MUST-READS

• Daily desalinated water in Saudi matches global oil output: Official

  The amount of water desalinated daily in Saudi Arabia is equivalent to global oil production, said Saudi Water Authority (SWA) President Abdullah Al-Abdulkarim. He noted that desalinated water’s daily production and transportation totals 15 million cubic meters. In a discussion session during the Local Content Forum, Al-Abdulkarim said there are 14,000 population centers across the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia spent SAR 35 billion on water services in 2023, he added.

• CEO outlines Saudi Arabia’s 2034 World Cup bid

  On December 11, the world will officially know where the 2034 World Cup will be held, with the announcement set to take place at FIFA’s next congress. With no competing bids, Saudi Arabia is expected to be confirmed as the host nation — a bold candidacy that has faced international allegations of human rights violations and skepticism about LGBTQIA+ acceptance in the country. At the forefront of the project is Hammad Albalawi, a Newcastle supporter, who built his career at the Saudi Ministry of Sports and now serves as the CEO of Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the World Cup.

• Saudi Arabia dipping its toes into cricket might be the start of something big

  The auction marks Saudi Arabia's first major play in cricket, though the foundations have been laid gradually. Prince Mishal bin Saud Al-Saud, chairman of the Saudi Arabia Cricket Federation (SACF), was pictured with BCCI secretary Jay Shah at the opening match of IPL 2023, while state-backed Saudi companies have signed lucrative sponsorship deals in the past. Visit Saudi, the state tourism arm, and Aramco, the state-owned oil giant, have both been prominent IPL sponsors. Aramco has also signed a long-term agreement as a "premier partner" of the ICC, including securing naming rights for match awards at World Cups. This year Rajasthan Royals wore the logo of Neom, a futuristic city being built on the Saudi coast, on their shirts.

• Citi gets license for regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, memo shows
  U.S. bank Citigroup (C.N), opens new tab has received approval to establish its regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia's Riyadh, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Friday. Riyadh has been looking to attract more companies to set up their regional headquarters in the kingdom by offering tax breaks as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks to wean the economy off oil by attracting foreign investment. Saudi Arabia's new rules also mandate foreign firms to have regional headquarters in the kingdom or risk losing hundreds of billions of dollars in lucrative government contracts.

• Mohammed bin Salman’s Style Shift Sets Up a New World Order Strategy

  For many Saudis, especially the youth who make up 70% of the population, these changes represent unprecedented opportunities. The burgeoning entertainment and tourism sectors are creating thousands of jobs, and young Saudis are embracing new freedoms in music, art and social interactions. The ancient city of Al-Ula, with its UNESCO World Heritage site Hegra, has become a centerpiece of Saudi Arabia’s tourism push. The Winter at Tantora festival, launched in 2018, brings international artists and visitors to the region, showcasing Saudi Arabia’s pre-Islamic history and natural beauty. In 2022, the kingdom introduced a new visa system, making it easier for tourists from 49 countries to visit. As Saudi Arabia prepares to host the World Expo in 2030 and the World Cup in 2034, it is clear that MBS has transformed his nation. His model of authoritarian modernization, combining social reforms with strict political control, has also inspired other leaders in the region and beyond. Whether this new paradigm proves sustainable remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: The implications of Saudi Arabia’s transformation under MBS will reverberate far beyond the kingdom’s borders for decades to come.

• Saudi Aramco unit in talks to invest $1 billion in US software maker Mavenir, sources say
  Saudi Aramco's (2223.SE), opens new tab digital arm is in talks to take a significant minority stake in Mavenir, in a deal that is likely to value the U.S. telecommunications software maker at about $3 billion, people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday. Aramco Digital is in talks to invest about $1 billion in Mavenir and a deal is likely to be signed before the end of the year, the sources said, cautioning that a transaction is not guaranteed. The deal by Aramco Digital, the wholly-owned technology subsidiary of the oil giant, would be its first major transaction in the telecommunications industry as part of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 plan, which focuses on technological advancements and economic diversification.

• Commentary: For Saudi Arabia, There’s a Dealmaking Opportunity With Trump

  Instead, Trump may see a new agreement with Saudi Arabia as the most achievable, and potentially meaningful, of his three dealmaking opportunities in the Middle East. He inherits a remarkably advanced set of negotiations crafted by the administration of President Joseph R. Biden Jr., mainly in 2023 before the Hamas-led October 7 attacks on southern Israel. The Biden administration sought to develop a game-changing triangular agreement with Saudi Arabia and Israel. The bilateral Saudi component was the simplest and, by October 7, 2023, the Biden team had almost finalized the main aspects of this possible arrangement. Essentially, the United States would provide Saudi Arabia with a new mutual defense agreement modeled after those crafted with Japan and South Korea in the early 1950s plus an agreement for U.S. oversight of Saudi nuclear energy production. The sticking point for the deal that was never overcome was the parallel bilateral U.S.-Israeli negotiations for a “Significant Palestinian Component” accompanying Saudi normalization with Israel.

• Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr eyes Asian glory amid revitalised Saudi Pro League campaign

  Cristiano Ronaldo’s hopes of winning a first major trophy since arriving in Saudi Arabia in 2022 were given an unlikely domestic lifeline on Saturday and, on Monday, the Portuguese star can help Al-Nassr stay on course for a first Asian title. Ronaldo scored his seventh goal of the season against Al-Qadsia on Friday in a battle against Spanish defender Nacho but his former Real Madrid teammate was celebrating at the final whistle. “It was a different and difficult game against Ronaldo,” Nacho said. “He is my friend and I had the best part of my career playing with him but here we have a different experience and are playing for different teams. It was an honor to play against him.”

• Riyadh’s New Dealmakers Show Women Rising in $1 Trillion Economy

  But in 2018, there were some winds of change. Saudi Arabia became the world’s last country to permit female motorists. It later announced reforms allowing women to set up businesses without male consent, hold a job while being pregnant and travel independently. In four years, the female labor participation rate nearly doubled to about 37%. Today Albassam scouts for deals for Silicon Valley venture capital firm Graphene Ventures as a principal in Riyadh and other women like her are climbing the ranks of business and finance — trading stocks, forging mergers and running companies. Rare interviews with almost a dozen senior female leaders in Saudi Arabia show a dramatic about turn in a country that had few women workers a decade ago. Some who had never spoken publicly before agreed to interviews on the record because they were keen to highlight the advances. Others asked not to be named because they didn’t want to discuss their lives publicly, but even they were deeply optimistic about the prospects for local women in the workplace.

• Morgan Stanley Joins US Peers Putting Mideast HQ in Riyadh

  Morgan Stanley got regulatory approval to locate its Middle East headquarters in Saudi Arabia, joining Wall Street rivals including Citigroup Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in expanding their presence in the kingdom. “Establishing a regional HQ in Riyadh reflects the growth and development of Saudi Arabia and is a natural progression of our long history in the region,” said Abdulaziz Alajaji, the chief executive officer for Saudi Arabia and the bank’s co-head of the Middle East and North Africa region said in a statement on Sunday. Under new rules that came into force this year, firms must have a regional base in Saudi Arabia with at least 15 employees, including executives overseeing other countries, or risk losing business with the kingdom’s vast network of government entities.

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