set to launch its first ever green bond on Tuesday, leading a flurry of such issuances expected in September. The 20-year bond sale will raise 5…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business In World First, Bitcoin Becomes Legal Tender in El Salvador

In World First, Bitcoin Becomes Legal Tender in El Salvador

El Salvador on Tuesday becomes the first country in the world to accept bitcoin as legal tender, despite widespread domestic skepticism and international…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business UAE Announces 'Projects of the 50'

UAE Announces 'Projects of the 50'

UAE plans to launch 50 new economic initiatives to boost the country's competitiveness and attract 550 billion dirhams ($150 billion) in foreign direct…

Mosaed al-Zayani (Dubai)
Business IsDB Group Commits $1.2 Bn to Support Post-Pandemic Recovery

IsDB Group Commits $1.2 Bn to Support Post-Pandemic Recovery

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, the AAA-rated multilateral development bank of the Muslim world, has announced $1.2 billion in funding commitments…

Asharq Al Awsat (Jeddah)
Business Saudi Non-Oil Private Sector Continues to Grow

Saudi Non-Oil Private Sector Continues to Grow

Saudi Arabia's non-oil private sector continued to grow in August, a business survey by IHS-Markit showed. The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Saudi Arabia…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Iraq, Total Sign $27 bln Energy Projects Deal

Iraq, Total Sign $27 bln Energy Projects Deal

France's Total will build four giant energy projects in southern Iraq under a $27 billion deal signed in Baghdad on Sunday, the country's oil minister said. …

Asharq Al Awsat