Wishing you a cheerful and spiritual Eid Adha Mubarak. My heartiest regards to you and your family!
Dr Atie J El Mouallem
Making Saudi Inc: How MBS drove the sovereign wealth fund’s oil-fueled takeover – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Receding is the conservative Islamic kingdom of old, which lived off its oil revenues while cautiously investing in safe US treasuries and disbursing lucrative state contracts. This is Saudi Inc.
– In the space of five years, the PIF’s become a major international investor, snapping up US blue chips like Uber and investing in electric cars. It’s also made forays into sports, buying UK soccer team Newcastle United and investing $200 million in an international golf venture.
– In March 2015, the fund was “reborn,” its website declares, and placed under MBS.
– As the prince began to vigorously expand his authority, the PIF became a key tool, giving him that opportunity to run the new Saudi Arabia more like a tech startup.
– MBS said it would have assets worth more than $2 trillion by 2030, making it the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund.
Read more.
The Global Energy Crisis Just Got Even Worse. Here’s Why – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Natural gas is the hottest commodity in the world right now. It’s a key driver of global inflation, posting price jumps that are extreme even by the standards of today’s turbulent markets — some 700% in Europe since the start of last year, pushing the continent to the brink of recession.
– Kevin Book, managing director at ClearView Energy Partners LLC, a Washington-based research firm. “The world is now thinking about gas as it once thought about oil, and the essential role that gas plays in modern economies and the need for secure and diverse supply have become very visible.”
– In Asia, the fuel is now about three times as expensive as a year ago.
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UAE, Indonesia Ink Economic Pact to Boost Trade – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– The Indonesia deal is the UAE’s third major trade pact since it announced the plan to broaden its economic relationships in 2021. It inked similar agreements with India and Israel this year.
– Some of the industries targeted in the trade pact include logistics, tourism, communications, construction and business.
– The UAE has previously pledged to invest $10 billion in Indonesia’s new wealth fund.
Read more.
NYSE Pitches US Listings to Gulf Tech Firms Amid Global Selloff – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Gulf firms that have chosen to list in the US so far have fared poorly.
– Spotify Technology SA rival Anghami went public on the Nasdaq in February after its merger with a special purpose acquisition company and has since slumped more than 50%.
Read more.
Dubai Becomes New Switzerland for Traders of Russian Commodities – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– In Switzerland, some kind of exodus appears inevitable after the country followed European Union bans targeting exports from Russia.
– By the end of 2022, the EU will have restrictions in place banning the insurance and financing of transporting Russian oil to countries outside of the bloc and Switzerland has said it will do likewise.
– The UAE has attracted wealthy Russians and their money since the invasion of Ukraine, and now state-run businesses and private commodity firms are following.
Read more.
Venezuela Economy Seen Growing Most in 15 Years as Oil Flows – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– Gross domestic product is expected to grow 8.3% this year, from 1.9% in 2021.
– The country is getting a lift from a rise in oil production and seeing tax revenue and banking credit expand.
– Over the past decade, gross domestic product shrunk to around $49 billion from $352 billion in 2012, according to the International Monetary Fund.
– Angel Alvarado, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania and founder of the Venezuelan Finance Observatory said the country would need to post double-digit growth for a decade for it to return to the size it was in 2012.
Read more.
UAE Set to Attract Biggest Share of Millionaires as Rich Russians Flee Sanctions – Bloomberg — www.bloomberg.com
Highlights:
– The London-based investment migration consultancy projects the UAE will attract a net inflow of 4,000 millionaires, the most of any country globally, and as many as 2,500 may move to Israel. Russia could suffer a net outflow of 15,000 high-net-worth individuals.
– Meanwhile, the estimated exodus from Russia accounts for about 15% of the country’s population of HNWIs, according to Henley. The invasion is also driving millionaires out of Ukraine, which is predicted to suffer the highest net loss in the nation’s history — 2,800 people or 42% of its HNWIs.
Read more.