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Türkiye Submits Draft Proposal to Iraq to Renew, Expand Energy Agreement

FILE PHOTO: A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, some 70 km (43.5 miles) from Adana February 19, 2014./File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, some 70 km (43.5 miles) from Adana February 19, 2014./File Photo
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Türkiye Submits Draft Proposal to Iraq to Renew, Expand Energy Agreement

FILE PHOTO: A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, some 70 km (43.5 miles) from Adana February 19, 2014./File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A general view of oil tanks at Türkiye's Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, some 70 km (43.5 miles) from Adana February 19, 2014./File Photo

Türkiye has submitted a draft proposal to Iraq to renew and expand an energy agreement between the two countries to include cooperation in oil, gas, petrochemicals and electricity, an Iraqi oil ministry official told the state news agency late on Monday.

The statement came after Ankara announced the end of a decades-old agreement covering the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline.

"The Ministry of Oil is in the process of reviewing the draft agreement sent by the Turkish side and negotiating with them regarding it to reach a formula that serves the interests of Iraq and Türkiye", the Iraqi oil ministry official added.

The 1.6 million barrel-per-day Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has been offline since 2023 after an arbitration court ruled Ankara should pay $1.5 billion in damages for unauthorized Iraqi exports between 2014 and 2018. Türkiye is appealing the ruling.

Türkiye still wants to revive the oil pipeline with Iraq, a senior Turkish official told Reuters earlier on Monday.

In a decision published in its Official Gazette on Monday, Türkiye said the existing deal dating back to the 1970s - the Türkiye -Iraq Crude Oil Pipeline Agreement - and all subsequent protocols or memorandums would be halted from July 27, 2026.

Iraq and Türkiye have been working to resume oil flows from the pipeline. Ankara said in late 2023 that the pipeline was ready to receive Iraq's oil but talks between Baghdad, Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government and independent oil producers were not able to reach an agreement on terms.

The Turkish official said the pipeline had the potential to become a "highly active and strategic pipeline for the region".

The person added that Türkiye had invested heavily in its maintenance, and noted its importance for regional projects like the Development Road - a planned trade route involving Türkiye and Iraq.

"A new and vibrant phase for the Iraq- Türkiye pipeline will benefit both countries and the region as a whole," the Turkish official said, without giving details of what Ankara wanted the new agreement to include.

Türkiye sees the Development Road initiative - a high-speed road and rail link, running from Iraq's port city of Basrah on the Gulf to the Turkish border and later to Europe - as an opportunity to extend the pipeline further south. Baghdad allocated initial funding for the project in 2023.

 

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Business

Citibank Closes UAE Branches Temporarily as Precautionary Measure

A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)
A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)
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Citibank Closes UAE Branches Temporarily as Precautionary Measure

A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)
A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)

Citibank will close its branches and financial centers in the United Arab Emirates through March 14 as a precautionary measure, the bank's website showed on Thursday, following a wave of banks sending staff home as the crisis in the Middle East deepens.

The ⁠US bank plans ⁠to reopen all affected branches on March 16, but the branch in the Mall of the Emirates in central Dubai, will remain open ⁠during this period, it said.

Earlier this week, Citi told its staff to evacuate offices in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Dubai's Oud Metha neighborhood, telling them to work from home until further notice.

HSBC, another major global bank, has closed all branches in ⁠Qatar ⁠until further notice, according to a customer notice, saying the measure was to ensure the safety of staff and customers.

Banks across the region have stepped up precautions after Iran threatened banking interests linked to the US and Israel.

Business

OPEC: Ongoing Geopolitical Developments Warrant Close Monitoring of Markets

OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)
OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)
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OPEC: Ongoing Geopolitical Developments Warrant Close Monitoring of Markets

OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)
OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has maintained, for the seventh consecutive month, its 2026-2027 global oil demand growth projections unchanged.

OPEC kept its forecast for global oil demand growth at 1.38 million bpd for 2026 and at 1.3 million bpd for 2027.

The Iran war has severely impacted global supply chains, as the Gulf region is crucial to the world's oil and gas supply.

The war sent oil prices surging close to $120 a barrel on Monday before they later eased to around the low $90s, as markets weighed the risk of wider disruption against hopes the conflict might still be contained.

OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak, therefore, not reflecting the war’s impact on the volume or price of oil.

“Ongoing geopolitical developments warrant close monitoring, although their impact, if any, on the growth forecast may be too early to determine,” OPEC said ⁠in the report, referring to economic growth.

OPEC also ⁠said output by the wider OPEC+, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries plus other producers such as Russia, averaged 42.72 million bpd in February, up 445,000 bpd from January, citing secondary sources.

Crude oil production by OPEC rose by 164,000 bpd in February compared to January 2026, reaching around 28.63 million bpd, according to the group's latest Monthly Oil Market Report.

The largest output increase came from Venezuela, while Nigeria recorded the biggest decline last month.

And for the second month, OPEC kept its forecast for the growth of oil supply of non-OPEC countries at 630,000 bpd in 2026, and at 610,000 bpd in 2027.

Early this month, the eight OPEC+ countries agreed to a modest oil output boost of 206,000 bpd for April, a decision framed as a response to steady market fundamentals and global economic growth.

The eight members had raised production quotas by about 2.9 million bpd from April through December 2025, roughly 3% of global demand, before pausing increases for January to March 2026 due to seasonal weakness.

Business

IMF Says it Has Made Progress in Pakistan Funding Talks

Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
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IMF Says it Has Made Progress in Pakistan Funding Talks

Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro

The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday it has made "considerable progress" in talks with Pakistan ⁠over its funding ⁠facilities and that discussions will continue.

"While considerable progress was made ⁠in the discussions, these will continue in the coming days, including to more fully assess the impact of recent global developments on Pakistan’s economy ⁠and ⁠the EFF-supported (Extended Fund Facility) program," IMF advisor Iva Petrova said in the statement.

Pakistan is in an ongoing $7 billion IMF program.

Tanker drivers in Pakistan said they were facing long waits at depots due to a shortage of fuel, as the government played down fears of another rise in prices.

The US-Israeli war with Iran has disrupted shipping and damaged oil and gas facilities in the Middle East, raising global oil prices as countries scramble to deal with concerns over supply.

Dozens of tankers, which supply fuel across Pakistan, were seen parked at the side of the road on Tuesday at depots near Lahore, the capital of Punjab, the country's most populous province.

Last week, the government in Islamabad hiked prices by about 20 percent, triggering long lines and panic buying at filling stations across the country.