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PIF's Al-Madinah Heritage Co. Inks Deal to Establish Specialist Date Factory

Dates are considered of great importance in nutritional value (SPA)
Dates are considered of great importance in nutritional value (SPA)
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PIF's Al-Madinah Heritage Co. Inks Deal to Establish Specialist Date Factory

Dates are considered of great importance in nutritional value (SPA)
Dates are considered of great importance in nutritional value (SPA)

Al-Madinah Heritage Co., a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund specializing in dates, has signed an agreement with the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (MODON) to acquire land in Madinah for the establishment of a specialized date processing factory.

The signing ceremony took place during the inauguration of the Industry and Local Content Medinah Forum, which was attended by the Deputy Governor of Madinah Prince Saud bin Khalid bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz.

In this regard, CEO of Al-Madinah Heritage Co. Bandar Al-Qahtani said the agreement would kickstart the company’s scheme for an integrated date factory in Madinah, noting that work would begin three months after plans and specifications had been set in accordance with the latest global technologies.

PIF launched the Al-Madinah Heritage Company last September with the aim of improving the production and quality of dates, specifically the Ajwa variety. It also plans to open up new and diverse markets for the dates and related products, both locally and internationally.

 

 

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Bitcoin Drops to 11-day Low amid Tech Selloff

FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Bitcoin Drops to 11-day Low amid Tech Selloff

FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sparks strike representation of cryptocurrency Bitcoin in this illustration taken November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Bitcoin fell below $100,000 on Monday, hitting its lowest in 11 days, in a move analysts attributed to a wave of caution after the surging popularity of a Chinese artificial intelligence model sparked a selloff in Western AI-related stocks.

The world's biggest cryptocurrency struggled to make gains last week, as a rally that had seen it break above $100,000 after US President Donald Trump's election ran out of steam, Reuters reported.

At 1156 GMT, bitcoin was at $98,852.17, down around 6% on the day, having fallen sharply in early trading to hit its lowest since Jan. 16.

Technology stocks plunged, as traders worried that Chinese AI startup DeepSeek could threaten Western companies' dominance of the sector, in a move some called AI's "Sputnik moment", referring to the former Soviet Union's launch of a satellite that marked the start of the space race in the late 1950s.

Bitcoin's losses are "seemingly driven by some risk-off sentiment circulating the markets currently due to DeepSeek," wrote eToro analyst Simon Peters.

Geoffrey Kendrick, global head of digital asset research at Standard Chartered, said a decline in Nasdaq futures had hurt crypto markets, but that disappointment over the Trump administration's announcement about a cryptocurrency stockpile had put digital assets more at risk of a sharp selloff.

Crypto failed to feature in Trump's day-one announcements after taking office last week, leaving some investors disappointed. In an executive order on Thursday, Trump created a working group to draft new crypto rules and explore a crypto stockpile, while the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) spiked accounting guidance that the industry said had stymied crypto adoption.

The prospect of interest rates staying higher for longer also hurt riskier assets, said Thomas Puech, CEO of digital asset hedge fund Indigo.

US Federal Reserve policymakers meet this week and are expected to keep interest rates on hold.