We can't find results matching your search.

Adjust your search and try again or browse topics and stories below.

Recent stories from sustg

  • Saudi Arabia Replaces Finance Minister in Continued Shift Toward Younger Technocrats
     

    Saudi Arabia has replaced its Minister of Finance, Dr. Ibrahim Al-Assaf, with the head of the Kingdom’s capital markets regulator Mohammed Al-Jadaan in the latest move toward a younger generation of technocratic leaders in high positions. Al-Assaf was Saudi Arabia’s longest-serving active minister, having held the position of Minister of Finance since 1996. Another Royal […]

     
  • US Customs Facilities Coming to Riyadh, Jeddah Airports to Add Convenience, Efficiency to U.S.-Saudi Travelers
     

    The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will soon set up facilities at Riyadh and Jeddah airports to process U.S.-bound passengers’ arrival documents before landing in the U.S., the Saudi Gazette reports, citing a person with knowledge of the situation who spoke with the Okaz Arabic daily. Long delays and extra screenings have become standard for […]

     
  • Candor from High-Ranking Saudi Ministers on Economy Latest Example of Increased Transparency
     

    Several high-ranking officials and Ministers in Saudi Arabia discussed the state of the Kingdom’s economy on a popular television show last week, according to Bloomberg, in what amounted to “an unusual attempt by a government not known for transparency to promote its plan to cope with the plunge in oil prices.” “Saudis who switched on a […]

     
  • Government Payments to Top Companies Resume, Al-Assaf Says on Saudi TV
     

    Saudi Arabia has resumed payments of its debts to contractors after long delays that imperiled company finances and hurt investor sentiment, according to Bloomberg, which cited comments made by Saudi Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf on Saudi television. In the televised interview late on Wednesday, Al-Assaf said payments have been “regularized and will rise in the coming period.” […]

     
  • 72-Hour Ceasefire in Yemen Set for Wednesday Night
     

    The United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen announced a 72-hour cease-fire to begin Wednesday night, after he received commitments from all of the country’s warring factions, according to reports. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said the cessation of hostilities will begin at 8:59 p.m. UTC Wednesday and could be renewed after the initial three-day period. Twice […]

     
  • Despite Downturn, Half in New Poll Expect Saudi Economy to Improve
     

    With tough economic decisions at hand and the price of oil at a tipping point, where is the Saudi economy heading? In a recent poll conducted by Bayt.com and YouGov, 50% of respondents in Saudi Arabia expect business conditions to improve in one year, and 40% believe things will improve in the next six months. […]

     
  • Deadly Coalition Missile Attack on Funeral in Yemen Draws International Condemnation, Prompts U.S. Review of Support
     

    The ongoing conflict in Yemen was further inflamed this weekend after a missile attack on a funeral hall killed over 160 civilians, sparking outrage across the war-torn country. Yemeni officials and witnesses are blaming the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen for the attack, which threatens to significantly alter the war’s course. The coalition initially denied […]

     
  • Video: Paramotoring in Saudi Arabia’s Qassim Desert
     

    A recently released report and video by Reuters highlights the start and growth of a “paramotoring” club in the Qassim Desert in Saudi Arabia as “a hobby, curiosity, a change.” Paramotoring, also referred to as powered paragliding, involves the use of a motor driving propeller that is worn on one’s back. The motor can be stopped and started in […]

     
  • Jadwa Investment Revises Saudi GDP Down to 1.1%
     

    The latest quarterly GDP update on the Saudi economy from Jadwa Investment finds year-on-year growth continued to slow for the fourth consecutive quarter, “mainly owing to a deceleration in annual GDP growth for both the oil sector and the non-oil private sector.” However, in real terms, the Saudi economy was 1.4 percent larger in the second quarter […]

     
  • Top Saudi Investment Officials in New York for Two-Day JPMorgan Chase Event
     

    Saudi Capital Market Authority Chairman Mohammed Al-Jadaan and Tadawul stock exchange Chief Executive Officer Khalid Al Hussan are among officials attending a two-day event in New York City this week organized by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bloomberg reports. According to Bloomberg, senior representatives of the kingdom’s economy ministry and central bank will also be present. The […]

     

MUST-READS

  • Perspective: On the stalling of major projects in Saudi Arabia

    In general, and despite the succession of these loans, it is certain that the Kingdom’s economy has not slipped into danger, as the Kingdom’s debts constitute only about 26.5 per cent of the GDP by the end of 2023 (compared to 65 per cent in Germany and 112 per cent in France). The Saudi budget still enjoys large areas of manoeuvrability by reducing expenditures, supported by increasing possibilities for at least stable, and perhaps increasing, oil prices in light of the increasing geopolitical risks around the world and the increase in demand for black crude. This, in short, means that the debt risks to the Kingdom are still within the calculated and safe range, but it remains very important to anticipate what is coming.

  • Saudi Aramco CEO says 80% of oil demand to come from Global South by 2050

    "They [Global North] are putting a lot of funds to create the transition," Nasser said in a special meeting of the World Economic Forum in the Saudi capital Riyadh. "It doesn't work where the demand is today. Fifty to 60% of the demand is in the Global South. By 2050, 80% of the hydrocarbon demand is going to be in the Global South. So, we need to take that into consideration if we are worried about emissions. We need to focus on a mission rather than picking winners or losers."

  • BlackRock to launch PIF-backed Saudi investment platform

    The world's largest asset manager BlackRock (BLK.N), opens new tab said on Tuesday it plans to launch a new investment platform in Saudi Arabia, backed by up to $5 billion from Saudi sovereign wealth fund the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
    BlackRock and PIF said they had signed a memorandum of understanding under which BlackRock would establish a Riyadh-based multi-asset investment platform, anchored by PIF's initial cash injection, subject to certain agreed milestones being hit.

  • Entertainment industry playing a lead role in Saudi transformation

    The entertainment industry in Saudi Arabia has seen a serious boost in recent years as the country continues on its course to becoming a hub for leisure – and overall a place for the wealthy to spend big. Consumer spending in entertainment is expected to reach $5 trillion by 2028, according to a report from Redseer Strategy Consultants.

  • Saudi Arabia activist sentenced to 11 years in prison for ‘support’ of women’s rights

    Saudi officials confirmed in a statement to the United Nations high commissioner for human rights that Manahel al-Otaibi was sentenced on 9 January for what the Saudi government called “terrorist offences”.

    Al-Otaibi, who was sentenced in a secret hearing before the counter-terrorism court, was found guilty of charges related to a Saudi anti-terror law that criminalises the use of websites to “broadcasts or publishes news, statements, false or malicious rumors, or the like for committing a terrorist crime”.

  • Geothermal – Saudi Arabia’s Next Energy Vector?

    For decades, Saudi Arabia’s power sector has heavily relied on hydrocarbons for electricity generation. Their abundant supply, affordability, and differential performance have made them a top choice. A significant portion of this electricity provides power for air conditioning systems and water desalination plants.

  • Food-poisoning patients released from intensive care, 25 discharged from Riyadh hospital

    More than half of the patients who contracted food poisoning caused by the clostridium botulinum bacteria last Thursday were released from intensive care and 25 discharged from a local hospital, the Ministry of Health reported on X. The ministry’s spokesperson Dr. Mohammed Khalid Alabdulaali confirmed that the only source of the contaminated food was from the local Hamburgini fast-food restaurant chain.

  • Police arrest dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University

    New York City police arrested dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrators holed-up in an academic building on Columbia University campus late on Tuesday and removed a protest encampment the Ivy League school had sought to dismantle for nearly two weeks.
    Shortly after police moved in, Columbia University President Minouche Shafik released a letter in which she requested police stay on campus until at least May 17 - two days after graduation - "to maintain order and ensure that encampments are not re-established."

  • In Israel, Blinken set to push Netanyahu for sustained aid into Gaza

    U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, pushing to get more aid into Gaza, while urging Hamas to accept a deal that would halt fighting in the enclave and bring Israeli hostages home.
    Following visits to Riyadh and Amman earlier this week, the top U.S. diplomat is now in Israel for a series of meetings on the final stop of his Middle East tour.

  • As famine looms in Sudan, the hungry eat soil and leaves

    Nearly five million people are close to famine as the country’s civil war passes the one-year mark. Aid officials say the warring parties – the army and the Rapid Support Forces – are looting aid or blocking it from reaching areas where starvation is taking hold. But ‘the world’s largest hunger crisis’ is drawing little global attention.