Good morning, ladies and gents. Today’s issue is packed to the brim as we try to keep up with the unending flow of news from last week. Leading the news well this morning are dives into the latest GDP flash estimates from Gastat, as well as the 3Q budget statement from FinMin.

The Kingdom ended October with a bang, as last week saw bns upon bns of agreements signed as business leaders and government representatives flocked into Riyadh to attend the four-day FII9. We rounded up the highlights from the summit’s last day, including USD 10 bn agreements inked by Acwa Power, and Saudi’s upcoming push into Syria following President Al Sharaa’s visit.

It wasn’t just FII9. The Global Health Exhibition 2025 bagged over SAR 133 bn in investments, after securing over SAR 46 bn on its opening day, the Health Ministry said on X on Thursday. Hospital and infrastructure development attracted USD 8.4 bn, venture capital and investments funds committed over USD 3.2 bn, life sciences secured more than USD 625 mn, according to a press release. B2B private sector agreements saw a sixfold increase compared to the previous year.

HAPPENING TODAY-

The Forbes Middle East Women’s Summit will kick off today at the Fairmont Riyadh Hotel. The two-day event will bring together 90 female leaders and innovators and will feature panels and discussions on leadership, entrepreneurship, AI in finance, and diplomacy, with speakers including executives from Visa, Oracle, Schneider Electric, the University of Manchester — Dubai, and social media influencers.

WEATHER- Misty skies are expected along the Eastern Region today, with patches of dense fog reducing visibility at times, while strong winds will be sweeping through Al Madinah.

  • Riyadh: 31°C high / 17°C low
  • Jeddah: 37°C high / 26°C low
  • Makkah: 39°C high / 26°C low
  • Dammam: 32°C high / 19°C low.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

The Public Investment Fund plans to sharpen its 2026-2030 investment strategy to focus on building specific portfolio companies into global champions — including AI champion Humain, manufacturer Alat, aircraft lessor AviLease, and carrier Riyadh Air, Bloomberg reports, citing people it says are familiar with the matter. The strategy, expected to be detailed early next year, aims to make Saudi companies more international, encourage them to raise their own financing, and attract more foreign direct investment.

ICYMI- Last week, PIF Governor Yasir Al Rumayyan said the fund’s upcoming five-year strategy will focus on six “ecosystems” — tourism and entertainment, urban development, advanced manufacturing and innovation, industry and logistics, renewable energy, and Neom as its own ecosystem. The plan will reportedly pivot away from real estate gigaprojects to refocus on sectors that can deliver faster, more sustainable returns like logistics, mineral development, religious tourism, and AI, while maintaining investment in oil, petrochemicals, and renewables to power the transition.

The PIF also plans to increase its total annual deployment to USD 70 bn after 2025, with international investments potentially increasing and becoming more strategic, like the USD 55 bn Electronic Arts (EA) acquisition to boost Saudi’s gaming industry.

SPEAKING OF EA- A consortium of some 20 banks, including Bank of America, Citigroup, and Morgan Stanley, has joined the USD 20 bn debt financing package for the USD 55 bn buyout of EA by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing people it says are in the know. The transaction, which intends to take the US-based gaming giant private, is the largest leveraged buyout in history.

A mostly JPMorgan-shaped pie: JPMorgan is reportedly set to keep 40% (USD 200 mn) of the financing’s estimated USD 500 mn in fees, as it had initially agreed to underwrite the entire debt commitment, Bloomberg reported separately. The other banks will receive a 1% to 5% allocation, which is less than the 10% some had initially hoped for.

The structure: The financing is structured into an USD 8 bn term loan B, USD 5 bn of secured bonds, USD 2.5 bn of unsecured bonds, a USD 2.5 bn term loan A (aimed at international “take-and-hold” investors), and a USD 2 bn liquidity facility. The final structure will depend on market conditions at the time of the launch, Bloomberg reported.

The debt is planned to be sold to investors in the leveraged loan and high-yield bond markets in early 2026, the sources said. Banks are expected to earn a fee of about 2.25% on the loans, with fees for bonds set to be higher. The dual-currency loan is expected to pay investors 3.5 percentage points more than the benchmark rate and be offered at a 1% discount rate.

DATA POINTS-

#1- The Kingdom’s exports of international trade services went up 15.1% y-o-y to SAR 235.5 bn in 2024, while imports of services recorded an 8.6% y-o-y rise to SAR 469 bn, according to data (pdf) from the General Authority for Statistics.

Travel services took the lion’s share of exports with a total value of SAR 153.6 bn, followed by a SAR 30 bn from transportation services. Government services reached SAR 8.9 bn, while communications, computers, and information services accounted for SAR 8.1 bn, and construction services SAR 7 bn. Other business services totaled SAR 6.7 bn, with professional and management consulting representing almost half of this total.

Transportation services led imports by SAR 123.8 bn, 49% of which came from maritime transport. Travel followed with SAR 103.4 bn. Other business services reached SAR 70.6 bn. The list continues with construction services (SAR 60.3 bn), government services (SAR 30 bn), and insurance and pension services (SAR 21.4 bn).

#2- September airport performance comes in pairs: King Khalid and King Abdulaziz airports topped performance charts in September 2025 — both leading large international airports serving over 15 mn passengers annually with an 82% compliance rate, the General Authority of Civil Aviation (Gaca) said on X.

Among airports handling 5-15 mn passengers a year, King Fahd and Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz international airports achieved a 91% compliance rate. All international and domestic airports with fewer than 5 mn passengers met 100% of Gaca’s standards, except Al Jouf International Airport, which scored 91%.

OIL WATCH-

The Kingdom is expected to lower its December official selling price for Arab Light crude by USD 1.2-1.5 per barrel, to a premium over the Oman-Dubai average of between USD 0.7 and USD 1 a barrel, Reuters reported on Friday, citing its survey of Asian refining sources. The official selling price remained untouched at USD 2.2 in October and November. Other Saudi grades — Arab Extra Light, Arab Medium, and Arab Heavy — could also see decreases of USD 1.2–1.5 a barrel for December.

BUT- Saudi Arabia may implement smaller price cuts due to rising demand from China and India seeking alternatives to Russian crude amid Western sanctions. Additional requests from Japan and South Korea for December-loading Saudi oil — along with limited supply as refineries resume operations after maintenance — are also suggesting lower cuts, Energy Aspects analyst Richard Jones told the newswire.

ALSO- Aramco reduced its November official selling prices for liquified petroleum gas, lowering propane to USD 475 per ton (down 4%) and butane to USD 460 per ton (down 3.2%) over rising increased global supply and lower oil prices, Reuters reported on Friday, citing traders.

SPORTS-

Olympic esports partnership nixed: The Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ended their short-lived esports partnership, just 14 months after announcing a 12-year agreement during the 2024 Paris Olympics to hold the inaugural Esports Olympics in the Kingdom in 2027, the IOC said in a statement on Thursday. Both sides will pursue esports initiatives independently.

IN CONTEXT- Saudi sees gaming as important for its diversification efforts under Vision 2030 and a way to expand its cultural footprint. The Kingdom’s investments in esports and competitive gaming saw it host the Esports World Cup recently and announce plans to host a Nations Cup for national teams — set to debut in Riyadh in November 2026.

The story also got ink from Reuters, the Associated Press, and Bloomberg.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Another day, another wave of Big Tech earnings is upon us:

#1- Amazon’s shares soared 14% in afterhours trading after the company posted the fastest increase in cloud revenues in three years and forecast quarterly sales above estimates. (Reuters | Bloomberg | Wall Street Journal)

#2- Apple expects next quarter to be its best ever in terms of iPhone sales as holidays spur buying, with double-digit growth forecast — double analyst estimates. The company narrowly beat analyst expectations with its net income and sales figures in its fiscal fourth quarter. (Reuters | Bloomberg | WSJ)

Meanwhile, Netflix has reportedly tapped Moelis & Co to mull a bid for Warner Bros Discovery’s studio and streaming business, potentially giving it control over plenty of franchises, from Harry Potter to DC Comics. (Reuters | Bloomberg)

PLUS- A day after saying it plans to hike spending on AI next year, Facebook owner Meta raised USD 30 bn in bonds, marking the biggest bond sale of the year, with some USD 125 bn in orders placed. (Bloomberg)

And across the pond, Prince Andrew is prince no more: King Charles stripped Prince Andrew from his royal title and evicted him from his royal residence in a rare move aiming to salvage the royal family’s reputation amid fresh revelations about his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein and [redacted] abuse allegations from Virginia Roberts Giuffre, one of Epstein’s victims. (Financial Times | AP | Guardian | New York Times | WSJ)

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The international non-profit Beyond Profit Forum will take place between 3-5 December at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh. The three-day event will bring together over 1.5k attendees — including CEOs, policymakers, funders, social entrepreneurs, and community leaders. It will feature more than 80 speakers across four panels, discussing financing strategies, social innovation in job creation, and successful case studies in economic development.

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