Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Oil sector drives sharp Q2 slowdown in Saudi Arabia The Saudi Arabian economy slowed sharply between Q1 and Q2, largely due to weakness in the oil sector. The data also provided further signs that Saudi consumers may be struggling. Looking ahead, it’s... 24th September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Saudi slowdown continues at the start of Q3 Our GDP Tracker suggests that the Saudi economy slowed further at the start of Q3 as growth in the oil sector continued to ease, while activity in the non-oil sector remained weak by past standards. 8th September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Egypt’s economic recovery continues The pick-up in Egypt’s ‘whole economy’ PMI last month suggests that the economy has continued to make a gradual recovery from last summer’s “second revolution”. Meanwhile, non-oil sectors in the Gulf... 3rd September 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Dubai's GREs slowly tackling their debt problems Over the past month Dubai’s government-related entities (GREs), which were at the heart of the Emirate’s crisis in 2009, have made further efforts to tackle their huge mountains of debt. The recovery... 28th August 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Saudi growth slows on weakness in oil sector Our GDP Tracker suggests that growth in the Saudi economy slowed to around 4.3% y/y in Q2 from 4.7% y/y in Q1. This was driven by weakness in the oil sector, but it looks like growth in the non-oil... 21st August 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Gulf’s stock market rally loses steam Equity markets in the Gulf have been among the best performers in the world over the previous year, but they’ve flat-lined during the past month. The one exception is Saudi Arabia, where the stock... 19th August 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Saudi consumer spending may be stabilising The latest data suggest that Saudi consumer spending remains weak by past standards, but it does at least look like the recent slowdown may now have bottomed out. 14th August 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Weaker Saudi credit growth could be here to stay The past few months have brought further evidence that credit growth is coming off the boil in parts of the Gulf. As we explain in this Watch, there are reasons to think that this could prove to be... 7th August 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Fall in Egypt’s PMI doesn’t signal end of recovery The fall in Egypt’s PMI in July was disappointing in light of the recent improvement in the hard activity data. However, the bigger picture is that the economy is stronger than it was a year ago... 5th August 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economic Outlook North Africa getting back on its feet Three years on from the “Arab Spring” uprisings, the tide is turning in favour of the economies of North Africa. Admittedly, there are still many challenges, not least reining in large twin current... 31st July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Chart Pack Signs of recovery in North Africa Following a difficult few years, the latest data have provided further evidence that things are improving in North Africa. It looks like growth in both Tunisia and Egypt accelerated over the first... 29th July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Dubai leads equity market rebound Equity markets across the MENA region have rebounded following a poor performance in June. The Dubai stock market has recouped a large chunk of its previous losses. And equities in Saudi Arabia have... 24th July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update First thoughts on the opening up of Saudi Arabia's stock market The Saudi authorities’ plan to open up the stock market to foreign investors is clearly a step in the right direction. But with equity valuations already stretched, we doubt that it will be the... 22nd July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Growth in Saudi Arabia eases as boost from oil sector fades Our GDP Tracker suggests that the Saudi economy weakened a touch in May as the boost from the oil sector earlier in the year started to fade while the non-oil sector remained sluggish by past... 10th July 2014 · 1 min read
Middle East & North Africa Economics Update Saudi economy slows in Q1, likely to weaken further Q1 GDP data showed that the Saudi economy slowed a touch from Q4 on the back of weakness in the non-oil private sector. The latest PMI surveys suggest that growth in this sector stabilised in Q2... 3rd July 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
