Good morning, folks. It’s a relatively busy day, leaving us with a flurry of important debt, IPO, rail, and investment updates from across the region and the globe. We also have the latest earnings from regional airlines — and you can tell the Israel-Iran disruptions during 2Q have left a little dent. But first, some good news on the US-China trade front, for now…

THE BIG LOGISTICS STORY- The US and China have agreed to extend their tariff truce for another 90 days, but a final trade agreement is still far from ensured. The update came after negotiators in Sweden reached an agreement hours before the expiry of the truce, which was set to impose up to 145% tariffs on Chinese imports. “All other elements of the agreement will remain the same,” Trump said on Truth Social overnight

What does this mean? Under the extended truce, US levies on Chinese goods will stay at 30%, whereas Chinese levies will remain at 10% — and both countries will keep the flow of microchips and rare earth minerals as agreed during their London talks earlier this summer.

The extension is set to give anxious businesses more breathing room, but concerns over global trade disruption will remain high as the world’s two biggest economies work on securing a permanent agreement.

The story was all over the int’l press: Associated Press | Reuters | Bloomberg | Financial Times | Axios | CNN | CNBC | New York Times | BBC | The Guardian

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Etihad Rail in talks with Kenya to invest in freight operations on new line? Kenya is looking to raise USD 4 bn to securitize an import levy for the funding of a China-built railway extension, where it is looking to tap UAE railway operator Etihad Rail to run freight operations on the line, Bloomberg reports, citing an interview with Transport Secretary Davis Chirchir. The talks come as part of plans to allow private firms to run operations of Kenya’s railway.

The section will be built as an extension to the USD 5 bn Standard Gauge — which links the port of Mombasa to Naivasha through Nairobi — to the southwestern Kenyan city of Kisumu and Malaba on the Ugandan border.

Etihad Rail’s involvement could require Kenya to go the extra mile — literally: The railway network could be expanded to South Sudan, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to make a business case for Etihad to invest, as Etihad Rail requires freight traffic of at least 17 mn tons a year to “justify a return on investment,” Chirchir is quoted as saying. Talks are now ongoing to see if Kenyan crude can be transported via railway wagons from fields in the north of the country, amounting to some 3 mn tons annually.

Etihad Rail has been venturing outside of the UAE: The railway operator is developing a USD 2.3 bn railway network in Jordan, and has been exploring potential projects in Pakistan, South Sudan and Chad, and expanding links with other GCC countries, including Oman, through Hafeet Rail, and Qatar.

#2- The Egyptian gov’t has given the green light to establish four new public freezones, which will be situated in Tenth of Ramadan City, New October, New Borg El Arab, and New Alamein, according to an Industry Ministry statement. Under the Ministerial Group for Industrial Development-approved plan, factories in the zones will only be allowed to export their goods, except in cases approved by the ministerial group, and be charged market rates for energy prices without subsidies.

The move follows occupancy rates in existing public freezones hitting 95%, according to the statement.

#3- Saudi-based e-commerce fulfillment startup Salasa plans to help local 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.

#4- AfDB to lead funding round for Ethiopia’s new airport: Ethiopia tapped African Development Bank (AfDB) to raise as much as USD 8 bn for the development of the new Bishoftu International Airport, according to an AfDB statement. AfDB will also provide some USD 500 mn in financing for the project, subject to board approval.

The ball is rolling: State-owned Ethiopian Airlines inked an agreement to design the new four-runway airport in Bishoftu, located some 45 km southeast of the capital Addis Ababa, Reuters reports. The airline will offer up around 20% of the total funding, earmarked at USD 10 bn, with the rest set to be derived from creditors.

An ambitious play: The new airport — possibly the continent’s largest — is slated for a 2029 completion and is expected to handle 110 mn passengers annually, “quadrupling Ethiopia’s aviation capacity and [doubling] tourist inflow in 10 years,” Ethiopian Finance Minister Ahmed Shide said at the signing event. Construction for the airport’s first phase is expected later this year, according to AfDB.

Not the first we’ve heard: Ethiopian Airlines and AfDB signed a letter of intent to partner on the project back in March.

#5- Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) reached an agreement with the US government to pay a 15% fee on their chip sales to China, Bloomberg reports. 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. Nvidia will pay the fee on its H20 chips, while AMD will pay the fee on revenues from its MI308 chips.

There’s more: Nvidia could separately be allowed to sell a version of another next-generation chip to China, Reuters reports. Intel is also getting ink after its CEO Lip-Bu Tan met with Trump yesterday, a few days after the president called for his “immediate” resignation from the company over his ties to China, the Financial Times reports.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices went up this morning, buoyed by market optimism following the 90-day extension of the US-China trade truce, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures surged by USD 0.26 to reach USD 66.89 / bbl by 00.15 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose USD 0.22 to trade at USD 64.18 / bbl.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is expected to export less crude oil to China in September, down from August volumes that were at a more than two-year high, Reuters reports, citing trade sources. Aramco is projected to ship about 43 mn bbl to China next month, equivalent to 1.43 mn bbl / d, compared to 1.65 mn bbl / d in August, the newswire said, citing a tally of allocations to Chinese refiners.

REMEMBER- Saudi Aramco raised the price of its flagship Arab Light crude bound for Asia by USD 1 / bbl for September deliveries, taking the premium to USD 3.20 / bbl above the Oman-Dubai benchmark. That’s higher than the USD 0.90 hike traders had expected and marks the second straight month in which the Kingdom raised prices.

China is expected to reach peak oil demand at 16.9 mn bbl / d by around 2027, and its crude oil stockpiling is playing a role in shaping global oil markets this year, with reserves swelling by 1.42 mn bbl / d in June.

Chinese refiners have stuck to a familiar playbook this year, ramping up crude imports when prices dip and scaling back when they climb, according to AInvest. In 1H 2025, with Brent trading between USD 58.50 and USD 82.63 a barrel, imports rose to 12.14 mn bbl / d in 2Q as prices hit a four-year low. When prices rose earlier in the year, import volumes eased.

#2- Baltic index snaps losing streak: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — dropped 0.6% to 2,038 points on Monday. The capesize decreased 0.8% to 3,317 points, while the panamax index dipped by 1.3% to 1,614 points. The smaller supramax index went up by 0.4% to 1,325 points.

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CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host the Africa Procurement and Supply Chain Leaders’ Conference on Monday, 25 August until Friday, 29 August in Dubai. The conference will host global industry leaders, policymakers and stakeholders to discuss how AI is changing procurement and supply chain efficiency, sustainability and risk management.

Oman will host Transport Middle East on Monday, 1 September until Wednesday, 3 September in Salalah. The conference will host 35 international speakers and over 50 exhibitors from the maritime sector to discuss global transportation and logistics.

Saudi Arabia will host the Sustainable Maritime Industry Conference on Wednesday, 3 and Thursday, 4 September in Jeddah. The event is set to gather over 60 speakers and more than 3k participants to discuss maritime decarbonization, digital transformation, regulatory frameworks, capacity building, and sustainable practices.

Algeria will host the Intra-African Trade Fair on Thursday, 4 September until Wednesday, 10 September in Algiers. The fair will host over 75 countries and 2k exhibitors across several sectors to explore investment prospects and exchange information on trade between B2B and B2G.

Oman will host the Comex Global Technology Show on Sunday, 7 September and run till Wednesday, 10 September in Muscat. The event will host over 360 participants and 133 tech startups to show achievements in eGovernment, fintech, smart cities, health tech, agritech and cybersecurity.

Saudi Arabia will host the Smart Ports & Logistics Transformation Summit on Monday, 15 September and Tuesday, 16 September in Jeddah. The summit will host over 40 global and local speakers, industry experts and policymakers to explore smart port solutions, port operations and logistics within Saudi Arabia.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.

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Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.

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