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Climate Week in Riyadh Introduces Solutions, Ideas for COP28

Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman addresses the opening of Climate Week in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman addresses the opening of Climate Week in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Climate Week in Riyadh Introduces Solutions, Ideas for COP28

Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman addresses the opening of Climate Week in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman addresses the opening of Climate Week in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Middle East and North Africa Climate Week 2023 concluded on Thursday in Riyadh, with successful discussions and ideas that pave the way for solutions for the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), which will be held late next month in Dubai.

The international event witnessed the largest attendance ever at the regional climate weeks held by the United Nations globally, with the participation of more than 9,000 people of 137 different nationalities, who were present at more than 240 dialogue sessions.

With the conclusion of the conference, Saudi Arabia affirmed its readiness to maintain the momentum and promote comprehensive climate action.

Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman inaugurated the event on Sunday, presenting an overview of the progress achieved in the region and in Saudi Arabia in particular.

The Climate Week saw the announcement of comprehensive programs and offered a platform for sharing ideas and solutions related to climate action. In this context, three important initiatives were announced, all of which seek to advance global climate goals.

Those include a market mechanism to compensate and balance greenhouse gases (carbon equivalents) in the Kingdom, a roadmap for the Saudi Green Initiative goal of planting 10 billion trees, in addition to an initiative entitled, “Empowering Africa”, based on the Clean Cooking Solutions Initiative.

Six memorandums of understanding were concluded during the event, including an agreement between Saudi Arabia and India in the field of electrical connectivity, clean green hydrogen and supply chains, and a memorandum between the Ministerial Forum for Clean Energy and the King Abdullah Center for Petroleum Studies and Research (KAPSARC) to promote sustainable energy development at the regional and global levels.

KAPSARC held a high-level workshop in partnership with the World Energy Forum, which addressed the contribution of clean hydrogen and carbon capture, use and storage projects in achieving climate goals in the Middle East and North Africa region, with the participation of an elite group of experts in energy, climate and sustainability, and officials in the government and private sectors.

The discussions touched on hydrogen strategies in the region and their promising role in project development, and highlighted the importance of technology and supply chains in providing low-carbon energy solutions.

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Saudi Fund Injects $1.7 Bn to Boost Food Security

The fund financed agricultural projects worth 7.1 million dollars to support afforestation and expand vegetation cover. SPA
The fund financed agricultural projects worth 7.1 million dollars to support afforestation and expand vegetation cover. SPA
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Saudi Fund Injects $1.7 Bn to Boost Food Security

The fund financed agricultural projects worth 7.1 million dollars to support afforestation and expand vegetation cover. SPA
The fund financed agricultural projects worth 7.1 million dollars to support afforestation and expand vegetation cover. SPA

Saudi Arabia’s Agricultural Development Fund is stepping up efforts to bolster food security and sustain the Kingdom’s agricultural sector, raising self-sufficiency and strengthening strategic reserves.

The push is part of a broader strategy balancing support for domestic production and supply chains with external programs to import targeted products and invest in cross-border agriculture.

Habib Al-Shammari, the fund’s official spokesman, told Asharq Al-Awsat the approach aligns with the national agriculture and food security strategies. He said the fund continues to promote modern technologies in agricultural projects to preserve natural resources and boost productivity.

In 2024, the fund disbursed more than 1.2 billion riyals (about 300 million dollars) for projects that used modern technologies. These helped save nearly 4 million cubic meters of water and cut energy consumption by about 330,000 megawatt hours, Al-Shammari said.

He added that such technologies also reduce greenhouse gas emissions by improving efficiency, in line with the Saudi Green Initiative. The fund financed agricultural projects worth 26.6 million riyals (7.1 million dollars) to support afforestation and expand vegetation cover.

Al-Shammari said the fund has also backed biodiversity protection by financing programs supporting beekeeping and honey production, developing rose cultivation and rain-fed crops, and extending loans totaling more than 12 million riyals to central nurseries.

Loan approvals reached about 6.47 billion riyals (1.72 billion dollars) by the end of 2025, he said. The fund also signed a memorandum of understanding last year with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in Rome to support sustainable rural agricultural development and exchange expertise.

Al-Shammari said such agreements strengthen the agricultural sector, pointing to deals with local entities, including Jazan City for Primary and Downstream Industries, to enhance integration into food-sector investment opportunities and maximize the impact of the fund’s programs for investors and farmers.

The fund also signed an agreement with the National Center for Palms and Dates to support the sustainability of the sector and related industries, financing operating costs for date purchases and offering tailored financing solutions.

Another agreement with the Imam Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Royal Reserve Development Authority focuses on vegetation development, ecosystem sustainability, and support for local communities within the reserve.

To strengthen the livestock sector, the fund signed a deal with Al-Raie National Livestock Company to finance a sheep farming project in Hail valued at 1.106 billion riyals (295 million dollars), with a total investment cost of 2 billion riyals (533 million dollars). It also signed an agreement with the Center for Support and Liquidation (Infath) to regulate the sale of seized real estate and share expertise.

Business

IATA Chief: Jet Fuel Supply Could Take Months to Recover after Hormuz Reopening

A British Airways plane takes off from Milan Linate airport northern Italy, on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Stefano RELLANDINI / AFP)
A British Airways plane takes off from Milan Linate airport northern Italy, on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Stefano RELLANDINI / AFP)
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IATA Chief: Jet Fuel Supply Could Take Months to Recover after Hormuz Reopening

A British Airways plane takes off from Milan Linate airport northern Italy, on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Stefano RELLANDINI / AFP)
A British Airways plane takes off from Milan Linate airport northern Italy, on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Stefano RELLANDINI / AFP)

The head of a body representing global airlines said on Wednesday that even if Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz it would take months for jet fuel supply to recover given disruptions to Middle East refining capacity.

Oil fell below $100 per barrel after US President Donald Trump said he had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran that was subject to the immediate and safe reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about a fifth of the world's oil trade.

Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), told reporters in Singapore that while he ⁠expected crude oil ⁠prices to fall, jet fuel costs were likely to remain slightly elevated due to the impact on refineries.

"If it were to reopen and remain open, I think it will still take a period of months to get back to where supply needs to be given the disruption to the refining capacity in ⁠the Middle East, which is a critical part of the global supply of refined products, and not just jet fuel for other products as well," Walsh said.

Airlines across Asia have been cutting flights, carrying extra fuel from home airports and adding refueling stops as the Middle East conflict squeezes jet fuel supply, adding to pressure on an industry already hit by a doubling of jet fuel prices.

The pain has so far been sharpest in lower-income, import-dependent markets such as Vietnam, Myanmar and Pakistan after China and ⁠Thailand halted ⁠jet fuel exports and South Korea capped them at last year’s levels.

If crude started flowing again then "I would like to think" that China as well as South Korea would restart their exporting of refined products, Reuters quoted Walsh as saying.

"So there is (refining) capacity available once we get the crude oil flowing, but it'll take a little bit of time, and with the crack spread elevated the way it is, I think that provides an incentive for refineries to increase the production of jet fuel," Walsh said.

The crack spread refers to refinery margins.

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Dollar Drops as Iran Ceasefire Prompts risk-on Turn for Markets

A portrait of George Washington is displayed on a stack of US one-dollar bills in Dallas, Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
A portrait of George Washington is displayed on a stack of US one-dollar bills in Dallas, Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
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Dollar Drops as Iran Ceasefire Prompts risk-on Turn for Markets

A portrait of George Washington is displayed on a stack of US one-dollar bills in Dallas, Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
A portrait of George Washington is displayed on a stack of US one-dollar bills in Dallas, Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

The dollar sank to its lowest level in a month while the euro, yen, Aussie and sterling rallied hard in Asian trading on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said he had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran.

The yen strengthened 0.8% against the greenback to 158.36 per dollar. The euro was up 0.7% at $1.1674, while the British pound appreciated 0.8% to $1.34. The Australian dollar climbed 1.1% to $0.7054.

Trump had earlier threatened widespread attacks on Iran's civilian infrastructure, drawing international condemnation after issuing an extraordinary warning that "a whole civilization will die tonight" ⁠if his demands ⁠were not met.

Investors' risk appetite rapidly returned after the ceasefire announcement, less than two hours before Trump's deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz would have expired, Reuters reported.

If the strategic waterway is reopened, "we could be able to consolidate the risk-on rally that we're seeing," said Ray Attrill, head of FX strategy at National Australia Bank in Sydney.

"But a lot has to happen in the next 14 days," he said, adding ⁠that currencies would be vulnerable to a retracement of their recent moves in the interim. "Markets still need to proceed with a degree of skepticism."

Traders' attention turned to central banks' next moves as oil prices fell sharply. Brent crude slid 13.4% to $94.68 a barrel but was still well above pre-war levels.

The kiwi dollar climbed 1.5% to $0.5819, extending gains after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept its policy rate at 2.25% on Wednesday for a second straight meeting, choosing to sit tight as it gauges the economic fallout from the war. But the central bank signaled it is ready to act if inflation pressures intensify.

Fed funds futures are pricing coin-toss ⁠odds that the Federal ⁠Reserve could cut rates by at least 25 basis points at its December 9 meeting, compared to an implied 74.5% probability a day earlier that the US central bank would remain on hold, according to the CME Group's FedWatch tool.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, weakened for a third consecutive day to lows of 98.838, its weakest since March 11.

Elsewhere, the won strengthened 1.6% to 1,477.10, its biggest one-day appreciation since the Iran war began and shrugging off fresh geopolitical tensions on the Korean peninsula. South Korea's military said North Korea fired several ballistic missiles toward the sea off its east coast on Wednesday, following a separate launch detected a day earlier.

Cryptocurrencies also rallied, with bitcoin advancing 2.9% to $71,327.07, and ether climbing5.6% to $2,233.90.