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 Saudi ‘Local Content Authority’ Reveals Projects Worth $2.4Bn

Saudi ‘Local Content Authority’ Reveals Projects Worth $2.4Bn

Saudi Arabia's Local Content and Government Procurement Authority (LCGPA) has revealed its commitment to implement a set of projects in cooperation with some…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)
Business G20 to Postpone Meetings, Hold Others Virtually amid Coronavirus Scare

G20 to Postpone Meetings, Hold Others Virtually amid Coronavirus Scare

Saudi Arabia, which currently chairs the G20 group, confirmed taking precautionary measures during meetings scheduled to be held this March to limit the spread…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business UAE Reveals $27B Plan to Fight New Coronavirus

UAE Reveals $27B Plan to Fight New Coronavirus

The central bank of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced on Saturday a 100 billion dirham ($27 billion) economic plan aimed at containing the impact of the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Abu Dhabi)
Business Saudi Arabia Announces $13 Bln Coronavirus Financing Package

Saudi Arabia Announces $13 Bln Coronavirus Financing Package

Saudi Arabia's central bank said on Saturday it had prepared a 50 billion-riyal ($13 billion) package to help small and medium-sized enterprises cope with the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Lebanon Purchases Medical Supplies As Cases Hit 93

Lebanon Purchases Medical Supplies As Cases Hit 93

The Governor of the Central Bank, Riad Salameh, has asked all Lebanese banks to give priority to transfers aimed at purchasing medical supplies and equipment…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Business G20 Calls for Int’l Coordination to Control Virus Outbreak

G20 Calls for Int’l Coordination to Control Virus Outbreak

The representatives of the G20 leaders have discussed the coronavirus outbreak and its impact on people and the global economy during the second Sherpa meeting…

Asharq Al Awsat (Khobar)
Business Europe Seeks Additional Saudi Oil Supplies

Europe Seeks Additional Saudi Oil Supplies

Saudi Arabia is flooding Europe with oil, five trading sources said on Friday. The sources, from oil majors and refiners which process crude in Europe, said…

Asharq Al Awsat (London)
Business Saudi Date Exports Record 14.6% Rise in 2019

Saudi Date Exports Record 14.6% Rise in 2019

The Saudi National Center for Palms and Dates has revealed a rise in exports of Saudi dates by 14.6% during the year 2019 compared to 2018 to reach about SR…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Asian Refiners Race to Buy Saudi Oil

Asian Refiners Race to Buy Saudi Oil

Asian refiners have raced this week to buy Saudi crude oil after the Kingdom announced that it would increase its supplies. Saudi Aramco has rejected at…

Asharq Al Awsat (Singapore)
Business IMF Urges Swift Implementation of Economic Reforms in Lebanon

IMF Urges Swift Implementation of Economic Reforms in Lebanon

Lebanon should move quickly to implement reforms to stabilize the country's economy, the International Monetary Fund said Thursday. Lebanon is facing its…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business RDIF Chief to Asharq Al-Awsat: We Are Committed to Partnership With Riyadh

RDIF Chief to Asharq Al-Awsat: We Are Committed to Partnership With Riyadh

Head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) Kirill Dmitriev said that partnership would continue with Riyadh within the framework of the Saudi-Russian…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)
Business Saudi Strategy to Promote Public-Private Sector Partnership in Local Content

Saudi Strategy to Promote Public-Private Sector Partnership in Local Content

Saudi Arabia’s Local Content and Government Procurement Authority (LCGPA) has revealed completing its strategy for the coming stage, and announced a series of…

Fatehelrahman Yousif (Riyadh)
Business Starved of Dollars and Drowning in Debt, Lebanon's Economy Sinks Fast

Starved of Dollars and Drowning in Debt, Lebanon's Economy Sinks Fast

After importing medical supplies to Lebanon for 20 years, Hassan Hamdan shut his business in December. Sales were plummeting, clients couldn't pay, and the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Ministry of Investment Denies Holding Talks With Russia's Novak

Saudi Ministry of Investment Denies Holding Talks With Russia's Novak

Saudi Arabia has denied it held any talks with Russia over oil prices saying such reports "were baseless." This came in response to a media report claiming…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business ADNOC Says to Supply Market With More Than 4 Million bpd

ADNOC Says to Supply Market With More Than 4 Million bpd

State-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has announced that it can boost supply to more than 4 million barrels per day in April, in response to…

Business Saudi Aramco Boosts Oil Output Capacity to 13 Million bpd

Saudi Aramco Boosts Oil Output Capacity to 13 Million bpd

Saudi Aramco said Wednesday it plans to raise its crude production capacity by one million barrels per day to 13 million bpd. "Saudi Aramco announces that…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Saudi Arabia Reveals Plan to Develop 21 Military Technologies in Seven Years

Saudi Arabia Reveals Plan to Develop 21 Military Technologies in Seven Years

The General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) announced on Tuesday that it plans to develop 21 military technologies over the next seven years. “GAMI…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business 2,437 Registered Firms Join Dubai International Financial Center

2,437 Registered Firms Join Dubai International Financial Center

The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) said the total of registered firms in the Center reached 2,437, up 14 per cent from 2018, with a total of 32…

Asharq Al Awsat (Dubai)
Business Saudi Energy Minister: No Need for OPEC+ Meet without Agreement

Saudi Energy Minister: No Need for OPEC+ Meet without Agreement

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Tuesday he does not see a need to hold an OPEC+ meeting in May-June if there was no agreement on what…

Asharq Al Awsat (Riyadh)
Business Can't Pay, Won't Pay: What Now for Lebanon's Debt Crisis?

Can't Pay, Won't Pay: What Now for Lebanon's Debt Crisis?

Lebanon has bowed to the inevitable and said it won’t be honoring a $1.2 billion bond payment that was due on Monday. It will be its first default, but what…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Lebanon Banks, Prosecutor Agree Rules for Easing Deposit Restrictions

Lebanon Banks, Prosecutor Agree Rules for Easing Deposit Restrictions

Lebanon's public prosecutor has agreed with commercial banks a set of rules aimed at protecting the rights of depositors, state news agency NNA reported on…

Asharq Al Awsat
Business Fitch Downgrades Lebanon, Moody's Warns Private Creditors Face Major Losses

Fitch Downgrades Lebanon, Moody's Warns Private Creditors Face Major Losses

Moody's Investors Service warned on Tuesday that private creditors faced significant losses as a result of the government's decision to defer payment of the…

Business Lebanon’s Economy Between Scenarios of Argentina, Venezuela

Lebanon’s Economy Between Scenarios of Argentina, Venezuela

The complex Lebanese crisis opened the door for comparison with previous crises that took place in other countries, in search of common points for which…

Mahasen Morsel (Beirut)
Business Report: US Sanctions Have Idled a Quarter of Iranian Oil Rigs

Report: US Sanctions Have Idled a Quarter of Iranian Oil Rigs

At least a quarter of Iran’s oil rigs are out of action as US sanctions strangle the country’s vital oil industry, according to a Reuters review of financial…

Asharq Al Awsat