News

By Khalid Abu-Ismail A sense of ‘defeat’ among the Egyptian middle class was the main motivation for the uprising of 25 January 2011. In a tribute to economics professor Galal Amin, who passed away last month, this column explores..more

By Magda Kandil and Minko Markovski The fall in the oil price to a ‘new normal’ has had a negative impact on four indicators of banks’ performance in the United Arab Emirates (UAE): return on assets; return on equity; and growth..more

IMF Middle East and Central Asia Department (MCD), in collaboration with IMF Innovation Lab, seeks participation by economics students in the Fund Challenge for MCD Countries.   Teams may consist of up to two students per institution of higher learning.... Read More

By Sulayman Al-Qudsi Policy-makers, business leaders and forecasters can all benefit from access to data on historical economic and financial cycles as well as the current state of the economy in real-time..more

By Mohamed Chemingui and John Sloan Despite their proximity, trade and investment flows between the Arab countries and sub-Saharan Africa are very low. This column reports analysis of the potential development gains from..more 

Harvard Kennedy School’s newest degree program, the MPA in International Development (MPA/ID), is designed to prepare the next generation of leaders in international development. It is an economics-centered, multi-disciplinary program, combining rigorous training in analytical and quantitative methods with an... Read More

By Hassan Hakimian Iran and the United States seem to have reversed roles with the Trump administration's decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal. As this Project Syndicate column explains..more  

By Majid Al-Moneef Energy constitutes a major building block of Saudi Arabia’s economic reform agenda described in the government’s Vision 2030. This column outlines the key considerations..more

By Keun Lee Many countries find themselves in the ‘middle-income trap’, facing a slowdown of economic growth because of weak innovation. This column draws on the experiences of East Asian countries to explore how businesses can..more