Middle East & North Africa Economics Update The 'Arab Spring' one year on This Saturday marks a year since the end of Hosni Mubarak’s three-decade reign over Egypt. Only a few weeks before that, Tunisia’s revolution ended with the toppling of the Ben Ali regime. Since then... 8th February 2012 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Middle East Markets Monitor (Feb.) The Arab world’s markets have underperformed in January. The exception is Egyptian stocks, which are up by 25% since the beginning of the year. However, we think that Egypt’s recovery is unlikely to... 7th February 2012 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Syria: A prolonged crisis is on the cards The Arab League’s uncharacteristically unified position on Syria last year has quickly reversed. While some countries, led by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), favour a tough stance, others... 25th January 2012 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Gulf markets hit by Iran tensions The escalation of tensions with Iran has meant that financial markets in the Gulf have underperformed those in the rest of the emerging world so far this year. While the MSCI emerging market equity... 23rd January 2012 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Oil-importers will have no room for fiscal manoeuvre in 2012 The increase in the costs of food and fuel subsidies, and public sector salaries, has left most oil-importers in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) with no room to counteract the impact of a... 9th January 2012 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Clouds gather over North Africa Successful elections in Tunisia and Morocco, and initially in Egypt, have been overshadowed by a marked deterioration in economic conditions in North Africa. Indeed, Egypt is at a growing risk of a... 20th December 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt: teetering on the edge of a full-blown economic crisis The ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces’ (SCAF) dithering over securing external financial assistance has left Egypt teetering on the edge of a full-blown economic crisis. The central bank’s... 7th December 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Egypt erupts The past month has been dominated by events in Egypt. Renewed clashes between protestors and the security forces, coupled with the resignation of the interim government, have left parliamentary... 22nd November 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Employment schemes in the GCC: silver bullet or damp squib? The recent moves by the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to increase the participation of their citizens in the private sector jobs market, notably Saudi Arabia’s Nitiqat scheme, are... 3rd November 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook Financing risks rise in the resource-poor countries The combination of deepening problems in advanced economies and the legacy of political unrest earlier this year has heightened the risk of fiscal and balance of payments crises in the resource-poor... 2nd November 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Tunisia's election results should not worry investors The fact that the moderate Islamic party, Al-Nahda, is on track to become the strongest political force in Tunisia should not be a concern for Western governments or international investors. From the... 26th October 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update After Gaddafi, what next for the ‘Arab Spring’? The fact that there was no market reaction to the death of Libya’s former leader, Muammar Gaddafi, is no surprise. That said, today’s events could reduce political risks in the Middle East and North... 21st October 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Oil-rich states well prepared to face the global crisis The drop in PMIs in Saudi Arabia and the UAE provide the first signs that the Gulf States are being hit by the on-going problems in the developed world. But the oil-rich countries have strong balance... 20th October 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Resource-poor countries most at risk from a global crisis The global economic crisis will affect the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region through a deterioration in world trade, falls in commodity prices and a drop in capital inflows. We expect that... 14th October 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update IMF aid crucial to heading off an external financing crisis North Africa’s hefty external financing requirements, coupled with turmoil in the global financial markets, have increased the risk that the region could be hit by a balance of payments crisis... 7th October 2011 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Focus Will the 'Arab Spring' bring economic transformation? The recent political turmoil, the so-called ‘Arab Spring’, could ultimately lead to a marked acceleration in economic growth for some parts of the Arab World. Egypt, Morocco and, to a lesser extent... 4th October 2011 · 1 min read
