The IMF action, repeatedly postponed and eagerly awaited by the Egyptian government, arrives at a time of mounting difficulties for its economy. The IMF said Egypt has achieved all the objectives set out in the first two stages of the aid program, with the exception of the level of its...

The financial assistance includes "$3 billion for financial support to Government’s programs and $3 billion for the private sector (including mobilization) – subject to Board approval," it added. Egypt, the Arab world's most populous nation, is in dire need of financial help as it weathers a severe economic crisis marked...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Arabia's international reserve assets decreased by SAR 26.98 billion, or 2 percent, to SAR 1.619 trillion ($431.65 billion) in February 2024, compared to the previous month. On a yearly basis, the Kingdom’s foreign reserve assets plunged 5 percent, or SAR 78.2 billion, Argaam reported, citing Saudi...

Dubai, UAE - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a report has indicated that the global economy is on course for a soft landing, despite ongoing weaknesses in activity and growth prospects. "The cyclical position of G20 countries has proven stronger than previously anticipated as disinflation has so far proceeded...

Dubai, UAE-- The UAE's economy has recorded the best growth rates in comparison to other economies in the region, according to Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He affirmed the UAE's robust economic performance in recent years, highlighting its...

World Bank President Ajay Banga said that "what's going on Gaza, but also the challenges of Ukraine... and the Red Sea" are among the top challenges to the global economic outlook. "When you add variables to what is turning out to be probably the lowest growth of the last 55...

Dubai, UAE -- International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Kristalina Georgieva has forecasted that the total GDP growth for the Middle East region would reach 2.9 percent this year, surpassing the figures from 2023. Speaking on the sidelines of the pre-summit day of WGS 2024's Eighth Arab Fiscal Forum, Georgieva emphasized...

"The Palestinian economy's dire outlook is worsening as the conflict persists," managing director Kristalina Georgieva told the World Governments Summit in Dubai. "Only a durable peace and political solution will fundamentally change it".

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its growth projections for Saudi Arabia's economy, revealing a more optimistic outlook. The latest forecast anticipates a 5.5% growth rate for the Kingdom in 2025, representing an increase from the initial projection of 4.5% made in October 2023. The...

The updated figure, released in the latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, is 0.2 percentage points higher than the International Monetary Fund's previous forecast in October. "The global economy continues to display remarkable resilience, with inflation declining steadily and growth holding up," IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said.

Artificial intelligence poses risks to job security around the world but also offers a "tremendous opportunity" to boost flagging productivity levels and fuel global growth, the IMF chief told AFP. AI will affect 60 percent of jobs in advanced economies, the International Monetary Fund's managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, said in...

The IMF sees an important opportunity for policy prescriptions to help address these concerns, Georgieva told AFP. "We must focus on helping low-income countries in particular to move faster to be able to catch the opportunities that artificial intelligence will present," she said.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- The GCC region’s non-hydrocarbon growth momentum remains strong, driven by higher domestic demand, increased gross capital inflows, and reform implementation, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said. A comprehensive package of policies should be implemented to respond to near-term shocks and uncertainty and to firmly address...

The IMF said the debt relief will facilitate access to additional financial resources that will help it strengthen economy, reduce poverty, and promote job creation. Somalia is one of the poorest in the world, struggling to recover from decades of civil war, and with 70% of its population living on...

ABU DHABI, UAE - International Monetary Fund (IMF), in collaboration with the UAE Executive Office of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing (EO AMLCTF), held a "Fintech Roundtable" with Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) supervisors from across the globe. The event was attended by participants from 15 countries...

Dubai, UAE--The IMF announced Friday that it will revise its economic outlook for the Middle East and North Africa region due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. The conflict will have wide-ranging consequences for "both people and economies" in the region, although the extent of the impact remains "highly uncertain," the...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi Arabia's consumer price index experienced a slight decrease in October, dropping to 1.6 percent from 1.7 percent in September, according to the latest official data. The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) reported that this decrease in inflation was primarily due to a 0.8 percent reduction...

Doha, Qatar - The International reserves and foreign currency liquidity of Qatar Central Bank (QCB) surged by 11.73% in October 2023 to reach $67.04 billion, compared to $59.97 billion in October 2022. The figures issued by QCB on Wednesday showed an increase in its official reserves at the end of...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-- Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Saudi Arabia amounted to $32.52 billion in 2022, revised upwards from $8 billion figure that had been published previously. According to SPA, the updated figure is a result of a new framework methodology for publishing FDI data in the kingdom which was...

Recent developments spark concerns that the conflict, which is spreading across the region, presents a long-term threat to global energy and commercial infrastructure.

"The Gulf country is set to host the WTO's 13th Ministerial Conference in the first quarter of 2024 in Abu Dhabi. This event will position the UAE at the epicenter of discussions shaping global trade's future. Ossa underscored that this conference ranks among the most significant events in the WTO's...

"Factors such as robust fiscal discipline supported by strong oil prices, debt reduction efforts by the Ministry of Finance, and improved macroeconomic indicators due to structural reforms have led to positive sovereign credit ratings for Qatar by international credit rating agencies,” he adds.

Marrakech, Morocco-- In spite of economic disruptions, policymakers in the GCC countries have successfully alleviated the economic ramifications of the challenges they have faced, according to Jassem Mohamed Albudaiwi, the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). He added that the GCC nations experienced substantial growth in their gross domestic...

Marrakech, Morocco-- The UAE has allotted $200 million to the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT) to expand concessional financing for low-income countries. This aligns with the UAE’s unwavering efforts to realize the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 1 (SDG 1) – no poverty – alongside other challenges that the...

Marrakesh, Morocco-- The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) attaches great importance to finding solutions to economic problems such as the eradication of poverty and enhancing food security, according to the GCC Secretary General Jassem Mohamed Albudaiwi. He made the remarks in connection with the participation of the council member states in...

Marrakesh, Morocco-- The war between Israel and Hamas has cast a shadow over the IMF-World Bank annual meetings in Morocco, with warnings on Thursday that it has darkened the outlook for an already sluggish global economy. The global lenders are holding their gathering, which brings together finance ministers and central bankers...

Dubai, UAE - Qatar has signed two agreements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on its contributions towards IMF's poverty reduction and sustainable initiatives. The agreements were signed on the sidelines of the Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group (WBG) and the IMF in...

Activists from developing nations belonging to a group called People's Alternative Global Tribunal organized themselves in the Moroccan city as the IMF and World Bank held their annual meetings. Activists testified about how the policies of the international financial institutions impacted their countries, deepening economic inequality.

Marrakech, Morocco-- The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday cut its growth forecasts for China and the euro zone and said overall global growth remained low and uneven despite what it called the "remarkable strength" of the U.S. economy. In its latest World Economic Outlook, the IMF left its forecast for...

Benguerir, Morocco - US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Tuesday she backed efforts to boost the lending firepower of the IMF and World Bank to combat poverty and climate change. Speaking on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank annual meetings in Morocco, Yellen said the global lending system had already...

The IMF kept its 2023 global growth forecast unchanged but warned that the economy is "limping along" as inflation remains high and the outlooks for China and Germany were downgraded. The IMF's updated World Economic Outlook still sees growth of 3.0 percent for this year but it cut its forecast...

The EU is to start releasing money to Tunisia under a pact aimed at stemming irregular migration from the country, the European Commission said. EU lawmakers, the bloc's ombudsman and migrant assistance charities have questioned whether the deal with Tunisia meets European rights standards. Tunisia is struggling with high debt...

Washington, US--The International Monetary Fund plans to tell China to boost weak domestic consumption, address its troubled real estate sector, and rein in local government debt, problems that are dragging down both Chinese and global growth, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told a media outlet. The Fund will strongly urge...

Riyadh and New Delhi set a new benchmark in global trade and cooperation with 53 deals across diverse sectors and plans for an economic corridor from India to Europe.

Annual inflation in Egypt hit 39.7 percent in August, official figures showed, an all-time high for the country as it grapples with a punishing economic crisis. It comes after an unrelenting economic crisis that has seen the currency shed half its value against the US dollar since early last year.

New Delhi, India-- Appealing to G20 members to lead by example in delivering on the promise of US$100 billion per year for climate finance, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva has underscored the need for cohesive effort to prevent grave risks to economic well-being and macro-financial stability from...

The comments from Jay Shambaugh, the Treasury's under secretary for international affairs, underscore the Biden administration's push for the IMF and World Bank to play a greater role in financing climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-- Saudi Arabia's economy is in a state of prosperity and growth, and that the kingdom's fiscal position is strong, primarily driven by Vision 2030 which has been steadily diversifying the economy since its launch in 2016, according to the International Monetary Fund.   The IMF said in a statement...

Dubai, UAE - Middle East needs a ‘New Deal’ to deliver for its 600 million people more jobs, better education, greater dignity, better governance, and a broader, fairer distribution of economic opportunities and resources.  “The status quo of state-dominated economic activity will be hard to sustain, especially for heavily indebted...

GCC countries consistently maintain inflation rates below the global average, with the Food and Beverages CPI subcategory showing moderate growth across the region.

ABU DHABI, UAE - A two-day meeting of world leading economists and finance leaders convened by the COP28 Presidency has stated the next steps needed to establish a new framework for international climate finance and to drive progress at COP28 and beyond to COP29 and COP30. World-leading economists from the...

Islamabad, Pakistan - Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met on Tuesday with visiting Saudi Deputy Foreign Minister Waleed bin Abdulkarim Al Khuraiji, and discussed regional and international development. They also discussed bilateral relations and ways to enhance and develop them in various fields in a way that achieves the aspirations...

She adds that the Ministry’s participation in this workshop forms part of its commitment to fostering regional and international cooperation and facilitating the exchange of expertise with partners, thus contributing to establishing a sustainable national anti-money laundering ecosystem.

A projected decline in the Middle East and Central Asia from 5.4 percent in 2022 to 2.5 percent in 2023 has been attributed to a steeper-than-expected growth slowdown in the Kingdom from 8.7 percent in 2022 to 1.9 percent in 2023, a negative revision of 1.2 percentage points.

Abu Dhabi, UAE - Khaled Mohamed Balama, Governor of the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) discussed ways to enhance the integrity of the financial system in a meeting with Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday. They also discussed partnership between CBUAE...

The deposit comes a day after Saudi Arabia transferred $2 billion to Islamabad and brings the state's foreign reserves to $7.5 billion -- more than double last week's account balance. The economy has been stricken by a balance-of-payments crisis as it attempts to service crippling external debt, while months of...

The economy has been stricken by a balance-of-payments crisis as it attempts to service crippling external debt, while months of political chaos have scared off foreign investment. Inflation has rocketed, the rupee has reached a record low against the dollar, and the country is struggling to afford imports, causing a...

Doha, Qatar -- International reserves and foreign currency liquidity of Qatar Central Bank (QCB) rose to reach QR 240.742 billion ($66.11 billion) in June, an increase of 14 percent, compared to QR 211.176 billion last year, Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported. The figures issued Thursday by QCB showed an increase...

While the global economy reels from high inflation and the war in Ukraine, the UAE looks poised for positive economic growth with the IMF and the World Bank projecting the country's economy to grow by 3.6 percent and 2.8 percent respectively. The economy will continue to benefit from tourism and...

"Now is the time to face the three uncomfortable truths ... Inflation remains sticky; financial stresses could make price and financial stability a difficult balancing act; and more upside inflation risks will likely come our way," she adds, emphasizing the crucial role that the return to price stability plays in...