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  • Secretary Blinken’s Call with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud

    Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud. The Secretary reaffirmed U.S. support for a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned peaceful political transition to an inclusive, representative, and accountable government. He stressed the international community’s shared goal for all Syrian parties to respect the rights and fundamental freedoms for all Syrians, including members of minority groups, and to prevent Syria from being used as a base for terrorism. The Secretary also emphasized the need for the international community to facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance throughout Syria and thanked the Saudi government for providing aid to the Syrian people.

  • Can Saudi’s New Milaf Cola Compete with Coca-Cola and Pepsi?: Video

    In a move that has both bemused and intrigued the global beverage industry, Saudi Arabia has launched Milaf Cola, a fizzy drink made from dates. Marketed as the world’s first commercial cola derived from dates, Milaf Cola arrives on the scene with a bold promise: indulgence without guilt. It contains no added sugar, capitalizing on the natural sweetness of Saudi Arabia’s prized dates.

  • Saudi Arabia Mandates USB Type-C Charging Ports for Mobile Devices

    The Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) and the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO) have announced that the first mandatory phase of the unified charging ports for mobile phones and electronic devices in the Saudi market is effective today 1 January 2025, which requires “USB Type-C”. CST and SASO indicated that the unified charging ports decision aims to improve the user experience in Saudi Arabia, reduce extra costs for consumers, deliver high-quality charging and data transfer technology, and enhance the quality of tech products. Furthermore, it promotes environmental sustainability and helps achieve SDG’s by reducing electronic waste.

  • Saudi Arabia Hikes Its Oil Prices to Asia as Supply Tightens

    The world’s top crude oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, has raised the price of its crude loading for Asia in February by more than expected as supply in the world’s largest-importing region is tightening with the continued OPEC+ cuts and reduced volumes from Iran and Russia. Saudi state oil giant Aramco has raised the price of its flagship crude grade, Arab Light, by $0.60 per barrel to a premium of $1.50 a barrel over the Oman/Dubai average, the benchmark off which Middle Eastern crude going to Asia is priced, a price list seen by Bloomberg showed on Monday. Saudi Arabia typically announces around the fifth of each month its crude pricing for the following month and doesn’t comment on price changes. It also sets the tone for the pricing to Asia of the other major oil producers in the Middle East.

  • Leading Saudi Arabian airports hit passenger traffic highs in 2024

    Jeddah King Abdulaziz International Airport and Riyadh King Khalid International Airport each posted record passenger traffic in 2024, reflecting the continuing strong performance of aviation in Saudi Arabia. King Abdulaziz International Airport served 49.12 million passengers, a leap of +14% year-on-year and a new annual high for any airport in the Kingdom. Jeddah Airports Company hailed the figure as a “historic milestone”, noting that the busiest day was 31 December when it hosted 174.600 travellers. With 4.7 million passengers, December was also the busiest month of the year. In a statement, Jeddah Airports CEO Eng. Mazen Johar attributed the record-breaking performance to the airport’s accelerated operational growth, enabled by the support of the Kingdom’s leadership and oversight of the Ministry of Transport and Logistics. He saluted infrastructure development, emphasising the company’s vision to position the airport as a global hub.

  • Saudi Arabia Plans Further Borrowing Spree to Pay for Huge Projects

    Saudi Arabia, one of the largest bond issuers in emerging markets last year, has started 2025 with a funding spree as the country fuels its vast economic transformation plan. The kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund signed a $7 billion Islamic loan with a group of 20 international and regional banks, it said Monday. The announcement came hours after the finance ministry began a dollar-bond sale and days after it raised $2.5 billion from three foreign banks. Its budget is forecast to remain in deficit for the next few years at least, meaning it has to rely more on borrowing.

  • Saudi Coffee Company and Alliance for Coffee Excellence launch Sip of Excellence Competition

    Saudi Coffee Company has launched its second annual Saudi Sip of Excellence Competition in partnership with the global nonprofit Alliance for Coffee Excellence. Designed to educate, empower, and reward coffee farmers from Saudi Arabia’s Southern Region, this year’s competition will give entrants from Jazan, Al Bahah, Muhayil Aseer, and Rijal Almaa a platform to showcase their finest green coffees to a distinguished panel of international judges from Alliance for Coffee Excellence. Through careful inspection and evaluation of a 25-kilogram sample from each contender over a one-month period, the jury will select 12 winners from the participating cities. The prizes for the top three positions in each city are: SAR 25,000 (US$6,657) for first place, SAR 15,000 (US$3994) for second place, and SAR 10,000 (US$2663) for third place.

  • Saudi Arabia boosts desalinated water supply to 50% in Vision 2030 push

    Saudi Arabia’s water sector witnessed significant shifts in 2023, with a 31 percent increase in desalinated seawater production, now comprising 50 percent of the country’s distributed water supply, up from 44 percent in 2022, official data showed, Azernews reports, citing Arab News. According to the General Authority for Statistics’ latest Water Accounts report, non-renewable groundwater consumption by the agricultural sector dropped by 7 percent to 9,356 million cubic meters, compared to 10,044 million m³ in 2022.

  • Mideast Wealth Funds Spend $82 Billion to Ramp Up Bets on Post-Oil Future

    That the Gulf’s various sovereign wealth funds have become some of the most dominant players in global dealmaking has rarely been in doubt in the past few years. Figures for 2024’s deal activity demonstrate it beyond all doubt. Collectively, five wealth funds controlled by Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Saudi Arabia deployed $82 billion last year, accounting for more than 60% of all sovereign wealth fund investments, according to Global SWF. These entities regularly feature in the top 10 global sovereign dealmakers. The bigger question is how much these funds are driven by the quest for returns, and how much by their nations’ domestic and foreign policy priorities. That may become even more acute as Gulf states look to use their oil wealth to position themselves at the center of industries like artificial intelligence.

     

  • UAE discusses post-war Gaza government with US and Israel

    The United Arab Emirates has discussed with Israel and the United States participating in a provisional administration of post-war Gaza until a reformed Palestinian Authority is able to take charge, according to people familiar with the talks. The behind-the-scenes discussions, reported by Reuters for the first time, included the possibility of the UAE and the United States, along with other nations, temporarily overseeing the governance, security and reconstruction of Gaza after the Israeli military withdraws and until a Palestinian administration is able to take over, a dozen foreign diplomats and Western officials told Reuters.