Saudi Manpower inches closer to IPO, says it will price offering at SAR 7.00-7.50 per share

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WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TODAY

THIS MORNING: Jazan is getting its first coffee factory

Good morning, wonderful people, and happy THURSDAY to you all. We hope you’re looking forward to the weekend as much as we are — and offer you a nice, compact little issue this morning to send you on your way.

HAPPENING NOW: Commerce Minister Majed Al Qasabi is in Thailand through tomorrow to talk trade and the economy, state-run SPA reports. Al Qasabi is expected to sign an MoU with the Thai Commerce Ministry to develop trade relations between the two countries. The Saudi-Thai Business Council will also convene during the minister’s visit.

WEATHER- There’s a chance of rainfall in Riyadh, which is looking at a daytime high of 34°C and a low of 22°C. Meanwhile, the mercury in Makkah is rising further still to peak at 43°C, with a low of 24°C, although the National Center of Meteorology said on X to expect strong winds in the city. Al Taif will be nice and sunny with a high of 32°C and a low of 17°C.

DATA POINTS-

#1- Some 260k Saudi citizens are employed in the Kingdom’s ride hailing sector, Al Arabiya reported yesterday, citing sources it says have knowledge of the figure. Around 190k ride hailing trips are made daily across the country, Al Arabiya quotes the sources as saying.

REMEMBER- Recently introduced rules for ride-hailing apps now ban non-Saudi drivers from working with ride-hailing companies.

#2- Total cement sales rose 13.2% y-o-y to 3.1 mn tons in April, according to Mubasher. Sales to the local market accounted for 2.9 mn tons during the month, up 12.5% y-o-y, while exports rose 25% y-o-y to 180k tons. Yamama Cement sold the highest volumes last month, with 358k tons sold, up 14% y-o-y, while Northern Cement sold the lowest volumes at 28k tons, down 66.7% y-o-y.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Saudi Coffee Company now has a construction license for Jazan’s first coffee factory, after receiving approval from the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, it said in a post on X. The PIF-owned coffee company will build a 30k sqm facility to produce and export “the finest types of Saudi coffee” from the facility, it said, without providing details on the construction timeline or the cost of the facility.

#2- More air travel options to Belarus could be coming: The General Authority of Civil Aviation is in the process of formalizing a bilateral agreement with the Belarusian Transport and Communications Ministry to boost air transport services between the two countries, the authority said on X. No further information was provided.

PSAs-

Residents of the Bahamas, Barbados and Grenada can now get visas to Saudi online, the Foreign Affairs and Tourism ministries said in a joint statement yesterday. The addition brings the total number of countries under the Kingdom’s e-visa scheme to 66.

KUDOS-

The Kingdom’s competition regulations were given a perfect score in the 2023 Competition Law Index (pdf) from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). The index is a gauge of the overall strictness of the regulatory framework that guided business operations in a country. They are categorized according to the maturity of eight criteria, including anti-monopoly laws. Saudi’s competition laws were scored as “very strong” in the 2023 edition, moving up from “strong” in 2020, “demonstrating an enhanced and more comprehensive framework that targets multiple competition policies and unfair practices,” according to the report.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

The war in Gaza and a dysfunctional global EV market are two of the big stories that you need to know this morning.

#1- Joe Biden has warned Israel that he will cut off shipments of offensive weapons (we’re … not sure what weapon isn’t offensive?) to Israel “if they go into Rafah.”

In his own words: “I made it clear that if they go into Rafah — they haven’t gone in Rafah yet — if they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities — that deal with that problem,” he said in an {exclusive with CNN}.

The story is leading front pages around the world: Politico | Financial Times | Wall Street Journal | Bloomberg | Reuters.

#2- The global EV market is a mess. Sales of EVs are up sharply at BMW — and the Bavarian carmaker saw its margins collapse in 1Q as a result, reports Germany’s Handelsblatt. The culprit? Competition is rising in a softening market in which many players have tons of excess product, forcing it to cut selling prices.

A lot of that oversupply is coming from China, where companies are now pushing EVs on other markets — including here in the Middle East. That has even friendly trade partners on edge and saw the European Union this week threaten to impose sanctions on Chinese EVs unless Beijing takes action in the short term, Bloomberg notes. EC boss Ursula von der Leyen said China is “flooding our market with massively subsidized electric cars,” Reuters adds.

Chinese companies could look to start producing EVs in other countries in a bid to ease tensions — much as Japanese automakers did to smooth-out economic relations with the US back in the 1980s. Two cases in point: EV leader Byd as well as Neta Auto plan to start producing EVs in the lucrative Indonesian market, with Byd saying it will invest USD 1 bn in its plant, the Financial Times reports.

AND- Top French business daily Les Echos reports that European officials are worried about deep fakes and disinformation campaigns heading into the 6-9 June European Parliament elections.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Are you subject to withholding tax? You have until Sunday, 12 May to submit and pay withholding taxes for April, according to a Zatca statement. Late payers will face a fine equivalent to 1% of unpaid fees for every 30 days of delay.

The Saudi Giga Projects Summit will open next Monday, 13 May at the Hilton Riyadh Hotel and Residences. The Meed event will showcase Saudi’s USD 870 bn giga projects drive. It brings together contractors, suppliers and relevant stakeholders from the region and elsewhere for discussions on potential investments.

The MENA Construction Summit will kick off next Tuesday, 14 May at the Hilton Riyadh Hotel & Residences. Also organized by Meed, the one-day event will bring together developers, contractors, key executives and others to discuss the latest innovations in the construction industry.

Red Sea Fashion Week will make its debut on Thursday, 16 May and run until Saturday, 18 May at theSt. Regis Red Sea Resort, according to state news agency SPA. The event, organized by the Saudi Fashion Commission, will feature an opening show on the first day, followed by two days of runway shows showcasing collections from both Saudi and international designers.

The Future Aviation Forum will get underway on Monday, 20 May and run until Wednesday, 22 May at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh. The event, organized by the General Authority of Civil Aviation, will see the Kingdom showcasing some USD 100 bn worth of investment options in the aviation and logistics sector at large.

Saudi Manpower inches closer to an IPO on Tadawul, says it will price shares in the SAR 7.00-7.50 range

Saudi Manpower Solutions (Smasco) is guiding on a price range of SAR 7.00-7.50 per share for its IPO on the main market, according to a statement (pdf). The company is taking a 30% stake to market in a secondary share sale. That range means Smasco could have a post-IPO market cap of as much as SAR 3 bn, and could see it raise up to SAR 900 mn from the IPO, according to our calculations.

Subscription to the IPO opened yesterday for institutional investors and will wrap up next Tuesday, 14 May. Institutional investors are being allotted 100% of the offering, but the financial advisor can reduce that to 90% and allocate 10% of the offering to retail investors “if there is sufficient demand” during the retail subscription window, which will be open on Sunday and Monday, 26-27 May.

What’s next? The final price of the offering will be announced on Sunday, 19 May. The final allocation of shares will take place on Monday, 3 June, with any excess subscription fees set to be refunded by Monday, 10 June.

Use of proceeds: An estimated SAR 45 mn is earmarked for transaction-related expenses, after which the selling shareholders will divide the rest of the proceeds on a pro rata basis.

ADVISORS- SNB Capital is quarterbacking the transaction as the sole lead manager, financial advisor, bookrunner, and underwriter. Stat Law Firm is legal advisor, EY is the financial due diligence advisor, and Arthur D. Little Saudi Arabia is acting as market consultant. The receiving agents are SNB, SNB Capital and Al Rajhi Bank.

Banks report a boost to their loan books in the last quarter -SAMA data

Bank credit across all segments of the market increased 10.7% y-o-y to SAR 2.7 tn in 1Q 2024, according to the latest SAMA monthly statistical bulletin (pdf).

The segments leading the charge: Personal loans accounted for almost 47.6% of all credit handed out by local banks in 1Q. Meanwhile, corporate credit to the real estate sector rose 27.2% y-o-y to SAR 275.2 bn in 1Q, borrowing by the wholesale and retail sector climbed 11% y-o-y to SAR 189.8 bn, and credit to manufacturers sector remained unchanged at SAR 173 bn.

Mortgage finance: New residential mortgages financed by banks in 1Q dipped 3% y-o-y to SAR 22.1 bn. Mortgage financing for houses fell 6.9% y-o-y to SAR 14.6 bn, while that of apartments rose to SAR 6.2 bn, up 5.1% y-o-y. Land mortgages rose 10.3% y-o-y to SAR 1.3 bn in 1Q 2024. Mortgages have led banks’ lending growth in the Kingdom over the past five years, S&P Global said earlier this week.

Consumer loans remained essentially unchanged at SAR 450 bn last quarter, inching down 0.7% from the same quarter last year. Car loans accounted for the lion’s share at SAR 6.7 bn, followed by home improvement at SAR 10.6 bn, education (SAR 8.1 bn), furniture and durable goods (SAR 8 bn), tourism (SAR 990 mn) and healthcare at (SAR 512 mn).

Total credit card loans rose 15.7% y-o-y to SAR 27.3 bn in 1Q.

Hospitality Management Holding has 4 new launches in the pipeline for KSA

Hospitality Management Holding is looking to expand its footprint in the Kingdom: Dubai-based Hospitality Management Holding (HMH) has four new hotel launches under its Corp Hotels brand lined up for Yanbu, Madinah, and Makkah in the next two years, according to a press release. There’s no publicly available information about the size of investment of the company’s upcoming KSA projects.

About the company: HMH provides hotel owners and developers management solutions through five hotel brands including Bahi Hotels & Resorts, Coral Hotels & Resorts, Corp Hotels, EWA Hotel Apartments, and Ecos Hotels. The company’s current operations in the local market include the 96-suites Q Suites Jeddah by EWA, Coral Jubail Hotel, and Coral Al Ahsa Hotel.

The schedule: The hotel operator is gearing up to open the 104-key Corp Yanbu Hotel and Residence next month, and the 150-key Corp Madinah Hotel in 4Q 2024. It’s also looking to bring the 460-key Corp Makkah Al Naseem Hotel live in 1Q 2025, and the 600-keys Corp Madinah Al Naqa Hotel in 1Q 2026.

Plays well into our tourism ambitions: The Tourism Ministry has more than doubled its tourism targets for 2030, hoping now to lure 150 mn tourist trips after it hit last year an earlier target of 100 mn ahead of plan.

REMEMBER- The gov’t is offering incentives to the sector and launched last week its Tourism Investment Enablers Program, which aims to make it easier for foreign and domestic investors to get licenses for a range of activities, with fees and procedures pegged to the type and scale of operations.

Renewables accounted for 30% of global electricity in 2023. Here’s how we’re faring

Renewable energy now accounts for more than 30% of the world’s electricity mix — but our part of the world is lagging behind. Driven primarily by growth in solar and wind generation capacity, renewable energy generation has risen to an unprecedented 30% of global electricity mix, nearing the goal set by over 100 countries at COP28 to triple renewable capacity by 2030, according to a new report (pdf) by think tank Ember.

The methodology: The report analyzes electricity data from 215 countries, including the latest 2023 data for 80 countries that represent 92% of global electricity demand. Regional countries included in the analysis include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, the UAE, Turkey, and Iraq, all of which were listed among the 25 largest absolute emitters of CO2.

The findings: Solar and wind now generate 13.4% of the world’s electricity, growing nearly a full nine percentage points since 2015, the report finds. Together, clean sources generated almost 40% of the world’s electricity and the CO2 intensity of global power generation reached a new record low in 2023 — 12% below its peak in 2007, Ember concludes.

The Kingdom has some ways to go to make renewables a significant component of its energy mix: Nearly all of Saudi Arabia’s electricity generation comes from fossil fuels at 99.8%. Solar made up 0.2% of the power mix, while no other renewable energy sources were used. Saudi Arabia has ambitious targets in place to have renewable energy account for 50% of its electricity generation by 2030.

Elsewhere in the region: Egypt relied on fossil fuels for 88% of its electricity last year, revealing a slower installation rate for renewables, especially for its vast untapped solar potential. Egypt is Africa's largest fossil gas generator, contributing 45% of the continent's gas generation in 2022. Fossil fuels contributed 83% of the UAE’s electricity. Nuclear power constitutes the largest share of its clean electricity at 13%, while wind and solar combined account for 4.5%. Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait are the world’s three highest per capita power sector emitters, and are all highly dependent on gas, according to Ember. Bahrain’s per capita gas generation reached 24.3k kWh per capita while Qatar’s stood at 20.2k kWh, representing nearly 100% of their electricity from gas.

The world is at a turning point: Fossil fuel generation is expected to fall by 2% worldwide this year as a result of a larger predicted renewables generation compared to fossil fuels. Renewable energy has already hindered fossil fuel growth by two-thirds in the last decade, and consequently, half of the world’s economies have passed the peak for fossil fuel electricity generation. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries are ahead of the game as their power sector emissions peaked in 2007, falling 28% since then.

Solar power led the charge: Solar power has overtaken wind as the largest contributor of clean energy for the second year in a row, and has been the fastest growing electricity generation source for 19 consecutive years. Between 2022 to 2023, solar additions shot up by 76%.

And it’s expected to grow even further in 2024: Lower costs, government support, advanced technology, and increased manufacturing capabilities have allowed for significant growth in the solar industry. Global solar generation rose only 23% last year, but 2024 is expected to further reflect the boom in capacity.

Hydropower plans fell through: Hydropower generation reached a five-year low due to drought conditions. Clean capacity added in 2023 could have reduced fossil generation by 1.1% under normal circumstances, but instead the hydropower shortage led to increased coal generation. Increasing global power sector emissions by 1%. The majority of this increase in coal generation occurred in four drought-affected countries — China, India, Vietnam, and Mexico.

Global challenges remain: While government targets and industry forecasts indicate continued acceleration in renewable energy growth, slower growth in nuclear and hydro power and the need for improved energy efficiency and grid infrastructure have hindered progress. Despite these issues, the dominance of wind and solar power points to the end of the fossil fuel era, the report concludes.

Jabal Omar Development’s new CEO takes office in June 2024

Jabal Omar Development has appointed Saad Mushabab bin Aiban (LinkedIn) as its new CEO. Aiban will assume his new position by the end of this month when current CEO Khalid Mohammed Al Amoudi’s (LinkedIn) resignation takes effect, according to a disclosure to Tadawul. Aiban previously held the position of chief project management and he boasts more than 38 years of experience at Ma’aden, and SABIC.

Telecoms powerhouse stc booked more business across all segments y-o-y in 1Q

Saudi Telecom Group (stc) reported SAR c. 3.3 bn in net income in 1Q 2024, up 5.7% y-o-y, while revenues rose 5.1% y-o-y to SAR 19.1 bn, according to its earnings release (pdf).

Growth drivers: The telecom giant credited its bottom line growth to a 1.2% uptick in revenue from its Saudi operations driven by booking more business across its commercial, carrier and wholesale unit, as well as growth in the mobility and residential segments. Revenues from subsidiaries also grew 13% y-o-y in the same quarter with Channels by stc, Solutions by stc, and STC Kuwait leading the charge in terms of revenue size, according to a disclosure to Tadawul.

Other key financial metrics: The group also increased its capex by 36% y-o-y to c. SAR 1.7 bn in 1Q. The hike in capex explains, in part, its free cashflow turning to net outflows of SAR 260 mn in 1Q 2024, compared to SAR 2 bn in net inflows in the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the company’s total debt more than doubled on an annual basis to SAR 22 bn in the same quarter.

Subscriber growth in KSA + Bahrain: Fixed broadband and telephone subscribers grew 2.2% y-o-y to 5.6 mn in 1Q 2024, while mobile subscribers grew 10.4% y-o-y to 27 mn at stc KSA, and stc Bahrain saw a 12.8% y-o-y increase in mobile subscribers to 900k in the same quarter.

REMEMBER- Stc + PIF to create region’s largest telecom infrastructure company: The related parties are working together to consolidate stc-owned Telecoms Towers Company, better known as Tawal, and Golden Lattice Investment (Glic) under a new entity that is expected to own and manage a portfolio of around 30k towers across five countries. The new entity will have annual revenues in the USD 1.3 bn range, the PIF statement reads.

The latest of its competition in Spain: “The [Spanish] government aims to buy as much as 10% of Telefonica’s shares as soon as possible, which would leave it a step ahead of the Saudi state-backed telecom’s plan to take a 9.9% stake.”

Double kudos: stc clinched the top spot as the most valuable telecoms brand in the Middle East after a 12% increase in brand value to USD 13.9 bn. It ranked as the region’s second strongest brand in the region with a brand strength index score of 88.1/100. It has clinched the top spot as Saudi’s best workplace in LinkedIn’s 2024 Top Companies. It unseated Aramco as Saudi’s top workplace this year, ending the oil giant’s three-year streak at the top of the list.

National Water Company starts work on SAR 1.5 bn-worth of water + sewage projects

INFRASTRUCTURE-

#1- PIF unit kicks off water projects worth a combined SAR 1.5 bn: The National Water Company has begun implementing 12 water and sewage network projects worth a combined SAR 1.5 bn in 50 neighborhoods in the Eastern Province, state news agency SPA reports.

The breakdown: Some SAR 530 will be allocated to Al-Khobar, and another 498 mn will go to projects in Dammam, while Al-Qatif’s share of the investments is at SAR 357 mn, Al-Aziziah at SAR 27 mn, Dhahran at SAR 17 mn, Al-Ahsa at a combined SAR 30 mn, and Hafar Al-Batin at SAR 24 mn.

#2- Red Sea International subsidiary Fundamental Installation for Electric Work secured a SAR 113 mn EPC contract for Jeddah Central Development, according to a disclosure to Tadawul. The company will provide engineering, procurement, and construction services for mechanical and electric works related to site preparation and infrastructure at Jeddah Central Development Project with Modern Building Leaders. The contract runs for 379 days.

TECHNOLOGY-

Al Moammar Information Systems inked a SAR c. 72 mn contract with the National Center for Government Resources Systems to establish a continuous monitoring system for NCGR in a bid to boost the center’s control mechanisms and financial risk management, according to a disclosure to Tadawul. The contract runs for a period of 36 months.

DEBT-

Al Rajhi Bank is lining up a USD-denominated sukuk issuance, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul, without providing details on the expected size or timeline for the debt sale. The issuance, which will be made through an SPV, will come under its tier 1 capital sukuk program. The debt will be made available to Saudi and international investors.

Advisors: The banking giant hired Al Rajhi Capital Company, Citigroup Global Markets, Dubai Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD Bank, Goldman Sachs International, HSBC, and Standard Chartered Bank as joint lead managers & bookrunners.

INS.-

Privately-held Saudi company Tharwaa Gulf Holding has offloaded its entire 15% stake in Allied Cooperative Ins. Group (ACIG), ACIG said in a filing to Tadawul. Tharwaa divested its stake, equivalent to 4.4 ordinary shares, in a private sale to Riyadh-based Private Wealth Investment Holding at a price of SAR 65.5 mn.

MANUFACTURING-

Methanol Chemicals (Chemanol) has been allocated a plot of land for its upcoming SAR 420 mn methane plant in Jubail’s PlasChem Park, under an agreement with Jubail and Yanbu Industrial Cities Services, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul. Chemanol plans to set up and run its choline chloride and methyl diethanolamine methane facility in the park.

Background: The company lined up its feedstock allocation needs for the facility from the Energy Ministry back in December of last year, for the purpose of producing a range of specialty petrochemical products set to be “the first of their kind in the region,” it said in an earlier disclosure. Output of methyl diethanolamine, choline chloride dimethyl disulfide, and N-methyl pyrrolidone will be used in the oil and gas, pharma, fertilizers, carbon capture industries, among others.

ENTERTAINMENT-

More UFC in KSA: Riyadh Season will host another Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event during the Riyadh Season 2024-2025, after signing an agreement to extend its partnership with UFC, General Entertainment Authority Chairman Turki Al Sheikh said on X. Riyadh will also host Power Slap competitions (a subset of the UFC brand), and secures a sponsorship from Riyadh Season for the scheduled UFC fight at Las Vegas’ The Sphere, which will be named Riyadh Season Fight. Riyadh Season has been working to host and sponsor prominent global attractions to diversify and expand its audience and content.

What’s next: The first UFC event taking place under the extended partnership is scheduled for 22 June, 2024. Middleweights Khamzat Chimaev and former champion Robert Whittaker will meet for the UFC Fight Night at the Kingdom Arena.

LOGISTICS-

Saudi tech firm TruKKer now has a new integrated freight forwarding subsidiary, Omnilog, offering different air, sea, and land freight to connect major trade lanes in Asia, Europe, and both Americas, the company said on Tuesday. The subsidiary is now operational in the UAE, KSA, and Turkey, TruKKer said. No further details were disclosed.

About TruKKer:TruKKer is a digital freight network player connecting businesses with truck operators on busy inter-GCC and inter-Middle East land routes. The company runs an asset-light model, meaning it facilitates bookings through its platform without directly owning trucks. TruKKer’s investors include IFC, Abu Dhabi's Mubadala and ADQ, Saudi Technology Ventures, and Investcorp.

TOURISM + REAL ESTATE-

#1- Seera Group’s Almosafer will promote tourism developments for the Public Investment Fund’s Red Sea Global (RSG) under a new partnership, according to a statement (pdf). The agreement will see Almosafer work on marketing RSG’s touristic projects, host workshops, and provide training services to improve RSG’s services. Almosafer will also curate experiences and feature RSG’s destinations on its consumer travel platform, corporate travel segment, and its destination management company, Discover Saudi, it added. No further information was disclosed.

#2- Neom is adding a new residential luxury marina development on the Gulf of Aqaba coast, it said in a statement (pdf). The development, Jaumur, is set to include 500 apartments, some 700 luxury villas, and two 350-key hotels with a combined capacity to house up to 6k residents, Neom said. Some of the planned units have access to a waterfront and private boat docks. Jaumur will also feature a boarding school and a marine sciences research institute, along with cultural and entertainment spots, retail shops, and restaurants. No details were provided on the cost or timeline for the new development.

HOSPITALITY-

Tadawul-listed real estate firm Taiba Investments will implement an advanced cloud-based reservation system across its portfolio of 20 hotels, under a new partnership with Nasdaq-listed software company Sabre Corporation, they said in a joint press release. The platform — Synxis Central Reservation System — will help hotels manage their bookings, inventories, and pricing, in addition to increasing their online visibility.

EDUCATION-

Saudi Arabia and Canada are looking to increase educational cooperation through joint research, technical training, capacity building, student and faculty exchange, curriculum development and opening external centers, Saudi Education Minister Youssef Al Benyan and Canada’s Ambassador in Riyadh Jean-Philippe Linteau said at the Saudi-Canadian Forum for Educational Partnership, which began on Tuesday, according to Asharq Al Awsat. The two sides focused in particular on information technology, tourism, health care, clean energy, mining, and agriculture.

FASHION-

The Saudi Fashion Commission rolled out the first-of-its-kind product development studio in Riyadh, named The Lab, news state agency SPA reports. Located in Mohammed bin Salman Nonprofit City, the Lab will offer workshops, training programs, and design facilities to streamline the clothes manufacturing process, in an effort to support the local fashion scene.

On who will lead Apple after Tim cook, slumping pandemic winners, and real estate jitters

It’s a mixed bag this morning on Planet Finance. No single story has captured the imagination of the global business press, but here are a handful worth knowing about:

#1- The best performers from the pandemic era? Their stock prices are tanking. Shares in Tesla, Zoom, Byd, Pinterest, Pinterest and others who boomed during the early days of covid-19 are now struggling, according to Financial Times reporting based on data from Bloomberg and S&P Global.

The 50 shares that performed the best in 2020 have lost about a third of their value since the start of 2021, shedding the equivalent of about USD 1.5 tn in market cap.

#2- Tim Cook won’t be at Apple forever. Is John Ternus emerging as his successor? That’s the claim from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, a longtime Apple watcher who was the only pundit we can think of who correctly said the company would use the M4 chip in the iPad Pros it announced earlier this week. The Apple hardware engineering boss is well-liked and respected and is a more likely candidate even than software Craig Federighi.

#3- Turkish central bankers hope that a projected 36% inflation rate by year’s end will attract foreign interest in its local currency debt. Pundits think this month will see inflation there peak at about 70%, suggesting that real interest rates are coming in at something around -20%. (Bloomberg)

#4- Jitters about the global real estate market are still in the spotlight, with the Financial Times taking note of rents falling in Hong Kong amid softening demand for both corporate and residential real estate. And high-profile US real estate investor Barry Sternlicht warns that he expects as much as one small regional US bank to fail every week as property owners struggle with high interest rates, inflation, and vacant properties, writes Fortune.

AND speaking of interest rates: Sweden cut rates for the first time in eight years “as European monetary policymakers diverge from the US to support their economies even if it comes at the expense of their currencies.”

MARKETS THIS MORNING-

Asian markets are truly mixed this morning, with the ASX 200 and Kospi each down less than 1% and the Nikkei, Hang Seng, and Shanghai Composite all up around 0.2% — with no obvious driver in sight backing this morning’s performance.

US equities futures were flat overnight after the Dow turned in its sixth straight day of gains, while European stock futures point to a weak (if positive) open for markets across the continent.

TASI	12,460	+0.8% (YTD: +4.1%)
MSCI Tadawul 30	1,557	+0.6% (YTD: +0.4%)
NomuC	26,886	+0.5% (YTD: +9.6%)
USD : SAR (SAMA)	3.75 Sell	3.75 Buy
Interest rates	6.5% repo	5.5% reverse repo
EGX30	25,988	-1.7% (YTD: +4.4%)
ADX	9,177	+1.2% (YTD: -4.2%)
DFM	4,193	+0.9% (YTD: +3.3%)
S&P 500	5,188	0.0% (YTD: +8.8%)
FTSE 100	8,354	+0.5% (YTD: +8.2%)
Euro Stoxx 50	5,038	+0.4% (YTD: +11.6%)
Brent crude	83.48	+0.4%
Natural gas (Nymex)	2.18	-1.2%
Gold	2,322.4	-0.1%
BTC	USD 61,518.20	-2.3% (YTD: +45.5%)

THE CLOSING BELL: TADAWUL-

The TASI rose 0.8% yesterday on turnover of SAR 8.1 bn. The index is up +4.1% YTD.

In the green: Acwa Power (+9.7%), Alkhaleej Trng (+8.9%) and Medgulf (+8.1%).

In the red: Nahdi (-2.5%), Tawuniya (-2.4%) and Jabal Omar (-2.3%).

THE CLOSING BELL: NOMU-

The NomuC rose 0.5% yesterday on turnover of SAR 38.7 mn. The index is up 9.6% YTD.

In the green: Academy of Learning (+7.4%), Alhasoob (+7%) and Pan Gulf (+6.2%).

In the red: Mayar (-5.8%), Mulkia (-4.2%) and AlMohafaza for Education (-3.3%)

CORPORATE ACTIONS-

Saudi Telecom’s board of directors approved a dividend payout of SAR 1.99 bn at SAR 0.4 per share for 1Q 2024, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul. Dividends will be distributed on Monday, 10 June.

CALENDAR

MAY

4-11 May (Saturday-Saturday): Saudi Smash 2024.

6-9 May (Monday-Thursday): Saudi Smart Manufacturing, Riyadh.

6-9 May (Monday-Thursday): Saudi Smart Logistics, Riyadh.

9-11 May (Thursday-Saturday): The Icon Show, Jeddah.

12 May (Sunday): Bookbuilding starts for Rasan’s Tadawul IPO.

13 May (Monday): Saudi Giga Projects, Riyadh.

13-15 May (Monday-Wednesday): Smart Future Expo, Riyadh.

13-15 May (Monday-Wednesday): Poultry Expo Riyadh.

14-15 May (Tuesday-Wednesday): Saudi Great Futures, Riyadh.

15-16 May (Wednesday-Thursday): Arab Forum of Anti-Corruption, Riyadh.

16-18 May (Thursday-Saturday): Red Sea Fashion Week, The St. Regis Red Sea Resort.

19-21 May (Sunday-Tuesday): Saudi Energy Convention, Riyadh.

20-21 May (Monday-Tuesday): Future Projects Forum, Four Seasons Hotel, Riyadh.

20-22 May (Monday-Wednesday): Future Aviation Forum 2024, Riyadh.

21-23 May (Tuesday-Thursday): The Saudi Food Show, Riyadh.

25 May (Saturday): Bidding deadline for Duba’s seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant in Tabuk.

27-28 May (Monday-Tuesday): Smart Data & AI Summit Saudi, JW Marriott Hotel, Riyadh.

Signposted to happen sometime in May:

Global Trade Review (GTR): KSA
Saudi Energy Convention

JUNE

2-3 June (Sunday-Monday): Global Project Management Forum, Riyadh.

4-7 June (Tuesday-Friday): Saudi Sports Show, Riyadh.

4-7 June (Tuesday-Friday): Aqarat Expo, Riyadh.

5 June (Wednesday): World Environment Day.

14-22 June (Friday-Saturday): Banks and capital markets closed for Eid Al Adha holiday.

AUGUST

12-15 August (Monday-Thursday): The Saudi Food Expo, Riyadh

SEPTEMBER

11-12 September (Wednesday-Thursday): The Saudi Event Show, Riyadh.

17-19 September (Tuesday-Thursday): EV Auto Show, Riyadh.

24-26 September (Tuesday-Thursday) Saudi Infrastructure Expo, Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center, Riyadh.

23 September (Monday): National Day (national holiday)

NOVEMBER

2-9 November (Saturday- Saturday): WTA Finals, Riyadh.

26-28 November (Tuesday-Thursday): Saudi Electricity Expo, Riyadh.

11-14 November (Monday-Thursday): Cityscape Global, Riyadh.

25-27 November (Monday-Wednesday): World Investment Conference, Riyadh.

26-28 November (Tuesday-Thursday): Saudi Electricity Expo, Riyadh.

DECEMBER

2-13 December (Monday-Friday): Conference of the Parties (COP16) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, Riyadh.

Signposted to happen sometime in 2024:

The AFC Champions League Elite

2025

FEBRUARY 2024

10-13 February (Monday-Thursday): Leap 2025, the Kingdom’s premier tech investment conference.

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