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 Local Payments Market Expanded in Saudi Arabia

Local Payments Market Expanded in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Payments, a Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) subsidiary and the operator of national payment network (Mada), has partnered with JCB International…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Cement Sales Jump 33% in Morocco

Cement Sales Jump 33% in Morocco

Cement sales has increased 33 percent in Morocco during the month of June, which is a strong indicator of increased activity in construction, according to the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Rabat)
Business Oman Likely to Issue Bonds to Face Deficit

Oman Likely to Issue Bonds to Face Deficit

Oman is likely to issue bonds this year but may need to use aid from its neighbors or resort to help from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) if it does not,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Muscat)
Business Confusion Swirls as Japan Launches Tourism Campaign amid Virus Surge

Confusion Swirls as Japan Launches Tourism Campaign amid Virus Surge

Japan on Wednesday kicked off a national travel campaign aimed at reviving its battered tourism industry, but the effort has drawn heavy criticism amid a jump…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Here’s Why Saudi Arabia’s Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri is a Frontrunner to Become WTO Director-General

Here’s Why Saudi Arabia’s Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri is a Frontrunner to Become WTO Director-General

Saudi Arabia has nominated Mohammad al-Tuwaijri to become director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and he is considered a frontrunner for the job…

Business LinkedIn Cuts 960 Jobs as Pandemic Puts the Brakes on Corporate Hiring

LinkedIn Cuts 960 Jobs as Pandemic Puts the Brakes on Corporate Hiring

Microsoft Corp's professional networking site LinkedIn said on Tuesday it would cut about 960 jobs, or 6% of its global workforce, as the coronavirus pandemic…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Algeria Expects Energy Revenue to Fall $10 Bln this Year

Algeria Expects Energy Revenue to Fall $10 Bln this Year

Algeria expects its oil and gas revenue to fall to $23 billion this year from $33 billion in 2019, energy minister Abdelmadjid Attar told state radio on…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Lebanon: Medicine Going Out of Stock, Smuggling Fears Mounting

Lebanon: Medicine Going Out of Stock, Smuggling Fears Mounting

A number of Lebanese have complained of the exhaustion of certain medicines, including medications for chronic diseases. This caused panic and fear, especially…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Business Saudi Qiddiya Continues Construction Despite COVID-19 Crisis

Saudi Qiddiya Continues Construction Despite COVID-19 Crisis

Saudi Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC), the developer of the Qiddiya project, has awarded a three-year contract to Shibh al-Jazira Contracting Company (Sajco)…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Turkey’s Short-term Debt Jumps to USD169.5 Billion

Turkey’s Short-term Debt Jumps to USD169.5 Billion

The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) has revealed that short-term debt hiked around USD5 billion within a year in May compared to April, and…

Saeed Abdulrazek (Ankara)
Business Carbon Emissions Decline 4% in Saudi Arabia

Carbon Emissions Decline 4% in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) has recently assessed the levels of carbon emissions in the Kingdom in 2019 and…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business APICORP Funds SirajPower with $50 Million

APICORP Funds SirajPower with $50 Million

The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), a multilateral development financial institution, announced a $50 million credit facility for SirajPower,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dubai)
Business J.C. Penney Says Certain Lenders Ready to Accept Business Plan with Conditions

J.C. Penney Says Certain Lenders Ready to Accept Business Plan with Conditions

J.C. Penney Co Inc said on Monday certain lenders had agreed to accept a business plan on certain conditions as the department-store operator looks to emerge…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Algeria Aims to Reform Tax System, Targets Informal Market

Algeria Aims to Reform Tax System, Targets Informal Market

Algeria, seeking new funding sources to offset a drop in energy export revenues, will reform its tax system and try to attract money from the informal market,…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Global Shares Mixed as Investors Eye EU Meeting on Pandemic

Global Shares Mixed as Investors Eye EU Meeting on Pandemic

Global shares were mixed on Monday as the number of coronavirus cases soared in the US and investors cautiously eyed a summit of European leaders discussing a…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Kuwait Considers Boosting Finances with $16Bn Debt Plan

Kuwait Considers Boosting Finances with $16Bn Debt Plan

Kuwait plans to issue between four and five billion dinars ($13 to $16 billion) in public debt by the end of the fiscal year ending March 2021 if parliament…

Asharq Al Awsat (Kuwait)
Business Ex-Nissan Boss Ghosn Says Renault/Nissan Results 'Pathetic'

Ex-Nissan Boss Ghosn Says Renault/Nissan Results 'Pathetic'

Former Nissan Motor Co Ltd Chairman Carlos Ghosn took a swipe at his old employers in a newspaper interview on Sunday, calling the Renault and Nissan results …

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Council of Saudi Chambers: Tuwaijri Will Take World Trade to New Strategic Horizons

Council of Saudi Chambers: Tuwaijri Will Take World Trade to New Strategic Horizons

The Chairman of the Council of Saudi Chambers and the Board of Directors of Riyadh Chamber, Ajlan bin Abdulaziz Al-Ajlan, said that the Kingdom’s nomination of…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Egypt Receives $2Bn from European Investment Bank

Egypt Receives $2Bn from European Investment Bank

The European Investment Bank’s (EIB) board has approved an outline finance worth €1.9 billion ($2.17 billion) for Egypt to finance projects in transport and to…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Business New Zealand Economy Doing Better Than Expected, Robertson Says

New Zealand Economy Doing Better Than Expected, Robertson Says

New Zealand's economy is doing better than predicted, thanks to an early economic and health response to the coronavirus pandemic, the finance minister said on…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Moroccan Budget Deficit Amounts to $2.8Bn in June

Moroccan Budget Deficit Amounts to $2.8Bn in June

Data released by Morocco’s General Treasury (TGR) has revealed a budget deficit of 28.8 billion dirhams ($2.8 billion) in late June, compared to a deficit of…

Asharq Al Awsat (Rabat)
Business Saudi Candidate for WTO to Redevelop Mechanisms of Work Method

Saudi Candidate for WTO to Redevelop Mechanisms of Work Method

The working program of Saudi Arabia’s candidate to the post of Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) aims at redeveloping the international…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Israel Approves Pipeline Deal to Sell Gas to Europe

Israel Approves Pipeline Deal to Sell Gas to Europe

The Israeli government on Sunday approved an agreement with European countries for the construction of a subsea pipeline that would supply Europe with natural…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Air Algerie Incurs USD130 Million Loss Due to COVID-19

Air Algerie Incurs USD130 Million Loss Due to COVID-19

Algerian Finance Minister Ayman bin Abdul Rahman said that Air Algerie has incurred losses estimated at USD130 million due to the suspension of flights during…

Asharq Al Awsat (Algiers)