Filtered by Subscriptions: Middle East & North Africa Economics Use setting Middle East & North Africa Economics
PIF increasingly leaned on to drive Saudi investment Saudi Arabia’s Q3 balance of payments data showed that the Kingdom’s current account surplus boomed on the back of stronger oil receipts. Most of that surplus is still being recycled by the Public …
9th February 2023
This page has been updated with an additional chart and table of the key data. Inflation jumps to fastest pace since 2017 as food inflation hits record high Egypt’s headline inflation rate climbed from 21.3% y/y in December to 25.8% y/y in January, its …
Tunisia’s fragile balance of payments of position has deteriorated further over the past year and the dinar appears increasingly overvalued. We think that the currency needs to fall by at least 30% against the euro to restore competitiveness. The approval …
8th February 2023
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) surprisingly left interest rates unchanged at Thursday’s MPC meeting but, with inflation likely to rise even further above the central bank’s target, we still think that policy will be tightened further. We have pencilled …
3rd February 2023
Proof will be in the pudding for Egypt’s privatisation Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly revealed this week that twenty state-owned companies would be sold over the course of this year which adds to the positive momentum on reforms. It remains to be …
2nd February 2023
The further falls in the Egyptian pound over the past month will push up inflation and prompt the central bank to deliver more monetary tightening, but there are already signs that the benefits of a weaker currency are materialising. The government …
31st January 2023
This page has been updated with table and charts of key figures. Growth slow to round off a bumper 2022 The flash estimate for Saudi Arabia’s economy showed GDP expanded by a solid 1.5% q/q in Q4, but year-on-year growth continued to soften and we expect …
OPEC+ cuts to dampen Gulf growth in early 2023 OPEC+ is widely expected to agree to continue with its existing oil output quotas next week, although this means that oil sectors will act as a drag on the Gulf economies over the early part of this year. …
26th January 2023
Saudi Arabia’s economy enjoyed bumper growth in 2022, but there were signs that activity was slowing in the final months of the year and we expect this trend to continue into the early part of 2023. Saudi Arabia’s economy was one of the best performers in …
25th January 2023
Petroyuan” talk further sign of frayed Saudi-US ties Comments by Saudi Arabia’s finance minister that the Kingdom could conduct trade in currencies other than the dollar will add fuel to the debate about the rise of a “petroyuan”. There are hurdles to the …
19th January 2023
The recent falls in the Egyptian pound pose a threat to Egypt’s fragile public debt dynamics but we think that the government will be able to muddle through. The key risk is that the government shifts fiscal policy in a looser direction, which could …
18th January 2023
Has the EGP gone too far once again? The Egyptian pound has pared back its losses after sharp falls against the dollar on Wednesday in a sign that, just like 2016, the currency may have overshot. The authorities may keep the pound weak in a bid to rebuild …
12th January 2023
The sharp fall in the Egyptian pound today means that, in real trade-weighted terms, it is at its lowest level since the 2016 devaluation. The experience from that period is that the boost to Egypt’s external competitiveness will lead to a sharp narrowing …
11th January 2023
This report has been updated with additional table and chart of key data. Inflation surges higher on back of weaker pound Egypt’s CPI inflation rate jumped from 18.7% y/y in November to 21.3% y/y in December, its fastest pace since the end of 2017. (See …
10th January 2023
The latest fall in the Egyptian pound sends a strong signal that the authorities are committed to the shift to a more flexible exchange rate. And while the weaker currency poses a threat to the country’s fragile public debt dynamics, investors seem to …
5th January 2023
The sharp fall in the Egyptian pound today, coming in the wake of last week’s move to ease FX restrictions, suggests that the authorities are starting to make good on their pledge to shift to a more flexible exchange rate regime. There are already signs …
4th January 2023
Gulf non-oil sectors lost steam at the end of 2022 December’s PMIs suggest that non-oil sectors across the Gulf lost some steam at the end of 2022, with the worsening global backdrop weighing particularly heavily on the UAE. Elsewhere, there were signs …
CBE acts aggressively to counter inflation surge and weaker pound The 300bp interest rate hike by the Egyptian Central Bank (CBE), which took the overnight deposit rate to 16.25%, suggests that policymakers are even more concerned about rising inflation …
22nd December 2022
Tunisia’s debt problem: resolution further away? Parliamentary elections in Tunisia last weekend saw only 9% of the electorate turn out to vote after a boycott by opposition parties. The new parliament will be dominated by independent politicians, which …
The slide in the price of oil since November has a little further to go in early 2023 and, while we think prices will recover later in the year, hydrocarbon revenues in the Gulf will be lower than this year. Even so, most of the Gulf economies will run …
21st December 2022
Is the CBE eyeing up another surprise meeting? The IMF’s Executive Board meet on Friday to approve Egypt’s deal, and there are rumours the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) could meet today to deliver a surprise aggressive interest rate hike. The CBE is …
15th December 2022
This is part of a series of reports outlining our key macro and market calls for 2023. Click here to view the full series. Our latest EM Outlook can be found here . EMs will experience one of the broadest slowdowns in GDP growth in 2023 since the 1990s. …
This report has been updated with additional analysis, table and chart of key figures. Inflation on the way down Saudi inflation ticked down to 2.9% y/y in November on the back of a drop in food inflation. We think the headline rate will continue to fall …
Click here to read the full report. Overview – Growth across the Middle East and North Africa is set to slow sharply, and by more than most expect, next year. Oil output cuts will weigh on the Gulf even as fiscal policy stays loose. And while IMF deals …
13th December 2022
Egypt getting its IMF deal, but Tunisia made to wait The IMF will formally sign off on its deal with Egypt next week, but Tunisia’s deal remains up in the air, increasing the threat of a messy sovereign default. As we highlighted when the staff-level …
8th December 2022
This page has been updated with additional analysis, chart, and table of key figures. Jump in inflation a sign of things to come; tightening still on the agenda Egypt’s CPI inflation rate jumped from 16.2% y/y in October to 18.7% y/y in November – its …
This page has been updated with additional analysis and chart. Gulf non-oil sectors ending 2022 on a strong note November’s batch of PMIs provide further evidence that the non-oil sectors in the Gulf economies are rounding off the year on a strong …
5th December 2022
OPEC+ keeping the world on its toes Eyes will turn to OPEC+ on Sunday and, while there have been contrasting reports that oil output could be raised or cut further, it looks increasingly likely that October’s agreement will be rolled over. But we don’t …
1st December 2022
OPEC+ schisms growing as Saudi doubles down The volatility of oil prices has highlighted the uncertainty over the current OPEC+ oil output agreement and adds to our view that we do not think it will make it to its end-2023 expiry date. The price of Brent …
24th November 2022
Economies across North Africa have endured severe balance of payments strains this year and governments in Egypt and Tunisia finally secured staff-level agreements with the IMF over the past month. Markets have welcomed the news with sovereign dollar bond …
23rd November 2022
Egypt’s privatisation drive stepping up a gear? Egypt’s state ownership policy document finalised could come into effect before the end of 2022, but it remains to be seen whether the latest privatisation drive will better the fortunes of ones before. The …
17th November 2022
Morocco has been hit hard by the spillovers from the war in Ukraine and, while its external strains aren’t anywhere near as sever as those in Egypt and Tunisia, we think the authorities will need to resume their shift to a more flexible exchange rate …
16th November 2022
This webpage has been updated with additional analysis, table, and chart of key data. Inflation passed its peak Saudi inflation eased a touch from 3.1% y/y in September to 3.0% y/y in October (Consensus: 3.0% y/y; CE: 2.8% y/y) and we think the headline …
15th November 2022
Egypt steps up renewables push at COP27 With the COP27 climate summit underway in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt announced it will build one of the world’s largest onshore wind farms with financing from the UAE as it steps up its green energy shift. The farm will …
10th November 2022
Inflation hits a four-year high and will climb higher This publication has been updated with further analysis, as well as a chart and table of key data. The acceleration in Egypt’s CPI inflation rate from 15.0% y/y in September to a four-year high of …
The recent IMF deals reached by governments in Egypt and Tunisia are positive developments and will help ease balance of payments strains in both countries. Egypt has already made progress with meeting the IMF’s demands and restoring macro stability, …
9th November 2022
Saudi liquidity fears solidifying Saudi interbank rates (SAIBOR) have surged recently as liquidity conditions in the banking sector have tightened again. With no sign yet that the central bank (SAMA) is about set to step in, credit growth could slow and …
3rd November 2022
PMIs picked up last month, regional divergence continues This page has been updated with additional content. October’s batch of PMIs picked up in most of the region but there remains a stark divergence in growth prospects between the Gulf and non-Gulf …
Another robust quarter, but sharp slowdown on the cards Saudi Arabia’s economy posted a strong 2.6% q/q expansion in Q3, driven in large part by rising oil output. The subsequent OPEC+ cuts mean that that boost will fade over the coming quarters and we …
31st October 2022
This week ended with a bang as Egypt finally shifted to a more flexible exchange rate and secured an IMF deal. Some short-term economic pain is on the cards, but the move will help to restore macro stability and brighten long-term prospects. Early this …
27th October 2022
The Egyptian government announced steps to tackle its economic crisis, including a shift to a more flexible exchange rate regime and accompanying interest rate hikes -- but will it be enough? Our Emerging Markets team held a briefing on whether the …
Egypt’s central bank has just announced that it is shifting to a more flexible exchange rate regime, which we think will result in the pound falling 18% to 24/$ by end-2023 if not sooner. The move will result in some short-term economic pain but it will …
OPEC+ cut its oil production quotas by 2mn bpd in November and strong compliance with the agreement will hit GDP growth in the Gulf economies harder than other members of the group. The result is that the region is now set to endure a sharper economic …
26th October 2022
Download the full report here . Overview – The Gulf states will continue to lead the pack, but growth is set to slow next year by more than we had previously expected due to oil output cuts. In North Africa, balance of payments strains should ease, and …
21st October 2022
Tunisia still has work to do for IMF deal approval The IMF stated last weekend that Tunisia reached a staff-level agreement for a new deal, which (if approved) will reduce concerns that Tunisia might follow in Sri Lanka ’s footsteps towards a messy …
20th October 2022
The news that Tunisia has reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF over a $1.9bn financing package provides hope that the economy will avoid a messy balance of payments crisis. But there are still hurdles to overcome to seal the deal. And even with …
17th October 2022
US-Saudi relationship dials back Developments since last week’s OPEC+ decision provide further evidence that the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the US has soured. (See our immediate take on it here .) Chair of the US Senate Foreign Relations …
13th October 2022
Spillovers from the war in Ukraine and tighter external financing conditions have exacerbated strains in Egypt’s balance of payments and we think the pound needs to fall a lot further. This will add to inflation pressures, prompting further interest rate …
Inflation now at (or near) a peak Saudi inflation edged up to 3.1% y/y in September largely due to stronger food and housing inflation, but we think that the headline rate has now peaked and will drop back over the coming months and into early 2023. If …
Central banks have the tools to deal with liquidity crises arising from rising interest rates and falling asset prices. Instead, the bigger threat is that higher interest rates produce large and simultaneous falls in asset prices that threaten the …
11th October 2022
