ROSHN Unveils Large Mixed-Use Development in Jeddah

A model for the design of the MARAFY project, north of Jeddah (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A model for the design of the MARAFY project, north of Jeddah (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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ROSHN Unveils Large Mixed-Use Development in Jeddah

A model for the design of the MARAFY project, north of Jeddah (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A model for the design of the MARAFY project, north of Jeddah (Asharq Al-Awsat)

ROSHN Group, a Public Investment Fund (PIF) giga-project, launched on Tuesday a mixed-use development in north of Jeddah, which will accommodate over 130,000 residents and house the first man-made canal in Saudi Arabia.

The new development, called MARAFY, will include an 11-kilometer-long and 100-meter-wide navigable canal, which will be surrounded by multiple districts, the developer said in a statement.

David Grover, Group CEO of ROSHN Group, said: “It is core to us as a giga project to introduce such huge development to the Kingdom. MARAFY will be a gamechanger on the real estate development sector, raising the bar of development in the region, boosting the quality of life, and creating a huge impact in Jeddah.”

He added that the project contributes to achieving the goals of Vision 2030 in creating a vibrant society and a prosperous economy.

For his part, Khaled Al-Mobid, CEO of Manassat Real Estate Company, told Asharq Al-Awsat that ROSHN’s development of the North Jeddah project will have a major impact in raising the efficiency of residential projects in the governorate, and will stimulate investments.

He added that the new development is an important indicator of the city’s economic recovery, stressing that the group seeks to develop the urban landscape of one of the most important tourist and commercial areas, as it provides infrastructure, public, recreational and residential facilities aimed at raising the level of quality of life, and transforming Jeddah into a global destination.

MARAFY’s canal will provide a waterfront comparable in size to those of Chicago, Stockholm, Hamburg, and central London, bringing the marine environment into the heart of a historic city that has been welcoming traders, travelers, and pilgrims for centuries.

According to ROSHN, MARAFY will house multiple distinct districts each with a unique character, including its existing integrated residential development, Alarous. It will accelerate Jeddah’s emergence as a global city while preserving the city’s cultural and architectural heritage, with facades inspired by the historical designs of Jeddah region and styles reinvented for today.



Japan's Nikkei Falls, Australia and New Zealand Dollars Tumble amid Israel's Strike on Iran

Arrangement of various world currencies including Chinese Yuan, Japanese Yen, US Dollar, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc and Russian Rouble pictured in Warsaw, January 26, 2011. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
Arrangement of various world currencies including Chinese Yuan, Japanese Yen, US Dollar, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc and Russian Rouble pictured in Warsaw, January 26, 2011. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
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Japan's Nikkei Falls, Australia and New Zealand Dollars Tumble amid Israel's Strike on Iran

Arrangement of various world currencies including Chinese Yuan, Japanese Yen, US Dollar, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc and Russian Rouble pictured in Warsaw, January 26, 2011. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
Arrangement of various world currencies including Chinese Yuan, Japanese Yen, US Dollar, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc and Russian Rouble pictured in Warsaw, January 26, 2011. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel

The Australian and New Zealand dollars tumbled on Friday as Israel's strike on Iran hammered global stocks and drove investors into safe-haven assets, with domestic bond yields diving to over a month lows.

The commodity-sensitive currencies often track global risk sentiment and tend to take a hit when equity markets slide.

The Aussie plunged 0.9% to $0.6474, having risen 0.5% overnight to as high as $0.6534. It was already showing signs of fatigue as the currency has been unable to break a key resistance level of $0.6550 overnight even as the greenback slid due to another round of soft data.

For the week, it is down 0.3%.

The kiwi dollar dropped 1% to $0.6011. It gained gaining 0.7% overnight, hitting a high of $0.6071. Support comes in around $0.5990, while resistance is at the multi-month top of $0.6080. For the week, it is down 0.1%.

Israel said early on Friday that it struck Iran. Oil prices jumped over 6%, Wall Street futures dropped over 1%, while safe-haven currencies like the Japanese yen and Swiss franc rose.

Local bonds also rallied. Australia's ten-year government bond yields slid 11 basis points to 4.133%, the lowest since May 1, while New Zealand's ten-year government bond yields dived 8 bps to a six-week low of 4.529%.

Sean Callow, a senior analyst at ITC Markets, said the trend for the Aussie is still up given the pressure on the US dollar from a sluggish US economy and investor unease over the U. policy outlook.

"Investors are likely to expect that Israel's strikes will be contained to a relatively short period, not something that will dictate market direction multi-week," he said.

Also, Japan's Nikkei share average fell on Friday, mirroring moves in US stock futures, oil and other stock markets on news that Israel had conducted a military strike on Iran.

As of 0106 GMT, the Nikkei was down 1.5% at 37,584.47.

The broader Topix fell 1.28% to 2,7473.9.

"The market was selling stocks on caution for geopolitical risks, but the news was not driving a fire sale because investors still wanted to monitor the development of the attacks," said Naoki Fujiwara, a senior fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management.

Chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron fell 5.5% to drag the Nikkei the most. Uniqlo-brand owner Fast Retailing lost 2.1%.

Exporters fell as the yen strengthened, with Toyota Motor and Nissan Motor falling 2.75% and 1.5%, respectively.

All but three of the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry sub-indexes fell.

Energy sectors rose as oil prices jumped, with oil explorers and refiners gaining 3.6% and 2.2%, respectively.

The utility sector rose 0.7%.