Riyadh is planning for another 456 sq km of growth

Good morning, friends. We've spent weeks on whether Saudi oil can get out through two pressured straits. The under-asked question is what that same squeeze does to imports, given more than 80% of the Kingdom's food arrives by sea through Jeddah and Dammam. We put that to Dr. Robert Mogielnicki of PoliSphere Advisory.

On the capital side, the money keeps arriving. Brookfield's PIF-anchored Middle East private equity fund hit a USD 2 bn first close, with other institutions joining the sovereign fund and Brookfield committing USD 500 mn of its own. With three fronts live around the Kingdom, a USD 2 bn first close is its own read on how outside managers are pricing Saudi risk.

BUT FIRST- A third front in the Iranian-backed offensive campaign cracked open yesterday. The Defense Ministry says its air defenses intercepted and destroyed several drones fired from Iraqi territory, aimed at oil facilities in the Eastern Province and Riyadh, and blamed Iran-backed militias operating out of Iraq. On top of the Houthi blockade in the Red Sea and the Hormuz squeeze, that's three vectors pointed at the Kingdom at once.

The timing is its own story: The drones landed just as Iraqi PM Ali Al-Zaidi is due in Riyadh for talks with the Crown Prince. The Kingdom reserves the right to respond "at the appropriate time and place," and calls upon Iraq’s government to take necessary measures to prevent launching further attacks, Defense spox Turki AlMaliki said.

The EnterpriseAM Egypt Forum is back — and this year, we're giving the full day to the one question on every business leader's mind: What does AI actually mean for your company, your people, and your own job?

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A northeastern expansion for Riyadh?

Riyadh is planning for another 456 sq km of growth. The Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC) completed an initial master plan for a stretch of land northeast of the capital, connected to King Khalid International Airport, Wadi Al Sulai, and the Dammam and Janadriyah highways, state news agency SPA reports. The plan targets a phased expansion with integrated residential communities, daily services, and a mix of residential, economic, recreational, and natural zones.

Worth noting: The RCRC stressed this is an early planning phase, not the launch of an executive project. Plans for each area will follow in subsequent phases.

Riyadh’s development pipeline remains deep. Work is continuing on King Salman International Airport, a USD 3 bn mixed-use district in King Salman Park, and a wave of residential projects aimed at delivering the 830k housing units the capital needs by 2034 to keep pace with population growth. This comes as commercial, retail, and industrial space face their own supply crunch.

Data point

Over SAR 1 tn — that’s the combined investment portfolio of Tadawul’s 10 listed banks at the end of 2Q 2026, crossing the SAR 1 tn mark for the first time, according to Al Arabiya Business calculations based on bank disclosures. The total rose 4.9% y-o-y from SAR 958.5 bn, with SNB alone holding 32% of the sector’s investments at SAR 322.2 bn. Riyad Bank posted the fastest growth at 26.5%, reaching SAR 92.5 bn.

Destination Sahel is back for a second edition — and this year, it's not just about the beach.

Gulf sovereign wealth funds are pouring billions into the North Coast, Gulf buyers keep showing up despite regional headwinds, and a new 400km master plan could reshape the whole coastline before summer’s out.

Over this season’s series, stay tuned to see who's really buying Sahel, where the money's coming from, and what could still go wrong.

Plus, the hotels, restaurants, and openings worth checking out this summer.

Tap or click here to subscribe to the Egypt edition, coming out in your inbox, tomorrow, Wednesday, July 29.

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The big story abroad

As the lull in direct US-Iran hostilities continues, US President Donald Trump said that both sides are engaged in "good talks" and a pact remains within reach, though he warned that military strikes will resume if negotiations falter. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Iraq reported drone attacks yesterday.

Big Tech’s lenders are sweating: Credit risk for Big Tech appears to have inclined, as prices for credit default swaps — used to wager against corporate debt — have recently hit record highs for the likes of Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Nvidia, Oracle, and others, LSEG data shows. Credit markets dislike instability, with the unpredictability surrounding the speed and cost of funding AI straining investor confidence, Sona Asset Management’s John Aylward said.

Asset management giant BlackRock closed a USD 12.5 bn bond sale, the proceeds of which will fund a Meta data center campus in Texas. The loan’s structure enables the Facebook parent to secure off-balance-sheet funding, alleviating concerns over excessive leverage and reassuring investors.

And in the fashion world: IPO hopeful Shein may face a battle in its planned Hong Kong listing, as its prospectus indicated tapering growth and a sudden drop in popularity. Although the fast fashion player saw topline rise 8% in 2025, its net income dropped 39% in the same period, recent US tariff developments and new EU import fees are weighing on sales and costs.