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  • Saudi food industry sees buoyant demand, growth momentum to improve in Q1 2024: Almunajem CEO

    The demand levels in Saudi Arabia’s foods industry are strong and the momentum will likely continue over the coming period due to population growth, tourism, and Hajj and Umrah programs, Thamer Abanumay, CEO of Almunajem Foods Co., told Argaam. However, inflation levels and unstable supply chains weigh on prices, he added. The sector’s growth is forecast to continue through Q1 2024, backed by the seasonal demand in Ramadan.

  • Saudi FDI data overhaul to use financial statements not estimates

    Saudi Arabia has begun using data gathered directly from company and investor financial statements to calculate foreign direct investment (FDI) as part of a push to modernize and centralize the kingdom's economic data, a Saudi official told Reuters. Attracting FDI is a pillar of a vast plan by the kingdom's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to boost non-oil gross domestic product, diversify the Saudi economy and cut its reliance on crude oil exports.

  • Saudi real estate platform transactions soar to $267m a day, 1m users registered

    Saudi Arabia’s Real Estate Market platform has 1m registered users and averages $1bn ($267m) of transactions a day, according to a report from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The MOJ announced this represents a significant growth in the usage of the Real Estate Market platform. The platform has over one million registered users, with the average daily user count surpassing 30,000.

  • Saudi aid convoys arrive at Nile River and Northern states in Sudan

    Convoys carrying relief supplies sent by Saudi aid agency KSrelief have arrived at Nile River State and Northern State in Sudan, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday. The arrival of the convoys at their destinations marks the start of the second phase of a project to support food security in the North African country, officials said. Maj. Gen. Abdul Mahmoud Hammad Hussein, the acting governor of Nile River State, thanked Saudi Arabia for the aid and relief projects it provides, through KSrelief, for the Sudanese people, who are facing a humanitarian crisis.

  • What are people in Saudi Arabia buying?

    The number one used financial app is STC pay. 45 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s population say that Stc Pay is the mobile payment platform they typically use. The second app that is not far behind in numbers is Mada Pay. Surprisingly, global payment platforms such as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay lie on the lower end of the scale. Apple Pay is used more often compared to Samsung Pay, when comparing 32 per cent of people who said they used Apple Pay to Samsung Pay’s 11 per cent. When it comes to financial services, most of the respondents opted for Mada as their choice. After Mada, the next most popular ones are Visa and Stc Pay. When it comes to retail banks on the other hand, almost half of the respondents chose Alrajahi Bank. The remaining were split almost equally between Riyad Bank and Alinma Bank.

  • CENTCOM chief in Saudi Arabia to meet top military general as violence engulfs region

    The top US military general for the Middle East met with Saudi Arabia’s Chief of General Staff, Gen. Fayyad Al-Ruwaili, on Wednesday to discuss deepening military and defense ties, the Saudi Ministry of Defense said. United States Central Command (CENTCOM) chief Gen. Erik Kurilla visited the Kingdom, where they discussed bilateral relations as well as the prospects for cooperation in various fields, a statement from the Saudi ministry said.

  • The Rise of Saudi Arabia’s Venture Capital Ecosystem: A 5-Year Reflection

    Against the gloomy picture painted in most regions, Saudi Arabia weathered this storm with success, becoming MENA’s leading market for venture capital funding, where $1.38BN was deployed in capital to Saudi-headquartered startups in 2023. Central to this was the investment in four MEGA deal rounds, investments greater than $100M+, which were closed by Nana, Floward, Tamara, and Tabby, with the latter announcing their relocation to the Kingdom in Q4 2023. These four deals together captured 64% of the capital deployed in the Kingdom.

  • The Rise of Saudi Arabia’s Venture Capital Ecosystem: A 5-Year Reflection

    2023 was a rollercoaster year for Venture Capital. Globally, VC funding fell to $248.4B in 2023, the lowest level since 2017, while transaction volume fell by 30% YoY to 29,303 deals in 2023, a 6-year low, as reported by CB Insights. This trend was against the backdrop of stricter monetary conditions, rising inflation, and, in some regions, geopolitical instability. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region is a prime example of this; amidst rising interest rates, technological disruptions, and geopolitical tensions, the number of deals in MENA reached its lowest levels since 2018, declining by 34%, while capital deployed retreated by 23% YoY, as reported in our MAGNiTT FY 2023 MENA Venture Investment Report.

  • UNRWA funding pauses come amid uncertainty over Gaza aid future

    The United States and its allies are suspending funding to a U.N. agency at a critical moment for Gaza. Before the war, roughly 80 percent of the population of the strip was reliant on international aid. Following months of conflict, the needs are only more dire, with almost 9 out of 10 people displaced and at least half of the buildings in the strip damaged or destroyed. The U.N. Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, played a vital role in distributing international aid to Gaza during the war. But after Israel alleged that more than a dozen UNRWA staff members were involved in the Hamas-led attacks on Israeli towns on Oct. 7, the United States and at least nine other donor countries have paused their funding pending further investigation.

  • U.S. sanctions 4 settlers, amid broader push to end Gaza war

    The United States today sanctioned four Israeli nationals under a new executive order signed by President Biden targeting perpetrators of extremist violence and intimidation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, amid a broader push by Washington to try to help negotiate an extended ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, get over 100 Israeli hostages freed, and get regional buy-in for a longer-term path for enduring peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians.