Analysis Markets Dubai and Saudi markets likely to perform best in 2024 Dubai and Saudi Arabia have been the top performers in a mixed year for Gulf stock markets and it is likely the duo will again outpace their regional rivals in 2024, analysts predict. As of December 18, Dubai’s index had gained about 19.7 percent and Saudi Arabia was up 8 percent. Yet Abu Dhabi – […] December 28, 2023
Finance Pakistan’s exports to Saudi Arabia jump 50% to $276m Exports from Pakistan to the Gulf countries rose 29 percent year on year to $1.26 billion in the five months from July to November 2024. Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait were the top export destinations, a report in the Pakistani newspaper Dawn said, quoting data from the State Bank of Pakistan. Exports to Saudi […] December 27, 2023
Transport Work starts on new $40m logistics park at Dammam port A SAR 150 million ($40 million) logistics park is to be built at King Abdulaziz Port, Dammam by the Saudi Ports Authority, known as Mawani, and Medlog, the logistics arm of the Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping Company The 100,000 sq m facility will have a capacity of 300,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) annually, Mawani said in […] December 27, 2023
Opinion Aviation Middle East aviation prepares for take-off in 2024 2023 has just been a starter. The really impressive stuff is yet to come December 26, 2023
Energy Saudi Arabia poised for $600bn inflow into petrochemicals sector Investments into Saudi Arabia’s petrochemicals sector are expected to reach $600 billion by 2030, investment minister Khaled Al Falih told the Saudi-Japanese Investment Forum in Riyadh. “We will continue our joint investment and partnership in developing the hydrocarbon sector while looking forward to expanding our joint ventures in the future of new energy,” he added. […] December 26, 2023
Transport Saudi’s Mawani signs $267m contracts for marine services Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) has signed four contracts with private companies for maritime services at eight ports, with investments exceeding SAR1 billion ($267 million). The contracts were signed with Zamil Marine Services and Naghi Marine Company, the ports operator said in a statement. Zamil Marine Services will provide services at the Jeddah Islamic Port, Jazan […] December 25, 2023
Leisure & Hospitality Kingdom Holding, Red Sea Global set up JV to develop $533m resort Saudi-listed Kingdom Holding Company said that it has incorporated a new joint venture with Public Investment Fund-backed Red Sea Global Company to develop a tourist resort in the kingdom. East Shoura III Real Estate Company is the new venture between Kingdom Holding’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Sea Front Company, and RSG’s Red Sea Investment Co. II subsidiary. […] December 25, 2023
Media & Advertising Coming to a movie theatre near you … AlUla It would make the perfect setting for Star Wars or Indiana Jones, but AlUla is developing production facilities that will expand its reach beyond sci-fi and desert adventure movies, making it one of the region’s prime locations for international shoots. The tourist location in northwest Saudi Arabia is fast developing into a mini-city with an […] December 24, 2023
Markets MBC raises $390m with oversubscribed IPO Saudi media company MBC Group’s IPO on the Saudi stock exchange was 17.6 times oversubscribed, raising SAR1.46 billion ($390 million). A minimum of nine shares were allocated to each subscriber and the remaining shares were distributed pro rata, according to a statement on stock market website Tadawul by lead manager and advisor HSBC Saudi Arabia, […] December 22, 2023
Construction The Avenues – Khobar to be built by Kuwait developer Kuwaiti developer Shomoul Holding this week launched a retail and residential project in the eastern Saudi city of Khobar worth SAR7.2 billion ($1.92 billion), securing a SAR4.35 billion loan for the first stage of construction. The government’s Tourism Development Fund, set up in 2020, provided the loan along with a consortium led by National Arab […] December 22, 2023
Leisure & Hospitality Saudi-listed retail firms suspend merger plans Two major Saudi conglomerates have shelved their merger plans to create a new retail powerhouse. Arabian Centres Company (Cenomi Centers) and Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair Company (Cenomi Retail) have agreed to end talks on a merger proposal until further notice, the companies said in separate statements to the Saudi stock exchange. “The conditions and timing are […] December 22, 2023
Transport PIF to build aircraft repair and maintenance village The Public Investment Fund (PIF) will develop a one million-square-metre maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) village in Saudi Arabia as part of its investment in Saudia Technic, a subsidiary of Saudia Group. The aim is to transform Saudia Technic into a national MRO “champion” by investing in infrastructure, boosting efficiency and capturing market growth in […] December 22, 2023
Analysis Industry Middle East craves a copper-bottomed future While recent weeks have seen some major ups and downs in the price of copper, for many old hands in the sector this is nothing new. “The one sure thing in copper,” Carlos Risopatron, director of economics and environment at the International Copper Study Group, tells AGBI, “is that you can always rely on volatility.” […] December 22, 2023
Manufacturing Saudi and Morocco vie for lead in Mena EV race Two clear frontrunners in the global electric vehicle race have emerged in the Middle East and North Africa region. Both Saudi Arabia and Morocco have accelerated efforts to develop their EV capabilities in 2023, with a series of multi-million-dollar investments and partnership deals. The two kingdoms see the EV industry as central to achieving economic […] December 22, 2023
Construction Developer Jabal Omar plans debt-to-capital conversion Jabal Omar Development Company, one of the largest companies on the Saudi stock exchange, said this week it will settle around SAR547.5 million ($146 million) in debt owed to two companies by converting it into shares in a formal capital increase. The real estate developer builds and manages property in the pilgrimage city of Mecca. […] December 21, 2023
Analysis Industry Saudi seeks gold in the Aseer hills – for tourism and mining Hidden in the heart of Saudi Arabia’s largest mountain range, the Aseer province was largely unknown to the West until the 1950s. The region’s remoteness helped to preserve its distinctive culture, with early visitors offered crowns of red and orange blooms for sale by its so-called Flower Men. Today tourists are an important part of the […] December 21, 2023
Energy Saudi Arabia evaluates 1,200 sites for green energy projects Saudi Arabia is currently evaluating 1,200 sites to identify the most optimal ones for renewable energy initiatives, said energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman. “We have 1,200 sites in various regions of the Kingdom to initiate solar and wind energy projects,” he said at the Digital Government Forum in Riyadh. Earlier this month, the Saudi […] December 21, 2023
Energy Acwa Power begins work on $4bn green hydrogen project in Egypt Saudi-listed Acwa Power is slated to start work on the first phase of Egypt’s $4 billion green hydrogen project. The first phase of a green ammonia project will have a capacity of 600,000 tonnes per year powered by wind and solar plants, the renewables energy firm said. The project will be developed in collaboration with […] December 21, 2023
Transport Saudi low-cost airline Flynas to launch IPO Flynas, the Saudi carrier backed by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, has hired consultants for a potential initial public offering (IPO) in Riyadh. The low-cost airline may go public as early as next year, Bloomberg reported, citing an airline statement. Goldman Sachs Group, Morgan Stanley and Saudi Fransi Capital will work on the IPO. […] December 21, 2023
Tourism Saudi Arabia tourist numbers more than double Saudi Arabia had 14.6 million tourists during the first six months of 2023, more than twice the amount in the previous year, and their spending more than doubled to SAR87 billion ($23.2 billion), the ministry of tourism said this week. Tourism has become an important part of Saudi Arabia’s economic reform plans to diversify away […] December 21, 2023
