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QUOTED
“We are bullish on the Saudi market for 2025. Saudi will benefit from the portfolio flow rotation out of China. To top it off, valuations are becoming more compelling once again.” Thea Jamison, managing director at Change Global Investment LLC, Saudi Stocks Poised to Rebound as Trade War Risks Grow for Peers [BNN Bloomberg]
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TOP STORY
The Arab Coordination Group (ACG), a strategic alliance of ten leading development finance institutions, announced a landmark commitment of up to US$10 billion by 2030 to address the critical challenges of land degradation, desertification and drought. [more]
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MORE TOP STORYLINES
Via Carrington Malin in middleeastainews.com: Microsoft has reached a major milestone in Saudi Arabia with the completion of construction for three data centres and Azure Availability Zones in the Eastern Province. The US software giant expects the new Saudi data centre region to be operational in 2026. Microsoft initially announced plans for a new Microsoft Data Centre and Azure cloud region in Saudi Arabia during LEAP 2023, to offer enterprise-grade reliability and performance combined with customer privacy, data residency, and high-speed latency standards. The move aligns with Microsoft’s $60 billion global investment in AI and cloud infrastructure for 2024. The new Azure cloud region in Saudi Arabia is critical for Microsoft both in terms of its regional and global goals. There is now a global race to build out data centre infrastructure in order to support to growing demand for AI compute and the vast, fast growing amounts of data that support it.
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Via Nancy Tartaglione in deadline.com: Imax and Saudi Arabia’s Muvi Cinemas on Wednesday hosted a grand opening event for the new Imax location at Muvi Mall of Arabia in Jeddah. This is the first Imax location from Saudi’s largest exhibitor. During the event, which was held just ahead of the kickoff of the Red Sea Film Festival, Imax revealed plans to release the first-ever Arabic-language feature in the format, Black Light Films’ action comedy Ambulance. Directed by Colin Teague and starring Ibrahim Hajjaj and Muhammed Al-Qahtani, it will release on April 17, 2025. The film, set against the backdrop of modern-day Riyadh, centers on two paramedics who stumble upon a briefcase containing 2 million riyals. What should be a life-changing moment quickly spirals into their worst nightmare as the duo becomes entangled in a web of kidnapping, blackmail and murder.
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Via Jonathan Gorvett in agbi.com: For many people, the city of Guinness and James Joyce may not be the first place that comes to mind when thinking about Islamic bonds. Yet, according to a report last month from Fitch Ratings, the Dublin stock exchange – Euronext Dublin – is now the world’s largest listing venue for hard currency global sukuk. The Irish capital covered 38 percent of the global total of this kind of Islamic bond at the end of this year’s third quarter – outstripping its two main rivals, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and Nasdaq Dubai. “A large chunk of this comes from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, too,” Bashar Al-Natoor, managing director and global head of Fitch Rating’s Islamic Finance Group, tells AGBI. “The GCC is the biggest domicile for issuers.”
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MORE ON THE KINGDOM AND BEYOND
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Saudi Arabia's national teams who competed in international science and academic contests had tremendous success, winning 107 global awards across 25 events held between September...[via mawhiba.org]
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The Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation (SAMF) has launched the Next Saudi Generation Program to support and develop Saudi talent in motorsports. The program, conducted in...[via spa.gov]
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Speaking in an interview with China Media Group (CMG), Araghchi said that the newly restored Iranian-Saudi ties have a lot of potential that haven’t been...[via alarabiya.net]
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Milan forward Tammy Abraham has hailed the impact of the support in Riyadh as his side booked their place in the Supercoppa Italiana final. The Englishman...[via yahoo.com]
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The Saudi Arabian group SAVOLA has sold all its assets in Iran for 705 million Saudi riyals (approximately $188 million) and is exiting the country. SAVOLA,...[via iranfocus.com]
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Since Ronaldo's arrival in the SPL, the league has grown leaps and bounds. Players like Karim Benzema, Neymar, Riyad Mahrez, Sadio Mane, and...[By Apratim Banerjee via si.com]
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The Line 3 (Orange Line) covering Madinah Road would connect the east of Riyadh to its west, and extends from Jeddah Road in the west...[via saudigazette.com]
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On the back of the busiest sporting year Saudi Arabia has ever had, punctuated by news of the nation’s successful 2034 FIFA...[By Mark Lomas via alarabiya.net]
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The State Department approves the possible sale of 20 MK 54 MOD 0 Lightweight Torpedoes to Saudi Arabia for $78.5 million, according...[via alarabiya.net]
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Prince Faisal reiterated the Kingdom’s commitment to supporting Syria’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity while emphasizing efforts to achieve security, stability, and prosperity for the...[via eurasiareview.com]
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The Saudi Ministry of Interior’s Absher Business platform has introduced updated fees for seven services offered to establishments, according to Okaz newspaper. Among the changes,...[via gulfnews.com]
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Rising sea levels driven by the climate crisis will overwhelm many of the world’s biggest oil ports, analysis indicates. Thirteen of the ports with the...[By Damian Carrington via theguardian.com]
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Saudi officials have signed a preliminary deal this week to issue residential mortgage-backed securities, a first for the Gulf. The Saudi Real Estate Refinance Company (SRC),...[By Valentina Pasquali via agbi.com]
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Government employees were among 145 people arrested in Saudi Arabia over corruption charges last month. The country’s Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) conducted 1,462 “oversight visits”...[By Gavin Gibbon via agbi.com]
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South Africa’s strong legacy at the Dakar Rally continues in 2025, with more than half of the vehicles at the event in Saudi Arabia being...[via youtube.com]
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Wages for Saudis in the private sector rose by 45 per cent in 2024, as Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development...[By Khitam Al Amir via gulfnews.com]
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Adding another tournament to a busy decade of football events, Saudi Arabia will host the 2026 Gulf Cup. The news was confirmed on the sidelines of...[via insideworldfootball.com]
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Syrian rebels ousted pro-government forces from Hama on Thursday, bringing the insurgents a major new victory after...[By Suleiman Al-Khalidi via reuters.com]
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Lebanon's Hezbollah has been significantly degraded militarily by Israel, but the Iran-backed group will likely try to...[By Erin Banco via reuters.com]
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Baghdad is on high alert as several Sunni rebel groups have launched a coordinated military offensive in northwest Syria, stoking fears that the...[via amwaj.media]
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The war in Sudan is a tragic afterthought in global politics, forgotten amid the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine. But 19 months of ...[By Ishaan Tharoor via washingtonpost.com]
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An armada of vessels operating near Asia’s maritime thoroughfares moves hundreds of millions of barrels of sanctioned oil. Called the “dark fleet,” the ships also...[via bloomberg.com]
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