Saturday 4 August 2018

Saudi Arabia appoints Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak as tech ambassador | ZAWYA MENA Edition

Saudi Arabia appoints Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak as tech ambassador | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

The Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming and Drones (SAFCSP) has named Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak as an ambassador for the creation of a “Saudi Tech Hub.” 

Saud Bin Abdulla Al-Qahtani, the head of the federation and an adviser to the Royal Court, presented Wozniak with a special certificate marking the occasion on Friday, during the finale of the three-day Hajj Hackathon in Jeddah.

Al-Qahtani said the appointment of Wozniak reflects the federation’s desire to work with the best minds in the sector to help the Kingdom become the region’s technology hub.

Iran Sets Currency Rescue Ahead of Reimposed U.S. Sanctions - Bloomberg

Iran Sets Currency Rescue Ahead of Reimposed U.S. Sanctions - Bloomberg:

Iran plans to implement a new financial rescue package on Monday to try and halt the rial’s decline, coinciding with the re-imposition of severe U.S. sanctions on the oil-rich state’s economy after President Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal. 

 The decision follows a week of sporadic protests against Iran’s political and religious establishment as concerns over the economy mount. On Friday, one person was shot dead and 20 others arrested in the city of Karaj, west of Tehran, the semi-official Fars news reported. About 500 protesters in Eshtehard, a town west of the capital Tehran, used stones and bricks to smash the windows of a seminary and tried to set fire to its building,

Fars news reported, citing local cleric Hojjatoleslam Hendiani.

Fars reported that a number of the protesters had been arrested by police who then went house-to-house trying to identify them.

Trump Push for Energy Dominant U.S. Blunted by China LNG Threat - Bloomberg

Trump Push for Energy Dominant U.S. Blunted by China LNG Threat - Bloomberg:

China’s threatened tariff against U.S. liquefied natural gas comes as a second wave of American export terminals seek financing with an eye toward the Asian giant’s drive to reduce its use of coal.

The U.S., with its abundance of shale gas, is rapidly expanding its ability to export the fuel overseas. China, which became the world’s biggest importer of the fuel in May, is seen as a key target as it pursues a strict five-year plan to shift away from smog-inducing coal for both residences and industry.

But a 25 percent tariff, retaliating for a U.S. plan to expand levies against China, could give exporters Qatar, Australia and Russia an edge in securing contacts with the world’s second-largest economy as a dozen or so U.S. companies seek to build new export terminals. That’s not a happy thought at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump has said he wants the U.S. to be “energy dominant.”

Scattered protests in Iran as U.S. sanctions loom | Reuters

Scattered protests in Iran as U.S. sanctions loom | Reuters:

Sporadic protests broke out in several cities in Iran for a fifth night on Saturday, a day after demonstrators attacked a Shi’ite seminary, according to Iranian news agencies and social media, as Iranians brace for a return of U.S. sanctions.

Hundreds rallied in cities including Tehran, Karaj, Shiraz, and Qom, according to videos posted on social media, to protest against high inflation caused in part by a collapse in the rial currency over fears of the reimposition of crippling sanctions on Aug. 7.

In May, the United States pulled out of a 2015 deal between world powers and Tehran under which international sanctions were lifted in return for curbs on its nuclear program.

Saudi Arabia resumes oil exports through Red Sea lane | Reuters

Saudi Arabia resumes oil exports through Red Sea lane | Reuters:

Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia said on Saturday it has resumed all oil shipments through the strategic Red Sea shipping lane of Bab al-Mandeb.

Saudi Arabia halted temporarily oil shipments through the lane on July 25 after attacks on two oil tankers by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement.

A statement by the Energy Ministry said shipments had resumed on Saturday.