{"id":88983,"date":"2024-08-25T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-25T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2024\/08\/25\/severe-weather-warning\/"},"modified":"2024-08-25T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-08-25T00:00:00","slug":"severe-weather-warning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2024\/08\/25\/severe-weather-warning\/","title":{"rendered":"Severe weather warning"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to a new week.<\/strong> We have a tight but meaty issue for you with which to begin the final work week of August, leading with the Kingdom\u2019s latest trade figures. <\/p>\n

HAPPENING TODAY-<\/p>\n

<\/a> #1- The five-day Tourism Week organized by Monsha\u2019at will get underway in a few hours<\/strong> at the Enterprise Support Centers in Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar, and Madinah. The event \u2014 designed to give the national tourism industry a shot in the arm \u2014 will include workshops and other events to help entrepreneurs and investors in the industry. You can check out the agenda here<\/a>, and register here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

#2- Team Falcons is set to be crowned <\/strong>the 2024 Esports World Cup club champions<\/a><\/strong> today at<\/strong> Boulevard Riyadh City<\/strong>, clinching a USD 7 mn purse. Before wrapping up today, the World Cup will see the SEF Arena host the grand finals of StarCraft II, EA Sports FC 24, and Call of Duty. The tournament saw top esports clubs compete for a pool of USD 60 mn<\/a>, the largest purse in esports.<\/p>\n

#3- <\/strong>The New Global Sport Conference 2024 concludes today<\/strong>, having brought together 1,200 global delegates from esports, gaming, business, and entertainment for a two-day summit. The event focused on discussing the \u201ctransformative integration of esports into the Olympic movement,\u201d according to a press release<\/a>.<\/p>\n

#4- A new competition for geospatial apps kicks off today.<\/strong> The initiative, led by the General<\/a><\/a>Authority for Survey and Geospatial Information<\/a>, aims to improve national geospatial infrastructure by inviting innovative applications that use national geospatial data. The competition will run for a month from today. To participate or inquire, send an email to ngc@geosa.gov.sa<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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<\/a> \u26a0\ufe0fWEATHER WARNING- Severe thunderstorms and rain across the Kingdom until <\/strong>Tuesday:<\/strong> The General Directorate of Civil Defense issued warnings<\/a> for heavy rain, flooding, and strong winds between Friday and Thursday in Makkah<\/a>, Madinah, Al Baha<\/a>, Asir<\/a>, Jazan<\/a>, and Najran<\/a>. Lighter showers will hit Jeddah<\/a>, Riyadh, and the Eastern Province, while flash floods have already struck Madinah<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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PSAs- <\/p>\n

<\/a> #1- <\/strong>Saudi nationals can visit Sri Lanka without a visa starting Tuesday, October 1, under a<\/strong> new six-month pilot program designed to boost tourism<\/strong>, Reuters<\/a> reports. This program also grants a 30-day visa upon arrival to tourists from 35 countries, including the UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain.<\/p>\n

#2- The General Authority for Competition fined 14 contracting firms a total of SAR 6.5<\/strong> mn<\/strong> for collusion on government projects and violation of Competition Law, according to a post on X.<\/a> <\/p>\n

WATCH THIS SPACE-<\/p>\n

#1- The Saudi economy is projected to recover in 2H 2024, with GDP expected to grow<\/strong> 1.7% this year and 4.7% in 2025<\/strong>, Zawya<\/a> reports citing a report by research firm CreditSights<\/a>. \u201cTo a large extent this recession<\/a> was self-inflicted, with the authorities deliberately reducing oil production by 8.5% to support global prices \u2014 as well as the Kingdom\u2019s public finances,\u201d said Regis Chatellier, head of EM sovereign strategy at CreditSights. The external surplus is likely to remain slightly positive if oil prices stay around USD 80 per barrel, though a drop in prices could widen fiscal deficits. \u201cWe maintain our \u2018Outperform\u2019 call on Saudi Arabia\u2019s sovereign bonds,\u201d Chatellier added. <\/p>\n

<\/a> #2- M&A WATCH- <\/strong>Liva Ins.<\/a><\/strong> and <\/strong>Malath Cooperative Ins.<\/a><\/strong> signed a non-binding MoU to<\/strong> consider a potential merger<\/strong>, according to a disclosure to Tadawul<\/a>. Under the agreement, both companies will conduct financial and legal due diligence. If the transaction goes through, one of the companies would fully take over the other in a transaction that would see the buyer issue new shares for the shareholders of the seller.<\/p>\n

#3- AlBabtain Food eyes chocolate factory to capitalize on rising domestic demand:<\/strong> AlBabtain Food<\/a> is set to make an investment into a local chocolate factory, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul<\/a>. The move is pending financial and technical studies to determine the scope of investment. It\u2019s unclear whether this is a greenfield or brownfield investment. <\/p>\n

#4- REGULATION WATCH- <\/strong>Saudi Arabia is exploring incentives for the nonprofit sector, such as exemptions from labor and expat fees, zakat, and customs duties, Saudi Gazette<\/a> quotes Human Resources and Social Development Minister Ahmed Al Rajhi as saying. A committee is reviewing 21 proposed incentives and will deliver its recommendations by October.<\/p>\n

#5- Over 700k private sector facilities inspected in 1H 2024 for labor law violations:<\/strong> Inspections from the Human Resources and Social Development Ministry led to 88.8k warnings and found 107.3k establishments in violation of various labor regulations, the ministry said in a statement<\/a>. Key issues included failure to raise wages (60k cases), unpaid salaries (16.3k cases), and unauthorized employment of foreigners (7.7k cases). <\/p>\n

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DATA POINTS-<\/p>\n

#1- <\/strong>King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh set a new record for passenger traffic in <\/strong>July<\/strong>, with 3.5 mn visitors, up from a previous high of 3.1 mn in June, news state agency SPA<\/a> reported. Seat occupancy rates at the airport logged 91% during the month. <\/p>\n

#2- Saudi Arabia attracted 13 international education companies to its private K-12<\/strong> education <\/strong>sector over the past 14 months<\/strong>, Aleqtisadiah<\/a> reported, citing an unidentified source. <\/p>\n

#3- Saudi Arabia\u2019s robo-advisor assets under management grew 236% <\/strong>y-o-y<\/strong> in 1Q 2024 to<\/strong> SAR 980<\/strong>mn<\/strong>, Aleqtisadiah<\/a> reported, citing data from the Capital Market Authority. Meanwhile, the number of investors joining robo-advisor platforms grew 282% to 172k.<\/p>\n

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SPORTS-<\/p>\n

<\/a> New transfers:<\/strong> Al Shabab signed Wes Hoedt<\/a> and made him team captain, while the club\u2019s women\u2019s team signed ex-PSG star Kheira Hamraoui<\/a>. Meanwhile, Johann Berg Gudmundsson<\/a> joined Al Orobah<\/a>, and Dieng<\/a> will move to Al-Kholood on loan for the 2024\/2025 season.<\/p>\n

WHISPERS- <\/strong>Al Ittihad has shown serious interest in acquiring FC Barcelona\u2019s center-back \u00cd\u00f1igo Mart\u00ednez, according to Fichajes<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Results<\/strong> of the Saudi Pro League matchday 1 of 34:<\/strong><\/p>\n