Economy

Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi announced the new Chinese investment pledge, which follows a previous $44.89-billion investment commitment.

A mega-railway deal could be inked this week could see the Gulf region linked like never before.

The IMF projection comes as Saudi oil GDP growth set to decline by 2.5 percent this year.

Analysts believe that further rate rises are needed to stem inflation in Turkey as it has shot back up to 60 percent.

The move by the Kuwaiti parliament's financial and economic affairs committee is seen by analysts as a step towards ushering in foreign investment and diversifying the economy.

The IMF has warned that Kuwait's economic recovery is at risk amid delayed reforms and political deadlock.

The purchases come as both Saudi Arabia and the UAE accelerate their economic transformation away from oil, which has most recently seen the countries invest heavily in the gaming industry.

The deal comes after Egypt entered negotiations with the UAE over the supply of wheat following the collapse of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition-linked war monitoring group based in Britain, said that hours after the decree was issued, fuel and produce prices increased, as public discontent over the dire economic situation worsens.

Tel Aviv's light rail will open on Friday but will face an operational hurdle on the Sabbath.