Qatar announces $430 mn in support for Lebanon
A visiting Qatari official on Monday announced a multi-million dollar aid package for Lebanon, primarily to support the country's crumbling...
Economy
How the Middle East is positioning itself at the crossroads of a changing world
AI, geopolitics, climate, and demographics are reshaping the Middle East’s growth model beyond oil.
Economy
Economy
Social media fooled by AI video of ‘sky stadium’ for Saudi 2034 World Cup
Paris, France - An AI-generated video claiming to show one of the football stadiums for the 2034 FIFA World Cup...
- The video of glowing arena built atop a towering skyscraper was shared by thousands of social media accounts, with millions of users believing it was the official visual
- While Riyadh has unveiled plans to build a football area on a real estate complex in The Line – a futuristic new megacity project – the official plans bear no likeness to the clip
Economy
Backed by its sovereign wealth fund, Saudi chases AI ambitions with homegrown firm pitched to global investors
The company, launched in May, is bankrolled by Saudi's powerful Public Investment Fund, which has played a key role in...
- The company, launched in May, is bankrolled by Saudi's powerful Public Investment Fund, which has played a key role in financing the kingdom's gigaprojects
- But Riyadh's ambitions to become a global AI hub face fierce competition from the neighbouring United Arab Emirates, which have invested in AI for years
Economy
Steady and sensible, Oman builds its future brick by brick amid the Gulf’s glittering rush
With volatile geopolitics and the resulting uncertainty, the year 2025 has been challenging for most of the countries across the...
- With its resilience and steady march, Omani economy continues to smoothly navigate geo-economic volatility
- If one looks at the economic performance of Oman, there are several lessons to be learned – the foremost being slow and steady win the race
Economy
US Fed will likely cut again despite economic murkiness from shutdown
The central bank's second-to-last rate meeting of the year is taking place against the backdrop of a weeks-long standoff between...
- Without these key insights into the US economy, Fed officials will be forced to set interest rates without the full spectrum of data they normally rely upon.
- The US central bank has a dual mandate from Congress to act independently to tackle both inflation and unemployment.
Economy
Iran declares major lender bankrupt
Iran declared one of the country's largest private banks bankrupt with its assets absorbed by the state, official media reported...
- Founded in 2012, Ayandeh Bank had a network of 270 branches across the country, including 150 in the capital Tehran alone
- But it had more recently been crippled by debt, with accumulated losses amounting to the equivalent of about $5.2 billion
Science
Gartner lists 2026’s defining tech: Faster AI, safer clouds, and smarter security
AI supercomputing platforms integrate CPUs, GPUs, AI ASICs, neuromorphic and alternative computing paradigms, enabling organizations to orchestrate complex workloads while...
- AI supercomputing platforms integrate CPUs, GPUs, AI ASICs, neuromorphic and alternative computing paradigms, enabling organizations to orchestrate complex workloads
- By 2028, Gartner predicts that over 40% of leading enterprises will have adopted hybrid computing paradigm architectures into critical business workflows, up from the current 8%
Economy
China vows massive high-tech sector development in next decade
Beijing, China -- China will develop its high-tech sector on a massive scale in the next decade, top officials vowed...
- The country has poured support and investment into developing its science and technology sectors, part of ongoing efforts to present itself as a world leader in those areas.
- Domestically, China has been beset by sluggish spending, a protracted property sector crisis and a demographic crunch as its population starts to decline.
Science
Anthropic announces massive AI chip deal with Google
San Francisco, United States - Artificial intelligence giant Anthropic said Thursday it was expanding its use of Google cloud computing...
- The arrangement will include Anthropic buying as many as one million Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), which are integrated circuits custom-designed by Google
- The expansion promises to let Anthropic bring more than a gigawatt of new computing power online by the end of 2026, enabling it to meet "exponentially growing demand."
Geostrategy
Oil prices surge as Trump hits Russian crude with sanctions
The international benchmark contract, Brent North Sea crude, jumped 4.8 percent while West Texas Intermediate was up 5.1 percent. Trump on Wednesday announced...
- The move was joined by another round of punishments by the European Union as part of attempts to pressure Moscow to end its three-and-a-half-year invasion of Ukraine.
- According to industry analysts the two companies account for just over half of Russia's oil output, and both also produce natural gas.
Science
Celebrities, AI giants urge end to quest for superintelligence capable of outsmarting humans
Signatories include the "Godfather of AI" and 2024 winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics Geoffrey Hinton; Computer Sciences Professor...
- Most major AI developers are striving for artificial general intelligence (AGI), a stage where AI would match all human intellectual capabilities, and even superintelligence
- Speaking at an event organised by the media group Axel Springer in September, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that superintelligence could be achieved within the next five years
Most Read
Revenue from Saudi cinema may exceed $1bn by 2030KSA, UAE play well as e-gaming trends across GCCExclusive: Middle East’s retail sector rides on AR and hybrid shopping to become $600bn digital economyTECOM Group profit soars 13%UAE startups eye Saudi Arabia for growth, expansionSaudi Arabia leads GCC AI healthcare raceDisparity remains as Saudis, Emiratis see wealth gains
Qatar announces $430 mn in support for Lebanon
A visiting Qatari official on Monday announced a multi-million dollar aid package for Lebanon, primarily to support the country's crumbling...
Economy
Company News
Latest News
Saudi Arabia’s high-stakes race toward Vision 2030: Diversifying amid global uncertainty
Moving forward, lower oil revenues will continue to pose challenges to the Saudi economy and its overall targets. Earlier this...
Economy
Syria to start replacing currency from Jan 1: central bank chief
Syria's central bank chief said Thursday that the country's currency would start to be replaced with a revamped version from...
Economy
“New Suez Canal on rails”: Egypt high-speed trains to connect Red Sea, Mediterranean
Workers have started laying tracks in the desert east of Cairo for Egypt's first high-speed train, which will link the...
Economy
Most Read
Economy
US launches pact for AI supply chains with key Asia-Pacific allies to face China
The United States signed an agreement on the supply chains with key Asia-Pacific allies concerned about China's growing clout --...
- Dubbed the "Pax Silica," adapting the Latin terms for peace and silicon, a key material in AI, the partnership aims to secure supply chains
- China has quickly taken a dominant position in the race for resources in the fast-growing area of artificial intelligence, mining around 70 percent of key rare earths
Economy
MENA emerges as fast-growing global e-trading hub, UAE leads with over half-trillion dollars in volume
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is rapidly becoming one of the world’s most dynamic retail e-trading markets,...
- The study, Trading’s New Horizon: How Access, Innovation and Ambition Are Fuelling MENA’s E-Trading Boom, draws on two years of data from 62,850 verified traders across the region
- The report notes that MENA traders are young, digitally savvy and highly educated, and nearly 86% are aged 18–44, and 64% hold a university degree—far higher than Europe’s 39%
Economy
Qatar’s economic momentum accelerates as diversification gains global recognition
However, Qatar faces downside risks from a deeper global economic slowdown that could weaken energy demand and LNG prices amid...
- World Bank, Standard Chartered, and Moody’s highlight Qatar’s resilience, strong GDP outlook, and rising non-hydrocarbon strength
- Backed by digital transformation, AI investment, and stable credit ratings, Qatar’s non-oil sectors lead regional growth