The largest economy in the Gulf has a new custodian. Having run the country’s finances since 1983, Hamad Saud al Sayyari, 68, has stepped down as head of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA). It should be a fairly easy transfer, for Mr al Sayyari was replaced by his right-hand man of more than a decade, Muhammad al Jasser.
Educated in California at San Diego State University, Mr al Jasser, 54, enters the office of central bank governor during auspicious times. Saudi Arabia is seen by many economists as the only country in the GCC with a chance of rising above the global economic morass this year. With more oil and people than the rest of the GCC combined, if Saudi Arabia fares as well as analysts expect, Mr al Jasser could soon find himself in a position of even greater economic clout with regard to his neighbours – and indeed the rest of the world – than his predecessor ever had.
Take GCC monetary union, for instance. Within the GCC, almost no initiative can pass unless the Saudi Arabian giant stands behind it. So if Saudi Arabia decided to opt out of the project to establish a single Gulf currency, the entire project would almost certainly fall apart. Mr al Jasser may not be the one actually drafting GCC economic policy during the next few years, but he and his delegation might as well be.
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