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Saudi Arabia

Business news and financial news from Saudi Arabia, covering the biggest Saudi companies including Saudi Aramco, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Sabic, Riyadh Air, Saudia and Saudi National Bank

President-elect Donald Trump has lent his name to a range of Dar Global projects

Dar Global plans two Trump-branded projects in Riyadh

Real estate developer Dar Global has signed an agreement with The Trump Organization to build two “landmark projects” in Riyadh.  No details were provided on the Trump-branded projects, which are set to be the fourth and fifth collaborations between the two companies.  Dar Global, the international arm of Saudi-listed developer Dar Al Arkan,said the projects […]

Saudi sport sponsorship

Saudi Arabia expands global reach with 900 sports deals

Saudi Arabia’s vast number of sports sponsorship deals, now in excess of 900, are part of the kingdom’s strategy to diversify away from oil but their long-term success will not be known for some time to come, experts have said. Play the Game, a publicly funded sports ethics institute in Denmark, compiled a list of […]

Shop, Shopping Mall, Architecture

Apple stores to open in Saudi Arabia from 2026

Apple is to expand its presence in Saudi Arabia, with plans to open an online store in summer 2025, followed by the launch of multiple Apple Stores from 2026. As part of this expansion, the US tech giant is in the early stages of planning a flagship retail location in Diriyah, a Unesco World Heritage […]

The number of children in education in Saudi Arabia is projected to reach 9.5 million by 2030

Mergers and acquisitions to fuel Saudi education growth

Mergers and acquisitions will play a vital role in the future of Saudi Arabia’s lucrative education sector, which could offer returns in the region of high double-digits, according to an industry expert. There has been a flurry of M&A activity in education in recent weeks. Maarif, one of the largest education companies in the country, […]

Property app Stake says it is close to acquiring a fully-rented mall and a 140-apartment tower in Riyadh

Property app Stake to launch in Saudi Arabia

A fractional-ownership platform that enables investors to own parcels of real estate for as little as SAR500 ($134) is to launch in Saudi Arabia on December 9.  Based in Dubai, Stake offers investors the opportunity to buy parts of residential and commercial properties.  Fractional property ownership is a rising trend in the global real estate market. […]

Saudi date drink cola Milaf

‘World first’ date soft drink launched by PIF subsidiary

A soft drink made from dates has been launched by Al Madinah Heritage Company, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Milaf Cola, which is claimed to be the world’s first commercial soft drink made from dates, uses only premium fruit and contains no added sugar.  Dates have historically been used in Middle Eastern beverages […]

An oil refinery in Wuhan, China. The sluggishness of the country's economy is a major factor in stagnating oil demand

Fear of oil-price collapse lurks behind Opec+ cuts decision

An Opec+ decision to delay raising oil output for another three months and extend the gradual phase-out of production cuts to the end of 2026 could crimp Saudi hopes for a major GDP boost – but shows how fearful oil states are of a price collapse.  Cuts were scheduled to begin unwinding from October 2024 […]

The five-year pact between PIF and Bpifrance Assurance Export will focus on projects supporting Vision 2030

PIF secures $10bn from French export credit agency

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has signed an agreement with Bpifrance Assurance Export, a French export credit agency, to seek funding for up to $10 billion. The five-year pact will focus on projects supporting Vision 2030 and is aligned with the fund’s strategy to grow build long-term global partnerships. The agreement will unlock new opportunities for French […]

Saudi Arabia's deposit renewal with the State Bank of Pakistan will boost Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves and strengthen its economy

Saudi Arabia extends $3bn loan to Pakistan

Saudi Arabia has renewed its $3 billion deposit with Pakistan’s central bank for another year.   The deposit renewal with the State Bank of Pakistan will boost Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves and strengthen its economy, the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) said. The initial agreement was signed in 2021 and rolled over in 2022 and […]

Animal, Bird, Chicken

Almarai to foray into food segments beyond dairy

Almarai, the largest dairy producer in Saudi Arabia, will launch seafood and red meat facilities to help achieve the Vision 2030 goal of becoming food self-reliant. The company is building domestic production facilities for seafood and beef and lamb, which will become operational in two years, Bloomberg reported, citing CEO Abdullah Albader. In March, Almarai […]

The UAE and Saudi Arabia are key growth markets where there is rising demand for premium cinematic experiences Imax

Imax seeks investors in its vision of growth in the Gulf

Imax Corporation, the US cinema technology giant, is in discussions with Gulf investors including sovereign wealth funds as it seeks to deepen its presence in one of its fastest-growing markets. The UAE and Saudi Arabia rank among Imax’s top 20 global markets, its popularity driven by rising demand for premium cinematic experiences. “We’re meeting various […]

A view of the Almoosa Rehabilitation Hospital. The hospital operator will divest 13.3 million shares in its IPO

Almoosa Health to raise up to $450m from Saudi IPO

Almoosa Health Company expects to raise between SAR1.63 billion and SAR1.69 billion ($433.80-449.7 million) from its initial public offering (IPO) on the Saudi stock exchange. The company set the offering price range between SAR123.00 and SAR127.00 per share as the institutional book-building period started on Wednesday and will end on December 10. The offer price […]

Muhammad Al Jasser of the Islamic Development Bank, second from left, at the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Riyadh

Arab funds pledge $10bn to fight desertification

The Arab Coordination Group, an alliance of 10 development funds, is to provide $10 billion by 2030 to combat land degradation, desertification and drought, it was announced on the second day of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification event in Riyadh.  The commitment brings the total pledged to these interrelated causes at the two-week […]

UP42's earth observation digital platform integrates satellite imagery and weather data to identify objects, track changes and find patterns

PIF buys Airbus’ earth observation digital platform

A subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is to acquire Airbus Defence and Space’s earth observation digital platform. Riyadh-based Neo Space Group (NSG) was set up in May this year by PIF to lead efforts to develop the space industry in Saudi Arabia. It is to acquire Berlin-headquartered UP42, which was launched by […]

French president Emmanuel Macron and Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Energy, attend the signing of the SAF agreement

Saudi and French companies link up for green projects

Saudi Arabia and France have signed commercial agreements to push the development of renewables and green fuel production in the kingdom. The agreements were signed at the Saudi-French Investment Forum, attended by French president Emmanuel Macron in Riyadh. Saudi Aramco, Saudi Investment Recycling Company (SIRC), a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and France’s […]

A worker at a lithium mine. Saudi Arabia's cooperation with China could turn competitive in the race for such critical minerals

Critical minerals become a Middle East battleground

Saudi Arabia’s efforts to boost domestic processing of so-called critical minerals could redraw the mining industry’s regional and global supply chains, industry observers say. Critical minerals are defined as materials required for a country’s strategic industries where there is a risk of interruption to supply. They include lithium, for making batteries, platinum, used in fuel […]

Solar panels near Nanchang, China; Acwa Power wants to acquire clean power assets with a value of up to 20GW

Acwa Power plans to invest $50bn in China by 2030

Saudi energy company Acwa Power plans to invest up to $50 billion in renewable energy projects in China, a senior executive said on Tuesday.  Lyu Yunhe, Acwa Power’s head of China operations, said they aim to work with Chinese state-owned companies to acquire clean power assets with a value of up to 20GW and an additional 1 […]

PMI november Saudi man in textile factory

Non-oil activity in Saudi Arabia at 16-month high

Activity in Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy has hit a 16-month high, as the country’s diversification efforts continue to show results. The S&P Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers’ Index – a composite measure of non-oil private sector performance – rose from 56.9 in October to 59 in November, the fourth successive month in which the headline index […]

Workers on a Riyadh construction site. Saudi Arabia's giga-projects programme has added to banks' liquidity pressures

Liquidity squeeze deepens for Saudi Arabia’s banks

Liquidity in Saudi Arabia’s banking sector has tightened again as lending increased more quickly than deposits in the third quarter.  The loan-to-deposit ratio among Saudi Arabia’s 10 largest banks was 100.1 percent in Q3, up from 97.8 percent in the previous three months, according to management consultancy Alvarez & Marsal. Loans and advances at the […]