financial crisis

A huge legal battle between Lebanon and its creditors looms

The state's refusal to engage with bondholders risks keeping Lebanon out of the funding markets, draining its remaining reserves as creditors seek redress

Salwa Baalbaki 21 April 2024

An Iranian 5,000 Rial note. Sky-high inflation is still causing lots of problems, despite growth figures being buoyed by oil.

Shutterstock

Tehran's press mourns Iran's economy... with worse to come

High inflation and low productivity are but two of the concerns being voiced by Iranian media outlets about the state of the country's economy, as it enters a new year.

Hanan Azizi 02 April 2024

People stage a protest as they wave the Druze flags in the southern city of Sweida, Syria on August 27, 2023. Anti-government protests have rocked south Syria for the past week.

Suwayda24 via AP

Bad governance is proving to be an economic liability as protests sweep Syria

The depth of anger at the government is back on show after a stop to fuel subsidies sparked fresh protests. This comes amid an ongoing economic crisis that has no end in sight.

Joseph Daher 02 September 2023

Circular 165 is, at first glance, a technical note on procedure from the embattled central bank. But its proposals to attract dollars will have immediate and far-reaching consequences.

Jamie Wignall

How an obscure bank circular will worsen Lebanon's financial crisis

Circular 165 is, at first glance, a technical note on procedure from the embattled central bank. But its proposals to attract dollars will have immediate and far-reaching consequences.

Toufic Chanbour 25 May 2023

Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri heads the first session to elect a new president at the parliament building in Beirut, Lebanon September 29, 2022. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

Lebanese Parliament Fails to Elect New Head of State

The Lebanese parliament failed to elect a new head of state on Thursday to replace President Michel Aoun when his term ends on Oct. 31, signalling the likelihood of the post being left vacant as the…

29 September 2022

Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell in Washington, D.C., June 2022. (Elizabeth Frantz / Reuters)

The End of Magic Money

Two years ago, I predicted in Foreign Affairs that the COVID-19 recession, coming on top of the financial crisis of 2008, would lead rich democracies to redefine the outer limits of their monetary…

Sebastian Mallaby 16 July 2022

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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and US President Donald Trump at the White House, Washington, on 18 November 2025.

SPA

Politics

Saudi Arabia scores ally upgrade in Washington

19 November 2025

Trump elevates Saudi Arabia to 'major non-NATO ally' status, but bigger issues of normalisation with Israel and a binding security treaty need more time. Nonetheless, this is a huge step forward.

Abdullah F. Alrebh

Culture & Social Affairs

Basem Khandakji on exile, imprisonment, and purpose

26 November 2025

The Palestinian novelist who won the Arabic Booker Prize in 2023 from behind Israeli prison walls speaks to Al Majalla about his extraordinary life and literary journey

El-Sayed Hussein

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) looks on during a meeting with US Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll in Kyiv, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 20 November 2025.

AFP

Politics

Trump presents Ukraine with a ‘very tough choice’

24 November 2025

Zelensky said he's being asked to decide between Ukraine losing its dignity or losing a key partner

Sam Skove and John Haltiwanger

AFP-Reuters-Al Majalla

Business & Economy

UK chancellor aims to strike a balance with her 2025 budget

27 November 2025

Policymakers' main worry ahead of Rachel Reeves' announcements this week centred on the reaction of the bond markets. So far, they have received a cautious welcome.

Bassam Mahfouz

US political commentator Tucker Carlson speaks during the last day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on 18 July 2024.

ANGELA WEISS / AFP

Politics

How Tucker Carlson put Arab Christians on America's map

25 November 2025

Prominent conservative journalists and politicians have broken ranks to call out Israeli crimes against Arab Christians. The effects continue to ripple through Donald Trump's support base.

Kamal Alam

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LATEST ISSUE

A huge legal battle between Lebanon and its creditors looms

Tehran's press mourns Iran's economy... with worse to come

Bad governance is proving to be an economic liability as protests sweep Syria

How an obscure bank circular will worsen Lebanon's financial crisis

Lebanese Parliament Fails to Elect New Head of State

The End of Magic Money

Saudi Arabia scores ally upgrade in Washington

Basem Khandakji on exile, imprisonment, and purpose

Trump presents Ukraine with a ‘very tough choice’

UK chancellor aims to strike a balance with her 2025 budget

How Tucker Carlson put Arab Christians on America's map

OPINIONS

Why Pope Leo XIV chose Türkiye as his first foreign trip

COP30: discussions, delayed delivery and disappointment

Another coup in Africa, but this one isn't so clear-cut

Trump’s Brotherhood ban means it has to shapeshift to survive

financial crisis

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