Good morning, everyone, and happy THURSDAY. The momentum is going strong in the Kingdom as FII9 wraps up today, with the summit’s agreements, panels and insights taking over the news cycle at home and abroad.

BUT FIRST- The Saudi Central Bank cut interest rates for the second time this year, lowering them by 25 bps in line with the US Federal Reserve’s move in its meeting yesterday, according to a statement. The repo rate is now at 4.5% and the reverse repo rate is at 4.0%.

The Fed’s move is welcome news for many. Lower rates mean cheaper debt, which would come at a time when Saudi Arabia’s financing needs are at an all-time high as it looks to fund major investment strategies, and the UAE continues its drive to diversify its economy.

** We have more on the Fed’s decision in Planet Finance, below.

HAPPENING TODAY-

The General Authority for Statistics is set to roll out its 3Q GDP flash estimates today, according to the state statistics agency’s calendar. The Kingdom’s real GDP grew 3.9% y-o-y in 2Q 2025, supported by a strong momentum in the non-oil sector.

WEATHER- Fog watch: Misty skies are expected along the coasts of Makkah and the Eastern Region today, with patches of dense fog reducing visibility at times, with strong winds sweeping through Hail. Elsewhere, calm and stable weather will prevail across most parts of the Kingdom.

  • Riyadh: 31°C high / 18°C low
  • Jeddah: 35°C high / 26°C low
  • Makkah: 37°C high / 26°C low
  • Dammam: 33°C high / 20°C low.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

Lucid to launch Nvidia-powered self-driving EV: PIF-backed Lucid Group plans to launch a mid-size Level 4 self-driving electric vehicle powered by dual Nvidia Drive AGX Thor computers and running on the Nvidia Drive AV platform, advancing its move toward releasing fully autonomous EVs, it said in a press release on Tuesday.

SOUND SMART- Level 4 is the second-highest tier of vehicle autonomy, allowing a car to operate fully independently within defined areas or conditions without human oversight. This is just below Level 5 (full autonomy everywhere), and manual control remains an option.

This particular model will integrate a multi-sensor suite of cameras, radar, and lidar for minimal human input. Lucid’s new midsize vehicle and Lucid Gravity will debut with Level 2++ before advancing to full Level 4 capability.

Who’s the competition? Positioned below the Lucid Air sedan in price, the mid-sized model targets a wider market and will compete with Tesla’s Model Y and Rivian’s R2 SUV, according to Reuters.

Lucid will also deploy Nvidia’s Industrial AI platform — including Omniverse and AI Enterprise — to create a “unified AI factory,” using digital twins of its factory, predictive analytics, and intelligent robotics to enhance manufacturing efficiency and quality control.

Saudi Arabia has been making strides in autonomous vehicles, after rolling out the initial operational phase of the autonomous vehicles project in July under an Uber and Transport General Authority partnership. The initiative saw Uber and WeRide debut the robotaxi on Uber’s ride-hailing platform last week, covering a designated route between Roshn Front and Princess Noura University.

ALSO- Chinese automaker BYD is considering setting up a Gulf distribution hub in the Kingdom, BYD’s Executive Vice President Stella Li said on the sidelines of FII9. The automaker — which opened three showrooms last year — aims to sell 5-6k vehicles in Saudi Arabia this year and plans to add seven more showrooms across the Kingdom by mid-2026.

DATA POINTS-

The business sector’s operating revenues rose 3.9% y-o-y to SAR 5.5 tn in 2024, while its operating expenses recorded a 9.3% y-o-y increase to SAR 2.4 tn, the General Authority of Statistics said in its Structural Business Statistics 2024 report (pdf). Meanwhile, employee compensation jumped 8.1% y-o-y to SAR 588.8 bn last year, while gross fixed capital formation jumped 13.8% y-o-y to SAR 988 bn.

OIL WATCH-

Global oil demand is now expected to peak in 2032, as transport and petrochemicals keep hydrocarbons in the system for longer, Reuters reports, citing Wood Mackenzie’s latest Energy Transition Outlook. The consultancy links the delay to persistent fossil fuel use reinforced by AI-driven power demand and geopolitical tensions, noting that these trends have pushed 2050 net-zero targets out of reach.

Talking demand: Liquids demand is seen topping out at 108 mn bbl / d in 2032, with gas consumption projected to stay firm well into the 2040s. China’s oil demand — at 16 mn bbl /d this year — could fall by 35% by 2060 on the back of accelerating EV uptake. However India, Southeast Asia, and Africa are set to remain the main engines of demand growth.

Talking financing for net-zero: Hitting a 2°C pathway would require annual investment of USD 4.3 tn between 2025 and 2060 — roughly 30% above current pace — for the energy system to achieve net zero by 2060, Reuters added, citing WoodMac. That implies energy spending rising from 2.5% of global GDP to 3.5% within the next decade.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s a busy morning in the international business press, with a slew of Big Tech earnings, along with politics-related updates as Israel continues to strike Gaza despite claiming the ceasefire is still on, and as the Dutch national elections get underway.

The key takeaways from Big Tech earnings:

  • Meta’s shares fell 8% after close as investors reacted to what Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg forecast as a massive increase in capital spending next year to build out AI infrastructure. Revenues for 3Q 2025 beat analyst estimates with a 26% y-o-y jump, though failed to offset a 32% increase in expenses. (Reuters | Wall Street Journal | Bloomberg)
  • AI was also the reason Microsoft’s earnings took a hit, as a USD 3.1 bn investment in ChatGPT maker OpenAI ate out of its net income. It also said its capital spending will increase this year. Its shares fell 4% after the bell. (Reuters | CNBC)
  • Google parent Alphabet also hiked capex plans, though its advertising and cloud computing businesses beat analyst expectations. Its shares rose 6% afterhours. (Reuters | WSJ)
  • Over in South Korea, Samsung’s operating income in 3Q 2025 more than doubled on an increase in chip sales. (CNBC)

IN OTHER AI NEWS- US chipmaker Nvidia became the world’s first USD 5 tn company (WSJ), and OpenAI might be targeting a USD 1 tn valuation from a potential IPO next year following its restructuring (Reuters).

Over in the Netherlands, the country’s centrist right party is on track to nab the most votes in the elections, setting the stage for Rob Jetten to take the helm as the youngest ever prime minister of the Netherlands at 38. He would replace longstanding PM Geert Wilders. (Reuters | Financial Times)

Closer to home, Israel said it would halt airstrikes on Gaza and uphold the US-brokered ceasefire after a slew of attacks on Tuesday, which it said was in retaliation for the killing of an Israeli soldier in Gaza. (Bloomberg | Reuters)

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