Good morning. We’re back into your inboxes after an extremely busy weekend for the Kingdom, which saw Fitch hold our credit rating steady at A+ citing healthy fundamentals. Trade figures for May are also out of Gastat’s bag, with oil exports continuing the dip into a four-year low.

MEANWHILE- The Syrian-Saudi investment forum pushed ahead with bns in agreements in key sectors, the real estate foreign ownership law is finally out, and more big banks reported solid 2Q earnings. Let’s dive in.

HAPPENING TODAY-

Pharma sector to start ramping up Saudization rates starting today: The Human Resources and Social Development Ministry — in partnership with the Health Ministry — will begin enforcing higher Saudization rates for pharma-related professions starting today. The decision was first announced in January and mandates 35% Saudization in community pharmacies and medical centers, 65% in hospitals, and 55% in other pharmacy-related roles.

WEATHER- Riyadh is expected to see a high of 44°C and a low of 29°C, while Jeddah’s mercury will go as high as 39°C and as low as 28°C. Makkah will see a 42°C high and a 32°C low.

⚠️Brace for storms: Potentially heavy rain are forecast to sweep across the southern region starting Sunday, with Makkah, Al Baha, Asir, Najran, and Jazan expected to be hit, the NCM said on X. Winds may stir up sand and reduce visibility in parts of Riyadh, Madinah, and coastal roads near Jazan.

HAPPENING THIS WEEK-

#1- The US Federal Open Market Committee meeting will kick off on Tuesday and wrap up on Wednesday. Market watchers will be parsing every word when the Fed’s updated economic projections are made public after the meeting.

#2- Local sports tech startups have until Thursday to register for the ASICS InnovationPitch competition, which offers a prize pool of SAR 35k for the top three winners. The competition is launched in partnership with the Saudi Sports for All Federation following a three-year partnership agreement signed with ASICS back in January.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

Societe Generale is now a dealer for gov’t debt: The Finance Ministry and the National Debt Management Center (NDMC) tapped Societe Generale to join the Primary Dealers Program for the government’s local debt instruments, according to a statement from the ministry. Dealers receive subscription requests from investors on a monthly basis and then submit them to the NDMC.

The bank joins five other international lenders, including BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and Standard Chartered. Local institutions in the program include Saudi National Bank, Saudi Awwal Bank, AlJazira Bank, Alinma Bank, AlRajhi Bank, Albilad Capital, AlJazira Capital, AlRajhi Capital, Derayah Financial Company, and Saudi Fransi Capital.

The First National Company (Fnrco) plans to go public early next year, founder and Chairman Ali Al Mahhan told Aleqtisadiah on Friday. No details were disclosed about the size or value of the potential offering, or whether Fnrco would target a Tadawul or a Nomu listing.

About Fnrco: Established in 2001, Fnrco was licensed by the Labor Ministry in 2013 to provide integrated administrative, HR, and project management solutions.

Al Mozaini Real Estate backs out from IPO arrangement agreement with Yaqeen Capital: Hamad & AhmadMohamed Al Mozaini Real Estate Company terminated its June agreement with Yaqeen Capital, whereby Yaqeen would have arranged its IPO on Tadawul’s parallel market Nomu, according to a disclosure to Tadawul from Yaqeen. The termination note Al Mozaini didn’t disclose the reasons behind its decision.

Alpha Capital secured approval for the public offering of its Freestyle GCC Equity Fund, the Capital Market Authority said in a statement last Thursday.

DATA POINTS-

The Kingdom’s rail network logged more than 36.5 mn in passenger traffic in 2Q 2025, the Transport General Authority said on X. Intracity trains carried 33.8 mn passengers during the quarter, led by Riyadh Metro with over 23.6 mn. Meanwhile, intercity trains transported 2.7 mn travelers, up 10% y-o-y, led by the Haramain High-Speed Railway.

MEANWHILE-Freight rail moved about 4.1 mn tons of minerals and goods, including 3.7 mn tons on the Northern Train network. The Eastern Train network transported 232k containers (+13%) and 408k tons of goods (+44%).

OIL WATCH-

Opec+ ministerial committee to hold oil policy steady? The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) of Opec+ will likely make no changes to the group’s current oil output policy during tomorrow’s meeting, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing four people it said are in the know.

Opec was quick to clarify the JMMC panel has no say in the decision-making process over production levels, but it can monitor and review them, as well as provide its recommendations, the oil group said on X on Friday.

IN CONTEXT- The oil cartel agreed earlier this month to raise production by 548k bbl / d in August, up from its previous monthly output increments of 411k bbl / d for May, June, and July. This comes as the group seeks to accelerate its plan to return around 2.2 mn bbl / d to the market in monthly increments by the end of 2026.

KEEP AN EYE OUT- Opec+ will meet on 3 August to decide on production levels for September; the return of supply could be paused or reversed depending on market conditions.

We took a deep dive on Opec+’s output increase and what it means for us.

SPORTS-

New York-based Five Iron Golf partnered with Golf Saudi to establish multiple indoor golf facilities in the Kingdom, according to a press release. The 1.5k sqm inaugural venue is scheduled to open in 2026 on the ground level of the PIF Tower in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District.

About Five Iron Golf: Founded in 2017, Five Iron Golf offers digital golf simulators, professional instruction, and a full-service sports bar experience. It operates in over 36 locations across the US, the UAE, India, Singapore, and Australia.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Is a EU-US trade deal upon us? US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will meet later today to discuss “transatlantic trade relations, and how [they] can keep them strong,” von der Leyen wrote in a X post. Meanwhile, Trump appeared less optimistic about the outcome of the meeting, saying that the two sides have “a good 50/50 chance. That’s a lot.” The talks come shortly after Trump started pushing for a 15-20% baseline tariff on EU imports. (Reuters | CNBC | FT)

CLOSER TO HOME- Israel said that it had resumed airdropping aid into Gaza. The first Israeli air drops since 2023 included pallets of flour, sugar, and canned food and came following international pressure to alleviate the crisis in Gaza. (Reuters | FT | AP | BBC)

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