Business

Bahraini Transport Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Each Country to Finance Its Share of Gulf Railway Project

Business A conceptual rendering of the Gulf railway interconnection project. (X)

Bahraini Transport Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Each Country to Finance Its Share of Gulf Railway Project

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states took a new step toward completing the railway interconnection project by signing the project's general…

Merza al-Khuwaldi (Manama)
Business Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty speaks during a press conference with Minister of Information Diaa Rashwan (not pictured) in Cairo, Egypt, March 25, 2026. (Reuters)

Egypt Seeks Faster Progress on Libya Gas, Refining and Power Projects

Egypt aims to accelerate energy projects with Libya, including gas pipeline links, refining of Libyan crude in Egypt and an electricity interconnection,…

Business GCC transport ministers pose for a group photo following the 27th committee meeting in Kuwait. (GCC Railway Authority)

GCC: Railway Agreement Sets Joint Framework for Project Implementation and Operation

Jasem Albudaiwi, secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), said on Sunday that the signing of the General Agreement on the GCC Railway Project…

Asharq Al Awsat (Manama)
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 Family Businesses Contribute $216 Bn to Saudi GDP

Family Businesses Contribute $216 Bn to Saudi GDP

A total of 538 family enterprises, about 63 percent of operating establishments in Saudi Arabia, contribute to $216 billion of the national growth development…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Saudi Outperforms Middle East Markets in 2020

Saudi Outperforms Middle East Markets in 2020

Saudi Arabian shares ended 2020 higher, outperforming other Middle East markets in a pandemic-ravaged year on the back of a recovery in oil prices and strong…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business ADNOC Distribution to Acquire 15 Service Stations in Saudi Arabia

ADNOC Distribution to Acquire 15 Service Stations in Saudi Arabia

ADNOC Distribution on Thursday announced the execution of a definitive agreement to acquire 15 service stations in Saudi Arabia, reaffirming its commitment to…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Algerian President Approves Budget with Gaping Deficit

Algerian President Approves Budget with Gaping Deficit

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday approved a 2021 budget which foresees a deficit of around 14 percent of GDP, the presidency said, as the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Egypt’s Cabinet Allows GASC to Co-Found Shareholding Shipping Company

Egypt’s Cabinet Allows GASC to Co-Found Shareholding Shipping Company

Egypt’s cabinet said on Thursday it agreed a draft bill to allow the state grains buyer, the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) to co-found a…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Nusaned Raises to $2.3Bn Expected Contribution to Saudi GDP

Nusaned Raises to $2.3Bn Expected Contribution to Saudi GDP

The Nusaned Council revealed that since its launch, it has graduated 106 investors qualified to start projects that will create 6,610 jobs and contribute more…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Saudi Arabia to Sustain Growth by Approving Digital Economy Policy

Saudi Arabia to Sustain Growth by Approving Digital Economy Policy

Saudi Arabia seeks speeding up the growth of economic digitization, technology adoption and digital entrepreneurship after the cabinet approved the digital…

Eman Al-Khattaf (Al-Dammam)
Business Turkish Economy Cool since 2018 Halted Erdogan's Hot Streak

Turkish Economy Cool since 2018 Halted Erdogan's Hot Streak

Turkey’s foreign trade deficit has surged beyond $45 billion so far this year, data showed on Thursday, as fallout from the pandemic extended the economy’s…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Egypt’s Exports Amount to $23 Billion in 11 Months

Egypt’s Exports Amount to $23 Billion in 11 Months

The total value of Egyptian exports in the first 11 months of 2020 amounted to about USD22.8 billion, which is a slight decrease compared to USD23.3 billion…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Business Iraq Signs $2.625 Bln Faw Port Contract with Daewoo

Iraq Signs $2.625 Bln Faw Port Contract with Daewoo

Iraq agreed a $2.625 billion deal with South Korea's Daewoo Engineering & Construction on Wednesday to build the first phase at its planned Faw commodities…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business PIF Diversifies Investment by Launching Security Services Company

PIF Diversifies Investment by Launching Security Services Company

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) on Tuesday announced the launch of the National Security Services Company (SAFE) in a move that aims to further…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business PM: Lebanon Can Stretch Reserves for Subsidies Another Six Months

PM: Lebanon Can Stretch Reserves for Subsidies Another Six Months

Lebanon can ration $2 billion (£1.48 billion) in reserves left for subsidies to last six more months, the caretaker prime minister said on Tuesday, as the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business ACWA Power Signs Deals for First Wind Project in Azerbaijan

ACWA Power Signs Deals for First Wind Project in Azerbaijan

Following the signing of the implementation agreement for the $300 million Independent Power Project in January 2020, ACWA Power Tuesday executed the official…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Wizz Air Abu Dhabi Launches First Flight to Athens in January

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi Launches First Flight to Athens in January

Wizz Air Abu Dhabi, the UAE's newest national airline, on Tuesday confirmed that Athens will be its inaugural destination, with flights from Abu Dhabi…

Asharq Al Awsat (Abu Dhabi)
Business Iran's Energy Minister Visits Iraq Over Unpaid Debts

Iran's Energy Minister Visits Iraq Over Unpaid Debts

Iranian Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian arrived in Iraq on Tuesday to discuss a number of issues and Iraq’s energy debts to Iran. Heading an Iranian…

Asharq Al Awsat (Baghdad)
Business Egypt Hopes Quality Control Will Secure its Place as Top Orange Exporter

Egypt Hopes Quality Control Will Secure its Place as Top Orange Exporter

Egypt is aiming to secure a second bumper crop of oranges this season in order to keep its spot as the world’s leading exporter of the citrus fruit, producers…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Conflicting Statements on Turkish Electricity Export to Iraq

Conflicting Statements on Turkish Electricity Export to Iraq

Turkey’s Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EMRA) said Monday that Ankara has begun electricity exports to Iraq through the Silopi-Zakho transmission line. …

Saeed Abdulrazek (Ankara)
Business Strategic Partnership Agreement to Bolster Saudi Non-Oil Exports

Strategic Partnership Agreement to Bolster Saudi Non-Oil Exports

The Saudi Exports Development Authority and the Council of Saudi Chambers signed Monday a memorandum of cooperation to build a strategic bilateral partnership…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Jordan’s Capital Bank Agrees to Buy Assets From Lebanon’s Bank Audi

Jordan’s Capital Bank Agrees to Buy Assets From Lebanon’s Bank Audi

Jordan’s Capital Bank Group finalized a deal on Tuesday to acquire top Lebanese lender Bank Audi’s businesses in Iraq and Jordan in move to diversify and…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Egypt Sees Up to 29% Decrease in Trade Deficit

Egypt Sees Up to 29% Decrease in Trade Deficit

Egypt’s balance of trade deficit shrank by 28.8 percent year-on-year (YoY) to $2.9 billion in October from $4.1 billion in the same month a year earlier,…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Egypt Supply Minister Expects Wheat Prices to Stabilize

Egypt Supply Minister Expects Wheat Prices to Stabilize

Egypt, the world’s largest wheat buyer, expects prices to stabilize in the coming months after recent highs driven by uncertainty during the coronavirus…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Russia Expects 6 Million bpd Additional Oil Demand in 2021

Russia Expects 6 Million bpd Additional Oil Demand in 2021

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Monday he expected there would be 5 million to 6 million bpd additional oil demand in 2021, which has not…

Asharq Al Awsat (London)
Business Saudi STC to Invest up to $500 Mln in Cloud Services with Partners

Saudi STC to Invest up to $500 Mln in Cloud Services with Partners

Saudi Telecom Company (STC), the largest telecom operator in the Kingdom, and eWTP Arabia Capital, one of the largest venture capital funds in the region,…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business SAMI Concludes Largest Military Industries Deal in Saudi History

SAMI Concludes Largest Military Industries Deal in Saudi History

Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), announced on Monday that it has acquired Advanced…

Asharq Al Awsat