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  • Middle East maintains IPO momentum into 2023, EY says, despite slowdown

    Middle East companies raised nearly 16% of the total proceeds from initial public offerings (IPOs) globally in the first quarter, as the region's momentum from a blockbuster 2022 continued, consulting firm EY said on Wednesday. Companies in the region raised $3.4 billion in the first quarter from 10 IPOs. That included a $2.5 billion listing by ADNOC Gas, a unit of Abu Dhabi's state oil giant, which was the quarter's largest IPO globally.

  • Saudi Arabia seizes 8 million Captagon pills as it courts Syria’s Assad to clamp down

    Saudi authorities announced a major drug bust on Wednesday seizing more than 8 million Captagon pills, at the time that the kingdom is courting the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad to help in combatting drug smuggling. The latest bust came as Reuters reported that Saudi Arabia has offered Syria "proposed compensation that would come as aid for the loss of the trade in the event it stops." It added that Riyadh had offered Assad "$4 billion, based on an estimate of the value of the trade."

  • Visiting Saudi Arabia? Here are five government mobile apps every tourist must download

    If you wish to visit Saudi Arabia and want to know more about visa requirements, flight or accommodation bookings and transportation services, Saudi Arabia has official mobile applications that help tourists plan a smoother and hassle-free experience. Whether you are visiting the country for Umrah, leisure purposes, or to spend time with family and friends, here are five apps you should download.

  • Middle East maintains IPO momentum into 2023, EY says, despite slowdown

    Middle East companies raised nearly 16% of the total proceeds from initial public offerings (IPOs) globally in the first quarter, as the region's momentum from a blockbuster 2022 continued, consulting firm EY said on Wednesday. Companies in the region raised $3.4 billion in the first quarter from 10 IPOs. That included a $2.5 billion listing by ADNOC Gas, a unit of Abu Dhabi's state oil giant, which was the quarter's largest IPO globally. "MENA IPOs continue to go against global trends in these uncertain economic times, building on the momentum from last year," Brad Watson, EY's Middle East and North Africa (MENA) strategy and transactions leader, said in a statement.

  • Lower oil prices push Saudi oil giant Aramco’s first quarter profit down 19%

    Saudi oil giant Aramco's (2222.SE) first quarter net profit dropped 19% from a year earlier to 119.54 billion riyals ($31.88 billion), it said on Tuesday, due to lower crude prices. Profit still beat analysts' median forecast of $30.8 billion, according to Refinitiv data, and Aramco said the decline was partially offset by lower taxes including in the zakat Islamic tax and a rise in finance and other income.

  • Tech VCs Resort to Party Crashing in Middle East During Downturn

    Besides putting money into in VC firms, the sovereign wealth funds also invest directly in startups and often co-invest with firms they back. ADIA’s private equity department, for example, made 40 direct investments in 2021, up from 25 in 2020, its annual report stated. That included 12 co-investments in early-stage startups with VC firms it supports.

  • Iran’s brain drain accelerates as crackdown on dissent intensifies

    According to the Nilgam Center, a Tehran-based agency providing services to Iranians seeking to emigrate, between 2010 and 2020 roughly 500,000 migrants left the country permanently. The Stanford Iran 2040 Project, an academic platform dedicated to the study of Iran’s development, reported in April 2020 that the population of Iran-born emigrants increased from about half a million before the 1979 revolution to 3.1 million in 2019, with the United States, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom being their top destinations.

  • Opinion: Were there clues foreshadowing Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic shift?

    A crisis of confidence that Washington still has the kingdom’s back, a readiness to accommodate Iran if deemed necessary and a new-found belief in China’s willingness to use its growing regional clout in support of Saudi security are precisely the ingredients that now seem to be at play in Riyadh’s recent diplomatic maneuverings.

  • Rippers roll in Adelaide as LIV lands Down Under

    After falling short in their bid to gatecrash the Masters, the stars of LIV Golf break fresh ground in Adelaide this weekend when they take the rebel tour to Australia for the first time. Eighteen of the circuit's 48 players teed it up at Augusta two weeks ago with Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson coming closest to landing a blow for the Saudi-backed LIV circuit when they shared second place behind PGA Tour loyalist Jon Rahm. The American duo, winners of 10 majors between them, will again be in competition at The Grange starting on Friday with Koepka the skipper of "Smash" and Mickelson leading "Hyflyers" in the hybrid individual-team competition.

  • Women drive down Saudi unemployment

    Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate among citizens is forecast to drop to 7.8% by the end of this year, according to Jadwa Investment. Unemployment had dropped to 8% in the last quarter of 2022, down from 11% the previous year. It said in a report that improvement in the labor market last year was better than expected in large part due to more women joining the workforce. Saudi women participation in the labor market has over the past three years increased from 20% to 36%.