Success would establish Riyadh as de facto leader of the region’s Sunni states it has pulled together in a complex armed operation.
Iran has been maximizing its strength across the Middle East as it spearheads the fight against Sunni muslim militants in Iraq and Syria.
Islamic equivalents to conventional financial instruments have been developing even in relatively obscure areas such as short-term interbank lending, trade financing and swaps.
The conflict could pose a domestic security challenge for Saudi Arabia, and deny Dubai and Oman the economic benefits of rapprochement with Iran.
The Kingdom is now pumping around 10 million barrels per day – near an all-time high as it looks to grab a bigger share of the oil market.
With a number of hospitals and clinics starting up in the GCC, the war for medical talent has begun.
Market conditions may have shifted so far in favour of euro issuance that Gulf borrowers may leave their comfort zone and start to follow a shift towards the euro.
Oil bears may underestimate the hurdles on the diplomatic path to Iran’s return to world energy markets.
Sweden cancelled a defence cooperation accord with Saudi Arabia last week over rights concerns.
Oil revenues cushion the GCC from any major food crisis but with the region still reliant on imports, countries face real supply chain risks.
Syria’s civil war has no doubt left Assad weakened, but he is stronger than the groups fighting to topple him.
King Salman is trying to reinforce the need for unity in the Arab region and find a way to work around disagreements over the Muslim Brotherhood.
Apple’s new Watch is expected to be launched at an event announced this week.
Saudi Arabia recently announced a new round of bonuses for government employees, a direction that experts believe is opposite to what it should be doing in this time of cheap oil.
The UAE is weaning itself away from oil and could be almost independent of it by 2021, say senior government officials.
Deposits from governments, quasi-government bodies and national oil companies provide around 10 to 35 per cent of GCC banks’ non-equity funding.
King Salman is clearly laying the ground for a generational shift in how Riyadh develops its energy and economic strategies.
How will Eurowings’ new low-cost Dubai services fare next winter?
In his first public comments since oil prices rebounded, Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi signalled satisfaction with developments, saying he saw oil demand growing.
The UAE has an extremely low home insurance penetration rate with just six per cent of the population insured against emergencies, experts say.
Iranian banks’ recent successes in the EU courts are complicating sanctions ahead of June-end talks to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
The Middle East is the largest market driver in the industry with billions of dollars spent annually on buying military equipment.
Humour, which was one of the only channels for protest under successive Egyptian autocrats, is being stifled under current laws.
An industry veteran gives his insights into the little discussed aviation leasing market.
The Saudi king has created two new super-committees that give Mohammed bin Nayef and his son Mohammed bin Salman extensive control over most aspects of Saudi policy making.
Tunisia has been praised as an example of compromise politics and democratic transition since overthrowing its autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali in a 2011.
S&P cut its outlook for Saudi Arabia’s “AA-/A-1+” foreign and local currency credit ratings to negative from stable and lowered ratings of Bahrain and Oman.
Figures from Airbus show that 47 per cent of its aircraft deals in the ME in the first 11 months of 2014 were funded by local banks.
King Salman is more sympathetic to religious conservatives than his predecessor Abdullah and is seen as less hostile to the group.
Salman’s announcement suggested that the government remained willing to spend heavily despite the hit to its oil revenues from low prices.