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 Fitch Stresses Flexibility of Saudi Economic Policies

Fitch Stresses Flexibility of Saudi Economic Policies

Fitch Ratings has revised the Outlook on Saudi Arabia’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to Negative from Stable and affirmed the IDR at …

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business China Gears up for World's Largest Online Shopping Festival

China Gears up for World's Largest Online Shopping Festival

Chinese consumers are expected to spend tens of billions on everything from fresh food to luxury goods during this year’s Singles’ Day online shopping festival…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business French Unemployment Surges to 2-Year High of 9.0% in Third Quarter

French Unemployment Surges to 2-Year High of 9.0% in Third Quarter

France's unemployment rate rose to its highest level in two years in the third quarter, the INSEE statistics office said on Tuesday, as the euro zone's second…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Iraq: Calls to Dismiss Finance Minister over Delayed Salaries

Iraq: Calls to Dismiss Finance Minister over Delayed Salaries

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi held Monday a meeting with the parliamentary finance committee to discuss the proposed borrowing law and the 2021 state…

Fadhel al-Nashmi (Baghdad)
Business Egypt, UK to Boost Bilateral Security, Intelligence Cooperation

Egypt, UK to Boost Bilateral Security, Intelligence Cooperation

Egypt's President received on Monday Chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) Richard Moore during which Abdul Fattah al-Sisi stressed the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Business Saudi Wins Young Technical Professional of the Year Award at ADIPEC

Saudi Wins Young Technical Professional of the Year Award at ADIPEC

Mustafa AlKhowaildi, a petroleum engineer at Saudi Aramco, has won the Young Technical Professional of the Year award at the Abu Dhabi International Exhibition…

Asharq Al Awsat (Abu Dhabi)
Business Algeria Sees 2021 Budget Deficit at 13.57% of GDP

Algeria Sees 2021 Budget Deficit at 13.57% of GDP

Algeria expects its 2021 budget deficit to reach 13.57% of gross domestic product, up from a 10.4% forecast for this year, after a 10.04% rise in public…

Asharq Al Awsat (Algeria)
Business Saudi Energy Minister Says OPEC+ Oil Output Deal Could Be Tweaked

Saudi Energy Minister Says OPEC+ Oil Output Deal Could Be Tweaked

The OPEC+ deal on oil output cuts could be adjusted as it has been in the past if there is consensus among members of the informal producers' group, Saudi…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Bahrain Amends Law to Help Startups Raise Capital

Bahrain Amends Law to Help Startups Raise Capital

Startups and scale-ups in Bahrain are set to benefit from a funding boost following the launch of two new schemes that make it easier to raise capital. A…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)
Business Iraq Committed to Faw Port Project Despite Economic Woes, May Turn to China

Iraq Committed to Faw Port Project Despite Economic Woes, May Turn to China

Despite the economic crisis in Iraq and the authorities’ inability to fulfill their financial obligations, especially with regard to paying the salaries of…

Fadhel al-Nashmi (Baghdad)
Business European Stock Futures Jump as Biden Wins US Presidency

European Stock Futures Jump as Biden Wins US Presidency

European stock index futures jumped to a three-week high on Monday as a victory for US President-elect Joe Biden in the election raised hopes of better trade…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business UAE’s Etihad to Become Mid-Sized Carrier

UAE’s Etihad to Become Mid-Sized Carrier

Etihad Airways on Sunday announced a few organizational changes aimed at transforming the company into a “mid-size, full-service” carrier with a “leaner,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Abu Dhabi)
Business Decline in Interest Rates Expands Opportunities for Real Estate Refinancing in Saudi Arabia

Decline in Interest Rates Expands Opportunities for Real Estate Refinancing in Saudi Arabia

Opportunities have expanded for real estate refinancing in Saudi Arabia as interest rates are declining due to the repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic. …

Mohammed al-Hamidi (Riyadh)
Business Saudi Arabia Wins World Women Empowerment Award

Saudi Arabia Wins World Women Empowerment Award

Saudi Arabia won a world award for empowering women in the sector of communications and information technology for the year 2020. The award was accorded to…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business SMIIC Board of Directors Extends Saudi Arabia's Chairmanship

SMIIC Board of Directors Extends Saudi Arabia's Chairmanship

The General Assembly of the Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries (SMIIC) agreed to postpone the institute's elections and to extend the term…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Egypt's GDP Grows Despite Pandemic

Egypt's GDP Grows Despite Pandemic

Despite the pandemic and tourism collapse, Egypt is projecting healthy economic growth this year, even as one third of the Arab world's most populous country…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Cityscape Egypt Offers Attractive Opportunities to End Market Recession

Cityscape Egypt Offers Attractive Opportunities to End Market Recession

Egypt’s property exhibition, Cityscape Egypt, concluded its events on Saturday after a huge turnout of visitors wanting to seize the chance of the various…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Business Libya’s Oil Production Recovers Past 1M Barrel a Day

Libya’s Oil Production Recovers Past 1M Barrel a Day

Libya’s oil production has surged past 1 million barrels a day, national petroleum officials said on Saturday, marking an important milestone months after its…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business US Aid Agency to Grant $20 Million to Fund Sudan Wheat Purchases

US Aid Agency to Grant $20 Million to Fund Sudan Wheat Purchases

The US Agency for International Development said it will grant $20 million to the World Food Program to purchase wheat for Sudan to alleviate shortages in the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Erdogan Dismisses Central Bank Head after Lira Plunge

Erdogan Dismisses Central Bank Head after Lira Plunge

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday dismissed the head of the country’s central bank following a period of high inflation and record lows for…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Egypt, South Sudan Boost Civil Aviation Cooperation

Egypt, South Sudan Boost Civil Aviation Cooperation

Egypt and South Sudan have strengthened their cooperation in the field of civil aviation. The Egyptian cabinet said that the development is part of a wider…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Business GCC Chambers Calls for Industrial Integration in Health, Food Sectors

GCC Chambers Calls for Industrial Integration in Health, Food Sectors

The GCC Chambers underlined the importance of industrial integration among member-states in the health, medical, agricultural and food industries, emphasizing…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Fitch Sees Growing Risk as Turkish Lira Hits New Low

Fitch Sees Growing Risk as Turkish Lira Hits New Low

Turkey has not done enough policy tightening to support its lira, which tumbled to another record low on Friday, and the country's FX reserves and external…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Tunisia’s Central Bank Presents Gloomy Economic Outlook

Tunisia’s Central Bank Presents Gloomy Economic Outlook

Tunisia’s Central Bank Governor Marwan Abbasi has presented “gloomy” indicators regarding the financial situation, saying that these figures were last seen in…

Mongi Saidani (Tunis)