Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Gulf set to resist pressure to cut oil output Comments ahead of today’s OPEC meeting, playing down calls for a cut in the cartel’s output target, suggest that the Gulf States aren’t too alarmed by the recent slide in oil prices. Indeed, Saudi... 27th November 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s tourism sector finally on the mend Egypt’s tourism sector has turned the corner in recent months and, if this improvement can be sustained, we estimate that it might result in additional revenues of as much as $3.3bn (1.2% of GDP) over... 20th November 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Data Response Egypt Consumer Prices (Oct.) The increase in Egyptian inflation last month should not ring too many alarm bells. In fact, it can be almost entirely explained by a sharp rise in education inflation ahead of the new academic year. 10th November 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Central Bank of Egypt to let the pound fall sooner rather than later The Egyptian pound has held steady in recent months but we think that policymakers will need to loosen their grip on the currency in the not-too-distant future. All told, we forecast the pound to drop... 5th November 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Data Response Whole Economy PMIs (Oct.) September’s Brazilian industrial production data suggest that the sector remained a drag on the overall economy in the third quarter and, with both domestic and external demand set to remain weak, it... 4th November 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Little reaction in the Gulf to fall in oil prices The slide in oil prices this month has raised concerns in some quarters that the Gulf States will need to tighten fiscal policy. But while the prospect of this has been talked about in Oman, lower oil... 30th October 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Low oil prices provide relief for MENA’s resource-poor economies In contrast to the Gulf, the rest of the MENA region stands to gain from the recent fall in oil prices. That being said, a period of low oil prices alone won’t be sufficient to reduce these economies’... 23rd October 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt rates left unchanged as recovery trumps high inflation The Central Bank of Egypt’s decision to keep interest rates on hold today came as little surprise. Inflation remains high but policymakers are undoubtedly wary of tightening monetary policy due to... 16th October 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Non-oil sectors in the Gulf performing well September’s ‘whole economy’ PMI data suggest that non-oil sectors in the Gulf, and in Saudi Arabia in particular, ended the third quarter on a strong note. Meanwhile, the survey provided further... 7th October 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s economy shifts up a gear 30th September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Egypt's economic recovery gathers pace Having suffered following last summer’s “second revolution”, the Egyptian economy is finally starting to gather steam. Activity has been buoyed by recent political stability and the government’s Gulf... 25th September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Less to the narrowing of Egypt’s trade deficit than meets the eye The latest headline trade figures from Egypt suggest that the country’s trade deficit has narrowed sharply over the past year, reducing a key economic vulnerability. However, by taking a closer look... 18th September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update President al-Sisi’s first 100 days better than expected In his first 100 days in office, Egypt’s President al- Sisi has made more progress in tackling the country’s economic problems than many, including ourselves, had expected. In particular, his... 15th September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s economic recovery continues The pick-up in Egypt’s ‘whole economy’ PMI last month suggests that the economy has continued to make a gradual recovery from last summer’s “second revolution”. Meanwhile, non-oil sectors in the Gulf... 3rd September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt: interest rates on hold, further tightening unlikely The Egyptian central bank’s decision to keep interest rates on hold today appears to confirm that July’s rate hike was a one-off in response to higher inflation following the government’s recent... 1st September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Dubai's GREs slowly tackling their debt problems Over the past month Dubai’s government-related entities (GREs), which were at the heart of the Emirate’s crisis in 2009, have made further efforts to tackle their huge mountains of debt. The recovery... 28th August 2014 · 1 min read
