Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Worst fears over Qatar crisis fade Diplomatic efforts have failed to bring an end to the stand-off between Qatar and the so-called Anti-Terror Quartet (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and Bahrain). Encouragingly, though, there are signs that... 21st July 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Are we witnessing the end of the GCC? A threat by regional powers to expel Qatar from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has sparked fears that the group could be disbanded. A complete breakup of the GCC seems highly unlikely but, even if... 12th July 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook Regional slowdown approaching a trough The slowdown in the Middle East and North Africa should bottom out in the second half of this year and growth is likely to strengthen in 2018-19. In the Gulf, the hit to headline GDP growth from OPEC... 5th July 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Politics rocks the Gulf Political developments have dominated the news in the MENA region this month. In Qatar, financial markets have sold off amid a diplomatic spat with regional powers. So far, though, the broader... 30th June 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Qatar: banking sector concerns slip under the radar Concerns over the impact on Qatar from its diplomatic spat with neighbouring countries have largely focussed on trade ties, but we think investors should be keeping a closer eye on Qatar’s banking... 13th June 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Fears over Qatar’s dollar peg misplaced The diplomatic spat between Qatar and its neighbours has sparked fears that it may be forced to devalue the riyal, but we think this is highly unlikely. In particular, the country’s strong balance... 8th June 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Economic fallout from Qatar diplomatic spat likely to be limited The recent spat between Qatar and regional powers has escalated over the past 24 hours, but there are good reasons to think that the impact on these economies and global energy markets will be limited... 5th June 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Gulf economies better placed to deal with low oil prices The recent fall in oil prices has reignited fears over the outlook for the Gulf, but as we explain in this Watch these countries are in a better position now to weather a period of low oil prices than... 8th May 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Devaluation fears fade in the Gulf, Tunisia’s dinar falls Fears that low oil prices would force the Gulf countries to devalue their currencies have continued to fade over the past month. However, one country in the region where the authorities have loosened... 26th April 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Gulf: improving budget positions to allow austerity to ease Budget positions across the Gulf should improve over the next couple of years – and many will return to surplus – supported in large part by higher oil prices. As a result, governments across the... 13th April 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Recent dip in oil prices not a major concern for the Gulf The recent drop in oil prices, from around US$56pb at the start of March to just over US$51pb at present, is unlikely to be a major cause for alarm in the Gulf. For one thing, oil prices are still... 29th March 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook Gulf growth to be trimmed by oil output cuts Headline GDP growth in the Gulf looks is likely to slow to an eight-year low of 1.5% in 2017. However, this will be entirely the result of oil production cuts as countries comply with last year’s OPEC... 20th March 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Steady stream of Gulf dollar bond sales continues Oman and, for the first time, Kuwait are expected to sell dollar bonds in the coming weeks, continuing the raft of issuances from the Gulf countries over the past year. Kuwait’s strong balance sheet... 28th February 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Gulf’s non-oil sectors show signs of recovery The latest activity data suggest that non-oil sectors in the two largest Gulf economies, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, are starting to recover from their slumps in early 2016. Both countries have been... 20th February 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Qatar’s credit boom comes to an end, lending growth to stay weak The recent sharp slowdown in private sector credit growth, coupled with falling real estate prices, has ignited concerns that Qatar’s credit boom of the past few years is quickly unravelling. For now... 9th February 2017 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Egypt’s pound float: short-term pain, long-term gain The 50% fall in the Egyptian pound against the US dollar since the central bank floated the currency at the start of November will cause economic growth to slow sharply in the coming quarters... 28th November 2016 · 1 min read
