MUST-READS

• Saudi Arabia’s real estate deals hit 1.03M in Q1 2023

  The number of real estate transactions stood at 1.03 million in the first quarter of 2023, the Saudi Justice Ministry's data showed. According to the ministry's data, the real estate transactions included registrations, compensations, amendments to old deeds, and updating manual deeds, in addition to merging properties, deeds, grants, and mortgages. Riyadh topped the list with around 934,700 transactions, followed by Makkah with around 34,800 transactions

• Saudi Aramco Suspends Two Oil Contractors

  Aramco earlier this year said it had scrapped plans to expand production capacity to 13 million barrels daily. The company said in January that the state had ordered it to stop work on the capacity expansion and keep the maximum sustainable capacity at 12 million bpd.

• Grid Bottlenecks on the Way in Europe?

  A new analysis by the energy think tank Ember has found that several countries in Europe could soon face bottlenecks in their national transmission energy grids, as more solar and wind power will be generated than these networks have capacity for. As the following chart shows, Spain, France and Poland are just some of the countries that will have energy grids which undershoot their country’s respective 2030 policy targets for wind and solar capacity. Out of the 26 countries studied by Ember in this comparison, 11 will not have enough capacity for the expected wind and solar build out if the present grid plans are realized.

• Saudi Industrial Production Index drops 7.7% in February

  Saudi Arabia’s Industrial Production Index (IPI) declined by 7.7% year-on-year (YoY) in February 2024. Data issued by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) showed that Saudi IPI fell to 103.44 points in February 2024, according to the base year 2021, compared to 112.09 points in February 2023. The index was directly affected by the decline in the mining, quarrying, and manufacturing activities, the authority said. The IPI measures the relative change and reflects the production quantities of materials and goods, which have been converted from raw materials to consumables in their final form as goods, for the purpose of achieving a return.

• Iranian top diplomat due in US amid fears of Iran-Israel war

  Amid expectations of retaliation for Israel’s suspected killing of senior Iranian military figures in Syria, Tehran’s top diplomat is set to travel to New York next week, Amwaj.media has learned. Informed sources say Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian plans to attend a UN Security Council meeting on Palestine, likely to be held on Apr. 18. While the US State Department has declined to comment on the visit, Iranian sources have alleged that entry visas have been issued for Amir-Abdollahian and his entourage.

• Ramadhan TV dramas test cultural limits in Iraq, Kuwait

  The arrival of Ramadhan has been accompanied by controversy in Iraq and Kuwait. The Islamic lunar month is famous for bringing with it new TV shows. This time, contention in the two countries is revolving around dramas accused of misrepresenting society, stoking sectarian tensions, and insulting religious figures. The recurrence of such debates in recent years has prompted questions over just how open TV shows in the region can be given deeply entrenched cultural and religious norms.

• Operation Aspides: The European Union’s Response to the Red Sea Crisis

  On February 19, the European Union launched a new maritime security operation, EU Naval Force Operation Aspides, in response to escalating Houthi attacks on Western warships and merchant vessels in the Red Sea basin and northwestern Indian Ocean. The name Aspides, which means “shields” in Greek, denotes the operation’s underlying defensive nature. The EU naval mission, carried out under its Common Security and Defense Policy, underscores how ensuring maritime security and maintaining the stability of global supply chains are front and center in the EU’s defense and trade strategic calculus.

• EV Ownership Ticks Up, but Fewer Nonowners Want to Buy One

  Seven percent of Americans, up from 4% a year ago, report that they own an electric vehicle. That increase is matched by an equal decline in the percentage saying they are seriously considering buying one, from 12% to 9%. Meanwhile, fewer Americans -- 35%, down from 43% in 2023 -- say they might consider buying an EV in the future. Thus, even as some people have moved ahead with their intent to buy an EV in the past year, public demand for the cars has contracted.

• Turkey restricts exports of 54 products to Israel until Gaza cease-fire

  As Israel pledged to retaliate, analysts believe the move is aiming to allay growing dismay among Turkey's Islamists for the government’s refusal to sever trade ties with the Middle Eastern country over the Gaza conflict. Read more: https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2024/04/turkey-restricts-exports-54-products-israel-until-gaza-cease-fire#ixzz8WuE3JpMi

• Doing the work: MBS’ true legacy

  Given our clickbait, short-attention-span media reality, we can’t really be surprised that Saudi Arabia’s splashy external investments and massive ‘giga’ projects are the glitter that catches the eye of the inattentive. In fact, while the Kingdom’s high-profile investments and massive construction projects actually do serve a purpose, the truly meaningful change that should matter to Americans and its elected officials is happening elsewhere.

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