Saudi PIF Launches New Local Business Opportunities at PIF Private Sector Forum 2024

Saudi PIF Launches New Local Business Opportunities at PIF Private Sector Forum 2024
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Saudi PIF Launches New Local Business Opportunities at PIF Private Sector Forum 2024

Saudi PIF Launches New Local Business Opportunities at PIF Private Sector Forum 2024

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) held its second PIF Private Sector Forum on Tuesday along with its accompanying exhibition in Riyadh, to foster partnerships between PIF and its portfolio companies, and the private sector, according to a press release from the PIF.

The forum aligns with PIF's strategy to increase local content through its portfolio companies to 60% by the end of 2025.

The event will bring together an array of prominent figures, including ministers, PIF executives, CEOs, thought leaders, and representatives from over 80 PIF portfolio companies. With over 100 booths showcasing portfolio companies and government entities, the event features participation from more than 8,000 private sector professionals across strategic sectors.

The PIF Private Sector Forum 2024 will complement PIF and its portfolio companies' efforts to empower the local private sector, enhancing its competitiveness and capacity for innovation.  

The event will see the launch of new programs and initiatives that aim to diversify the local economy, enhance the capabilities of strategic sectors, boost competitiveness, increase local content and create job opportunities.  

It will highlight the significance of private sector empowerment in driving the local economy and achieving the goals of Vision 2030.

This year's forum will include sessions and workshops addressing strategic topics related to Vision 2030's objectives of empowering and enhancing the private sector and PIF's role in driving this initiative.  

The discussions will cover financing solutions for vendors, opportunities in emerging local sectors, and the impact of private sector investment on value and supply chain development.

The forum will also explore opportunities for collaboration and partnership involving PIF, its portfolio companies and the private sector, providing a significant platform for private sector networking.

The forum will encourage collaboration and partnerships between PIF, its portfolio companies, and the private sector. It will also serve as a platform for private sector networking.



Oil Gains Capped by Uncertainty over Sanctions Impact

FILE PHOTO: An oil pump jack is seen at sunset near Midland, Texas, US, May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Ernest Scheyder/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An oil pump jack is seen at sunset near Midland, Texas, US, May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Ernest Scheyder/File Photo
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Oil Gains Capped by Uncertainty over Sanctions Impact

FILE PHOTO: An oil pump jack is seen at sunset near Midland, Texas, US, May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Ernest Scheyder/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An oil pump jack is seen at sunset near Midland, Texas, US, May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Ernest Scheyder/File Photo

Oil prices crept higher on Wednesday as the market focused on potential supply disruptions from sanctions on Russian tankers, though gains were tempered by a lack of clarity on their impact.

Brent crude futures rose 16 cents, or 0.2%, to $80.08 a barrel by 1250 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude was up 26 cents, or 0.34%, at $77.76.

The latest round of US sanctions on Russian oil could disrupt Russian oil supply and distribution significantly, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its monthly oil market report on Wednesday, adding that "the full impact on the oil market and on access to Russian supply is uncertain".

A fresh round of sanctions angst seems to be supporting prices, along with the prospect of a weekly US stockpile draw, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, Reuters reported.

"Tankers carrying Russian crude seems to be struggling offloading their cargoes around the world, potentially driving some short-term tightness," he added.

The key question remains how much Russian supply will be lost in the global market and whether alternative measures can offset the , shortfall, said IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong.

OPEC, meanwhile, expects global oil demand to rise by 1.43 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2026, maintaining a similar growth rate to 2025, the producer group said on Wednesday.

The 2026 forecast aligns with OPEC's view that oil demand will keep rising for the next two decades. That is in contrast with the IEA, which expects demand to peak this decade as the world shifts to cleaner energy.

The market also found some support from a drop in US crude oil stocks last week, market sources said, citing American Petroleum Institute (API) figures on Tuesday.

Crude stocks fell by 2.6 million barrels last week while gasoline inventories rose by 5.4 million barrels and distillates climbed by 4.88 million barrels, API sources said.

A Reuters poll found that analysts expected US crude oil stockpiles to have fallen by about 1 million barrels in the week to Jan. 10. Stockpile data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) is due at 10:30 a.m. EST (1530 GMT).

On Tuesday the EIA trimmed its outlook for global demand in 2025 to 104.1 million barrels per day (bpd) while expecting supply of oil and liquid fuel to average 104.4 million bpd.

It predicted that Brent crude will drop 8% to average $74 a barrel in 2025 and fall further to $66 in 2026 while WTI was projected to average $70 in 2025, dropping to $62 in 2026.