Arab Spring costs the most affected countries $55bn

THE uprisings that swept the Middle East this year have cost the most affected countries more than $55 billion (€40bn), a new report says, but the resulting high oil prices have strengthened other producing countries.

A statistical analysis of International Monetary Fund (IMF) data by political risk consultancy Geopolicity showed that countries that had seen the bloodiest confrontations — Libya and Syria — were bearing the economic brunt, followed by Egypt, Tunisia, Bahrain and Yemen.

Between them, those states saw $20.6bn wiped off their gross domestic product and public finances eroded by another $35.3bn as revenues slumped and costs rose.