Good morning, friends. We have a brisk issue for you this morning, led by commentary on when Saudi Arabia’s regulatory changes will bear fruit for its capital markets. Also in the newswell this morning: Acwa Power signed contracts for the expansion of the Az-Zour North power plant in Kuwait, and the Kingdom’s industrial production index was up again in June.

ALSO- Saudi filmmakers can now submit their work to be considered for Saudi Arabia’s International Feature Film entry to this year’s Academy Awards, the Saudi Gazette reports. While the Kingdom has previously submitted films for the Oscars category several times in the past, this process has typically happened by direct nomination from the Saudi Film Commission, making this year the first where filmmakers can nominate their own work.

WEATHER- Riyadh is expected to see a high of 45°C and a low of 31°C today, while Jeddah’s mercury will peak at 40°C and bottom out at 32°C. Makkah will see a 43°C high and 31°C low.

HAPPENING TODAY-

The Monsha’at Jadeer Tour kicks off today at the SME Support Center in Khobar. The two-day event will offer attendees the chance to learn about the Jadeer service and access training and support for their businesses.

The EventTech Meetup is on its second and final day at the Cultural House-Altaawun Public Library in Riyadh, bringing together tech enthusiasts, entrepreneurs, investors, and industry professionals. The event — organized by the National Events Center — features live demos, panel discussions, and networking sessions exploring how AI, data science, and other technologies are reshaping the events industry.

The Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters continues today and runs until 16 August at Green Halls in Jeddah. The event, which kicked off on Friday, sees 128 World Snooker Tour players and another 16 snooker players from Saudi Arabia vying for a pot worth more than GBP 2 mn. You can check out the schedule on the WST website.

HAPPENING TOMORROW-

AlUla Manaraa will host an astronomy event tomorrow to observe the Perseid meteor shower, state news agency SPA reported yesterday. Visitors and astronomy enthusiasts will have the chance to witness the meteor shower’s peak, guided by a group of amateur astronomers at the Harrat AlUla site. Attendees are welcome to bring their own telescopes for direct sky observation and to practice astrophotography.

PSAs-

Kuwait to offer visas on arrival to GCC residents: Foreigners residing in any GCC country for at least six months can now get a tourist visa upon arrival in Kuwait, effective immediately, Gulf News reports, citing an announcement in Kuwait’s official gazette.

It’s going to get easier to travel between GCC countries soon anyway: A Schengen-style Gulf tourist visa is meant to be launched in a trial phase in the final quarter of this year before a full rollout at a later stage.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

E-commerce fulfillment startup Salasa plans to help Saudi brands expand their exports into regional and global markets, while also bringing international brands into the Gulf, CEO and co-founder Abdulmajeed Alyemni told Asharq Business (watch, runtime: 8:07). Alyemni believes the region offers strong purchasing power but lacks the logistical infrastructure many global brands need to enter — something Salasa intends to provide.

ICYMI- Last week, Salasa raised USD 30 mn in a series B funding round led by Artal Capital. The investment will fund the development of an AI-driven platform, the expansion of its fulfillment network across the GCC, and the enhancement of its cross-border shipping capabilities for merchants.

DATA POINTS-

#1- The Citizen Account Program disbursed SAR 3 bn to 9.7 mn beneficiaries for August, with an average payment of SAR 1.48k per family, according to a statement. The program has disbursed more than SAR 250 bn since its launch in December 2017, including SAR 2.7 bn in compensation for earlier payments. The citizen account program was created to provide financial support to vulnerable Saudi families who are impacted by economic reforms, according to its website.

#2- The Real Estate General Authority recorded a 185% y-o-y increase in renewed Owners Association certificates through its Mullak platform in 1H 2025, with over 635 renewals, it said in a statement yesterday. The platform also registered 3.6k new associations comprising over 9k real estate units, bringing the total to 17k associations with more than 160k registered members.

OIL WATCH-

India’s Reliance will likely begin to rely more on MENA crude: India’s Reliance Industries is likely to revert to sourcing crude from its traditional Middle Eastern suppliers like the UAE and Saudi Arabia due to geographical proximity if India yields to US President Trump’s pressure to cut Russian oil imports, Reuters reports, citing trade sources. The Indian firm purchased 1 mn barrels of Abu Dhabi’s Murban crude last month through a series of futures contracts, to be loaded in September, and earlier made a Murban acquisition on the spot market, shortly after the European Union imposed fresh sanctions on Russian crude supplies.

This could raise prices on the spot market: “Any hit to Russian supplies will increase their participation (in the spot market) and that would tighten spot market and raise prices. They are a giant player,” said Tushar Tarun Bansal, senior director at oil consultancy Alvarez and Marsal.

It’s not just Reliance: Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum are planning to pause purchases of Russian crude on the spot market until the government’s stance is clear, Bloomberg reported, citing people it says are familiar with the matter. India is yet to give direction to halt Russian crude imports, though Trump is upping the pressure, recently hiking tariffs on the country to 50% due to its purchases of Russian oil.

REMEMBER- Traders are watching to see if Middle Eastern crude like Murban will increasingly replace sanctioned Russian grades like Urals. Murban contracts typically see less activity than Brent or West Texas Intermediate, but trading volumes of Murban futures have increased in recent weeks amid growing market interest in alternative crude sources as geopolitical tensions shift procurement patterns across Asia and Europe.

SPORTS-

Al Ahli signed French midfielder Enzo Millot from Stuttgart on a three-year contract ahead of the 2025-2026 season, it said in a statement on Saturday. The 23-year-old scored six goals and provided five assists in 29 Bundesliga games last season.

Twisted Minds claimed the Call of Duty Warzone title at the Esports World Cup, earning USD 250k after a tense final on Rebirth Island, according to a statement. The Saudi team — competing against 13 other teams — secured victory in the tenth and last match with 24 kills, beating Vitus.pro and Team Falcons.

Team Secret landed on top in the Rainbow Six Siege X tournament at the Esports World Cup, beating G2 3-0 in the final to take USD 750k along with 1k Club Championship points, according to a statement released on Saturday. The mixed-European roster went undefeated throughout the event, eliminating top teams, including defending Team Falcons, w7m esports, Weibo Gaming, and Spacestation, before sealing the title in the overtime finish on the third map.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are leading headlines in the global business press this morning, as the two tech firms reached an agreement with the US government to pay a 15% fee on their chip sales to China. Nvidia will pay the fee on its H20 chips, while AMD will pay the fee on revenues from its MI308 chips. The levy comes in exchange for the companies receiving licenses to export semiconductors to China, following reports over the weekend that the US Department of Commerce had begun issuing export licenses for Nvidia’s H20 chips. (Financial Times | Bloomberg | Axios | CNBC)

Elsewhere, Ukraine vs Russia continues to get play: EU foreign ministers are set to meet later today to discuss “next steps” ahead of US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s war in Ukraine. The EU meeting comes as the bloc calls on Trump to bring Ukraine to the negotiating table. (Reuters | Wall Street Journal)

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