Israel's economy staggers and suffers heavy losses as global rating agencies downgrade its credit rating writes Ahmad Abdel Rahman from Egypt. In late September, as Israel's nearly year-long war escalated and its credit rating was downgraded again, the country's finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich said that despite the strains on the Israeli e...
New Zealand PM bows out
Here's an article from The Economist which, while talking about John Key's resignation, states that NZ is "one of the most successful countries in the world. While this is debatable, there is no doubt that Key has had successes- namely international recognition- along with failures, housing, immigration and the environment. We have yet to see whether the new Prime Minister, John English, will have the same success.
Israel's economy staggers and suffers heavy losses as global rating agencies downgrade its credit rating, writes Ahmad Abdel-Rahman from Egypt. In late September, as Israel's nearly year long war escalated and its credit rating was downgraded again, the country's finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, said, adding that despite the strains on the Israe...
Netanyahu's arrogance and Biden's support are leading the Middle East into a full-scale war, writes Ahmad Abdel-Rahman. More than a year after the war in Gaza, the conflict threatens to engulf the whole Middle East and bypass all efforts to prevent a regional war. Warnings are rising from influential countries in the Middle East and the world to pr...
Operation "Al-Aqsa Flood" made Iran feel proud and victorious and has given it the belief that it can pressure Israel. However, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced his country's ability to carry out any military operation inside Iran or against the factions of the "Axis of Resistance." Ahmad Abdel Rahman writes that Iran's dete...
The assassination of the secretary-general of Hezbollah in Lebanon , Hassan Nasrallah, shows that the US has many intentions and secrets regarding how it wants the Middle East to look , writes Ahmad Abdel-Rahman. A reshaping of the Middle East was one of the US's main goals when the secretary-general of Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, was a...
Building a true partnership between the West and the Middle East will balance international powers and enhance innovation, says Ahmad Abdel-Rahman. As the competition between the US and China for dominance in artificial intelligence (AI) escalates, the risks go beyond simply reshaping the balance of power to reshaping the global political order due...
Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries seek to expand the production of green hydrogen as the "fuel of the future" to make their economies environmentally friendly. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the Sultanate of Oman invest heavily in this fuel when looking for alternative sources of revenue to oil and gas . Ahmad ...
The Israeli Ministry of Finance said that the Economic Arrangements Bill will be attached to its budget for 2025. It includes imposing new taxes on bank profits and privatising the Ashdod port—the only one the government owns. Our correspondent in Egypt, Ahmad Abdel-Rahman, reports. The Israeli Ministry of Finance said that the Economic Arrangement...
The war that Israel is waging against Hamas is a turning point for the balance of power in the Middle East. Ahmad Abdel-Rahman reports from Egypt. It became clear from the beginning that the ongoing war in Gaza represents a major turning point and is not just a round of military confrontation. It is a shift in many of the balances of power and infl...
The difficulties and complications of the Gaza ceasefire negotiations are not only related to the issues under negotiation but also to the internal political calculations of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. However, these difficulties are also linked to the US elections that will be held in November, explains our Egyptian correspond...
This article by Egypt-based Ahmad Abdel-Rahman looks at the reasons for the election of the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian. The campaign of the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, was based on re-engaging with the West to avoid sanctions and ease strict dress codes for women. Iran's elections in late June have also shown the divisio...
The Central Bank of Egypt turns to profitability for the first time in seven years. Net foreign assets in banks rose 1.7 percent to USD 13.3 billion writes Ahmad Abdel-Rahman. The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) turned to profitability in the past fiscal year, for the first time in seven years, recording profits of EGP22.834 billion, compared to losses...
Kamala Harris's speeches do not live up to the level of action shown by the US presidency and were not convincing to Democrats who want to see an end to the aggression against the Palestinians, or at least see their country stop contributing to the Gaza massacre . Ahmad Abdel-Rahman reports from Egypt. The protests of thousands of American demonstr...
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has strong growth potential for automotive companies, but Morocco has recorded progress that maintains its dominant position in this industry . Ahmad Abdel-Rahman writes. Morocco's name has become more prominent on the global map of automobile production, thanks to the stimulating investment environmen...
Iran has begun moving missile launch pads, and the Revolutionary Guards will close the airspace and conduct military exercises, according to American reports. The US Air Force will also deploy stealth aircraft in the region. Our correspondent in Egypt, Ahmad Abdel-Rahman, reports. In response to Israel's assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, head of the...
Israel faces a downgrade of its credit rating by Fitch. Ahmed Abdel-Rahman explains how the country is handling the war with Hamas and its impact on the economy. As the financial burden of the war has mounted, Israel has come under increased scrutiny from ratings firms. Fitch downgraded Israel's credit rating to A from A+, with a negative outlook, ...
The non-oil sector in Saudi Arabia grew 4.4 percent in 2023 but real gross domestic product (GDP) declined by 0.8 percent, writes Ahmad Abdel-Rahman. Official data issued on March 10 by the Saudi General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) showed Saudi Arabia's real GDP shrunk by 4.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023, with oil activity declining ...
All parties, Israel, Iran and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, have raised a state of alert and emergency since the assassination of Hamas' chief negotiator, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran. Ahmad Abdel-Rahman writes about what is happening. There is anticipation of what Iran, Hezbollah and the Houthis might do in the face of the Israeli bombing of Gaza, a...
Egypt continues to be Africa's top investment destination, accounting for 18.6 percent of the region's total investment, writes Ahmad Abdel-Rahman. Despite the series of crises besieging the Egyptian economy and the impact of the US dollar shortage and a lack of investment opportunities, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTA...
A securities and bond trading company, HC Securities & Investment, does not expect interest rates to be lowered before the end of this year or the beginning of next. It is likely, therefore, that the banking sector will benefit from high treasury returns. Ahmad Abdel-Rahman writes. According to a recent report by HC Securities & Investment,...