Saudi Arabia to Host Energy Convention in May 2024

The Saudi Energy Convention will feature over 250 international speakers and decision-makers. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Saudi Energy Convention will feature over 250 international speakers and decision-makers. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia to Host Energy Convention in May 2024

The Saudi Energy Convention will feature over 250 international speakers and decision-makers. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Saudi Energy Convention will feature over 250 international speakers and decision-makers. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia will be at the forefront of renewable energy, hydrogen, and water advancements as it gears to host the Saudi Energy Convention in May 2024.

The Convention will feature over 250 international speakers leading over 50 conference sessions, providing visitors with essential insights into the latest energy trends and strategies.

The event, organized by dmg events, will be held at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Centre (RICEC) as the Kingdom's first event designed to focus on energy, hydrogen, and water.

Vision 2030 aims to see the Kingdom become one of the most competitive in the world by the end of the decade, with an economy powered by renewable energy, a burgeoning private sector, and thriving small and medium enterprises.

The Kingdom's ongoing socioeconomic reforms have already enabled it to become the fastest-growing G20 economy in 2022, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with overall economic growth reaching 8.7 percent.

The Convention will convene leaders and experts across the energy value chain to accelerate and scale the energy transition.

The event will gather the people and solutions required to build a more resilient, efficient, and eco-conscious energy landscape, covering both the conventional and renewable energy sectors.

Furthermore, the conference will address solutions needed for a more flexible, efficient energy landscape that prioritizes environmental preservation.

Specialized sub-conferences will be dedicated to each energy, water, and hydrogen theme, gathering sector leaders to deliberate on vital opportunities and challenges.

President of dmg events Christopher Hudson said the Saudi Energy Convention will be a new focal point for the global energy industry.

The new event is designed to respond to the great investment and collaboration opportunities as the Kingdom leverages its passion, ambition, and resources to provide the world with a new economic and social strength model, he added.

"We look forward to having the Saudi Energy Convention play a key role in facilitating the partnerships, innovation, and investment in energy, hydrogen, and water that can fast-track Saudi Arabia's ongoing transformation and growth," said Hudson.

The Saudi Energy Convention also includes the Saudi Water Convention and the Saudi Hydrogen Convention, providing a 360-degree view of Saudi Arabia's forward-looking energy diversification and economic development efforts.

All these events will create an integrated platform for Saudi Arabia that addresses the challenges facing the entire energy value chain and the pivotal role of hydrogen and water in the energy transition.

The three conventions will jointly showcase the latest innovative solutions accelerating the global energy transition and support Saudi Arabia's goals of seeing renewable energy meet 50 percent of its energy mix and becoming net zero for carbon emissions by 2060.

The conventions will offer direct access to financiers from key infrastructure and utilities projects within the Kingdom, alongside international investors and decision-makers, facilitating new growth opportunities and commercial partnerships.

Saudi Arabia is among the world's fastest-growing economies, with national development plans paving the way for investment opportunities worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

The Kingdom is witnessing unprecedented growth, aligned with the national strategy anticipated to draw in $90 billion in energy investments and $53 billion in water sector investments to cater to domestic demand.

Additionally, the Kingdom is eyeing investments exceeding $36 billion as part of its national hydrogen strategy, aiming to position Saudi Arabia as the world's premier hydrogen supplier.



Asian Shares, US Futures Gain as Investors Resume Buying Despite Uncertainty over Tariffs 

Women ride bicycles past monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP)
Women ride bicycles past monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP)
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Asian Shares, US Futures Gain as Investors Resume Buying Despite Uncertainty over Tariffs 

Women ride bicycles past monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP)
Women ride bicycles past monitors showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP)

Asian markets advanced on Tuesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 share benchmark initially shooting up more than 6% after it fell nearly 8% a day earlier.

Markets in Thailand and Indonesia tumbled, however, as they reopened after holidays. Trading was suspended briefly in Jakarta when the JSX index fell more than 9%. It was down 7.5% by midday. Thailand's SET lost 5.7%.

In Taiwan, the Taiex lost 4.4%, pulled lower by losses for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp., or TSMC, the world's largest computer chip maker. Its shares fell 4% on Tuesday and are down 13.5% since Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs on April 2.

The rebound for most other regional markets followed a wild day on Wall Street, where stocks careened after President Donald Trump threatened to crank his double-digit tariffs higher.

Early Tuesday, China's Commerce Ministry said it would “fight to the end” and take unspecified countermeasures against the United States to safeguard its own interests after Trump threatened an additional 50% tariff on Chinese imports.

By early afternoon Tokyo time, the Nikkei 225 was up 5% at 32,691.34.

Hong Kong also recovered some lost ground, but not anything close to the 13.2% dive Monday that gave the Hang Seng its worst day since 1997, during the Asian financial crisis.

The Hang Seng gained 1.6% to 20,140.78, while the Shanghai Composite index jumped 0.9% to 3,124.77.

South Korea’s Kospi edged 0.1% higher to 2,331.80, while the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 1.7% to 7,471.10.

Markets in New Zealand and Australia also were higher.

On Monday, the S&P 500 sagged 0.2% as shell-shocked investors watched to see what Trump will do next in his trade war. If other countries agree to trade deals, he could lower his tariffs and avoid a possible recession. But if he sticks with tariffs for the long haul, stock prices may fall further.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 349 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up by 0.1%.

All three indexes started the day sharply lower, and the Dow plunged as many as 1,700 points following even worse losses elsewhere in the world. But it suddenly surged to a gain of nearly 900 points in the late morning. The S&P 500, meanwhile, went from a loss of 4.7% to a leap of 3.4%, which would have been its biggest jump in years.

The spike followed a false rumor that Trump was considering a 90-day pause on his tariffs, one that a White House account on X quickly labeled as “fake news.” That a rumor could move trillions of dollars’ worth of investments shows how much investors are hoping to see signs that Trump may let up on tariffs.

Stocks quickly turned lower. Shortly afterward, Trump dug in further and said he may raise tariffs more against China after the world’s second-largest economy retaliated last week with its own set of tariffs on US products.

Trump’s tariffs are an attack on the globalization that’s shaped today's world economy and helped bring down prices but also caused manufacturing jobs to leave for other countries.

He has said he wants to bring factory jobs back to the United States, a process that could take years. Trump also says he wants to narrow trade deficits with other countries, but it's unclear how much room for negotiation there is on the US side or among its trading partners.

Indexes swung between losses and gains Monday, partly because investors are still hoping negotiations may forestall actual implementation of the stiff duties on all imports.

All that seemed certain Monday was the financial pain hammering investments around the world.

Oil has also fallen, hurt by worries that a global economy weakened by trade barriers will burn less fuel. A barrel of benchmark US crude oil dipped below $60 on Monday for the first time since 2021. Early Tuesday, it was up 90 cents at $61.60 per barrel.

Brent crude, the international standard, gained 89 cents to $65.10 per barrel.

In currency trading, the US dollar fell to 147.78 Japanese yen from 147.85 yen. The euro fell to $1.0976 from $1.0905.

The price of gold rose $32 to about $3,006.00 an ounce.

Bitcoin gained 4.1% to $80,130.00. On Monday it sank below $79,000, down from its record above $100,000 set in January.