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Nigerian Ambassador Backs Saudi Efforts to Maintain Stability in Global Energy Markets

Lawal stands among Saudi officials, diplomats, and ambassadors in Riyadh on his country’s national day celebration two days ago. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Lawal stands among Saudi officials, diplomats, and ambassadors in Riyadh on his country’s national day celebration two days ago. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Nigerian Ambassador Backs Saudi Efforts to Maintain Stability in Global Energy Markets

Lawal stands among Saudi officials, diplomats, and ambassadors in Riyadh on his country’s national day celebration two days ago. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Lawal stands among Saudi officials, diplomats, and ambassadors in Riyadh on his country’s national day celebration two days ago. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Yahaya Lawal has expressed support to the Kingdom in its strategy that encourages the OPEC+ group to guarantee the global energy markets' stability.

He revealed that there are ongoing negotiations between the two countries on more than 12 agreements and MoUs to boost strategic ties and joint work.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, the ambassador said that Abuja and Riyadh - as OPEC members - maintain solid cooperation in favor of the global oil market. They work under the OPEC+ framework to maintain the stability of the market and to achieve a fair price.

Saudi Arabia and Nigeria are essential in terms of oil and share a strong partnership in preserving the oil market’s stability which is crucial to the global economy, he added.

OPEC data showed that Nigeria produced 1.18 million bpd in August.

12 Agreements and MoUs

Lawal remarked that both countries are holding talks over 12 agreements and MoUs as part of the Nigeria-Saudi Joint Commission.

He further noted that an agreement was previously signed between the chambers of commerce and industry in Saudi Arabia and Nigeria, and it would reinforce trade, economic, and investment cooperation.

Lawal stressed that the current talks are part of endeavors to boost cooperation in many fields, including energy, oil, gas, investment protection, avoiding dual taxation, transport, anti-corruption, money laundering and financial crimes, education, human trafficking, security and defense cooperation, and other sectors.

According to the Nigerian ambassador, the Saudi-Nigerian ties have elevated remarkably in various fields in which some Saudi investors have launched investments in Nigeria, especially in real estate development and agriculture where the trade level is undergoing an uptrend.

Saudi Arabia's exports to Nigeria were $696.28 million in 2021, he noted, adding that the exports include petrochemical products and other finished goods.

For its part, Nigeria exports agricultural products, coal, and some household goods.

The ambassador went on to say that the bilateral trade is expected to boost in the coming period, highlighting that the positive change is obvious given that trade between both countries was low in the past years and was mainly focused on unofficial trade, especially during the Hajj season.

Lawal stated that Saudi Arabia and Nigeria share a long history of ties that goes back centuries before the foundation of both countries. Nigerians used to head to the Kingdom to perform Hajj and for commercial purposes.

He said he looks forward to the business community in both countries unlocking the available opportunities in investment and commerce in Nigeria.

Moreover, he pointed out that there are abundant joint features on which both countries are working, amid new initiatives of mutual interest.

Lawal clarified that Nigeria has a population of more than 220 million and they represent a huge production force, concluding that his country enjoys huge potentials and various resources, as well as investment-friendly laws.

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Business

Saudi Arabia Allows Contracting Exceptions for Firms without Regional HQ

The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Allows Contracting Exceptions for Firms without Regional HQ

The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia has introduced greater flexibility into its investment environment, allowing government entities, under strict controls to safeguard spending efficiency and ensure the delivery of critical projects, to seek exceptions to contract with international companies that do not have regional headquarters in the kingdom.

The Local Content and Government Procurement Authority notified all government bodies of the mechanism to apply for exemptions through the Etimad digital platform.

The step is designed to balance enforcement of the “regional headquarters relocation” decision, in force since early 2024, with the needs of technically specialized projects or those driven by intense price competition.

Under a government decision that took effect at the start of 2024, state entities, including authorities, institutions and government-affiliated funds, are barred from contracting with any foreign commercial company whose regional headquarters in the region is located outside Saudi Arabia.

According to the information, the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority informed all entities of the rules governing contracts with companies that lack a regional headquarters in the kingdom and related parties.

Government entities may request an exemption from the committee for specific projects, multiple projects or a defined time period, provided the application is submitted before launching a tender or initiating direct contracting procedures.

Submission mechanism

In two circulars, the authority detailed how to submit exemption requests and clarified the cases in which contracting is permitted under the controls. It said the exemption service was launched on the Etimad platform in November 2025.

The service is available to entities that float tenders through Etimad. Requests for tenders launched before the service went live, as well as those issued outside the platform, will continue to follow the previously adopted process.

Etimad is the kingdom’s official financial services portal run by the Ministry of Finance, aimed at driving digital transformation of government procedures and boosting transparency and efficiency in managing budgets, contracts, payments, tenders and procurement. The platform streamlines transactions between state entities and the private sector.

Technical criteria

When issuing the contracting controls, the government made clear that companies without a regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, or related parties, are not barred from bidding for public tenders.

However, their offers can only be accepted in two cases: if there is no more than one technically compliant bid, or if the offer ranks among the best technically and is at least 25% lower in price than the second-best bid after overall evaluation.

Contracts with an estimated value of no more than 1 million riyals ($266,000) are also exempt. The minister may, in the public interest, amend the threshold, cancel the exemption or suspend it temporarily.

More than 700 headquarters

More than 700 multinational companies had relocated their regional headquarters to Riyadh by early 2026, exceeding the initial target of attracting 500 companies by 2030. The program seeks to cement the kingdom’s position as a regional business hub and to localize global expertise.

When announcing the contracting ban, Saudi Arabia said the move was intended to incentivize foreign firms dealing with the government and its affiliated entities to adjust their operations.

It aims to create jobs, curb economic leakage, raise spending efficiency and ensure that key goods and services procured by government entities are delivered inside the kingdom with appropriate local content.

The government said the policy aligns with the objectives of the Riyadh 2030 strategy unveiled during the recent Future Investment Initiative forum, where 24 multinational companies announced plans to move their regional headquarters to the Saudi capital.

It stressed that the decision does not affect any investor’s ability to enter the Saudi economy or continue working with the private sector.

 

Business

IMF Board to Review Staff-level $8.1 Bln Agreement for Ukraine

The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
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IMF Board to Review Staff-level $8.1 Bln Agreement for Ukraine

The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday said its board ​would review a staff-level agreement for a new $8.1 billion lending program for Ukraine in coming days.

IMF spokeswoman Jule Kozack told reporters that Ukrainian authorities had completed the prior actions needed to move forward with the request ⁠of a new ⁠IMF program, including submission of a draft law on the labor code and adoption of a budget.

She said Ukraine's economic growth in 2025 ⁠was likely under 2%. After four years of war, the country's economy had settled into a slower growth path with larger fiscal and current account balances, she said, noting that the IMF continues to monitor the situation closely.

"Russia's invasion continues to take a ⁠heavy ⁠toll on Ukraine's people and its economy," Kozack said. Intensified aerial attacks by Russia had damaged critical energy and logistics infrastructure, causing disruptions to economic activity, Reuters quoted her as saying.

As of January, she said, 5 million Ukrainian refugees remained in Europe and 3.7 million Ukrainians were displaced inside the country.

Business

US Stocks Fall as Iran Angst Lifts Oil Prices

A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
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US Stocks Fall as Iran Angst Lifts Oil Prices

A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Wall Street stocks retreated early Thursday as worries over US-Iran tensions lifted oil prices while markets digested mixed results from Walmart.

US oil futures rose to a six-month high as Iran's atomic energy chief Mohammad Eslami said no country can deprive the Islamic republic of its right to nuclear enrichment, after US President Donald Trump again hinted at military action following talks in Geneva.

"We'd call this an undercurrent of concern that is bubbling up in oil prices," Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said of the "geopolitical angst."

About 10 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6 percent at 49,379.46, AFP reported.

The broad-based S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent to 6,849.35, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.6 percent to 22,621.38.

Among individual companies, Walmart rose 1.7 percent after reporting solid results but offering forecasts that missed analyst expectations.

Shares of the retail giant initially fell, but pushed higher after Walmart executives talked up artificial intelligence investments on a conference call with analysts.

The US trade deficit in goods expanded to a new record in 2025, government data showed, despite sweeping tariffs that Trump imposed during his first year back in the White House.