Good morning, wonderful people. Capital markets are in the spotlight this morning with news that budget carrier Flynas is looking to IPO — and word that Spinneys hopes to attract Saudi investors for its offering in Dubai.

It’s the calm before the storm: We expect things to get plenty busy on Sunday when the World Economic Forum’s special meeting in Riyadh gets underway.

SPEAKING OF WHICH- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will be back in Saudi after he wraps his current trip to China, Axios reports in an exclusive.

Blinken will be attending the WEF meeting, which takes place Sunday and Monday, and could head to Israel afterward, the news outlet reports.

The Biden administration still thinks it can put together a landmark Saudi-US agreement that would see us normalize ties with Israel in return for a clear, irrevocable path to statehood for Palstine. The agreement would also see Riyadh and Washington sign long-term security and nuclear partnerships.

Blinken is expected to meet with Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohamed bin Salman and other officials while here. The two last met in March.

BREAKING NEWS as we were heading to dispatch this morning: The US Senate has passed a bill that could ban Tiktok in the United States if parent company ByteDance doesn’t sell its stake in the company within a year.

US President Joe Biden said he would sign the bill, which also includes provisions on military aid to Israel and Ukraine. The Verge and the New York Times have more.

HAPPENING TODAY- Tense global talks on a plastic treaty continue today in Ottawa. There are two camps:

In the first corner: The “high-ambition coalition.” These are countries and lobby groups that want the treaty to limit production of plastics and ban the use of some chemicals.

In the other: Big plastic producers including Saudi, which are arguing that it should focus on limiting waste and more recycling.

The pitch: Every day, the “equivalent of 2k garbage trucks full of plastic are dumped into the world’s oceans, rivers, and lakes,” the Associated Press notes. Reuters has more.

WEATHER- Expect some dust with a high of 33°C and a low of 21°C in Riyadh today, according to our favorite weather app. Conditions in Makkah and Dammam will be just about identical.

Rainfall? In May? Meteorologists are forecasting a 50-60% increase in precipitation rates across the Kingdom in May, the National Centre for Meteorology said in a report (pdf). Heavy downpours could be in the cards for Jazan, Asir, Al Baha, Makkah as well as parts of Eastern Province and west of Riyadh.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- An Aramco venture capital fund wants in on India’s growing startup scene: Prosperity7— a unit of Aramco’s venture capital arm, Aramco Ventures — is building a team in India as it looks for early-stage investments in Indian startups, Indian business daily Mint reported yesterday. “The firm is looking to set aside around USD 200-350 mn for the Indian market” and build a portfolio of 15-20 investments, Mint said. Prosperity7 has appetite for seed stage through Series A and B, it added.

In context: Venture capital firms poured some USD 7.2 bn in into early-stage Indian startups in 2023, Mint reported, citing figures from data provider Tracxn.

Prosperity7 said earlier this year that it had USD 3 bn to invest, up from USD 1 bn, as part of Aramco’s plan to increase its exposure to venture capital. It said in January the additional funding will be deployed “to support global early to growth-stage enterprises with disruptive technologies.” It has invested in over 40 companies globally in fintech, artificial intelligence, and consumer tech, among other sectors, since launching in 2020. It recently led a USD 20 mn funding round for US-based AI health startup ArteraAI.

#2- Commerce Minister Majid Al Qasabi was in Washington for talks that aimed to attract more US investment to Saudi Arabia, state news agency SPA reported yesterday.

6.5k kms away: Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Bandar Alkhorayef met with executives from German building materials maker Knauf and Hanover-based end-to-end supply chain solutions provider V-Line Group, according to a post on X by the ministry. The meetings came on the sidelines of Alkhorayef’s visit to Hannover Messe — one of the world's biggest trade fairs.

#3- Over 100 firms have said they’re interested in working on the expansion of Abha airport, state news agency SPA reported yesterday, citing statements by the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) Chairman Abdulaziz Al Duailej at an industry gathering. Al Duailej provided no further details, but noted the expansion is part of a drive to open the aviation industry to the private sector.

BACKGROUND- The Saudi Civil Aviation Holding (commonly known as Matarat) and the National Centre for Privatization & PPP called earlier this year for expressions of interest in the Abha project, one of four airport projects the NCP is putting out to tender tender as part of a pipeline of 200 privatization and PPP projects. Expect a final request for proposals in July.

#4- The Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu is looking to line up investment in as many as 45 projects, state news agency SPA reported yesterday. The projects in Yanbu, Jubail, Ras Al Khair, and Jazan span 34 sectors, including industry, tourism, education and healthcare. The full list of what’s on offer is here.

#5-The Saudi Export Development Authority talked with Omani officials yesterday about boosting exports, state news agency SPA reported yesterday. Oman is hoping more Saudi exporters will use Sohar Port.

DATA POINTS-

#1- Customs declarations at land, sea and air entry points grew 10.6% y-o-y in 2023 to c. 6 mn, Aleqtisadiah reported, citing data by the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA). The increase came after officials cut clearance times to as low as two hours from a previous 12 days as the Kingdom positions itself as a global logistics hub.

#2- Some 67 unlicensed hotels and serviced apartments were shut down by the Tourism Ministry during Q1, state news agency SPA reported.

PSAs-

#1- Commercial register holders can now access and print company registers in both Arabic and English through the Tawakkalna application, the Commerce Ministry said in a statement yesterday.

#2- Zatca’s not going to waive every fine under its recently launched amnesty program, it said in a social media post on X. The waiver — which is set to expire on Sunday, 30 June — excludes financial penalties that were paid before it came into effect, on the first of June 2022. It also excludes fines for tax evasion, payment delays, and any fees that were imposed for failing to submit returns by 31 December 2023.

Go deeper: You can check out Zatca’s simplified guide here (pdf).

SPORTS-

#1- The national football team will play its quarter final game against Uzbekistan in the AFC U-23 Asian Cup on Friday, 26 April despite losing 2-1 loss to Iraq at Doha’s Khalifa International Stadium on Monday.

#2- Al Hilal bid farewell to the Asian Champions League, exiting the tournament on a 5-4 aggregate loss against UAE’s Al Ain despite prevailing yesterday 2-1 against the Emirati side in the semi-finals’ second leg in Riyadh.

#3- The Asian Billiards Championship for Women and Girls — dubbed Riyadh 2024 — started on Monday and will wrap up on Thursday, 25 April, at the Saudi Billiards and Snooker Federation training center. The championship features 70 of our players, alongside participants from 12 other countries, including Bahrain, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Kuwait, the Philippines, Singapore, Taipei, and Vietnam.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Tesla leads all of the big Western business papers, from the Financial Times and Les Echos to the Wall Street Journal and Reuters. The company’s shares rallied 11% in after-hours despite posting poor 1Q 2025 results after it promised to introduce “more affordable models” by early next year.

A tale of two cities: Hong Kong’s biggest IPO so far this year has flopped (bubble tea chain ChaPanda’s shares were down as much as 38% in their debut) as investors shy away from the Asian financial capital. In New York, cloud and data security outfit Rubrik is looking at a 20x oversubscription rate for its IPO, which could raise as much as USD 713 mn.

ELSEWHERE- Star fund manager Cathie Wood’s Ark is still being slammed by redemptions, college protests against US support of Israel’s war in Gaza are growing, and our friends at Visa beat expectations with strong 1Q earnings.

Your morning reminder that US regulations do not apply here in Saudi: There’s plenty of ink being spilled in the business press after the US Federal Trade Commission approved yesterday a ban on non-compete agreements that prevent staff from going to work for their employer’s competitor or starting a rival business. The rule will “also force companies to scrap their existing noncompetes for all employees except senior executives who earn more than USD 151,164 annually and who are in policy-making roles,” CNBC notes. The Associated Press also has the story. It comes into force in 120 days.

Harvard Business Review’s take: It’s better this way. “Noncompetes help no one except dying companies — those who can’t compete to hire the best talent and can’t survive in the innovation marketplace.” Read: Banning noncompetes is good for innovation.

SIGN OF THE TIMES- Defense spending is up 9% in the Middle East, driven by bigger outlays by Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Israel, the Financial Times notes this morning.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Riyadh will host the 2024 IsDB Group annual meeting from Saturday, 27 April until Wednesday, 30 April.

Riyadh will host the RiseUp Summit from Saturday, 27 April until Tuesday, 30 April at the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST).

Riyadh will host a special meeting of the World Economic Forum on 28-29 April.

Automechanika Riyadh will open on Tuesday, 30 April till Thursday, 2 May at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center. The annual trade fair will showcase the automotive industry’s latest advances and innovations.

OUR NEXT FORUM IN CAIRO-

Foreign investors are falling in love with Egypt again… Foreign investors we speak with (debt, equity, and strategic alike) have growing appetite for Egypt. They’re buying into local debt, eyeing promising shares, and committing bns of USD to both new ventures here and the growth of their existing businesses. They like the Egypt story that’s taking shape after the float of the EGP, and its competitive advantages are clear to many of them: It’s a massive consumer opportunity and a regional export hub of tomorrow.

The Enterprise Optimism Forum 2024 will do exactly what it says on the tin: Spark conversations about a future that sees Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the the UAE at the heart of a more vital Middle East economy — and provide an early, actionable roadmap for those who are “long Egypt.”

We’ll be talking with you about the agenda over the coming couple of weeks. It features speakers from Egypt and abroad who are future-proofing their businesses and angling to capture tomorrow’s opportunities — and who aren’t afraid to answer some tough questions.

** Interested in attending? Tap or click here to let us know. Seating is limited.