Good morning, friends. We’re closing the week with a deep dive into how MENA countries performed in Agility’s recently released emerging market logistics index and have some significant news emerging from Abu Dhabi regarding a new all-electric transit network.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- The Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) has signed a MoU with Saudi Arabian Railways to develop a 1 mn sqm logistics city in Dammam, Modon said. No further information was provided.

#2- NTSB report on Alaska Airlines incident is out: Aircraft maker Boeing is taking a close look at preliminary findings from a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into a recent incident involving a 737 MAX 9 that saw a panel blowout mid-flight, as it looks to see if further measures are needed to correct the defect, Reuters reports. The NTSB report revealed that the affected door plug was missing four bolts, but declined to mention whether the fault was attributed to Boeing or subcontractor Spirit AeroSystems.

ICYMI- Emirates is gearing up to send engineers to oversee Boeing’s 777 production line and its supplier Spirit AeroSystems. The aircraft maker’s standards have seen “progressive decline,” attributable to mismanagement, Emirates CEO Tim Clark said. Emirates is one of Boeing’s largest clients, with the carrier placing a USD 52 bn order for 95 aircraft in November.

DISRUPTION WATCH-

Houthis vow to escalate attacks if Gaza does not see relief:The group will “escalate more and more,” if Israeli attacks against Gaza do not cease and aid is allowed into Gaza, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing a televised statement by the militia’s leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi. The message comes on the heels of a double attack on commercial shipping near Yemen’s Hodeidah Port, targeting Greek-owned Star Nasia and British-owned Barbados-flagged Morning Tide.

French oil major Total Energies has not sent ships via the Red Sea for several weeks, Total Energies CEO Patrick Pouyanne told Reuters. Despite reroutes taking four days longer, Red Sea transits have become more expensive on the back of higher ins. costs, Pouyanne added.

Underwriters have boosted ins. premiums charged to US, UK, and Israel-linked ships crossing the Red Sea by up to 50%, with some avoiding their business altogether, Reuters reports, citing industry sources. Iranian, Russian, and Chinese-flagged and operated vessels represent considerably lower risks, the newswire writes.

MARKET WATCH-

Oil rallied for a third consecutive day on Wednesday, as lower-than-anticipated growth in US crude stocks and a downward revision in forecasts for US oil output growth counteracted concerns about a glut in the market, Reuters reports. Brent gained USD 0.26 and hit USD 78.85 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) bumped up USD 0.27 to settle at USD 73.58 a barrel by 09.14 GMT yesterday. Traders are also keeping a close eye on developments in the Middle East, and Red Sea disruptions in particular, the newswire said.

DATA POINT-

#1- Iraq’s North Umm Qasr Port raked in IQD 31 bn in earnings in January 2024, according to a statement. Umm Qasr handles upwards of 80% of Iraq’s seaborne imports.

#2- Egypt’s Canal Shipping Agencies’s (CSAG) bottomline saw a 89% y-o-y jump to EGP 547.3 mn in 2023, according to an EGX disclosure (pdf). The company also saw its topline rise 42% y-o-y to EGP 50.8 mn. CSAG attributed the hike in performance to new income from investment at container handling companies in Port Said and Dumiat.

#3- Dubai-based energy futures exchange Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME) saw its front-month trading volume reach 800 mn barrels in 2023 up 6.38% y-o-y, according to a statement. Physical delivery volumes were also at their highest since 2018, rising 16% during the same period to 210 mn barrels. DME’s physical exposure also bumped up 17.8% y-o-y to 262 mn barrels, the statement said.

#4- Oman’s DuqmSpecial Economic Zone (SEZAD) recorded a OR 6 bn increase in investments in 2023, according to a statement. The funding will funnel OR 4.2 bn towards existing projects and OR 1.8 bn towards ongoing investment projects, including the Jindal Green Steel Project.

#5- KSA-based e-commerce platform Noon sees over 1 bn visitors a year, Elbalad reports, citing comments made by Noon founder Mohamed Alabbar at the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival.

WORTH READING-

Libya sees almost 40% of its fuel imports, amounting to USD 5 bn a year, smuggled out of the country via elaborate criminal networks, according to an investigative report by Bloomberg. Russia and Libyan tycoons were identified as the key beneficiaries of the illicit trade. Libya, despite having the largest oil reserves in Africa, has limited refining capacity and imports most of its refined petroleum products, providing the products to Libyans via generous Gaddafi-era subsidies. However, there is very little oversight of the program and efforts to reform it have been stonewalled, allowing smugglers to make a hefty margin by shipping fuel purchased at subsidized rates to buyers in Europe. The mechanism has also allowed Russia to redirect some of its fuel exports to Europe via re-exports from Libya, after Europe closed its doors to Russian energy imports in the wake of the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host Breakbulk Middle East on 12 and 13 February in Dubai. The networking event brings together government officials, oil and gas players, and contractors with representatives from upwards of 8k companies from 98 countries.

The UAE will host Sustainable Aviation Futures MENA from Monday, 12 February through to Wednesday, 14 February in Dubai. The event will see 80 expert speakers and upwards of 200 high level attendants and will handle topics pertaining to regulation, financing, and investments in Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) in MENA.

The UAE will host the Future Warehouse & Logistics Conference from Monday, 12 February to Wednesday, 14 February in Dubai. The event will handle means for supply chain leaders to boost resilience and overcome challenges, with discussions on disruptions, sustainability, Internet of Things (IoT), automation, workplace management and other topics.

Oman will host the Arab Postal Leaders Forum from Monday, 12 February to Wednesday, 14 February. The event — jointly organized by the Transport, Communications, and Information Technology Ministry and the Universal Postal Union — will bring together over 60 participants from 18 different Arab nations to discuss adopting digital technology in the postal sector’s business models.

The UAE will host The World Trade Organization's 13th Ministerial Conference fromMonday, 26 February to Thursday, 29 February in Abu Dhabi. The event will gather ministers from around the world to assess the operation of the multilateral trading system and make key decisions regarding the future tasks of the WTO.

The UAE will host theTradeTech Forum on Tuesday, 27 February in Abu Dhabi. The forum will see some 180 trade leaders and experts discuss the technologically advanced trade environment and a showcase of trade tech solutions.

The UAE will host The Logistics Middle East Award on Wednesday, 6 March in Dubai. The awards ceremony brings together industry experts to celebrate the sector’s biggest accomplishments over the previous 12 months.The deadline for submitting nominations is Friday, 19 January.

KSA will host a special World Economic Forum event from Sunday, 28 April through to Monday, 29 April in Riyadh. The event will focus on global collaboration and energy.

The UAE will host The Electric Vehicle Innovation Summit from Monday, 20 May to Wednesday, 22 May in Abu Dhabi. The event will see industry leaders come together to discuss sustainable mobility and tapping into groundbreaking advancements in electric vehicles while engaging with key decision-makers.

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