Sunday 31 March 2019

#SaudiArabia’s unemployment rate drops to 12.7%

Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate drops to 12.7%:

The unemployment rate in Saudi Arabia fell to 12.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2018, according to official data published on Sunday by the General Authority for Statistics.

A quarterly bulletin indicated a slight improvement in the rate, which stood at 12.8 percent in the third quarter of last year.

The unemployment rate among Saudi males stood at 6.6 percent, compared to 32.5 percent among Saudi females during the fourth quarter.

#UAE announces new family sponsorship policy for expats | ZAWYA MENA Edition

UAE announces new family sponsorship policy for expats | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

The UAE Cabinet has adopted a decision to amend provisions of the resolution on sponsoring of foreign workers to their families in the country. 


According to a statement by the General Secretariat of the Cabinet, the amended provisions now indicate "income" as a requirement for sponsoring family members, as opposed to the previously listed "professions" which allowed workers to sponsor their families. The amendment is in line with international developments and accordance with best practices, it added.

"The decision aims at enhancing family stability of foreign workers and social cohesion, as well as attracting highly skilled workers while maintaining a healthy balance between professional and personal life," the statement continued.

MIDEAST STOCKS- #AbuDhabi slips further, banks support #Saudi market | Reuters

MIDEAST STOCKS-Abu Dhabi slips further, banks support Saudi market | Reuters:

Stock markets in the Gulf were mixed on Sunday with Abu Dhabi experiencing losses after some shares traded ex-dividend last week, while the Saudi market was lifted by the banking sector.

The Saudi index added 0.4 percent, with Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation up 1.7 percent and registering the highest trading volume on Sunday.

In a research note, Dubai-based Arqaam Capital said it expects credit growth to strengthen in Saudi Arabia this year, a positive for the banking sector.

#Saudi economy expands in Q4 on boost from crude; non-oil growth slows | ZAWYA MENA Edition

Saudi economy expands in Q4 on boost from crude; non-oil growth slows | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

Saudi Arabia's economy grew in the fourth quarter of last year at its fastest rate since early 2016 due to an expansion in the oil sector, while non-oil growth was sluggish, statistics agency data showed on Sunday.

Fourth-quarter gross domestic product grew by 3.59 percent from a year earlier. In the third quarter, annual growth was 2.5 percent.

"The oil sector led the recovery in the final quarter, reflecting stronger production, particularly at the beginning of the quarter," said Monica Malik, chief economist at Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank.

#UAE Economic Growth Accelerates in 2018 But Misses Estimates - Bloomberg

U.A.E. Economic Growth Accelerates in 2018 But Misses Estimates - Bloomberg:

The United Arab Emirates’ economy grew 1.7 percent in 2018, picking up pace on the back of higher oil prices but falling short of expectations.

Growth was 0.8 percent in 2017 and had been forecast to accelerate to 2.9 percent last year, according to data on Bloomberg.

Higher oil and gas income was one of the main drivers of overall growth, Minister of Economy Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri was cited as saying by the state-run WAM news agency. The sector contributed to 25.9 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.

Shares in Tabuk Cement drop following earnings miss | ZAWYA MENA Edition

Shares in Tabuk Cement drop following earnings miss | ZAWYA MENA Edition:

Shares in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk Cement fell early on Sunday, as the company announced a drop in earnings for the year 2018.

The company reported a net loss of 32.45 million Saudi riyals ($8.65 million) for the fourth quarter (Q4) of the year 2018, compared to 21.53 million riyals for Q4 2017, missing EFG Hermes’ Q4 2018 estimate of 2 million riyals loss.

“Very disappointing set of results. Although sales volumes recovered modestly Q-o-Q (quarter-on-quarter), they faltered the Y-o-Y (year-on-year) trend of a constant cement demand,” Sameer Kattiparambil, an analyst at EFG Hermes based in Muscat, told Zawya by email.

Ocean LNG to offtake and market all LNG volumes produced and exported from Golden Pass project | Reuters

Ocean LNG to offtake and market all LNG volumes produced and exported from Golden Pass project | Reuters:

Ocean LNG Limited will be responsible for the offtake and marketing of all LNG volumes to be produced and exported from the Golden Pass LNG Export Project in Sabine Pass, Texas, Qatar Petroleum said in a statement on Sunday.

Ocean LNG is an international joint venture marketing company in which Qatar Petroleum affiliates own 70 percent and Exxon Mobil owns 30 percent.

#UAE economy grew 1.7 percent in 2018 - state news agency | Reuters

UAE economy grew 1.7 percent in 2018 - state news agency | Reuters:

The United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) economy grew by 1.7 percent at constant prices in 2018 compared to the previous year, slower than projected, according to state news agency WAM, which cited preliminary 2018 data.

The UAE growth figures follow Dubai’s disclosure last week that its economy grew 1.94 percent in 2018, its slowest pace since a contraction in 2009 when the economy was hobbled by a debt crisis.

Oil producer UAE had projected in December growth between 2.5 percent and 3 percent for 2018 with Gulf economies benefiting from higher oil prices after OPEC members and other producers cut output to tackle a supply glut.

#SaudiArabia to raise around $31 billion in debt this year | Reuters

Saudi Arabia to raise around $31 billion in debt this year | Reuters:

Saudi Arabia plans to issue 118 billion riyals ($31.5 billion) in debt this year to help finance the national budget deficit, the country’s Debt Management Office (DMO), part of the ministry of finance, said.

Saudi Arabia has borrowed extensively over the past few years to refill state coffers depleted by a drop in oil prices.

At the end of 2018, it had around $150 billion in outstanding government debt, 54 percent of which was in local currency and the rest denominated in U.S. dollars.