Markets Saudi Arabia trims bets on US tech stocks Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) rejigged its US equities portfolio during a tumultuous first quarter for Stateside stocks, expanding its direct investment in Amazon but trimming its bets on some of the other so-called Magnificent Seven technology companies. PIF has submitted filings to the US market regulator each financial quarter from 2020 onwards when […] May 18, 2025
Opinion Trade Trump’s Gulf visit was grand – but the real test starts now Pledges and deals may change when reality hits May 18, 2025
Finance Turkey gets $219m to develop projects in quake-hit cities The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide €195 million ($219 million) to two infrastructure projects in Turkey’s earthquake-hit cities of Adiyaman and Hatay. The development bank will provide €95 million ($106 million) to cover the construction of wastewater and stormwater networks and facilities in Adiyaman, it said in a statement. Another €100 million […] May 16, 2025
Banking and Finance Jordan’s Bank al Etihad buys smaller Investbank Jordan’s Bank al Etihad has acquired smaller peer Investbank in a deal that will create one of the kingdom’s biggest lenders, bank officials said on Thursday. The two banks’ boards agreed to a stock-for-stock acquisition that will create an entity with a total equity value of over $1.4 billion, Bank al Etihad chairman Basem Salfiti […] May 16, 2025
Markets Arabian Construction Company hires banks for IPO Arabian Construction Company (ACC), a family-owned business in Abu Dhabi, has reportedly picked local and global banks for its proposed initial public offering. First Abu Dhabi Bank and HSBC will advise the company on its domestic listing, Bloomberg reported. The listing is expected to take place in the second half of the year, sources said. In […] May 16, 2025
Construction Emaar EC trims losses as revenue nearly triple Emaar EC, the master developer of King Abdullah Economic City, trimmed net losses by more than half in the first quarter of 2025 as revenues almost tripled. Net loss narrowed to SAR123 million ($32.8 million) in the quarter ended March 31, 2025, from SAR352 million a year earlier, the developer said in a statement published on […] May 16, 2025
Markets Gulf sovereign wealth funds tap secondaries market The Middle East’s sovereign wealth funds are using the surging secondaries investment market to take strategic stakes in emerging technologies, experts have told AGBI. A secondaries investment is the acquisition of interests in already formed private market funds or a portfolio of direct investments from existing investors. Global secondaries transactions rose almost 50 percent last […] May 16, 2025
Opinion Trade Lesson from Trump in Riyadh: Sleep is for losers The Trump show had it all – razzamatazz, politics and a moment of affection for the crown prince May 15, 2025
Opinion Economy Gulf investors may gain from UK pound recovery Shifts in currency position the pound to benefit from US dollar index falls May 15, 2025
Analysis Markets Oman’s state IPO history raises question over future sales Oman’s privatisation programme of state-owned companies has boosted government coffers and helped improve the sultanate’s credit rating, but it has brought little joy for equity investors. Since the start of 2023, five state-controlled businesses have sold shares to the public in initial public offerings (IPOs), raising almost $4 billion in total. These span four subsidiaries […] May 15, 2025
Trade Syria invites foreign investors after US sanctions removal Syrian finance minister Yisr Barnieh made a call to global investors on Wednesday to come and do business with Syria after US President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement that he would lift all of Washington’s sanctions on the country. “Syria today is a land of opportunities, with immense potential across every sector—from agriculture to oil, tourism, infrastructure, and transportation,” Barnieh […] May 15, 2025
Trade Qatar takes centre stage on Trump’s Middle East mission Major deal announcements kept rolling in on Wednesday as Donald Trump travelled from Riyadh to Doha on the second day of his visit to the Gulf. Qatar Airways agreed to purchase up to 210 Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X jets for $96 billion in what the White House described as Boeing’s “largest ever wide-body order”. […] May 15, 2025
Trade Saudi Arabia and China sign deals worth $3.7bn to boost agriculture Saudi Arabia and China have signed 57 agreements worth SAR14 billion ($3.7 billion) to strengthen their trade relations, focusing mainly on the agriculture sector. The two nations signed 31 agreements in the field of greenhouses, livestock, poultry and fisheries during the Saudi-Chinese Business Forum, the ministry of environment, water and agriculture said in a post […] May 14, 2025
Finance Turkish minister says economy on track despite slower growth Turkey’s finance minister has said the country’s economic transformation was on track and that the country was prepared to deal with slower growth. Finance minister Mehmet Simsek said that tighter financial conditions, lower oil prices and a weaker dollar were likely to be disinflationary, boosting the economy. “Growth is slower but we can live with […] May 14, 2025
Opinion Trade Trump in his happy place: Purple carpets and big deals in Saudi Arabia The challenge now is to maintain the momentum and atmosphere of the trip May 14, 2025
Trade Why Oman is off Trump’s travel plans Oman may have negotiated a ceasefire between the US and Yemen’s Houthis, and is the go-between the US and Iran in negotiations around nuclear weapons capability. But it is not among the countries President Donald Trump is visiting in the Arabian Gulf this week. “These Gulf countries Trump is currently visiting are offering trillions of […] May 14, 2025
Trade Arms, investment and AI top list of deals on busy day for Trump Tens of billions of dollars in new partnerships between the US and Saudi Arabia were announced on Tuesday in Riyadh during the first day of President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf. Artificial intelligence, aviation, energy and defence dominated the flurry of deals, with the White House again touting that the kingdom will invest $600 […] May 14, 2025
Analysis Banking and Finance Rise of Middle East fintechs gives banks a run for their money The growth of fintech in the Middle East is driving traditional banks to refocus on better serving their customers and invest in their own dedicated subsidiaries as the sector eats into their market share, industry experts say. In the three months to March 31, fintech funding accounted for almost 60 percent of all venture capital […] May 13, 2025
Markets Over half of foreign investors on Tadawul are from US More than half of qualified foreign investors (QFIs) in the Saudi stock market are from the US, according to Saudi Tadawul Group, the operator of the stock exchange. The Saudi exchange has more than 4,000 QFIs, Sarah Al-Suhaimi told the Saudi-US Investment Forum. “I can say that approximately 55 percent of foreign investments through the […] May 13, 2025
Markets Dubai Holding seeks up to $500m from REIT listing Dubai Holding aims to raise a maximum of AED1.8 billion ($490 million) from its residential real estate investment trust (REIT) listing. This month the investment conglomerate owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the emirate’s ruler, announced floating 12.5 percent of its Dubai Residential REIT, or 1.63 billion units, on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM). […] May 13, 2025
Opinion Trade Trump in Riyadh: power plays and photo ops It is hard to predict what the big headline will be, but it would be wise not to rule anything out May 12, 2025
Banking and Finance Egypt renews warning over dealing in cryptocurrencies Egypt has issued a fresh warning against dealing in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies following a surge in local online advertisements for investment in these tools. The Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) said these currencies lack official financial backing that guarantees their stability and that they could be used in terror funding. In a weekend statement on […] May 12, 2025
