MUST-READS

• Economic Growth Boosts Role of Finance Companies in Saudi Arabia

  Saudi Arabia's efforts to boost its economy and encourage local investments have led to a significant rise in loans provided by finance companies, reaching the highest levels in almost four years. These loans increased by 73% to SAR 84.9 billion ($22.6 billion) by the end of 2023, compared to SAR 49.3 billion ($13.1 billion) in 2019. Real estate financing took the largest share at 28%, while personal financing saw a massive increase of over 666%.

• IHG adds two more hotels to Saudi pipeline

  InterContinental Hotels is to add two more hotels to its Middle Eastern pipeline. The group has signed to open an InterContinental and a Regent hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The hotels join a growing roster of hospitality project commitments across Saudi Arabia, as the country looks to substantially grow its tourism sector under its Vision 2030 plan. The new hotels will be developed within the fast growing King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) in Riyadh. Designed as a vertical city, KAFD includes a mix of offices, luxury residences and hotels, retail outlets, and entertainment and cultural venues on a 1.6 sq km area of the city. The development aims to set new standards for sustainable design and smart infrastructure, with new buildings LEED certified to confirm their low carbon designs.

• Can Saudi Arabia buy the future? A trillion bet on tech

  as the GCC's Sovereign Wealth Funds compete for global dominance, we'll see a significant shift in investment priorities. Energy revenue will flow into new sectors like green hydrogen, AI, smart cities, and tourism. While both Saudi Arabia and the UAE will be aggressive competitors, Saudi Arabia's ambitious Vision 2030 plan positions it as a potential front-runner.

• Egyptian Natural Gas Holding to expand in Saudi Arabia

  The Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Co. (EGAS) has established a subsidiary in Saudi Arabia with initial capital of SAR 2 million ($530,000), Egypt's Ministry of Petroleum said on Sunday. Owned 80% by EGAS, the newly established natural gas company "Modern Gas" Saudi Arabia is part of the Egyptian firm's strategy for offshore expansion, especially in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, aimed at attracting foreign currency inflows into Egypt.

• Saudi Arabia’s Non-Oil Revenue Hits 50% Of GDP

  For decades, Saudi Arabia has been regarded as the de facto leader of OPEC and a swing-producer critical to curtailing large price overshoots in either direction. Over the past few years, the Arab nation has borne the lion’s share of OPEC+ production cuts after recently agreeing to cut 1 million barrels per day or nearly half of the group’s 2.2 mb/d in pledged cuts. Well, it appears that Saudi Vision 2030 is already bearing fruit, and Riyadh might not be feeling the pinch from those cuts as much as many feared. Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Economy and Planning has revealed that non-oil revenues hit 50% of the Kingdom's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2023, the highest level ever.

• PGA Tour player directors prepare for meeting with Saudi leader of LIV Golf

  Players on the PGA Tour board negotiating with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund have a meeting planned Monday with the Saudi leader backing rival LIV Golf, something Rory McIlroy said Sunday should have happened long ago. He also said Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Public Investment Fund, wants to be “productive” in golf, while Greg Norman and others involved in LIV are disruptive. McIlroy won’t be part of the meeting, and details remained vague on where it would be held and whether it would be anything more than an ice breaker with Al-Rumayyan.

• Metals: Saudi Arabia’s new oil?

  Saudi Arabia's economy has historically been dependent on oil exports, but the country is eager to diversify. Mining valuable minerals hidden under its vast deserts could help to reduce its reliance on oil and grow its share in the energy transition. The kingdom is thought to hold significant deposits of key critical and battery metals including copper, nickel, lithium and bauxite. In January, mining CEOs and investors headed to Riyadh to attend the two-day Future Minerals Forum and rub elbows with the kingdom's influential energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman and multiple ministers from the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources.

• Al Borg Labs in Riyadh achieves prestigious international accreditation

  In a significant stride towards excellence in healthcare diagnostics, Al Borg Diagnostic Labs, based in Riyadh, has been awarded the prestigious accreditation from the College of American Pathologists (CAP). This recognition underscores the lab's commitment to maintaining the highest standards of accuracy, reliability, and efficiency in medical testing. As a beacon of advanced diagnostic services in the Gulf and Middle East, Al Borg Reference Lab specializes in areas like genetics, immunology, and molecular biochemistry. Dr. Mai Al Meshari, the Executive Medical Director, expressed pride in this accomplishment “The CAP accreditation reinforces our position as a leading provider of diagnostic services and supports our vision in effectively contributing to the goals of Vision 2030, especially in the area of improving the quality of health services and localizing specialized tests."

• Saudi residential mortgage loans jump to 11-month high in January

  Banks in Saudi Arabia granted residential mortgage loans worth SR7.54 billion ($2 billion) to individuals in January 2024, marking an 11-month high according to the data issued by the Kingdom’s central bank. The January figures represent a 21 percent increase or SR1.3 billion more than the loans offered the previous month. The uptick could be attributed to several government initiatives such as improving access to finance, introducing new and affordable housing options to the market, and implementing operational efficiencies in the housing sector.

• Green Falcons prepare for 2nd stage of Asian qualifiers for FIFA, AFC cups

  Saudi Arabia’s national football team met at their training camp in Riyadh on Sunday in preparation for the third and fourth rounds of the second stage of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. The Green Falcons will host Tajikistan’s national team on March 21 at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium in Riyadh and will then travel to face Tajikistan again on March 26 at the Central Stadium in Dushanbe.

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