Good morning and a very happy THURSDAY to you all. The first full workweek of the year is coming to a close with a rather busy issue, led by a healthy mix of politics and diplomacy, debt, and more.

After the government kicked off its 2025 borrowing earlier this week, Saudi corporates are getting into the game as well with international debt sales and programs. Riyad Bank and Al Rajhi Bank each kicked off international debt issuances — both of which are set to close today — while stc rolled out a USD 5 bn sukuk program.

ALSO- We’re rounding out our Year in Review coverage with a rundown of the 2025 macroeconomic mix for Saudi Arabia.

^^ We have these stories and more in this morning’s news well, below.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

YEMEN — The Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) expelled the leader of the Southern Transitional Council from Yemen’s internationally recognized government after he failed to show up to talks planned in Riyadh that aimed to find a resolution to the escalation in the country’s south, the Washington Post reports.

PLC also referred Aidarous Al Zubaidi to the public prosecutor on charges of high treason and armed rebellion, according to state news agency SPA. Al Zubaidi was set to visit Riyadh for talks after PLC Chairman Rashad Al Alimi urged Riyadh to host a conference bringing together all Yemeni factions — including the STC — to resolve the crisis in the south. He was reported to have fled to an unknown location, although STC officials insisted their leader remained in the southern capital to oversee operations, Reuters reported. Shortly after, the coalition launched strikes in Dhale — Al Zubaidi’s home region.

Yemen’s Saudi-backed government took back control of most of the key parts of southern Yemen, after the STC — which has in the past been backed by the UAE — had earlier seized the areas.

DIPLOMACY — Saudi Arabia is reportedly in talks with Pakistan to convert USD 2 bn of its loans to Islamabad into a military equipment supply agreement, Reuters reports, citing two unnamed Pakistani sources. The sources indicate that several options are currently on the table, including Pakistan providing JF-17 Thunder fighter jets — which it developed with China and manufactures domestically. The exact value of the potential agreement remains unclear, with one source suggesting the total value “was worth USD 4 bn, with an additional USD 2 bn to be spent on equipment over and above the loan conversion.”

ENTERTAINMENT — Qiddiya is planning to roll out a new asset every quarter — and Aquarabia is slated for March, Managing Director of Qiddiya Investment Company Abdullah Al Dawood said (watch, runtime: 1:37:18). The water park is slated to open its doors on 19 March to capture Eid Al Fitr traffic, following the commercial launch of Six Flags Qiddiya City last week.

The accelerated timeline serves as the runway for Qiddiya’s three-stage masterplan. Phase 1 is racing toward a 2023 completion date, focusing on “active” entertainment, including the speedway, the National Tennis Center, golf courses, and some 15 hotels. The subsequent phases are expected to pivot toward cultural and niche assets, where the second phase will add a performing arts center, Dragon Ball Park, an esports arena by 2030. The third phase will align with the 2034 World Cup and the Asian Games.

CAPITAL MARKETS — ASG Plastic Factory is looking to graduate to the big leagues, with its board approving a transition from Tadawul’s parallel market Nomu to the main market yesterday, according to a disclosure. The move, which sees Estidamah Capital appointed as financial advisor, is a strategic play for deeper liquidity and a broader investor base.

What it takes: To transition from Nomu to the main market, a company must have been listed on Nomu for at least two years and satisfy all main market listing conditions — except for market capitalization, where a lower threshold of an average SAR 200 mn over the past six months applies.

DATA POINTS-

SAR 17 bn — that’s the total value of consumer spending via point-of-sale (PoS) in the Kingdom in the week ending 3 January, up 30.6% w-o-w, according to the Saudi Central Bank’s latest weekly report (pdf). New year festivities and the resumption of the academic term appear to be the drivers for the jump, also pushing the number of transactions up 15.7% w-o-w to 255.4 mn.

The breakdown:

  • Holiday consumption: Food and beverages (up 41.4% w-o-w), restaurants (up 20.9% w-o-w), and apparel (up 30.0% w-o-w) drove the bulk of the volume, coinciding with New Year celebrations.
  • Back-to-school: Education spending soared 66.4% w-o-w to SAR 235.5 mn as families prepare for the upcoming term.
  • Logistics peak: Freight and postal services saw the sharpest relative rise, more than doubling (up 110.9% w-o-w).

MEANWHILE- Riyadh recorded the highest value of PoS transactions at SAR 5.6 bn, followed by Jeddah at SAR 2.2 bn.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s another mixed morning in the global business press, with attention split towards the US’ control of Venezuelan oil, a global bond spree to kick off the new year, and a fresh funding round for Anthropic.

New details have emerged clarifying the logistics of the US’ effective takeover of Venezuelan oil, with Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA saying it’s in talks with Washington “to sell volumes of crude oil” to the US […] under schemes similar to those currently in place with international companies, such as Chevron, and is based on a strictly commercial transaction, within the criteria of legality, transparency and benefit for both parties,” PDVSA said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the US would control the proceeds from oil sales “indefinitely,” and that it could “flow back into Venezuela to benefit the Venezuelan people.” The US has already started marketing Venezuelan oil, and is preparing to roll back sanctions to allow the sales, Bloomberg reports. The Financial Times has more.

Outside of Trump Land, global bond sales had their busiest start to a year this week, with some USD 245 bn raised by corporates across the US, Europe, and Asia, Bloomberg reports.

And in other capital raising news, Anthropic is reportedly eyeing a USD 10 bn funding round, valuing it at USD 350 bn, up from USD 183 bn earlier, from the likes of GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, Coatue Management, Microsoft and Nvidia. (Bloomberg)

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