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  • VICE Video: ‘Building Saudi Arabia’s First Movie Theatre’
     

    VICE News has posted a video on the burgeoning entertainment industry in Saudi Arabia and the challenges of creating original content in the Kingdom. “There is strong content being created by Saudis in the underground filmmaking scene. The challenges Saudi artists face, instead of lessening the quality of their work, actually add layers, nuance and […]

     
  • Transfer of Tiran and Sanafir Islands Approved by Egypt’s Parliament
     

    Egypt’s parliament has approved the transfer of two key islands in the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia, all but finalizing a deal to restore ownership of the islands to Saudi Arabia after more than half a century. The parliament, after “three days of rowdy and emotional debate” according to the New York Times, approved a […]

     
  • Jadwa Investment Data Shows ‘Mildly Improving Picture’ for Saudi Economy
     

    Riyadh-based Jadwa Investment’s recently released Economic Chartbook for the month of April finds data continues to “show a mildly improving picture,” according to Fahad Alturki, Jadwa’s Chief Economist. “Economic data continues to show a mildly improving picture in April. POS transactions jumped 11.4 percent, year-on-year, and although ATM withdrawals remain negative year-on-year, they showed an […]

     
  • Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Ruler of Saudi Arabia, and King of Twitter
     

    Saudi Arabia’s King Salman is ruler of more than just the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. King Salman is the world leader whose original Tweets generate the most Retweets, according to the latest “Twiplomacy” study by the communications firm Burson-Marsteller. But unlike President Trump, King Salman publishes sparingly, with only 10 Tweets posted during the study. And […]

     
  • Gulf Spat Following President Trump’s Visit to Saudi Arabia Tests GCC Unity
     

    Tensions continue to run high for a sixth straight day in the GCC between Saudi Arabia and Qatar regarding relations with regional rival Iran, according to reports. Despite a strong show of unity for the recent visit of President Trump to the Kingdom, “[t]ensions in the Gulf were laid open for a sixth day, with […]

     
  • Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Moscow to Meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin
     

    Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russian President Vladimir Putin met today in Moscow as the Kingdom and Russia work together on oil production cuts, Reuters reports. Russia and Saudi Arabia played key roles in a successful global deal which saw oil production curtailed by 1.8 million barrels per day as part of […]

     
  • Overview of Saudi Arabia’s Drive Toward Privatization
     

    Saudi Arabia’s push toward privatization is a key component of the government’s ambitious Vision 2030 economic and social reform program, and necessary for the Kingdom’s goals of diversifying its economy away from petroleum revenue dependency. The news service Reuters provides a “factbox” list of Saudi Arabia’s sectors that are making progress toward privatization, and encouraging […]

     
  • Ahead of Trump’s Visit, White House Official Tells Reuters $100b in Arms Deals Planned
     

    The United States is close to completing a series of arms deals with Saudi Arabia totaling more than $100 billion, a senior White House official told Reuters on Friday, a week ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned visit to Riyadh. The arms deals could reach up to $300 billion over 10 years to help Saudi […]

     
  • Major Reduction in Quarterly Budget Deficit Figures a Positive for Kingdom’s Economic Reforms
     

    In an analysis of official data from the Kingdom, Bloomberg found a significant year-on-year reduction in Saudi Arabia’s budget deficit from Q1 2017, a sign that the Kingdom’s economic reforms coupled with an uptick in oil prices have positively impacted the government’s balance sheet. According to Saudi Arabia’s finance ministry and as reported in Bloomberg, […]

     
  • Plans Move Ahead for Saudi Arabia’s ‘Fannie Mae’ Mortgage-Refinancing Firm
     

    Saudi Arabia’s first mortgage-refinancing firm has started approaching banks to buy their mortgage portfolios as the state tries to boost lending for homes, Bloomberg reports. In 2015, Bloomberg and Reuters reported on Saudi Arabia’s plans to work with the Boston Consulting Group to help start a state-owned mortgage firm similar to the U.S.’s Fannie Mae and […]

     

MUST-READS

  • Saudi Arabia discovers 56-million-year marine fossils

    Saudi geological authorities unearthed ancient marine fossils that date back to some 56 million years, Anadolu Agency reports. In a statement, the Saudi Geological Survey (SGS) said the fossils were found in limestone rock formations in the Ras Al-Ru’us sedimentary area in northern Saudi Arabia. The fossils date back to the early Eocene period and include imprints and internal moulds of bony fish, which all help understand the prehistoric marine communities of the early Eocene epoch, according to the statement.

  • Inside Saudi Arabia’s plan to tame the desert and turn its capital into a cool green oasis

    They plan to plant seven-and-a-half million trees across the city and build numerous new parks and green spaces including one four times the size of Hyde Park. A new irrigation system using treated wastewater is being developed, and the building code is being rewritten taking inspiration from traditional local architecture to make new homes more energy efficient. Much is riding on the project’s success – making Riyadh a more appealing place to live to tempt in expats and foreign investment is a cornerstone of Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman’s efforts to overhaul the country’s image and diversify the economy away from oil. And with millions of people suffering from extreme heat in cities around the world – increasingly relying on environmentally disastrous air conditioning – the lessons Saudi Arabia learns could be vital to averting the worst effects of climate change in the coming decades.

  • Saudi Arabia: Israel determined to sabotage Syria’s chance for stability

    Saudi Arabia said Monday that Israel’s seizure of a buffer zone in the Golan Heights shows its determination to sabotage Syria’s chance of restoring stability. Israeli forces announced over the weekend that they had deployed to the buffer zone, claiming that the move was to protect Israeli citizens. Despite Israel’s foreign minister saying the takeover was temporary, embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly came out and said that the Golan Heights would remain Israeli “for eternity.”

  • Apple announces retail expansion plans in Saudi Arabia

    The company is set to debut its online Apple Store in the summer of 2025, offering a complete range of products with Arabic service and support for the first time. From 2026, Apple aims to inaugurate the first of many flagship stores across the country. Apple is in the early phases of designing a store at Diriyah, a UNESCO World Heritage site.  Apple CEO Tim Cook said: “We’re excited to be expanding here in Saudi Arabia with the launch of the Apple Store online next year, and the first of several flagship Apple Store locations starting in 2026, including an iconic store at the stunning site of Diriyah coming later.

  • Assad’s downfall is a humbling blow to Russia. How will it affect Putin’s prestige?

    Almost exactly seven years ago, President Vladimir Putin stood with Russian troops at their air base in Syria and proudly declared victory over “terrorists” in that country as part of the Kremlin’s military intervention to prop up the government of Bashar Assad amid a civil war. This weekend, those hard-won gains seemed a distant memory. Assad hastily fled to Moscow as his power crumbled during a lightning offensive by rebels that his main international allies, Russia and Iran, were unable to stem. The Kremlin’s failure to prevent Assad’s swift downfall has exposed limits of Russia’s power and dented its international clout at a pivotal stage of its war in Ukraine.

  • UN pledges to address migrant labour rights as Saudi Arabia is set to host 2034 World Cup

    The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has pledged to ensure proper labour standards during tournament preparations, which will heavily rely on migrant workers. Two days before FIFA is set to officially confirm Saudi Arabia as the host of the 2034 World Cup, the United Nations’ top human rights official pledged on Monday to advocate for the proper respect of migrant labour standards during the tournament preparations. The kingdom’s plans include constructing eight of the 15 proposed stadiums from scratch and adding 175,000 hotel rooms relying heavily on migrant workers — primarily from South Asia — under a labour framework that human rights groups have criticised for inadequate protections.

  • Seismic events in Syria will not affect oil markets. Here’s why

    On one level, that is not surprising. Syria does have some oil – capacity to produce around 450,000 barrels per day is usually cited – but it has been a footnote in global markets for many years because of civil war and the resulting infrastructure and investment deficits. It has become an accepted truth that the only regional event that will really get the oil price soaring again is the closure of the Straits of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world’s crude passes.

  • Israel pounds Syrian army bases, denies deeper incursion

     Israel pounded Syrian army bases on Tuesday in strikes it says aim to keep weapons from falling into hostile hands, but denied its forces had advanced into Syria beyond a buffer zone at the border. In the Syrian capital, banks reopened for the first time since the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad, in a major step towards restoring normal life. Shops were reopening, traffic returned to the roads, construction workers were back fixing a roundabout in the city centre and street cleaners were out sweeping the streets.

  • Netanyahu corruption trial: What you need to know

    Netanyahu was indicted in 2019 on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust - all of which Netanyahu denies. The trial began in 2020 and involves three criminal cases. He denies the charges and has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors allege Netanyahu granted regulatory favours worth around 1.8 billion shekels (about $500 million) to Bezeq Telecom Israel (BEZQ.TA). In return, prosecutors say, he sought positive coverage of himself and his wife Sara on a news website controlled by the company's former chairman, Shaul Elovitch. In this case, Netanyahu has been charged with bribery, fraud and breach of trust.

  • Shaping the future of an historic region with Fabien Toscano, CEO, AlUla Development: Video

    The latest episode of Invested in Better is looking back to go forward with a focus on the magical region of AlUla and the exciting modern developments happening there. UDC’s CEO, Fabien Toscano, tells host Kimberley Leonard about the ambitious plan to provide a luxury heritage experience and how PIF’s vision is helping shape this.