National Program for Coders: UAE to enhance digital economy, increase start-up investment from Dh1.5 billion to Dh4 billion | Business – Gulf News
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, launched a national programme for programmers to help build the national digital economy and increase investment directed to startups from Dh1.5 billion to Dh4 billion.
The programme is launched in collaboration with Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Cisco, IBM, HPE, LinkedIn, Nvidia and Facebook.
100,000 programmers and setting up 1,000 digital companies
The programme aims to train and attract 100,000 programmers and setting up 1,000 digital companies over the next five years. It also aims to increase investment directed to startups from Dh1.5 billion to Dh4 billion.
“The national programme is a new step to help build our national economy as part of our new national plans. The world changes and the speed of digital change doubles…Economy will differ from its today’s model… The nature of professions will change. Only those who are well prepared and faster to cope with the pace of new changes will survive,” Sheikh Mohammed tweeted.
Saturday, 10 July 2021
#SaudiArabia Eases Subsidy Cuts With Gasoline Price Ceiling - Bloomberg
Saudi Arabia Eases Subsidy Cuts With Gasoline Price Ceiling - Bloomberg
Saudi Arabia’s government set an upper limit for domestic gasoline prices and said the state would bear any extra costs, softening an energy subsidy cut program that’s drawn complaints from citizens.
The ceiling for local gasoline prices will be set at June’s levels, or 2.18 riyals (58 cents) per liter of 91 octane, as of Saturday, according to a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency. The decision was made to “decrease the burden of living costs on citizens and residents” and “support local economic activity,” a state committee for amending energy prices said in the statement.
The change will blunt the impact of subsidy reforms introduced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and is a nod to complaints from Saudis about the rising cost of living under his economic diversification program. Inflation in the world’s largest oil exporter stood at 5.7% in May -- the latest figure available -- driven by higher food and vehicle prices as well as a move to triple the value-added tax last year.
Saudi officials have closely monitored discontent as Prince Mohammed’s plan was rolled out over the past five years, and have occasionally reversed or eased changes that drew vocal grumbling as the kingdom’s social contract is reshaped.
Rising gasoline and electricity prices have drawn particular ire since 2015, when the subsidy reform was introduced to promote more efficient consumption and help plug a budget deficit brought on by plunging oil prices. Today, some Saudis believe that increasing oil prices should actually lead to lower costs at the gas pump because of the boost they provide to government finances.
Last week, crude prices jumped briefly to the highest in more than six years in New York after a bitter fight between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates plunged OPEC+ into a crisis and blocked a supply increase. Crude’s surge, combined with a rally in other commodities, has central banks fretting about inflation again.
Saudi Arabia’s local cost of gasoline will still change monthly in response to global energy prices, but now the government will cover the difference of any increase that would have exceeded June prices, the committee said.
Saudi Arabia’s government set an upper limit for domestic gasoline prices and said the state would bear any extra costs, softening an energy subsidy cut program that’s drawn complaints from citizens.
The ceiling for local gasoline prices will be set at June’s levels, or 2.18 riyals (58 cents) per liter of 91 octane, as of Saturday, according to a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency. The decision was made to “decrease the burden of living costs on citizens and residents” and “support local economic activity,” a state committee for amending energy prices said in the statement.
The change will blunt the impact of subsidy reforms introduced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and is a nod to complaints from Saudis about the rising cost of living under his economic diversification program. Inflation in the world’s largest oil exporter stood at 5.7% in May -- the latest figure available -- driven by higher food and vehicle prices as well as a move to triple the value-added tax last year.
Saudi officials have closely monitored discontent as Prince Mohammed’s plan was rolled out over the past five years, and have occasionally reversed or eased changes that drew vocal grumbling as the kingdom’s social contract is reshaped.
Rising gasoline and electricity prices have drawn particular ire since 2015, when the subsidy reform was introduced to promote more efficient consumption and help plug a budget deficit brought on by plunging oil prices. Today, some Saudis believe that increasing oil prices should actually lead to lower costs at the gas pump because of the boost they provide to government finances.
Last week, crude prices jumped briefly to the highest in more than six years in New York after a bitter fight between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates plunged OPEC+ into a crisis and blocked a supply increase. Crude’s surge, combined with a rally in other commodities, has central banks fretting about inflation again.
Saudi Arabia’s local cost of gasoline will still change monthly in response to global energy prices, but now the government will cover the difference of any increase that would have exceeded June prices, the committee said.
Opec rift is a foretaste of things to come | Financial Times #UAE #SaudiArabia
Opec rift is a foretaste of things to come | Financial Times
Disagreements between Opec members have been a feature of the oil cartel since it started just over 60 years ago.
Disagreements between Opec members have been a feature of the oil cartel since it started just over 60 years ago.
But what has happened in the past week stands out not just because it came against a backdrop of rising prices or because it pitted traditional allies Saudi Arabia and the UAE against each other. It stands out because it is a preview of what is to come.
On the surface, members fell out over how the group calculates an individual country’s production targets. The UAE believes it has been short-changed by the supply deal in place since April last year, when the pandemic was crushing demand.
One layer below that is the UAE’s increasing assertiveness on the global stage. In particular, it senses that its oil alliance with Saudi Arabia has been usurped by Riyadh’s increasingly close relationship with Moscow, since Russia joined the expanded Opec+ group in 2016.
But the heart of the issue is far simpler, and it’s one that’s roiling the entire oil sector: the growing belief that peak in demand for crude is not so far away.
For big oil producers such as the UAE, which believes it still has vast untapped reserves, the incentive is shifting towards getting those barrels out of the ground and monetising them as quickly as possible.
This is the real existential threat to Opec’s strategy in the long run. A group founded to maximise their oil reserves’ value by (at times) restricting output is witnessing a shift in the very definition of what maximising value means for the industry.
If oil demand is going to peak within the next decade or so, as many in the industry increasingly accept, then the old calculations start to change.
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