Good morning, wonderful people. We have another relatively busy issue for you this morning, leading with the latest private sector employment figures, as well as new Saudization targets for the year ahead.

HAPPENING TODAY-

The Italian Navy’s historic sailing ship the Amerigo Vespucci will bring its world tour totheJeddah Yacht Club & Marina for four days starting today. The visit will feature the Villagio Italia exhibition, showcasing Italian design, gastronomy, and culture, with musical performances, art displays, and conferences on tourism, sustainability, and inclusion. Entrance to the exhibit is without charge, but visitors must pre-register.

The International Conference on Asset, Facilities, and Maintenance Management is on its second day today at the Ritz-Carlton in Jeddah and wraps tomorrow. The week-long conference and meet-up looks to showcase new innovations and developments in assets and facilities management while advocating for the increased application of AI, IoT and Big Data, as well as the adoption of sustainable practices.

The International Conference on Asset, Facilities, and Maintenance Management is also on its second day and wraps tomorrow at the Ritz-Carlton in Jeddah. The event gathers global experts to discuss the latest trends in electrical systems, transportation, water systems, cybersecurity, smart maintenance, and digital transformation.

WEATHER- It’s thunderstorms for Riyadh today with a high of 20°C and a low of 11°C, while a windy Jeddah will see a high of 29°C and a low of 20°C. Madinah’s mercury will peak at 24°C, with a low of 14°C.

PSAs-

#1- Industrial investors can now use Modon’s early booking service to secure ready-built factories or supporting facilities that are under construction, Modon said in a post on X. Applications can be filed through Modon’s portal.

#2- Moody’s Investors Services Middle East Limited has been renamed to Moody’s Investors Services KSA Branch, according to a statement from the Capital Market Authority. The name change comes in compliance with the Capital Market Law’s implementing regulations.

REMEMBER– The Cabinet signed off a new Commercial Registration Law and Trade NameLaw, which are set to take effect on 2 April after their publication in the Kingdom’s official Gazette in October. Among other changes, it introduced a ban on duplicated trade names for businesses, even if they operate in different sectors or on different commercial activities and requires companies to have a singular commercial register covering all of their activities in Saudi.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Saudi and Italy are looking to form a strategic partnership council, after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni signed an agreement during Meloni’s visit to the Kingdom, state news agency SPA reports. Meloni arrived in Jeddah on Saturday for a visit, following the recent signing of a five-year MoU between the two countries to bolster energy cooperation, including the potential supply of Saudi-made hydrogen to Europe via Italy.

#2- Aslak names financial advisor for upcoming acquisition: United Wire Factories (Aslak) tapped Alkhair Capital to be its financial advisor for the potential acquisition of a 40% stake in Al Raeda Industrial Investment, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul.

REFRESHER- This follows a non-binding MoU signed last month to acquire a 40% stake in Al Raeda Industrial Investment through a share swap. The move will see Al Raeda’s shareholders receive newly-issued shares in Aslak, according to an exchange ratio that will be agreed on following the completion of valuation and due diligence processes. Aslak has six months to finalize the terms and lock in the transaction.

#3- Southern regions were hit by a blackout on Saturday, with the SEC attributing the outage — which affected Jazan, Asir, and Najran — to a sudden shutdown of power stations, the Saudi Gazette reported. The Saudi Electricity Regulatory Authority instructed the SEC to investigate the incident and submit its findings, the report said. Power was restored shortly after midnight yesterday, the SEC said, although some users claimed the outage continued in some areas.

#4- The Real Estate Development Fund plans to launch a new repayment mechanism for self-construction finance beneficiaries this year, Aleqtisadiah reports, citing an unnamed source who refused to elaborate further on the mechanism.

DATA POINTS-

#1- CEOs in Saudi are highly optimistic about 2025: Some 98% of Saudi-based CEOs are confident about revenue growth this year, with 70% expecting to increase their workforce during the year, according to PwC’s annual CEO survey. Some 81% of Saudi CEOs have adopted AI during 2024 and 64% plan to carry out at least one acquisition within the next three years, the survey showed.

THE REGIONAL VIEW- Investors are also confident about the region’s growth prospects this year: Growth in the Middle East is expected to be stronger in 2025 than it was in 2024 on the back of “continued solid expansions in the non-oil economies in key countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates,” as well as “some likely increase in oil production,” according to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants’ Global Economic Conditions report (pdf).

Confidence in the region among chief financial officers and accountants was among the highest in the world in 4Q 2024, coming only second to South Asia in terms of overall economic confidence among the 1.8k surveyed. The study also showed that new orders in the region grew by 10 index points in 4Q 2024, outperforming all other markets surveyed — further pushing confidence in the region’s growth prospects for the year.

#2- The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) rose 0.8% w-o-w, with SAR 33 bn in turnover bytheend of last week, according to a weekly report from the exchange.

Al Rajhi was the most traded in terms of value, ending the week with SAR 1.7 bn in turnover. Nice One came in second at SAR 964.8 mn in trade volume, followed by SNB with SAR 872.6 mn in turnover. Saudi Cable was the top gainer, seeing its shares rise by 25.1%, followed by Thimar (+18%) and Jouf Cement (+15.6%).

Investor mix: Saudi institutional investors turned over SAR 7.7 bn-worth of shares, while Saudi individual investors’ turnover came in at SAR 40.1 bn. Meanwhile, turnover from qualified foreign investors came in at SAR 15.3 bn and GCC institutional investors’ turnover was SAR 1.1 bn, according to Tadawul’s weekly stock market ownership and trading activity report (pdf).

SPORTS-

#1 FROM THE RUMOR MILL- Al Ittihad reportedly in for a Barcelona academy player: Al Ittihad, currently in second place in the Saudi Pro League, is reportedly looking to add Barcelona’s Unai Hernandez for as little as USD 6 mn, Goal reports. Hernandez’s contract runs out on 30 June this year, with the Catalan club looking to bolster its finances ahead of a potential move to acquire Marcus Rashford, who is seemingly set for a move away from Manchester United.

ALSO- SPL clubs seem to be sizing up a move for Barcelona’s Pedri in a monumental move that could also land Real Madrid’s Vinicius Júnior in the Kingdom, SportBible reports.

#2- LeBron James has partnered with AlUla to launch a new team, Team AlUla, at the PIF-backed UIM E1 World Championship, the world’s first all-electric raceboat series, according to a press release (pdf). The team debuted in the 2025 season, starting with the E1 Jeddah GP that ran from Friday 24 January to Saturday 25 January.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

US President Donald Trump continues to make headlines with a fresh set of tariffs slapped on Colombia and calls for Gazans to settle in Egypt and Jordan to make way for a “clean-out” of Gaza.

Trump slapped a 25% tariff on all imports from Colombia — set to be raised to 50% in a week — along with a travel ban on Colombian government officials and financial sanctions after Colombia sent back two US military aircraft carrying deported migrants from the country. The deportation came as part of Trump’s sweeping crackdown on illegal immigration, which included a broad ban on asylum, since taking office. Colombia responded with its own 25% tariff on US imports. (Reuters | Bloomberg | WSJ | BBC)

In separate news, Trump called for Palestinians displaced from Gaza to be resettled in Jordan and Egypt either temporarily or permanently. Trump noted to reporters following a call with Jordan’s King Abdullah Saturday that he wanted both Jordan and Egypt to take in more displaced Palestinians, saying in reference to Gaza that “we should just clear out the whole thing.” The idea was rejected by Jordan and the Palestinian authority, and Trump officials later on Sunday suggested that Gazans would receive guarantees that they would eventually be allowed to return in a bid to downplay the suggestion.

OVER IN LEBANON- Israeli forces opened fire on a group of protestors in Lebanon demanding their withdrawal in line with the agreed 60-day deadline as part of the ceasefire, killing at least 22 and injuring 124 people, AP reports. The White House later issued a statement that the deadline for Israeli troops’ withdrawal has been extended to 18 February, after Israel said it is waiting for the Lebanese army to deploy to all areas of South Lebanon to ensure that Hezbollah does not reestablish its presence there, despite statements from the army that it cannot deploy there unless Israeli troops withdraw.

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