Russia’s trade and investment into the Middle East is rapidly developing, with relations both through the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League all helping boost bilateral trade by 25% during 2025. Partially driven by the developments along the INSTC, and new regional free trade agreements, we provide analysis of the growing Russia-Middle East economic partnership. Discover trade statistics, investment flows from the GCC, and business opportunities for companies in both regions.
Saudi Arabia has increased the number of approved Russian milk producers to 26 following increasing demand for quality dairy products. The Saudi dairy market is growing as consumers look for healthy lifestyles and has an expected CAGR annual growth rate of 4% between 2026 and 2034. Russia is the world’s fourth largest producer of dairy products.
The WorldFood and Russian Sea Food Expos have been taking place in Moscow and St. Petersburg with significant trade delegations attending from China, India, ASEAN, Brazil, Egypt and the Middle East as well as most of the Global South nations. We discuss in considerable detail how Russia’s agricultural trade is interacting with these international markets in both exports and imports, within an industrial sector whose output is measured in the trillions of dollars.
Iran is hoping to quadruple its fish exports to Russia. The country has a free trade agreement with Russia and is a major exporter of prawns and rainbow trout. Iran exports fish and seafood to 67 countries worldwide despite sanctions, with Russia the third largest importer after Iraq and China.
Russian Railways (RZD) has announced they are looking at new development markets in friendly countries in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. The company already has numerous international projects and is looking to develop more to feed Russia’s global trade expansion plans.
Russia’s largest Oil Services company, Burservice, previously part of Halliburton, has extensive plans to establish operations in ‘friendly’ countries throughout Africa and Asia. Since Halliburton exited Russia in 2022, Burservice have made record profits and continue to expand.
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The (BRICS) New Development Bank has been given a new strategic focus with its New Investment Platform giving it a far more significant role in trade development and investment. This has flown somewhat under the radar and been little commented on – however the implications are substantial. It will significantly improve BRICS trade and investment as well as change global trade flows. We explain the NDB’s New Investment Platform, what it includes, how it works and the impact on project financing and future trade.
The BRICS 2026 Summit in New Delhi has concluded, resulting in a unanimous, 100 point ‘Delhi Declaration’, and over 50 planned initiatives. With BRICS now responsible for nearly 40% of global GDP and 25% of global exports, what these documents contain matters. We deep dive the results and provide analysis of what BRICS 2026 achieved, the development path ahead and the implications for global trade.
The Russian and Egyptian Presidents have met in New Delhi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit. Both had large trade delegations, discussing bilateral development in nuclear energy, industrial cooperation for the wide African market, agriculture, security and tourism. Current bilateral trade is growing at abot 15% per annum. We examine the trade details and developments.
President Putin has met with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in New Delhi. The two sides have plenty of development issues to discuss. The UAE-EAEU Free Trade Agreement commences next month, while Russia and the UAE commenced their extensive Trade in Services and Investment Agreement last month. Trade between the two sides is at record levels but is about to undergo a significant, global logistics changing metamorphosis – the Joint Venture between Russia’s FESCO Transport and the UAE’s DP World has created the world’s largest logistics business. This will fundamentally alter Middle Eastern and Asian trade flows, while completely reinventing the UAE economy.
The 2026 BRICS Heads of State Summit begins on Saturday, September 12, with India hosting in New Delhi. The summit brings together an enlarged 11-member BRICS at a time of geopolitical conflict, energy disruption, trade tensions and renewed concern about the resilience of global supply chains. Representing about 49% of the world’s population, 40% of global GDP and nearly 26% of world trade, we deep dive the event, examine what to look out for, opportunities to develop, problems to overcome, and the longer term implications for world trade.
Russia’s SberMedicalAI is making inroads into medical markets in the Middle East and Asia with a new, AI powered mirror diagnostic device that detects changes in facial appearance and can analyse changes in blood pressure, pulse, elasticity of the vascular wall, stress and fatigue levels, body mass index, risk of type II diabetes, as well as cholesterol and glycated hemoglobin levels.
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