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QUOTED
“They are not a US vassal state and so they’re not just taking a diktat from Trump. And I think it will stand firm on their positions, willing to negotiate here and there. But the principal red lines remain.” Andreas Krieg of King’s College London, Trump’s Gaza plan derails Saudi-Israel ties: analysts [AFP]
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TOP STORY
Saudi Arabia’s population grew 4.7% to 35.3 million by mid-2024 according to the General Authority for Statistics. [more]
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MORE TOP STORYLINES
Via Tim Callen in agsiw.org: Any increase in policy interest rates in the United States would make borrowing more expensive at a time when the Saudi public sector is continuing to borrow heavily to fund the ambitious Vision 2030 projects. Also, higher interest rates would raise borrowing costs for individuals and businesses, potentially slowing private consumption and investment, although these links are hard to identify empirically in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. Last, in a higher interest rate environment, the dollar, to which the Saudi riyal is pegged, may continue to strengthen, hurting the competitiveness of emerging Saudi sectors, such as tourism.
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Via Rebecca Anne Proctor in artnet.com: Dozens of new art institutions are in the works as part of Vision 2030, a sweeping trillion-dollar initiative to reduce oil dependence by expanding tourism, entertainment, and technology. Among these is the recently opened Diriyah Art Futures (DAF), a digital-art focused institution that is part of the $63 billion Diriyah Gate project, which aims to transform the heritage site on the outskirts of the kingdom’s capital city, Riyadh, into a cultural tourist destination. Meanwhile, in the ancient desert region of AlUla, the Contemporary Art Museum, which is being developed in partnership with Paris’s Centre Pompidou, set to open in 2027. On the west coast, the Red Sea Museum in Jeddah, slated to open before 2030, will showcase historical and contemporary works of art.
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in saudimoments.com: Talk about a wedding of the century! Riyadh just pulled off the most epic mass wedding, uniting 300 Saudi couples in a night full of love, music, and jaw-dropping surprises. Hosted by the General Entertainment Authority (GEA) as part of Riyadh Season, the “Night of a Lifetime” has left the internet in total awe. Talk about a wedding of the century! Riyadh just pulled off the most epic mass wedding, uniting 300 Saudi couples in a night full of love, music, and jaw-dropping surprises. Hosted by the General Entertainment Authority (GEA) as part of Riyadh Season, the “Night of a Lifetime” has left the internet in total awe.
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MORE ON THE KINGDOM AND BEYOND
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Saudi Arabia's population grew at an annual rate of 4.7% to stand at 35.3 million by the end of the first half of 2024. In 2024,...[via argaam.com]
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Saudi Arabia's population reached 35.3 million until the middle of the year 2024, according to the latest estimates of the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT)....[via zawya.com]
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Oil futures ticked higher early Thursday, seeing a modest bounce off 2025 lows after Saudi Arabia's state-owned petroleum company significantly raised physical crude...[By William Watts via morningstar.com]
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Saudi Arabia has solidified its position as the top destination for venture capital (VC) investments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for...[By Josipa Majic Predin via forbes.com]
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On November 26, 2024, The Saudi Council of Ministers, headed by Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, approved the state's general budget...[By Abdelrahim Elbakheit via mondaq.com]
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He expressed optimism about Saudi Arabia’s progress, highlighting that his investments span various sectors, including tourism, hotel management, commercial real estate, industrial projects, etc. The Crown...[via argaam.com]
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A letter to Donald J. Trump from Prince Turki bin Faisal Al Saud, a Saudi prince and former government official who served as the head...[By Arthur McMiler via thevibes.com]
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Despite an optimistic start, the Mar. 2023 China-brokered agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore diplomatic ties faces an uncertain future. Anticipating potential...[via amwaj.media]
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The Visual Arts Commission of Saudi Arabia proudly announces the inaugural edition of Art Week Riyadh, a groundbreaking initiative celebrating the Kingdom’s dynamic art scene. Taking...[via artafricamagazine.org]
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Microsoft and its partners will inject an additional $24 billion boost to the Saudi gross domestic product (GDP) over the next four years, on top...[via argaam.com]
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Sony Pictures Classics has acquired “Unidentified,” the latest feature from groundbreaking Saudi director Haifaa Al Mansour. The...[By Alex Ritman via variety.com]
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A recent forecast by Euromonitor International suggests that cigarette consumption in Saudi Arabia will hold steady this year. The research firm also predicts that...[By Michael Walsh via jhah.com]
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The move builds on impressive growth in Saudi’s private aviation market with 23, 612 business jet flights recorded in 2024, an increase of more than...[By Chloe Greenbank via aerospaceglobalnews.com]
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The SFA Expo will serve as the marathon’s bib collection hub and will feature interactive zones focused on sports, health, and fitness, showcasing cutting-edge equipment,...[via businesswire.com]
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The UN removed criticism of the Saudi government from the official transcript of a key UN conference and threatened to eject a Saudi researcher from...[By Dania Akkad via middleeasteye.net]
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In Saudi Arabia, a number of linear geomorphological features with uncertain origin have been observed from space, but they do not belong to any existed...[By Mashael M. Al Saud via nature.com]
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The Open Group, the vendor-neutral technology standards organization, has today announced that Saudi Aramco has become...[via morningstar.com]
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Iran has reacted to US President Donald Trump’s move to “reinstate” his “maximum pressure” campaign by insisting that it will not yield the intended result....[via amwaj.media]
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Politics in Lebanon has been based on sectarian power sharing that guarantees representation to all 18 sects, including through an informal arrangement that divides...[By Patricia Karam via arabcenterdc.org]
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Syria’s de facto leader and now interim president, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, has hosted scores of foreign delegations since seizing power. Visitors to Damascus have included western...[via amwaj.media]
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The December 8, 2024, collapse of the Assad regime necessitated a strategy for the new Syrian administration to garner the legal and constitutional...[By Radwan Ziadeh via arabcenterdc.org]
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U.S. President Donald Trump has authorized economic and travel sanctions targeting people who work on ...[By Steve Holland and Bart H. Meijer via reuters.com]
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