Author: Steven Sahiounie

HOUSTON/BEIJING: Oil prices rose on Wednesday after two straight days of losses, as the deadlock in Gaza ceasefire talks renewed uncertainty about the security of supplies from the Middle East, offsetting a bigger-than-expected build in US crude inventories, according to Reuters.

RIYADH: Residential building permits in Qatar surged in March, reaching 257 licenses, up from 193 the previous month, according to official data.

RIYADH: China’s long-term foreign currency issuer default rating has been revised to negative from stable by Fitch Ratings, citing increased uncertainty regarding its economic growth. 

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is home to a third of Forbes Middle East’s “30 Most Valuable Banks,” with a 25 percent annual rise in the Kingdom’s entities’ accumulative market value.    

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s capital has been placed 25th in the International Institute for Management Development Smart City Index this year, up five spots since 2023.

RIYADH: Buoyed by the millions of Umrah performers and worshippers throughout the holy month of Ramadan, Saudi Arabia braces for a surge in travel for Eid Al-Fitr. 

The share of the Chinese yuan on Russia’s foreign exchange market hit an all-time high in March, the Bank of Russia (CBR) reported in its financial risk review on Monday.

More than 1600 university professors from over 270 institutions across North America have united in condemning “scholasticide” in Gaza, a term term referring to school massacres. According to a joint letter, the professors “condemn Israel’s systematic attacks on educational life in Gaza” and the destruction or damage inflicted upon all 12 universities since the onset of the war. “All 12 universities in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged. The International Monetary Fund estimates that the war on Gaza has cost the education sector $720 million,” the letter reads. The letter further voiced complete opposition to “Israel’s” genocidal campaign and accused…

Iraq and Iran’s presidents reiterated in a phone call their support for Gaza and urged cooperation between Muslim countries to halt the genocide. In a phone call with Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi emphasized the necessity of cooperation between countries of the Islamic world to stop the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against Palestinians. Raisi stressed that the religious and humanitarian responsibility of putting an end to the Israeli genocide against Gaza falls on all Muslim countries and free people of the world.  From his end, the Iraqi president stressed the necessity of strengthening ties between both countries “away…

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his government has set a date for a major ground operation in Rafah, the last remaining Palestinian shelter in Gaza. The Israeli leader is under pressure both from close ally the US, which sees the promised offensive as a major threat to civilians, and from members of his own coalition, who demand military action. Some 1.3 million people, most of them displaced from other parts of the Palestinian enclave, are estimated to be crammed into the city, which is located at Gaza’s border with Egypt. In a short video statement on Monday night, the…