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QUOTED
“The International Energy Agency estimates that OPEC’s total spare capacity is 5.3 million bpd, of which 3.1 million bpd is held by Saudi Arabia, 1.1 million bpd by the UAE, 600,000 bpd by Iraq and 400,000 bpd by Kuwait. The total is equal to about 5.1% of world oil demand, expected by the IEA to average almost 104 million bpd in 2025.” OPEC and Saudi spare oil production capacity [ Reuters]
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TOP STORY
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman named the automotive manufacturing hub within King Abdullah Economic City the “King Salman Automotive Cluster” with the intent that it become an automotive industry center. [more]
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MORE TOP STORYLINES
Via Mirna Hamdan in waya.media: Healthcare is one of the main sectors that contribute to the market profits. SNB Capital suggests that healthcare profits will rise by 23% in 2025, compared to an 11% increase in 2024. This development is linked to a 20% revenue increase due to new expansions easing pressure on profit margins. Currently, some government initiatives aim to privatize parts of the healthcare system, and they play a significant role. The Saudi government hopes that the private sector will represent 45% of healthcare spending by 2030. The tourism and construction sectors are increasingly influential in reshaping Saudi Arabia’s economy. In 2023, the tourism sector contributed $118.4 billion to the country’s GDP, accounting for 11.5% of the total economy.
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Via John Duerden in theguardian.com: It was striking that in a month when Neymar left Saudi Arabia after costing Al-Hilal hundreds of millions of pounds and playing only seven games in return, the Saudi Pro League’s clubs turned more and more to youth. The transfer window closed on Friday with a couple of big deals but there was activity before; it just happened to be quieter and less headline-grabbing. “Many players dream of playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and I have now fulfilled that dream,” Jhon Durán said on Monday after making his Al-Nassr debut, perhaps inadvertently emphasising the age gap between them. At 21, the Colombian is very much a football generation or two removed from the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. The reported £71m the Riyadh club paid to Aston Villa for Durán is the second biggest in the league’s history, second only to Neymar’s deal. And as that Brazilian left Al-Hilal in came another, Kaio César joining from Portugal’s Vitória de Guimarães. The winger, who scored on his debut, is only 20.
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Via Jeff Mason, Matt Spetalnick, Steve Holland and Nidal Al-Mughrabi in reuters.com: Barely two weeks in the job, Trump shattered decades of U.S. policy on Tuesday with a vaguely worded announcement saying he envisioned transforming Gaza into the Riviera of the Middle East where international communities could coexist after nearly 16 months of Israeli bombardment devastated the coastal strip and killed more than 47,000 people, according to Palestinian tallies. At a White House briefing on Wednesday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt hailed his Gaza proposal as historic outside of the box thinking but stressed that the president had not committed to putting boots on the ground in the territory. She declined, however, to rule out the use of U.S. troops there. At the same time, Leavitt walked back Trumps earlier assertion that Gazans needed to be permanently resettled in neighboring countries, saying instead that they should be temporarily relocated for the rebuilding process. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also said the idea was for Gazans to leave the territory for an interim period of reconstruction and debris-clearing.
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MORE ON THE KINGDOM AND BEYOND
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European countries joined Arab nations Wednesday in rebuking a shock announcement by United States President Donald Trump that he wants to take control over Gaza...[By Clothilde Goujard, Laura Hülsemann, Clea Caulcutt, Elena Giordano and Noah Keate via politico.eu]
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He expressed his appreciation during a telephone conversation with the Kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a day after US President Donald Trump suggested the...[via arabnews.com]
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“What came out of Mr. Trump is not digestible. I respectfully decline to add more disrespectful comments to that, but it...[via alarabiya.net]
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These visits are very important for al-Sharaa and Syria because they have the potential to shape the country’s future. First, al-Sharaa wants to increase his...[By Boaz Shapira via israel-alma.org]
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The Saudi response was swift — reiterating Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s demands for an independent Palestinian state as part of any normalization agreement...[By Sam Dagher and Fiona MacDonald via yahoo.com]
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It was posited here in January 2024 when the country first revealed that it hadn’t yet accepted the group’s official membership invitation, saying...[By Andrew Korybko via asiatimes.com]
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The International Energy Agency estimates that OPEC's total spare capacity is 5.3 million bpd, of which 3.1...[By Alex Lawler via reuters.com]
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Oil prices edged up on Thursday after Saudi Arabia's state oil company raised its March crude prices sharply, but the gains barely dented the...[By Paul Carsten, Colleen Howe and Sudarshan Varadhan via yahoo.com]
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Saudi Arabia’s tourism sector has seen immense growth over the past decade, with substantial efforts to reshape perceptions and open the doors to international visitors....[By Chafic Kharma via consultancy-me.com]
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With global interest in hydrogen accelerating, he sees the project as especially well placed to capitalize on Saudi Arabia’s natural advantages. “We have the scale,...[By Steve Hanley via cleantechnica.com]
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Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef stressed Saudi Arabia’s commitment to enhancing its strategic partnership with India across key economic sectors, particularly industry...[via gov.sa]
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LIV Golf has made a number of notable changes since the curtain came down on the 2024 season, with a handful of new...[By Jonny Leighfield via msn.com]
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For the first time, top performers on LIV Golf will have direct access to the U.S. Open. Beginning this year, the top player among the top...[By Ryan Lavner via nbcsports.com]
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The California-based company offers ruggedized and self-contained satellite-connected data center modules (in 3-rack 20ft and 6-rack 40ft models) known as Galleons that use SpaceX’s...[By Dan Swinhoe via datacenterdynamics.com]
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A large majority of Palestinians in Gaza are classified as refugees dating back generations. The suggestion that they could again be uprooted, with no guarantee...[By Greg Myre via npr.org]
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There are two ways to view President Trump's epic, historic, shockingly unexpected ...[By Jim VandeHei , Mike Allen via axios.com]
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U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Israel would hand over Gaza to the United States...[By James Mackenzie and Jana Choukeir via reuters.com]
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But even if his plan is a nonstarter, which it almost certainly is, it’s not because that was the intent all along. Rather, it is...[By Jonathan Panikoff via atlanticcouncil.org]
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Trump presented his territorial expansion and ethnic cleansing proposal as a humanitarian gesture of kindness toward the Palestinians, noting that they live in intolerable...[By Hussein Ibish via msnbc.com]
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There has been much debate over whether Trump's threat of high tariffs on some of his closest trade partners was a negotiating tactic. The events...[By Eugenia Perozo via investmentmonitor.ai]
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As of November 2024, GlobalData’s jobs analytics database found that there were more than 55,000 active AI-related job listings worldwide. While the market has...[via verdict.co]
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With the United Arab Emirates’ Hussain Sajwani investing $20 billion in US data centers, CNN examines how US policies impact tech industries...[via cnn.com]
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