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 Morocco Hopes to Boost Domestic Tourism to Save Key Sector

Morocco Hopes to Boost Domestic Tourism to Save Key Sector

Morocco's government and tourism industry hope to encourage more Moroccans to explore the ancient souks of Marrakech and the beaches of Agadir this year, to…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Arabia Sees Leap in Venture Capital Investment amid Pandemic

Saudi Arabia Sees Leap in Venture Capital Investment amid Pandemic

Saudi Arabia has reported a 42 percent leap in investment with venture capital in emerging projects during Q1 2020, experts in sector revealed. They…

Mohammed al-Hamidi (Riyadh)
Business Lebanon's Energy Ministry Says No Oil in First Exploration Well

Lebanon's Energy Ministry Says No Oil in First Exploration Well

The Lebanese Ministry of Energy stated that no oil was found in the first exploration well, and announced receiving applications for the second round of…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Business Iranian Toman Drops to Record Low against the Dollar

Iranian Toman Drops to Record Low against the Dollar

The Iranian currency lost more value against the US dollar on Tuesday, trading at a near record 17,300 toman against the greenback compared to 550 at the end…

Business PM Says Tunisia Needs 5 bn Euros to Balance Budget

PM Says Tunisia Needs 5 bn Euros to Balance Budget

Tunisia will need more than five billion euros ($5.4 billion) of external funding to balance its budget this year, the premier said Tuesday, even as…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Egypt Receives $2.77 Bln in IMF Emergency Financing

Egypt Receives $2.77 Bln in IMF Emergency Financing

Egypt has received $2.77 billion in emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund, its state news agency reported on Tuesday, citing a senior…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Arabia Cuts Oil Production by Additional 1 Million bpd

Saudi Arabia Cuts Oil Production by Additional 1 Million bpd

The Saudi Energy Ministry directed Aramco to reduce its crude oil production for June by an extra voluntary amount of 1 million barrels per day (bpd), on top…

Saeed al-Abyad (Jeddah)
Business UAE, Kuwait Cut Output to Back Saudi Efforts to Rebalance Oil Market

UAE, Kuwait Cut Output to Back Saudi Efforts to Rebalance Oil Market

UAE Minister of Energy and Industry Suhail al-Mazrouei announced the country will voluntarily cut its oil output by 100,000 barrels per day in June in a bid to…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dubai)
Business Lebanon to Start IMF Negotiations in Next 2 Days, Says Minister

Lebanon to Start IMF Negotiations in Next 2 Days, Says Minister

Lebanon will start negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the next two days, Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni said on Tuesday, as Beirut seeks…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business IMF Approves $2.77 Bn Emergency Virus Loan for Egypt

IMF Approves $2.77 Bn Emergency Virus Loan for Egypt

The IMF board approved $2.77 billion in emergency aid for Egypt on Monday, to help the country deal with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, but said the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Aramco Holds First General Assembly after IPO

Saudi Aramco Holds First General Assembly after IPO

Saudi Aramco, the world’s top oil exporter, will hold its first general assembly Monday after its partial initial public offering (IPO) in the Saudi market. …

Shujaa al-Baqmi (Riyadh)
Business Lebanese Government Kicks off Talks with IMF

Lebanese Government Kicks off Talks with IMF

The Lebanese government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will begin on Monday negotiations over the draft rescue plan, which seeks aid from the…

Mohamed Choucair (Beirut)
Business Madinah Launches Mega Project with 3,700 Housing Units

Madinah Launches Mega Project with 3,700 Housing Units

The Municipality of Madinah in western Saudi Arabia said Sunday it has approved a giant real estate project in the form of a residential neighborhood that…

Asharq Al Awsat (Madinah)
Business Emirates Group Profits Drop to $456m in 2019

Emirates Group Profits Drop to $456m in 2019

Emirates Group posted a profit of AED1.7 billion (USD456 million) for the financial year that ended on March 31, down 28 percent from last year. The Group’s…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dubai)
Business ACWA Power, Silk Road Fund Announce Completion of 3rd Renewable Energy Partnership

ACWA Power, Silk Road Fund Announce Completion of 3rd Renewable Energy Partnership

Saudi Arabia's energy giant ACWA Power announced the completion of the transaction to introduce Silk Road Fund as a partner and a 49 percent shareholder in…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dubai)
Business Egyptian Govt. Resumes Training of Employees despite COVID-19 Measures

Egyptian Govt. Resumes Training of Employees despite COVID-19 Measures

The Egyptian government and the National Training Academy (NTA) launched the third phase of the Professional Government Executive program, despite the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Cairo)
Business Saudi Finance Ministry Reveals Additional Measures to Confront Economic Impact of Pandemic

Saudi Finance Ministry Reveals Additional Measures to Confront Economic Impact of Pandemic

Saudi Minister of Finance and Acting Minister of Economy and Planning, Mohammad Al-Jadaan, highlighted the importance of the measures taken to protect the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Lebanon: Economy Minister Says Audit of Central Bank Account to Include All Transactions

Lebanon: Economy Minister Says Audit of Central Bank Account to Include All Transactions

Lebanese Economy Minister Raoul Nehme revealed during an interview with the Financial Times newspaper that the audit of the central bank accounts announced…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Despite Crisis, Algeria Approves 2-7% Increase in Retirement Pensions

Despite Crisis, Algeria Approves 2-7% Increase in Retirement Pensions

Algeria’s government has approved increases in retirement pensions ranging from 2% to 7%, the labor ministry said on Saturday, despite financial problems…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Syria Reduces Fuel Subsidies as Economic Crisis Deepens

Syria Reduces Fuel Subsidies as Economic Crisis Deepens

Syria's oil and mineral resources ministry announced Saturday a reduction in automobile fuel subsidies, the latest regime measure to tackle a deepening…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business IMF Response Signals Positive Agreement with Lebanon

IMF Response Signals Positive Agreement with Lebanon

Lebanon’s economy is entering a new stage next week, with the start of direct negotiations with International Monetary Fund officials aimed at concluding a $10…

Ali Zeineddine (Beirut)
Business Saudi Financing Initiatives Seek to Earmark 20% of Lending Program to SMEs

Saudi Financing Initiatives Seek to Earmark 20% of Lending Program to SMEs

Saudi Arabia’s development funds have announced measures to support government initiatives to alleviate the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, with…

Mohammed al-Hamidi (Riyadh)
Business Lebanon: Head of Money Changers Union Arrested for 'Tampering' with Pound Value

Lebanon: Head of Money Changers Union Arrested for 'Tampering' with Pound Value

A Lebanese security official said Friday that the head of the money changer's union has been arrested on Thursday and is currently under investigation. "The…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Mineral Exploration Saves 25% of Global Spending

Saudi Mineral Exploration Saves 25% of Global Spending

The Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources earmarked 15 billion riyals ($4 billion) as an opening budget to support the transformation in the mining…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)