The Arab Gulf is home to six small nations that together sit atop roughly a third of the world’s proven oil reserves. Today, they are more vulnerable than at any point since the Gulf War of 1991. For decades, oil wealth powered their transformation. Petrodollars turned desert outposts into global hubs for finance, tourism, and

Oil prices surged past $100 last week as flows through the Strait of Hormuz slowed. Tankers hesitated, insurers raised premiums, and traders began adjusting portfolios. The US asked its allies to secure the passage — a straightforward request in any previous crisis. This time, the response was almost universally negative. That refusal goes beyond Hormuz. It

After rising 2.3% in January, Canada’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 1.8% year over year in February, pointing to easing price pressures. The slowdown in annual inflation largely reflects base-year effects. According to Statistics Canada, the main factor behind the lower headline CPI was price increases recorded in February 2025, when the GST/HST tax holiday