Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s subsidy cuts a good first step but still more to be done The package of energy subsidy cuts unveiled by the Egyptian government over the weekend is a positive first step towards tackling the country’s gaping budget deficit. Further reforms will be needed to... 7th July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt: growth picks up in Q1 as investment rebounds Q1 GDP data published earlier today showed that Egypt’s economy has continued its gradual recovery from last summer’s “second revolution”. And there were some encouraging signs that easing political... 30th June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Focus Five priorities for Egypt’s new government With Egypt’s presidential election now out of the way, policymakers’ attention has turned to reviving the struggling economy. In this Focus, we outline five areas which we think need to be addressed... 26th June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Dubai equities on the slide The Dubai equity market has fallen sharply over the past month amid concerns that the Emirate’s real estate sector is becoming another bubble. Elsewhere, spreads on Egypt’s dollar-denominated bonds... 24th June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Iraq crisis raises contagion fears The unfolding crisis in Iraq has cast a shadow over the region, causing equity markets to tumble. As it happens, the largest MENA economies have only limited trade and financial ties with Iraq... 19th June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Growth alone won’t fix Egypt’s dire public finances There are growing hopes that the gradual recovery in the Egyptian economy will help to bring the dire public finances on to a more sustainable path. But while we think this will have some impact, in... 16th June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Why we’re relatively downbeat on the Saudi economy In its latest Article IV for Saudi, the IMF painted an upbeat picture of the economy. However, as we outline in this Watch, there are good reasons to think that growth may slow over the coming years. 5th June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update PMIs highlight Egypt’s bumpy recovery May’s ‘whole economy’ PMI data show that, although the Egyptian economy is faring better than it was last summer, growth is sluggish. And looking ahead, in spite of the optimism following Abdel Fattah... 3rd June 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt rates on hold, al-Sisi election victory unlikely to mean cuts Although the Egyptian central bank left interest rates on hold today, there is growing speculation that, following Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s decisive victory in the recent presidential election, rate... 29th May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Dubai equities fall following upgrade to EM status Dubai’s equity market tumbled earlier in the month following the upgrade by MSCI from “frontier” to “emerging” market status. Stocks in Abu Dhabi and Qatar (which were also upgraded) fell too, but to... 28th May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Focus Will Egypt’s election be a turning point for the economy? Egypt’s upcoming presidential election has cast the spotlight back onto the country’s bumpy transition to democracy. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who led last summer’s “second revolution”, is widely expected... 22nd May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Growth in the Gulf diverges It looks like economic growth accelerated further in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar over the first few months of the year. In Saudi Arabia, this was supported by a rebound in the oil sector, while... 21st May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egyptian pound may fall further as CBE reduces support The fall in the Egyptian pound in recent weeks is significant given that the central bank had maintained a tight grip on the currency over the past year. No official explanation has been provided for... 20th May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s public finances still dire, but default risk seems limited Egypt has one of the worst fiscal positions in the world, but the risk of default is lower than some seem to think. Funding from the Gulf, coupled with a domestic banking sector willing to purchase... 14th May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update What might an al-Sisi presidency hold in store for Egypt’s economy? Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, the leader of last summer’s “second revolution”, looks set to sweep to victory in Egypt’s presidential election, scheduled for 26th - 27th May. In this Watch, we take a closer... 8th May 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update UAE PMI hits record high April’s PMI data from the MENA region suggests that the rebound in the UAE’s economy has strengthened. Meanwhile, the economic recovery in Egypt from last summer’s unrest remains bumpy as the country... 6th May 2014 · 1 min read
