عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

Saudi Government Considers Establishing Comprehensive Economic Platform for Business Sector

The Saudi Business Center (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Saudi Business Center (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

Saudi Government Considers Establishing Comprehensive Economic Platform for Business Sector

The Saudi Business Center (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Saudi Business Center (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi government has instructed the Saudi Business Center to collaborate with the Ministries of Commerce and Investment and the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property to explore the potential for establishing a unified economic platform to serve all business sectors in the Kingdom.
This initiative aligns with the center's mandate, which includes streamlining business operations such as launching, managing, and closing businesses while providing relevant services according to international best practices.
The Saudi Business Center is focused on creating an environment that attracts businesses and boosts competitiveness, investment, and growth. It aims to position Saudi Arabia among the top ten countries globally in terms of quality, efficiency, and ease of government services provided to the business sector.
The Cabinet has recently approved the Commercial Register System, which consists of 29 articles and aims to simplify business procedures, ensure the accuracy of data, and make it accessible for easy reference. Key improvements include establishing a central electronic database for trader information and outlining clear registration procedures.
Businesses are given a five-year period to rectify existing branch records. This can be done by transferring the branch record to another party as a primary record, converting it into a new company, or canceling the branch record and transferring its assets to the main register.
Moreover, the system mandates that businesses open bank accounts linked to their operations, enhancing trust and transparency in their transactions. It also removes the requirement to renew the commercial register and instead introduces an annual electronic confirmation of the register's data. Failure to comply within three months results in suspension, and after a year of suspension, the register will be automatically canceled.
The system also includes alternative measures for handling violations, such as issuing warnings and requiring businesses to correct any infractions. These reforms are expected to streamline business operations and enhance the ease of doing business in Saudi Arabia.

 

 

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

Russia's Central Bank Holds Off on Interest Rate Hike

People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
TT
TT

Russia's Central Bank Holds Off on Interest Rate Hike

People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
People skate at an ice rink installed at the Red Square decorated for the New Year and Christmas festivities, with the St. Basil's Cathedral, left, and the Kremlin, right, in the background in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Russia's central bank has left its benchmark interest rate at 21%, holding off on further increases as it struggles to snuff out inflation fueled by the government's spending on the war against Ukraine.
The decision comes amid criticism from influential business figures, including tycoons close to the Kremlin, that high rates are putting the brakes on business activity and the economy.
According to The Associated Press, the central bank said in a statement that credit conditions had tightened “more than envisaged” by the October rate hike that brought the benchmark to its current record level.
The bank said it would assess the need for any future increases at its next meeting and that inflation was expected to fall to an annual 4% next year from its current 9.5%
Factories are running three shifts making everything from vehicles to clothing for the military, while a labor shortage is driving up wages and fat enlistment bonuses are putting more rubles in people's bank accounts to spend. All that is driving up prices.
On top of that, the weakening Russian ruble raises the prices of imported goods like cars and consumer electronics from China, which has become Russia's biggest trade partner since Western sanctions disrupted economic relations with Europe and the US.
High rates can dampen inflation but also make it more expensive for businesses to get the credit they need to operate and invest.
Critics of the central bank rates and its Governor Elvira Nabiullina have included Sergei Chemezov, the head of state-controlled defense and technology conglomerate Rostec, and steel magnate Alexei Mordashov.
Russian President Vladimir Putin opened his annual news conference on Thursday by saying the economy is on track to grow by nearly 4% this year and that while inflation is “an alarming sign," wages have risen at the same rate and that "on the whole, this situation is stable and secure.”
He acknowledged there had been criticism of the central bank, saying that “some experts believe that the Central Bank could have been more effective and could have started using certain instruments earlier.”
Nabiullina said in November that while the economy is growing, “the rise in prices for the vast majority of goods and services shows that demand is outrunning the expansion of economic capacity and the economy’s potential.”
Russia's military spending is enabled by oil exports, which have shifted from Europe to new customers in India and China who aren't observing sanctions such as a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil sales.