Middle East

These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These?stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch for their accuracy. U.S. prosecutors have opened an investigation into Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell for his testimony about the renovation of the building at the Federal Reserve Bank last summer. Allegiant Travel has reached a deal worth $1.1 billion to purchase Sun Country Airlines. This is despite the fact that budget airlines in the U.S. are facing stiff competition from their larger competitors. Walmart plans to expand drone deliveries to '150 more stores in the next year, with a...

The website of Dubai Airports shows that at least 17 flights scheduled by Flydubai for Friday between Dubai and Iranian Cities including Tehran, Shiraz, and Mashhad have been cancelled. The website didn't give a reason for the cancellations. However, a nationwide internet blackout in?Iran was reported on Thursday. It continued?into?Friday as authorities moved to stop growing protests. The protests began at the end December and have shook the nation. Flydubai did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Turkish media reported that Turkish Airlines had cancelled '17 flights and Turkey's Ajet had cancelled six flights. Budget carrier Pegasus Airlines...

Arkia Airlines, Israel's low-cost carrier, announced on Thursday that it had signed a?deal with JetBlue Airways. This deal would allow Arkia Airlines customers to connect?on?JetBlue flights?in the United States as well as to Latin America and Caribbean. Arkia, a privately held company, flies mainly domestically and in Europe. However, it has launched flights from Tel Aviv (Israel) to New York since last year to compete with El Al Israel Airlines. JetBlue will link up Arkia’s non-stop flight schedule to JFK Airport, which includes seven flights per week. Arkia CEO Oz Berlowitz said: "This agreement strengthens Arkia’s long-haul operation and expands...

On Tuesday in Jerusalem, a mass ultra-Orthodox Jewish protest against military conscription ended tragically when a teenager was crushed to death after a driver of a bus struck the crowd. Israeli police confirmed that they have detained the driver, and are currently investigating. A video of the incident shows the bus crashing into the crowd of ultra-Orthodox protesters. ? The police were unable to contact the driver immediately while he was in custody. Magen David Adom emergency service in Israel?said that the 18-year old, who was trapped under the bus and pronounced dead at the scene. Benjamin Netanyahu has been...

Israel Airports Authority reported on Tuesday that passenger traffic at Ben Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, rose by 33% in 2025. This reflects the return of many foreign airlines after they halted flights for two years during the Gaza War. A ceasefire brokered by the United States in October allowed carriers that had not resumed Tel Aviv routes to begin flying to Israel. In December, passengers increased by 59%. The airport handled 21.8 million passengers in 2023, the year war broke out after Hamas' October 7 attacks. In 2023, when war broke out after Hamas's October 7th attacks, the...

Investors in Nike will be looking for signs this week that the recovery seen last quarter is sustainable, and that an increased marketing budget is helping the sportswear manufacturer claw back lost market share. Nike, which has been synonymous with sport for a long time, is now trying to gain momentum, after losing ground to more hip alternatives like On and Deckers Hoka. The demand in China is choppy. Elliott Hill, the CEO of Nike, has promised to bring Nike back to its roots by focusing on core sports such as running and soccer. This means clearing out older inventory,...

The Philippines Bureau of Immigration announced on Tuesday that the two alleged gunmen who carried out the mass shooting at Sydney's Bondi Beach travelled from Sydney to Manila on?November 1, aboard Philippine Airlines Flight PR212 and then onwards to Davao. According to a spokesperson from the bureau, Sajid Akram (50), an Indian national who lives in Australia, travelled with an Indian passport while his son Naveed, 24, an Australian, travelled with an Australian passport. Both passengers arrived on the same flight. On November 28, they flew back to Sydney via Manila on the same flight number PR212. This was weeks...

The Philippines Bureau of Immigration announced on Tuesday that two alleged gunmen responsible for the?massive shooting at Sydney Bondi Beach travelled on Philippine Airlines Flight PR212?from Sydney, to Manila, and then to Davao on November 1. According to a spokesperson from the bureau, Sajid Akram (50), an Indian citizen and Australian resident, travelled with an Indian passport while his son Naveed,?24 an Australian, used an Australian one. Both passengers arrived on the same flight. On November 28, they flew back from Sydney via Manila on the same flight, PR212. This was just weeks before the attack that left 15 dead....

Pegasus Airlines, a Turkish airline, announced on Monday that it had agreed to buy Czech Airlines and its subsidiary Smartwings for a total of 154 million Euros ($180 million). The deal is part of an expansion plan. In a KAP statement, Pegasus announced that it had reached an agreement with Prague City Air for the purchase of its stakes in CSA and Smartwings, as well as its subsidiaries. The debts of the two companies were included in the 154 million euro figure. Pegasus stated that the strategic investment would help to expand Pegasus's global reach and strengthen its presence in...

U.S. plan to increase the number of countries that are covered by their travel ban from 30 to more than 30. Homeland Security Secretary Kristie Noem told reporters on Thursday that the U.S. plans to expand its travel ban beyond 30 countries. Noem was asked in an interview with Fox News "The Ingraham Angle" if the Trump administration would increase the number of countries listed on the travel ban to 32. She said, "I will not be specific about the number but it is over 30 and the president continues to evaluate countries." In June, the President signed a proclamation...

Copa Airlines, the Panamanian airline, has suspended flights on Thursday and Friday to and from Venezuela’s capital Caracas due to a navigational signal problem reported by its pilots. In a late-Wednesday statement, the company said that this issue had not compromised flight safety. Why it Matters Copa has joined a long list of international airlines that have suspended flights to Venezuela, including Iberia and TAP. * The airline described this issue as intermittents in a navigational signal and referred to the suspension of service as a "preventative" measure. * The carrier said that it is evaluating the current situation and...

Israir, an Israeli airline, said Monday that it is working on acquiring two widebody Airbus A330s for a combined total of $80m. The company wants to expand long-haul flights to counter the push made by Wizz Air to enter the Israeli market. Israir stated that it was in negotiations through various channels to complete the purchase. It is also in advanced discussions with local tourism group Issta in order to consider a seat allocation for 10 years for an advance payment of approximately $35 million. The company noted that there was no guarantee the deal would be completed at this...

Ziad El Chaar, CEO of Saudi real estate developer Dar Global, announced on Sunday that two Trump-branded luxury projects will be launched in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) and Jeddah (Jordan). Chaar said that the projects include the Trump National Golf Course in Riyadh and the Trump International Hotel at Diriyah. This is a massive project located on the western edge of the Saudi capital. Chaar said that a mixed-use development called Trump Plaza is planned for Jeddah. Chaar stated that the projects were in line with Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, which aims to diversify its economy and move away from oil....

Senalia, a grain export terminal operator, expects volumes to double in 2025/26 compared to last year due to a rebound in French harvest production and a brisk barley demand. Rouen, on the Seine River in Normandy, is France's main grain export hub. Rain-stricken 2024 reduced its export surplus, and port terminals were idle for part the season. Senalia, the cooperative-owned cereal exporter, has forecast that Senalia will load 3.8 millions metric tons in the current July-June period, up from just 1.8 million in 2020/25. This is exactly what it did two years ago. He said that 1.7 million tonnes of...

The Turkish distributor of China's Dongfeng Motor said that the company is in discussions with an investor to produce passenger cars in Turkey. Turkey is a large market with an annual sales volume of 1.4m vehicles. It also has a customs-free trade agreement with the EU. Chinese imports of cars to Turkey are subject to additional taxes, and Chinese automakers including Chery are seeking to set up production in Turkey with local partners. In a LinkedIn statement, Yavuz Cirak said, "We're working hard to begin production this year." Cirak is the CEO of Dongfeng’s local distributor,?Marcar, and was a part...

Data from the London Metal Exchange showed that, in November, the share of copper made in China among all available stocks increased. A favorable price arbitrage encouraged Chinese exports. The percentage of copper stock that is available or on a warrant The data revealed that the percentage of - of Chinese Origin in LME Warehouses had increased to 85% by the end of the last month from 82% at the beginning of October. A LME warrant is an ownership document. The absolute amount of Chinese copper stocks on the LME rose to 130,225 tonnes at the end last month from...

China Gas Holdings, a privately-controlled city gas distributor, has hired an ex-senior trader of the Chinese utility GCL Group as its head of global natural gas sales. Xiong Xin was the head of gas trading for GCL New Energy Holdings (a unit of GCL Holdings), a solar power company, until early 2024. He joined China Gas in Oct. Xiong has nearly a decade's worth of experience in trading at the state oil giant CNOOC, and privately owned Chinese gas company ENN, before he joined GCL. He now heads China Gas’ growing liquefied gas trading business, as well as liquefied petrol...

In October, the share of Russian and Indian aluminum in London Metal Exchange warehouses fell as nearly 50,000 tons from Australia, Indonesia and the Middle East entered the system. LME data released on Monday showed that the percentage of aluminium stock of Russian origin available in LME warehouses fell to 51% from 59% in September. The share of Indian origin also decreased by one percentage point, to 40%. LME has prohibited metal produced in Russia after April 13, 2024 from its warehouse system. This is to comply with U.S. & British sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine 2022. Metal produced...

The third quarter of recent history was both one of best and worst for dealmakers around the world. According to Dealogic, megadeals generated a staggering $1.26 trillion worth of global mergers and purchases during the third-quarter - an increase of 40% over the previous year. This was the second best third-quarter ever by deal value. Data show that only 8,912 transactions were completed, down 16% on last year. This is the lowest third-quarter deal volume for 20 years. Dealmakers are in a strange situation, as they had high hopes for 2025 following the election of Donald Trump. Trump's punishing Tariffs,...

The third quarter of recent history was both one of best and worst for dealmakers around the world. According to Dealogic, megadeals generated a staggering $1.26 trillion worth of global mergers and purchases during the third-quarter - an increase of 40% over the previous year. This was the second best third-quarter ever by deal value. Data show that only 8,912 transactions were completed, a drop of 16% compared to last year. This is the lowest third-quarter deal volume for 20 years. Dealmakers are in a strange situation, as they had high hopes for 2025 following the election of Donald Trump....

These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch their accuracy. Mexico is planning to increase import tariffs on almost 1,500 products including cars, steel, textiles and appliances to protect the domestic industry and job opportunities, particularly from cheap Chinese goods. This comes amid wider trade talks with both the U.S. Oracle has signed an unprecedented $300 billion cloud computing contract with OpenAI to support massive AI expansion starting in 2027. This is one of the biggest tech contracts ever, and signals a high-stakes wager on ChatGPT’s continued...

Israel's military confirmed that a missile fired from Yemen at Israel on Thursday fell in an area open outside Israeli territory. No sirens were activated. This was the third launch of this kind within 24 hours. Yemen's Iran supported Houthis have recently increased attacks and launched missiles in response to Israeli attacks against Yemen. The Houthis launched missiles and drones towards Israel from thousands of kilometers away, calling it an act of solidarity with Palestinians. The majority of missiles or drones that were launched either missed their targets or were intercepted. Israel has responded by bombing areas in Yemen controlled...

Two sources familiar with the matter said that JD.Com's property investment arm and two other firms are planning to launch a Singapore based real estate trust (REIT), with assets valued at potentially more than $1 billion. Sources said that JD Property (the unlisted infrastructure investment platform and asset management platform for JD.Com) is creating the REIT in partnership with Partners Group, a Swiss investment firm, and EZA Hill Property which is backed up by Asian investment firm Hillhouse. Sources who refused to name themselves because the matter was private said that the REIT plan could be listed at the Singapore...

A senior official revealed on Wednesday that Uganda was in discussions with credit export agencies and development finance institutions to have 85% a planned rail project funded with debt. This is due to concerns about the already high public debt. In October of last year, Turkey's Yapi Merkezi was awarded the contract for the construction of the 2.7 billion euro ($3.15 billion) rail. Preliminary works have already begun. Perez Wamburu said that some of the potential financiers are the OPEC Fund for International Development (FIDA), the Africa Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, and some European export credit companies. Wamburu...