{"id":85006,"date":"2024-04-03T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-03T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2024\/04\/03\/still-no-word-about-what-jake-sullivan-during-his-visit-to-saudi-yesterday-with-top-white-house-officials\/"},"modified":"2024-04-03T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-04-03T00:00:00","slug":"still-no-word-about-what-jake-sullivan-during-his-visit-to-saudi-yesterday-with-top-white-house-officials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2024\/04\/03\/still-no-word-about-what-jake-sullivan-during-his-visit-to-saudi-yesterday-with-top-white-house-officials\/","title":{"rendered":"Still no word about what Jake Sullivan during his visit to Saudi yesterday with top White House officials"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, friends. <\/strong>It\u2019s a reasonably quiet news morning as we head into the final workdays of Ramadan, with no single story capturing the imagination. <\/p>\n

And there\u2019s no news yet about Jake Sullivan\u2019s visit yesterday. <\/strong>Biden administration\u2019s national security advisor and two other senior White House officials were due to touch down for talks with Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohamed bin Salman. Normalization of ties with Israel, a defense pact, a nuclear agreement, and statehood for Palestine were all expected to be on the agenda. <\/p>\n

WEATHER- Expect more rain today in<\/strong> Riyadh, so <\/strong>grab your rain boots and umbrella once <\/strong>again<\/strong>. <\/strong>There\u2019s a chance of thunderstorms starting at noon and continuing throughout the afternoon and potentially overnight Look for a daytime high of 29\u00b0C today. <\/p>\n

Over in AlUla<\/strong>, expect scattered rain and a high of 28\u00b0C, while Al Taif<\/strong> is also looking at light showers today with a high of 23\u00b0C.<\/p>\n

** So, when do we eat?<\/strong> Maghrib prayers are at 6:10 pm in the capital city, and you\u2019ll have until 4:24 am tomorrow to hydrate and caffeinate ahead of fajr. Today is day 24 of Ramadan.<\/p>\n

Remember: <\/strong>Businesses will be off for Eid Al Fitr from Tuesday, 9 April through Friday, 13 April<\/a>, while banks and the stock market will be closed from Friday, 5 April, through Saturday, 13 April<\/a>.<\/p>\n

**<\/strong> Tap or click here to read this story on our website<\/strong> and access all of the external links.<\/p>\n

DATA POINTS-<\/p>\n

<\/a> #1- Tadawul-listed companies\u2019 total net income fell 17% y-o-y to SAR 126.8 bn in <\/strong>4Q 2023<\/strong>, driven by Aramco\u2019s 18% y-o-y decline along with pressure on the bottom lines of petrochemical, energy, and petrochemical sectors, according to data seen by Argaam<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The heavyweights:<\/strong> The energy sector accounted for 81% of aggregate net income in 4Q 2023, followed by banks at 13.7%, and telecoms at 2.7%.<\/p>\n

<\/a> #2- Foreign investment licenses in the real estate sector rose 64% y-o-y to 46 <\/strong>licenses in 2023<\/strong>, according to data seen by Aleqtisadiah<\/a>. Some 23 real estate investment transactions were concluded in 4Q 2023, topping the list of investments in all sectors. <\/p>\n

#3- The number of women employees registered with the General Organization for Social <\/strong>Ins. (GOSI) <\/strong>grew by c.11% y-o-y in 2023 to hit the 1 mn mark for the first time, data compiled by Okaz<\/a> showed.<\/p>\n

***
<\/strong>DID YOU KNOW that we also cover <\/strong>Egypt<\/a><\/strong> and the <\/strong>UAE<\/a><\/strong>?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Were you forwarded this email? <\/strong>Tap or click here<\/a> to get your own copy of EnterpriseAM Saudi delivered every weekday before 7am Riyadh time \u2014 without charge, thanks to our friends at Cenomi.
***<\/strong><\/p>\n

OIL WATCH-<\/p>\n

<\/a> Don\u2019t expect any output policy changes by Opec+ today:<\/strong> A ministerial panel by OPEC+ is not expected to make any recommendations for changes to the current oil output policy in its meeting today, five Opec+ sources told Reuters<\/a> yesterday. The meeting comes weeks after Opec+ members, led by Saudi and Russia, extended voluntary curbs<\/a> that will remain in effect through June 2024<\/p>\n

WATCH THIS SPACE-<\/p>\n

#1- <\/strong>An initial study <\/strong>for the Saudi-Kuwait railway link is set to be completed within the <\/strong>next three months,<\/strong> as part of the project\u2019s first phase which will determine the railway\u2019s route and seek necessary approvals, Kuwait\u2019s Alanbaa<\/a> wrote, citing sources within Kuwait\u2019s Ministry of Public Works. The 650 km long line will connect Kuwait\u2019s Shadadiyah to Riyadh. The design-focused second phase of the project is set to be completed in about a year. Phase three is a three-year construction project, with the line expected to be ready to start handling traffic as early as 2028.<\/p>\n

#2- Have your say on a cap on pensions: <\/strong>The General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) is asking for public feedback on the idea of setting a SAR 45k per-month ceiling on pensions. You can go deeper into the proposed changes here (pdf)<\/a> and weigh in through the Istitlaa<\/a> platform<\/p>\n

<\/a> #3-<\/strong>The Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) aims to greenlight industrial <\/strong>loans worth<\/strong> a total of SAR 9-12 <\/strong>bn this year<\/strong>, it told Al Eqtisadiah<\/a> yesterday, with some SAR 6-8 bn of that figure to be disbursed this year. It offered no additional context on priority sectors or borrowing costs.<\/p>\n

About the fund: <\/strong>The SIDF was set up as a governmental financial institution to help provide financing to industry. It has provided financing of more than SAR 150 bn since it was set up in the early 1970s.<\/p>\n

#5- <\/strong>The Capital Market Authority (CMA) has asked prosecutors to investigate <\/strong>Dubai-based <\/strong>Elmar Capital<\/a><\/strong>and Elmar Financial <\/strong>for allegedly engaging in unauthorized trading of securities, it said in a statement<\/a> yesterday.<\/p>\n

#3- More want in on MidOcean Energy amid Aramco and friends\u2019 play for LNG: <\/strong>Japanese trading house Mitsubishi announced a \u201cstrategic investment\u201d in LNG company MidOcean Energy to \u201caccelerate MidOcean\u2019s strategy to create a high quality, diversified, global \u2018pure play\u2019 integrated LNG company,\u201d according to a statement by MidOcean Energy<\/a> yesterday. <\/p>\n

The Saudi connection: <\/strong>The move comes amid a strong investor appetite in LNG, with Aramco saying last month<\/a> that it could explore with MidOcean Energy the possibility of investing in LNG projects outside of Australia. The state-owned oil giant agreed last year<\/a> to acquire a strategic minority stake in MidOcean Energy for USD 500 mn, marking its first foray into global LNG.<\/p>\n

PSA- <\/p>\n

The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (Zatca) is reminding businesses once again of a <\/strong>set 30 June deadline to submit their tax returns <\/strong>if they want to benefit from its tax fine waiver scheme, according to a statement by Zatca<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On the exemption menu: <\/strong>Exemptions apply on fines for late registration, late payment, late filing of tax returns, and a correction for value-added tax returns among others. Tax dodgers need not apply for an exemption, nor should folks who paid fines before the exemption program began.<\/p>\n

SPORTS-<\/p>\n

Here are the results from yesterday\u2019s Saudi Pro League matches:<\/strong><\/p>\n