The drop in global energy prices from mid-2014 has had a significant impact on the member states of the GCC, which together produce 20% of the world’s crude oil. Hydrocarbons are the basis for the region’s economies, and the drop in oil revenues has driven all six GCC nations into budget deficits. While the large reserves built up during the...
Benefitting greatly from rising oil prices and production over the last decade, Saudi Arabia has used its sizeable revenues to build up strong external buffers and drive GDP growth through extensive spending programmes. The decline in oil prices that began in mid-2014, however, has significantly lowered export revenues and brought the era of...
Since Saudi Arabia began reducing its domestic wheat production in 2008, the issue of food security has been high on the agenda for GCC governments. The Kingdom, which was once self-sufficient in the grain and even exported to the wider region, recognised a fact that is true across the whole of the Arabian Peninsula: it is running out of water...
Public sector salary cuts and subsidy reductions will play an important part in Saudi Arabia’s effort to close its fiscal gap. However, much attention is also being paid to the other side of the ledger, where a series of tax proposals offer a route to new revenue streams for the government. Historically, taxation has only played a small role...
One of the most important issues currently facing the Middle East is the changing composition of its demographic structure. A massive cohort of young people – known as a youth bulge – is challenging policy makers, and affecting security, education, the labour market and welfare programmes, among other areas. Given the relative stability and...
A combination of factors has led to a rise in bond issuance from GCC member states in the first half of 2016. Over the period, bonds and sukuk (Islamic bonds) issued in the GCC hit $39bn, accounting for 15% of the region’s total outstanding bonds ($263bn) as of June 2016, and nearly equalling the value of issues in the whole of...
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