Iraq’s first ever director in Cannes wins best feature debut
Hasan Hadi won the top prize for his childhood adventure under economic sanctions in "The President's Cake".
Arts & Culture
Israel security chief accuses PM of demanding personal loyalty
Israel's internal security chief, whom the government is trying to sack, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Monday of demanding personal...
Geostrategy
Economy
Egypt to access $1.2 billion in funding after deal with IMF
Washington, United States -- The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday that it has reached a deal with Egyptian authorities allowing the...
- The deal comes as both sides reached staff-level agreement on the fourth review under the Extended Fund Facility arrangement, the fund said.
- The funding access is subject to executive board approval. The discussions culminating in the deal were held in person from November 6-20 and virtually afterwards.
Business
Honda shares soar 16%
The surge came after the auto giant announced a $7bn buyback.
- The buyback announcement came as Honda and its struggling rival Nissan agreed on Monday to launch talks on a merger.
- Honda will buy back its own shares worth up to 1.1 trillion yen, or 23.7 percent of the total issued shares, to improve "efficiency of its capital structure".
Business
Mubadala acquires stakes from GHH
It acquired an 80 percent stake in Global Medical Supply Chain.
- Founded in 2015, GMSC provides comprehensive end-to-end supply chain services for medical products, including demand planning, procurement and logistics.
- IDS, established in 1987, stands as one of the leading distributors of pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare products in the UAE.
Business
Musk’s AI startup raises $6bn more, Saudi and Qatari funds among investors
Paris, France -- Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk's startup xAI said it had raised $6 billion from investors in its latest...
- The firm, whose flagship product is the Grok chatbot, garnered support from US venture capitalists, chipmakers NVIDIA and AMD.
- It also garnered support from investment funds from Saudi Arabia and Qatar among others.
Honda and Nissan expected to begin merger talks
Honda and Nissan were poised Monday to announce the start of talks on a merger to help the Japanese giants...
- Their collaboration would create the world's third-largest automaker
- Honda and Nissan's partnership could include a manufacturing tie-up
In stabilization bid, Syria’s new ruler declares all weapons under state control, including Kurdish arms
Ahmed al-Sharaa announced all weapons, including those held by Kurdish-led forces, will come under state control, emphasizing unity and coexistence...
- Sharaa spoke alongside Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after earlier meeting with Lebanese Druze leaders and vowing to end "negative interference" in the neighbouring country
- Turkey has maintained strong ties with Syria's new leaders, and has continued military operations against Kurdish-held areas in northeastern Syria
Geostrategy
Pope again condemns ‘cruelty’ of Israeli strikes on Gaza
"And with pain I think of Gaza, of so much cruelty, of the children being machine-gunned, of the bombings of...
- The mounting criticisms of Israel appear to mark a change in the pope's tone in recent weeks. He has consistently called for peace since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war
- At the end of September, the Pope also criticized Israel's "immoral" use of force in Gaza and in Lebanon
Geostrategy
Tunisia women herb harvesters struggle with drought and heat
In Tunisia's highlands, women harvest wild herbs to earn a living, but drought is making their work harder, shrinking incomes...
- Tunisia produces around 10,000 tons of aromatic and medicinal herbs each year, according to official figures.
- Rosemary accounts for more than 40 percent of essential oil exports, mainly destined for French and American markets.
Business
AD Ports Group secures $2.125 billion refinancing deal
The move aims to optimize financing costs.
- The deal is also aimed at extending the facility’s maturity to 2028, with an option to extend further until 2030.
- The increased facility, which was oversubscribed 2.5 times, will be used to support the Group’s short and medium-term growth objectives.
Geostrategy
UAE says will not arm Sudan paramilitary RSF: White House
Washington, United States -- The United Arab Emirates has informed the United States that it will not arm paramilitaries in Sudan's...
- Two US lawmakers said the UAE pledged to address their concerns and that, as a result, they would drop their attempt to block $1.2 billion in arms sales.
- The UAE has long denied arming the RSF, with which it has fought Yemen's Houthi rebels. Trump has shown a greater willingness to sell weapons to the UAE
Iraq’s first ever director in Cannes wins best feature debut
Hasan Hadi won the top prize for his childhood adventure under economic sanctions in "The President's Cake".
Arts & Culture
Company News
SIB’s 2024 profit $272m
Business
Latest News
PIF acquires stake in Saudi Re
Business
GCC leaders explore regional growth and opportunity at Doha investment meet
The burgeoning creator economy presents an unprecedented opportunity for GCC to outpace global cities and establish itself as the epicenter...
Business
WEF’s risks report 2025: Rising geopolitical tensions, environmental threats, disinformation dominate future threats
A survey of over 900 experts reveals state-based armed conflict as the most pressing global risk for 2025, driven by...
Geostrategy
Global economy set to face significant challenges in 2025: WEF survey
Geneva, Switzerland – The global economy is set to face significant challenges in 2025, with 56 percent of chief economists...
Economy
Most Read
Business
Fifth Aramco facility receives WEF Global Lighthouse Network tag
Dhahran, Saudi Arabia -- Aramco's North Ghawar Oil Producing Complex has become the company's fifth facility to be added to...
- Aramco said that only industrial sites that successfully deploy 4IR technologies at scale are admitted to the prestigious network.
- WEF said UAE's EGA, named End-to-End Value Chain Lighthouse, undertook a 4IR transformation to further increase its cost-competitiveness.
Business
PIF acquires stake in Saudi Re
The acquisition was made by way of a capital increase.
- PIF said in a statement that the capital investment aims to enhance Saudi Re’s growth potential by adding to its financial capacity and further strengthening its credit rating.
- In the first nine months of 2024, Saudi Re's total written premiums reached SAR 1.94 billion ($520 million).
Business
Non-institutional foreign ownership in Tadawul-listed firms up slightly
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Non-institutional foreign investors increased their stake in Tadawul-listed equities, excluding Saudi Aramco, from 9.70 percent to...
- The ownership increased from 9.70 percent to 9.72 percent, equivalent to SAR 334.55 billion, during the week ending January 9.
- GCC investors’ ownership in Saudi equities, excluding Saudi Aramco, declined from 2.27 percent to 2.18 percent of the total market capitalization.