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Gas imports from Turkmenistan will help ease Iraqi domestic shortages due to Iran halting the flow of gas supplies

Iraq turns to Turkmenistan to plug Iranian gas gap

Iraq has always considered neighbouring Iran as a stable and reliable supplier of natural gas needed to run its power facilities, but experts now believe that alternative sources and domestic Iranian needs have put this relationship in doubt. Iran’s gas exports to Iraq have fluctuated sharply and the shortage has played havoc with Iraq’s power […]

End of ‘blank cheque’ culture for Saudi consultancy

Saudi Arabia remains a boom town for the global consultancy industry, but experts have warned it is no longer the land of milk and honey for international operators and there is now a tighter hold being placed on budgets. The Saudi consultancy market, the largest in the GCC, expanded by 18.2 percent in 2023 with […]

Gulf sovereign wealth funds tilt towards emerging markets

In the past 12 months Gulf sovereign wealth funds invested almost $10 billion in China, the largest such volume in history, Diago Lopez, Singapore-based managing director of Global SWF tells AGBI. This reflected a growing bias among Gulf funds towards emerging markets and domestic economies. “Every time [investment managers] are coming across a good opportunity […]

China-US tech tensions threaten GCC telecom strategy

Gulf countries risk being dragged into the great power “rivalry” between China and the United States when it comes to advanced technology, forcing them to pick a side. As high-tech restrictions are rolled out by Beijing and Washington, the days of buying state-of-the-art semiconductors from the US while installing China’s 5G networks might be over, […]

In case you missed it

DXB airport

The future of DXB: airport could be turned into a city

The $35 billion plan to turn Al Maktoum International into the busiest airport in the world has everyone talking about the remaking of Dubai South. Perhaps a bigger challenge is the redevelopment of the city’s main airport – Dubai International, or DXB. DXB is near some of the city’s most densely populated neighbourhoods and the […]

Kuwait overhauls tax system and signs UAE treaty

Kuwait, which has developed a reputation as an economic laggard among wealthy Gulf states, is undertaking an overhaul of its tax regime to meet global standards and reduce reliance on oil revenues.  The Gulf state plans to introduce a 15 percent business profits tax, new rules on transparency and compliance with international agreements, and an […]

Saudi Arabia’s nuclear plans stall while UAE pushes on

The UAE is moving ahead with its second nuclear power plant, but plans for Saudi Arabia’s first facility remain bogged down in controversy and delay.  The kingdom is attempting to win US approval to enrich its own uranium and use US technology.  Saudi Arabia said last year it would allow inspections of future nuclear facilities, […]

UAE latest

President-elect Donald Trump called Damac chairman Hussain Sajwani “one of the most respected business leaders in the Middle East, indeed the world"

Trump reveals $20bn from Sajwani for US data centres

Incoming US president Donald Trump and Hussain Sajwani, the billionaire chairman of Damac Properties, announced on Tuesday that the emirati will invest “at least” $20 billion in data centres across the US. The move represents the official entry of EDGNEX, Damac’s specialised subsidiary, into the American market as demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence […]

Malaysia Airports bid Kuala Lumpur international lounge

Bid for Malaysia Airports by Adia-backed group extended

A takeover offer for Malaysia Airports Holdings by a consortium that includes the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) has been extended by 11 days. The group, which includes Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah, BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners and Malaysia’s Employees Provident Fund, extended the offer to January 17, a filing on Bursa Malaysia said.  Malaysia […]

The care clinic acquisitions by PureHealth subsidiary Ardent Health in the US align with PureHealth’s expansion strategy

UAE’s PureHealth expands US healthcare presence

Abu Dhabi-listed PureHealth Holding has expanded its presence in the US healthcare sector. New York Stock Exchange-listed Ardent Health, a subsidiary of PureHealth, acquired 18 urgent care clinics across New Mexico and Oklahoma in the US from NextCare Urgent Care. In May 2023, PureHealth purchased a minority stake in Ardent Health for $500 million. The […]

Housing programmes for citizens represent a top priority, said Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum

Dubai launches $1.5bn housing projects

Dubai has launched housing projects worth AED5.4 billion ($1.5 billion) across the emirate. The projects will result in 3,004 new homes being built for Emiratis, the UAE state-run Wam news agency reported. Of these, 1,181 homes will be in Latifa City for beneficiaries under the housing loan category. For beneficiaries in the housing grant category, […]

Saudi Arabia latest

Crystal Palace Saudi

Stake in Premier League team sought by Saudi brothers

A US-Saudi group has reportedly signed an exclusivity agreement to buy 45 percent of the English Premier League club Crystal Palace.  A consortium funded by the Saudi brothers Mansoor and Haider Syed, which includes US sports and business executives, has agreed to buy the stake in the club owned by the American company Eagle Football, […]

Startup Zension says smartphones have at least a seven-year lifespan but on average are used for just three

Saudi Aramco leads $30m investment in tech startup

Wa’ed Ventures, the $500 million venture capital fund owned by Saudi Aramco, and Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo have invested in Zension Technologies, a consumer electronics startup. Wa’ed led the funding raise of $30 million, which also included Dubai-based Global Ventures.  Based in Riyadh, Zension provides consumers with access to the latest tech devices. Instead of purchasing devices […]

Lucid started taking orders for its Gravity SUV in November, in an attempt to take some market share from rival Rivian and market leader Tesla delivers deliveries delivered

PIF-backed EV maker Lucid beats 2024 delivery estimates

Electric vehicle maker Lucid beat expectations for deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2024. The company delivered 3,099 EVs in the fourth quarter of 2024, above the estimated 2,637, according to analysts at Visible Alpha. Production rose to 3,386 vehicles in the reported quarter, surpassing estimates of 2,904 units. In total, the company delivered 10,241 […]

Roshn says trust in Saudi Arabia's centralised digital ID verification system is helping online home sales

Saudis sold on online home sales, says developer Roshn

Saudi developer Roshn, a unit of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), said half of its home sales are now made online, marking a significant shift in the kingdom’s property market. Buyers on Roshn’s platform can verify their identity using national digital IDs, sign contracts electronically and make payments online, streamlining a process that traditionally required […]

The bond's three tranches of $5 billion, $3 billion and $4 billion have a duration of three, six and 10 years, respectively

Order book for $12bn Saudi bond 3 times oversubscribed

Saudi Arabia has raised $12 billion from a three-tranche bond to meet its funding needs. The tranches of $5 billion, $3 billion and $4 billion have a duration of three, six and 10 years, respectively, the National Debt Management Center (NDMC) said in a post on social messaging platform X. The total order book reached […]

Around the Middle East

Shoppers in a market in Douma. The Syrian public sector has salaries that place workers below the poverty line

Syrian public sector workers set for 400% pay rise

The Syrian caretaker government plans to hike public sector salaries by 400 percent next month after completing an administrative restructuring, the country’s finance minister said Sunday. Public sector workers currently earn around $25 per month, putting them below the poverty line. The increase, estimated to cost 1.65 trillion Syrian pounds, or about $127 million at […]

A tunnel being constructed at Iraq's Faw Port will take traffic under a river and onto the Road Of Development, which will cross Iraq up to the border with Turkey

Iraq expects road and rail project to provide 20,000 jobs

Iraq’s planned $17 billion project to build a rail line and motorway up to the border with Turkey aims to create at least 20,000 jobs for citizens, officials said. Transport minister Razzak Al-Saadawi said the Road Of Development project, which is backed by the UAE and Qatar, will include the construction of several industry cities […]

A woman crosses a street in Damascus. In most parts of Syria, electricity is available for just two or three hours a day

Qatar and Turkey to send electricity-generating ships to Syria 

Syria will receive two electricity-generating ships from Turkey and Qatar to boost its energy infrastructure, which was badly damaged during the rule of President Bashar Al Assad, state news agency SANA reported on Tuesday. Khaled Abu Dai, director general of Syria’s General Establishment for Electricity Transmission and Distribution, told SANA the ships would provide 800 megawatts of electricity but did not specify over what period. “The extent of damage to the generation and transformation stations and electrical […]

Workers at the Chadar oilfield in eastern Libya

Libya begins oil and gas production at Chadar field

Zallaf Oil and Gas Exploration, Production and Refining Company, Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) subsidiary, has commenced production at the Chadar oilfield. The facility is now producing approximately 7.5 million cubic feet of associated gas and 1,500 barrels per day (bpd) of crude. The production rates were reached on the first day, NOC said in […]

Gas imports from Turkmenistan will help ease Iraqi domestic shortages due to Iran halting the flow of gas supplies

Iraq turns to Turkmenistan to plug Iranian gas gap

Iraq has always considered neighbouring Iran as a stable and reliable supplier of natural gas needed to run its power facilities, but experts now believe that alternative sources and domestic Iranian needs have put this relationship in doubt. Iran’s gas exports to Iraq have fluctuated sharply and the shortage has played havoc with Iraq’s power […]

Souq Waqif in Doha. Qatar has the world’s third largest proven gas deposits

Mena’s LNG output ‘to rise by two-thirds by 2030’

Multibillion-dollar projects under construction are expected to raise Arab countries’ liquefied natural gas output by almost 90 million tonnes per year by 2030. The Arab Energy Organisation – previously the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries – said in a report published last month that most of the increase would come from Qatar. Mena LNG […]

A man living in Al-Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria. The US is easing restrictions on providing humanitarian aid

US to ease Syria aid restrictions but sanctions remain

The United States is to announce imminently an easing of restrictions on humanitarian aid and other basic services such as electricity to Syria. The strict US sanctions regime placed on Syria will remain, according to people briefed on the matter. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Biden administration approved the easing of restrictions over […]

Oil workers in Iraq. The country's oil exports are increasingly headed to Asia, leading some to question the necessity of rebuilding the Syria pipeline

Assad’s fall spurs calls to revive Iraq-Syria oil pipeline

The overthrow of the former Syrian president, Bashar Al-Assad, has brought calls for the revival of the now-defunct pipeline that once carried crude oil from Iraq to a Syrian port on the Mediterranean. Several Iraqi experts have urged their government to consider rebuilding the facility as an outlet for the Opec member’s oil exports to […]

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Turkey Latest

A woman crosses a street in Damascus. In most parts of Syria, electricity is available for just two or three hours a day

Qatar and Turkey to send electricity-generating ships to Syria 

Syria will receive two electricity-generating ships from Turkey and Qatar to boost its energy infrastructure, which was badly damaged during the rule of President Bashar Al Assad, state news agency SANA reported on Tuesday. Khaled Abu Dai, director general of Syria’s General Establishment for Electricity Transmission and Distribution, told SANA the ships would provide 800 megawatts of electricity but did not specify over what period. “The extent of damage to the generation and transformation stations and electrical […]

Runway, Aircraft, Airplane

Passenger traffic at Turkish airports rises to 230m in 2024

Passenger traffic at Turkish airports grew by 7.5 percent year on year to more than 230 million in 2024, according to the country’s transport and infrastructure minister, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu. More than 95 million domestic and 134 million international passengers were served last year, he said. The number of aircraft movements, including landings and take-offs, rose […]

turkey foreign currency: Chefs at work in a bakery in Istanbul, Turkey. The central bank has eased its hold on growth in lira-denominated loans for SMEs

Turkey seeks to curb foreign-currency borrowing

The central bank of Turkey has further tightened access to foreign currency borrowing by businesses, while opening the door for an increase in some lira-denominated commercial loans. The country’s central bank last week announced it was lowering its ceiling on foreign currency loan growth to 1 percent a month, down from the previous upper limit […]

People, Person, Crowd

Turkey’s inflation falls to lowest in 18 months

Inflation in Turkey eased more than anticipated in December 2024, reaching 44.4 percent, the lowest level in 18 months, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat). This marks the seventh consecutive monthly decline following the monetary easing from the central bank. On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose by 1.03 percent in December. Education, housing […]

Construction of the TurkStream pipeline, one of the ways in which Turkey could help export Russian gas

Turkey hopes to offer Russia a gas route into Europe

Turkey hopes it can cash in on Ukraine’s decision to halt gas exports from Russia across its territory by offering Moscow an alternative route into Europe through its own network of pipelines for increased transit fees. In the short term, however, its ambitions may be restricted by gaps in infrastructure. As of January 1, Russian […]

Egypt Latest

Finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk said Egypt expects to receive $1.2bn from the IMF this month

Egypt targets new $3bn funding despite IMF loan

Egypt aims to raise nearly $3 billion by the end of the current fiscal year, which ends in June 2025, finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk has said. The funding will be secured through diverse issuances, Reuters reported, citing an interview with Kouchouk on ONtv, an Arabic-language channel. Kouchouk said Egypt expects to receive $1.2 billion from […]

Acwa Power wind HQ Riyadh

Acwa Power signs up for 1GW Egyptian wind farm

The Saudi energy company Acwa Power has signed agreements worth more than $700 million to fund the development, construction, operation and maintenance of a wind power plant in Egypt. Acwa Power said it signed the 20-year senior debt agreement, worth SAR2.63 billion ($703 million), with a syndicate of development financial institutions. The 1.1GW wind power […]

Mall of Egypt CAiro MAF Lifestyle

MAF Lifestyle awaits ‘stability’ before entering Egypt

The lifestyle arm of the UAE conglomerate Majid Al Futtaim is looking for opportunities to expand into Egypt. However, there must be “stability” in the country before any move is made, MAF Lifestyle’s CEO, Fahed Ghanim, has told AGBI. Majid Al Futtaim as a group already runs operations in Egypt, including the Mall of Egypt […]

The Egyptian government is pressing ahead with modernisation projects for the Suez Canal

Suez Canal revenue drops $7bn amid Red Sea instability

Suez Canal revenue fell 60 percent, or $7 billion, year on year in 2024 as ongoing instability in the Red Sea disrupted global shipping traffic, according to a news report. Despite the significant earnings drop, the Egyptian government is pressing ahead with modernisation projects to enhance the canal’s capacity and maintain its pivotal role in […]

Field, Grassland, Nature

Egypt secures $275m loan for largest wind farm in Africa

Egypt has secured $275 million in funding for the construction and operation of the largest wind farm in Africa. The loan, granted to Suez Wind, includes $200 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction (EBRD) and Development and $75 million from Arab Bank and Standard Chartered. The project is co-financed by the African Development Bank, […]

Features

Investors wary of inflation as Trump pursues ‘America first’ policy

When Donald Trump returns to the White House his “America First” policy is likely to increase inflation and global economic fragmentation, according to analysts. “We [the Middle East] need to be much more picky about particular geographies, asset classes and even themes that we favour,” said Ben Powell, chief investment strategist at BlackRock’s Investment Institute, […]

Pricey homes and packed hotels: the year in GCC real estate

The story of the Gulf property market this year was about decreased housing affordability and a growing gap between top-quality properties and second-tier ones. Meanwhile, surging numbers of international visitors in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar brought thriving hospitality and retail sectors in the main tourist hotspots. Industry observers expect 2025 to bring more […]

Vero Labs taps into the fan-based asset economy

Vero Labs, the social networking company owned by the Lebanese billionaire Ayman Hariri, has partnered with the blockchain platform Avalanche to tap into the multi-trillion-dollar fan-based asset economy sector of the sports and entertainment industry.  Last year Vero Labs acquired Tokenise Stock Exchange, a regulated global marketplace where users can buy, sell and trade fan-based […]

Winter resorts add to Turkey’s tourist hotspots

Sun, sand, sea … and ski. Turkey is ramping up efforts to extend its tourism season to a year-round offering by trying to raise the profile of the country’s winter resorts. This way it hopes to attract a new cohort of visitors, seeking the thrill of skiing on snow rather than water.  Turkey currently has […]

People & Lifestyle

Luxury yachts in Dubai. The emirate is now home to 39 billionaires

Billionaires in UAE rise as Saudi numbers drop

The number of billionaires in the UAE increased in the last year as the amount of super-wealthy residents in neighbouring Saudi Arabia dropped.  Forty-eight billionaires lived in the UAE in 2023, with a combined wealth of $205 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7 percent. Dubai made up 39 of that total and welcomed one extra […]

For AI to be properly integrated into healthcare, doctors need proper guidance, experts say

AI in healthcare is not a cure-all solution

Large language models such as the AI chatbot ChatGPT are gaining traction in healthcare, and Gulf states are investing heavily in the prospect, but LLMs’ integration into clinical practice presents challenges.  A study led by Dr Ethan Goh, published last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association Open Network, tested whether ChatGPT could […]

A woman works out at a gym in Qatif, Saudi Arabia. One investor said they had never seen as much interest from VCs in the fitness industry

Golden returns draw investors to fitness markets

Investors are showing increasing interest in homegrown fitness companies, tempted by the “golden egg” returns on offer. The fitness market in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) has been growing at an annual rate of 30 percent since 2020, with the UAE sector valued at an estimated $550 million and Saudi Arabia at $1.7 […]

Salvator Mundi Salman park

Salvator Mundi destined for Riyadh giga-park

The $450 million Leonardo Da Vinci painting Salvator Mundi is destined for a museum of art inside the King Salman Park giga-project in Riyadh in time for hosting the World Expo in 2030, two separate sources have said.   The artwork is a big part of Saudi Arabia’s plans to rebrand itself globally as a socially […]

People on Kuwait City's Marina Beach. It is estimated that housing costs in Kuwait absorb one third of an average household's income

Building more homes a better strategy for Kuwait, say experts

Kuwait has tightened property ownership restrictions on non-GCC nationals in an attempt to make real estate more affordable for locals, but industry watchers say building more homes would be the better strategy.  The small, oil-rich emirate has already imposed strict standards on nationals of countries from outside the Gulf who wanted to purchase domestic real […]

Bahrain healthcare

Bahrain government rebuffs citizens’ quota in healthcare

A unanimous call by the Bahraini parliament for half the jobs in private healthcare to be reserved for citizens has been rejected by the government on the grounds of possible harm to patients and the potential impact on foreign direct investment. Government officials told the National Assembly that the proposed quota would constrain private healthcare’s […]

Saudi private healthcare

Healthy progress made in Saudi Arabia’s wellness drive

Private health services in Saudi Arabia are rapidly expanding as its growing population and the focus on improving citizens’ wellbeing under the Vision 2030 programme bring in billions of dollars in new domestic and foreign investments. During the Global Health Exhibition, held in Riyadh at the end of October, Saudi officials announced deals worth $13.3 […]

Trains: A Dubai metro station – a third line is due by 2029

Trains, planes and more trains (or metros)

Is it finally happening? It was conceived back in 2013 and was supposed to take four years to build but the Riyadh metro looks like it is about to open. To the hard-pressed inhabitants of the Saudi capital, that can only be a good thing. Alternatives to the car and bus – Riyadh has a new […]

Around the world

India UAE exports

Exports to India from UAE more than double in November

Exports to India from the UAE more than doubled year on year to over $6 billion in November, as demand for gold and energy products soared. Imports from India were up by over 11 percent in the same month, reaching $3 billion, data released by India’s commerce ministry showed. Emirati exports to India from April […]

A petrol station in Nairobi, Kenya. Kenya is purchasing fuel at fixed premiums from Saudi and UAE companies

Kenya extends oil deals with Saudi Arabia and UAE

Kenya has extended oil import agreements with one Saudi and two UAE oil companies to ease pressure on its currency, according to media reports. The deals were initially signed with Saudi Aramco, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and Emirates National Oil Company in March 2023, offering a 180-day credit period, Business Daily newspaper reported. Reuters […]

Investors remain concerned about corporate governance and transparency despite substantial improvements over the past decade

US fund managers expected to accelerate Gulf investment

North American fund managers are underinvested in Gulf equities but that may soon change, according to new research. The region’s low correlation to global and other emerging markets, accelerating economic diversification and improving bourse diversification could make Gulf investments more attractive. Saudi Arabia (4.41 percent), the UAE (1.28 percent), Qatar (0.86 percent) and Kuwait (0.84 […]

UAE oil cut tanker

Oil shipments from UAE to Asia to be cut next year

The UAE is reducing its oil shipments early next year as Opec+ pushes for compliance with production cuts in order to try to stop prices falling. However it is unclear if this means that the country – Opec’s fifth largest producer – is cutting its output, analysts have told AGBI. Adnoc, the UAE’s state-owned oil […]