#Saudi Arabia

Fitch upgrades Saudi Arabia.

Fitch Ratings raises Saudi Arabia’s outlook on strong fiscal buffers

The kingdom has one of the highest reserve coverage ratios among Fitch-rated sovereigns at 18 months of current external payments

SABB rebrands as SAB – الأول

SABB rebrands as Saudi Awwal Bank after merger with Alawwal

The bank will operate as ‘Saudi Awwal Bank’ after obtaining the necessary regulatory and shareholders’ approvals

Oil prices surges after OPEC+ cuts

Oil surges after OPEC+ makes unexpected crude production cut

Oil prices surged after OPEC+ pledged to make production cuts starting next month that will exceed one million barrels a day

Opec+

OPEC+ shows no sign of changing oil output at meeting next week

Saudi Arabia has said publicly that the 23-nation alliance should keep supplies steady for the whole of 2023

Rosewood Amaala. (Image: Supplied by Red Sea Global)

Rosewood confirms opening in Saudi’s Amaala

It is being designed by architecture firm, ACPV Architects Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel

NEOM Airlines launched

New Saudi carrier: NEOM Airlines to launch in 2024

The airline will be focused on enabling travel for tourists, residents and commercial partners to and from NEOM

Olayan Saudi Holding Company hospital with Vamed Hospital render

Olayan Saudi Holding Company, Vamed to open hospital in Riyadh

It’s the first of many hospitals planned in Saudi Arabia and regionally, as part of OSHCO’s aim to grow its healthcare investment portfolio

SEVEN brings world's first Play-Doh attraction to KSA

World’s first PLAY-DOH attractions to be launched in Saudi Arabia

The PLAY-DOH centres will open in eight locations in Saudi Arabia over the next 10 years

Smartphone market

Is the region’s smartphone market expected to grow in 2023?

The competition remains stiff in the coming years, especially for emerging brands

Dubai Police Ramadan Cannon

Ramadan 2023: UAE moon-sighting committee to meet Tuesday

The sighting of the moon signifies the start and the end of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar

logistics sector

Is Saudi Arabia’s logistics sector future-ready?

The kingdom is exercising concerted efforts to infuse a digital-first approach

S&P Global, Moody’s raise Saudi Arabia rating on reform agenda

Fitch Ratings, one of the big three rating agencies, assigns Saudi Arabia the same score as S&P Global while Moody’s has it one level higher

SPAC

Saudi Arabia explores setting up framework for SPAC listings

Yazeed Saleh Aldemaigi, deputy of strategy and international affairs at Capital Market Authority didn’t give a time frame for when the framework could be introduced

Tamara, Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs backs BNPL startup Tamara with $150m facility

The facility will help finance the growing demand for bringing the buy now, pay later products in the GCC while continuing its growth across new verticals

NorthLadder

NorthLadder launches second-hand marketplace in Saudi Arabia

Residents in Riyadh and Jeddah can now use the marketplace to sell their used laptops, mobile phones, tablets and smartwatches

PIF unveils 3 private sector initiatives. Image by PIF

Saudi Arabia’s PIF unveils three initiatives to boost private sector growth

The strategy aligns with the fund’s aim to support the private sector in increasing its contribution to GDP by up to 65 per cent by 2030

Saudi Aramco’s record net income. Image by Aramco

Saudi Aramco profit surges to $161.1bn in 2022, raises dividend

The company’s declared a dividend of $19.5bn for the final quarter of 2022, a 4 per cent increase compared to the previous three-month period

Mohammed bin Salman

Saudi Arabia unveils Riyadh Air, the country’s new national carrier

Riyadh will be the company’s operational hub, and will connect the Saudi capital to over 100 destinations globally

Saudi Arabia tourism visa

Saudi Arabia relaxes tourist visa rule for all GCC residents

The announcement is the latest in a series of initiatives that seek to attract visitors coming from GCC countries

Saudi Arabia GDP 2022

Saudi Arabia’s 2022 GDP grows 8.7 per cent, boosted by higher oil prices

The country’s GDP crossed the $1tn mark for the first time in 2022 as higher oil prices boosted government revenues

Cover story: How Magnom Properties is keen to invest in the future

The real estate arm of Saudi conglomerate, Rawabi Holding, is looking to be part of the solution on climate change

Agility opens data centre sites

Kuwait’s Agility launches data centre sites across Middle East and Africa

The company plans to build additional sites in other rapidly growing data centre markets including Nairobi, Casablanca and Lagos

Tamakani milestones showcased by Aamer Sheikh PepsiCo CEO Middle East

How PepsiCo’s Tamakani initiative is empowering Saudi women

Aamer Sheikh, PepsiCo CEO Middle East, shares how the company’s women empowerment platform aims to support one million Saudi women by 2030

UAE corporate tax exemptions.

MENA M&A activity smashes record to top 700 deals in 2022

Domestic deals represented 34 per cent of the total M&A value at $28.4bn while outbound deals led in value at $40.1bn

Saudi oil Europe

Saudi Arabia raises oil prices for Asia and Europe for April

Prices for US customers were left unchanged

Kazakhstan & ACWA Power agreement signed in presence of Abdulaziz bin Salman -

ACWA Power, Kazakhstan to develop key 1GW wind energy and battery storage project

The project marks ACWA Power’s entry into the Central Asian country with an initial investment of $1.5bn

Shareek programme to suppport Saudi Arabia's private sector

Aramco, ACWA Power, SABIC to receive support from Saudi’s Shareek programme

The first wave of supported projects, which will have strategic impact on several economic sectors, will benefit from investments worth SAR192.4bn

Renewable energy in Saudi Arabia and UAE

UAE, Saudi Arabia lead GCC renewable energy investments: S&P Global

The Gulf states are accelerating the decarbonisation of their energy sectors by investing heavily in renewable energy

SABIC projects tight industry margins

Saudi Arabia’s SABIC sees industry margins staying tight

SABIC, which is majority-owned by Saudi Aramco, said average sale prices dropped 9 per cent from the previous quarter.

Saudi Arabia's PIF backs emkan capital

Saudi wealth fund unit backs Emkan Capital’s technology fund

Emkan Capital’s technology fund will invest in pre-seed and seed-stage companies with high-growth potential