Good morning, nice people. The weekend has finally arrived and today’s issue is dominated by earnings from Adnoc L&S, Saudi Logistics Co, Nakilat and global shipping giant Maersk. We also have a financing update from construction works at Ain Sokhna Port. Shall we?

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Italy won’t stand in the way of Adnoc-backed VTTI’s acquisition of Adriatic LNG: The Italian government won’t opt for the Golden Power clause to block or restrict Adnoc-backed VTTI ’s acquisition of Italy’s largest LNG terminal Adriatic LNG, Reuters reported, citing sources it says are in the know. The Golden Power regulations allow the Italian government to veto or impose conditions on transactions involving strategic assets.

Background: ExxonMobil and QatarEnergy agreed in March to sell their stakes in Adriatic LNG in a transaction that would see VTTI acquire a 70% stake in the terminal and Italian gas grid operator Snam increasing its share to 30%. The transaction could reportedly value the terminal at EUR 800 mn, including debt.

Who owns what? ExxonMobil owns 70.7% of Adriatic LNG, while QatarEnergy owns 22%, and Italian gas grid operator Snam owns the remaining 7.3%. VTTI’s shareholders include Adnoc, the world’s largest oil trader Vitol, and Australian investment manager IFM. Adnoc acquired a 10% stake in VTTI in 2019.

#2- Etihad Cargo is dividing its business into four regions to drive business growth and boost market-specific capacities, according to a statement. The firm is diversifying its global network by splitting it into four regions managed by newly appointed regional directors. The company will also be developing its customer experience department, adding tailored customer-centric solutions to boost client satisfaction and streamline operations.

The breakdown: The global network will be divided into South Asia and Oceania, managed by Bernard Lee (LinkedIn), North Eastern Asia, managed by Jacqueline Han, Europe and the Americas, managed by Rainer Krammer (LinkedIn), and Africa, the Middle East and CIS, managed by Grant Kemp (LinkedIn), according to the statement.

#3- Qatar + US team up to fight Chinese market dominance: The Qatar Investment Authority has agreed to pour USD 180 mn into Dublin-based TechMet, a mining investment vehicle supported by the US International Development Finance Cooperation, the Financial Times reported. The move aims to counter China’s control over critical mineral supplies, including lithium and cobalt used to power EVs. The investment ticket is part of a sixth funding round of USD 300 mn, with a USD 50 mn investment from the US DFC and USD 70 mn raised by investors including US-based S2G Ventures.

A first: This marks the first collaboration between Western and Gulf states to challenge Chinese dominance over the supply of clean energy minerals. US officials — including President Joe Biden — have been working to persuade wealthy gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, to use their financial capabilities to invest in US initiatives to extract and process critical minerals for industrial use.

Not the only fighter: US-based Albermale — the world’s largest lithium producer — is urging governments to help it compete against Chinese lithium, a key component in EVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles. A collapse in the lithium market has made it difficult for Western groups to compete against Chinese companies because of their cheaper costs.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil prices rebounded in early morning trading for a third session on the back of data reporting a steep draw in US crude stockpiles, Reuters reports. Brent crude futures rose USD 0.23 to USD 78.56 a barrel by 00.17 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained USD 0.29 trading at USD 75.52 a barrel.

#2- Global crude consumption is projected to fall to 104.5 mn barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2025, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its latest report (pdf), slashing its previous forecast by 200k bbl/d as it anticipates demand growth to slow to 1.6% next year. The EIA cited China’s economic slowdown, which has affected diesel demand, crude oil imports, and oil refinery activity, as the key reason behind the forecast revision.

The agency forecasts Brent crude oil to average between USD 85-89 for the rest of 2024 and level at USD 86 in 2025 on the back of low global oil inventories due to Opec’s production cuts.

Background: Concerns over the sluggish growth have kept oil prices in check this year despite Opec+ production cuts and potential supply disruptions on the back of the ongoing war in the Middle East, Bloomberg writes.

#3- Baltic index maintains upward trajectory: The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk sea freight index — which tracks rates for the capesize, panamax, and supramax vessel segments — has risen 0.8% to USD 1,698 points, driven by high capesize rates. Capesize extended gains for a fourth day, surging 3% to USD 2,473. The panamax index fell 1.6% to a four-week low of 1,651 points, while the smaller supramax index eased 0.8% to 1,309 points.

DATA POINTS-

#1- A record 44.9 mn visitors passed through Dubai International Airport (DXB) in 1H 2024, marking an 8% y-o-y increase, airport operator Dubai Airports said in a statement. Dubai attracted around 9.31 mn international visitors during the period, with India emerging as the most popular destination for flyers, and traffic from China rising 80% y-o-y to over 1 mn passengers. Aircraft movements were up 7.2% y-o-y during the six months to 216k.

DXB revised its 2024 passenger forecast up to a record 91.8 mn, surpassing its May estimate of 91 mn passengers, it said in the statement. “We’re pretty optimistic that actually this is going to be a record year and hopefully leading toward our goal of topping the 100 mn passenger mark within the next three or four years,” Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths told Bloomberg.

#2- Egypt’s food exports saw a 25% surge to USD 3.2 bn in 1H 2024, according to a statement by the Food Export Council. Arab nations were Egypt’s top export destinations at USD 1.64 bn, representing 52% of total exports, while the EU amounted to USD 701 mn, accounting for 22% of total exports. The exported commodities included soft drink concentrates at USD 309 mn, flour and starch at USD 276 mn, and frozen strawberries at USD 248 mn.

#3- RTA’s rises its project acceptance rate in 1H: Dubai’s road and transport authority’s (RTA) projects and infrastructure works non-objection certification rate rose by 13.4% y-o-y to 52.5k in 1H 2024, TradeArabia reports. The growth is attributed to the integration of the Electronic NOC System, which has streamlined the certification process. Road and construction works accounted for the largest share of NOC usage, amounting to around “45% of the total certificates issued,” RTA director Bassel Ibrahim Saad said.

PSA-

Temporary road closure in Qatar: Qatar’s Al Khor Coastal Road — from the Semaisma Interchange to Al Khor— will be partially closed from 8 to 18 August, according to Gulf Times.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Saudi Arabia will host the Saudi Warehousing and Logistics Expo on Monday, 2 September to Wednesday, 4 September in Riyadh. The event will bring together leaders in the supply chain, warehousing, and logistics industry from across the Kingdom to discuss investments, trade, geopolitical risks, and localized manufacturing.

Egypt will host the Egypt International Airshow on Tuesday, 3 September to Thursday, 5 September in El Alamein. The event will host a range of discussions touching on industrialization, digitalization, and globalization in the regional commercial aviation sector. During the event, aircrafts and innovative aerospace products, and services will be showcased.

Saudi Arabia will host SkyMove MENA on Tuesday, 10 September and Wednesday, 11 September in Riyadh. The event will gather global industry stakeholders, experts, and service providers to discuss challenges in the regional aviation industry.

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