Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook Non-oil economies set for recovery The MENA region’s non-oil economies remain fragile, but a recovery of sorts is likely over the next year. In Egypt, growth will be supported by the government’s Gulf-funded stimulus package, while... 17th October 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s tourism sector bears the brunt of the unrest Tourist arrivals to Egypt have fallen back following the country’s “second revolution” and we estimate that tourist revenues in July and August were $600mn lower than in the same months of last year... 10th October 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Equity markets rebound on back of Syria deal & Fed decision Equity markets have recovered some of their earlier lost ground as concerns overWestern military intervention in Syria, as well as fears of a tapering of QE3 by theUS Federal Reserve, have eased. 25th September 2013 · 1 min read
Africa Economics Update African markets rally as Fed delays tapering The surprise decision by the US Fed to delay the tapering of its asset purchases this month has provided a temporary reprieve for emerging market assets, including those in Africa. In light of this... 23rd September 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Egypt back in the spotlight Investors have lost even more confidence in Egypt over the past month. The equity market has tumbled and, while this could in part be related to signals by the US Fed that it will begin to taper QE3... 24th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update What would the tapering of QE mean for the MENA region? Fears that the US Fed may begin to taper its third round of quantitative easing (QE) have led to a sell-off in emerging market assets over the past few weeks. The MENA region has escaped relatively... 13th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Fears of inflation and unrest to frustrate subsidy reform Subsidies are becoming increasingly unaffordable across the poorer parts of the MENA region. But the threat of higher inflation and social unrest is likely to frustrate efforts at subsidy reform. 11th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Youth unemployment likely to have risen further Two and a half years on from the Arab Spring uprisings, youth unemployment in the Middle East, which was a key trigger for the unrest, remains high. In fact, we suspect it may have risen over the past... 6th June 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Gulf growing at a healthy pace Growth in the Gulf economies has held up well over the first few months of this year. Admittedly, the weakness of the global economy is weighing on demand for the region’s hydrocarbon exports. But... 22nd May 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Egypt and the IMF: still no breakthrough Political deadlock in Egypt has placed another obstacle in the way of negotiations with the IMF. A team from the Fund left Cairo earlier this month without an agreement in place, apparently as a... 25th April 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update What does the fall in oil prices mean for the MENA region? The recent fall in oil prices is unlikely to unduly trouble the Gulf States. Prices need to drop much further and stay there before they run fiscal deficits, and even then large savings and low debt... 18th April 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Resilient Gulf unlikely to boost resource-poor economies The Gulf economies are on course to grow at a decent pace this year, but the boost to their resource-poor neighbours is likely to be limited. Trade and investment links are surprisingly small. Instead... 15th April 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook A Gulf in growth The Gulf economies are on course to outperform the rest of the region over the next year or so. Admittedly, weak oil production will act as a drag on growth in 2013. But increased government spending... 4th April 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Bond yields spike in Egypt as IMF deal looks further away Yields on Egyptian dollar-denominated bonds have spiked as an IMF deal looks increasingly distant and concerns over the government’s fiscal position mount. 27th March 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Euro-zone to continue weighing on North Africa The deterioration in the French, Italian and Spanish economies in recent months has caused the growth outlook for North Africa to worsen. Coming on top of continued domestic political instability... 25th March 2013 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Saudi economy not yet overheating A combination of rising government spending, rapid and accelerating credit growth, and a rise in headline inflation has led some commentators to warn that the Saudi economy is overheating. Looking... 14th March 2013 · 1 min read