Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Lebanon crisis, Saudi privatisation law, vaccine latest The long-running crisis in Lebanon hit a fresh low this week and, with the formation of a new government nowhere in sight, conditions are unlikely to improve any time soon. Elsewhere, the passing of a... 18th March 2021 · 6 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Saudi oil attacks, PIF loan, Egyptian bond yields The recent attacks directed at Saudi oil infrastructure did not leave any meaningful damage, but they did push up global oil prices earlier this week and highlighted the lingering risk to the economic... 11th March 2021 · 7 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly OPEC+ meeting, Oman loan, vaccine latest The OPEC+ meeting could see the group opt to roll over its production cuts into April (rather than easing quotas) which would push back the recovery in GDP growth in the Gulf. Even so, the drag from... 4th March 2021 · 7 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Iran nuclear deal, Kuwaiti budget, Lebanon vaccine President Biden’s administration has taken the first steps to try and revive the Iran nuclear deal and, while there remain major hurdles, this could put downward pressure on oil prices. This would add... 25th February 2021 · 5 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Saudi HQ demands, oil prices, Morocco vaccine hope Saudi Arabia’s “Programme HQ”, unveiled this week, aims to entice more foreign firms to the Kingdom, but the plan is ambiguous in many areas and does not support some of the government’s key economic... 18th February 2021 · 5 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Oil price rise, Saudi law codification The price of Brent crude has risen to its highest levels in over year this past week and, if this is sustained as we expect, the Gulf countries will benefit as OPEC+ eases its production quotas and... 11th February 2021 · 6 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Kuwait budget, COVID-19 restrictions, Egypt rate cut? Kuwait’s budget laws have created problems financing the deficit that are now reaching a crunch point, but it seems most likely that the government will be able to get around these. Elsewhere, as... 4th February 2021 · 7 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly SAMA shakeup, UAE banks, latest on COVID-19 The change of governor at the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) adds to the signs that the government will lean more heavily on SAMA to support its efforts to diversify investments and the Saudi economy... 28th January 2021 · 6 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Tunisian protests, US ‘green’ shift, Saudi vaccines Protests in Tunisia this week add to the challenges facing the government to put the public finances onto a sustainable footing. Elsewhere, US President Joe Biden has started to set out a greener... 21st January 2021 · 5 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Tunisia and the IMF, UAE COVID outbreak, “The Line” Tunisia’s government appears to be gearing up to secure a new IMF deal and, while fiscal consolidation will be among the Fund’s key conditions, it will prove difficult to implement. Elsewhere, the UAE... 14th January 2021 · 5 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Saudi oil output, vaccine rollout, Qatar un-blockaded Saudi Arabia’s surprise voluntary oil output cut unveiled at this week’s OPEC+ meeting has lifted oil prices, but will mean that GDP growth will probably be weaker in Q1 than we had previously... 7th January 2021 · 7 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly COVID-19 vaccines, Dubai tourism, Egypt privatisations COVID-19 outbreaks in the region have started to come under control and, with vaccination programmes starting (in the Gulf at least), the near-term economic outlook is brightening. Dubai’s economy... 17th December 2020 · 6 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Egypt budget, Bahrain stimulus, Dubai property Figures out of Egypt this week showed the budget deficit has narrowed this year, highlighting the commitment to keep debt on a downwards trajectory but at the cost of a weaker recovery. In contrast... 10th December 2020 · 5 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly OPEC+ deal, Qatar blockade, Morocco and the IMF The past week has been dominated by the OPEC+ meeting and, while it has highlighted growing tensions with the cartel, it seems that the group is edging towards an agreement that involves a small rise... 3rd December 2020 · 6 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly UAE oil discovery and OPEC, protests in Tunisia This week’s revelation by the UAE that it has discovered major new oil reserves boosts the economy’s long-term prospects but it may further raise questions over its commitment to OPEC. Alongside the... 26th November 2020 · 5 mins read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Weekly Aramco issuance, OPEC-JMMC, Lebanon politics Saudi Aramco’s dollar bond sale this week has added to the signs that the government is squeezing every last drop out of the company in order to contain this year’s budget deficit, but it does add to... 19th November 2020 · 5 mins read
