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NEOM, Samsung C&T Commit to World's Largest Deployment of Rebar Construction Automation Technology

The agreement will accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge construction automation technology in Saudi Arabia. SPA
The agreement will accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge construction automation technology in Saudi Arabia. SPA
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NEOM, Samsung C&T Commit to World's Largest Deployment of Rebar Construction Automation Technology

The agreement will accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge construction automation technology in Saudi Arabia. SPA
The agreement will accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge construction automation technology in Saudi Arabia. SPA

NEOM, the sustainable development taking shape in the northwest of Saudi Arabia, has signed a joint venture (JV) agreement with Samsung C&T Corporation to unlock an initial investment of more than SAR1.3 billion in construction robotics.
According to a statement from NEOM, the agreement will accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge construction automation technology in Saudi Arabia.
The JV aims to automate rebar cage assembly through advanced robotic welding and tying techniques, enabling the assembly of large, pre-manufactured reinforcement cages, said the statement.

Through automation, the adoption of rebar assembly technology can reduce manual workforce hours by up to 80%, based on global average installation metrics for traditional construction methods, improving safety and quality, reducing material waste, and reducing cage assembly costs by up to 40%.
"Sustainability at NEOM is a core principle that drives not only what we build, but how we build it. By automating labor-intensive processes through robotics, we are pushing the boundaries of construction innovation,” CEO of NEOM Investment Fund Majid Mufti said.
The agreement will establish rebar cage assembly factories in NEOM, creating more than 2,000 highly skilled job opportunities locally while meeting the extensive requirements for the construction of THE LINE and other key developments in the region.

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US Economy Grows at 3.1% Pace in 3rd Quarter, an Upgrade from Previous Estimate

FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
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US Economy Grows at 3.1% Pace in 3rd Quarter, an Upgrade from Previous Estimate

FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

The American economy grew at a healthy 3.1% annual clip from July through September, propelled by vigorous consumer spending and an uptick in exports, the government said in an upgrade to its previous estimate.
Third-quarter growth in US gross domestic product — the economy's output of goods and services — accelerated from the April-July rate of 3% and continued to look sturdy despite high interest rates, the Commerce Department said Thursday. GDP growth has now topped 2% in eight of the last nine quarters.
Consumer spending, which accounts for about two-thirds of US economic activity, expanded at a 3.7% pace, fastest since the first quarter of 2023 and an uptick from Commerce’s previous third-quarter estimate of 3.5%, The Associated Press reported.
Exports climbed 9.6%. Business investment grew a lackluster 0.8%, but investment in equipment expanded 10.8%. Spending and investment by the federal government jumped 8.9%, including a 13.9% surge in defense spending.
American voters were unimpressed by the steady growth under Democratic President Joe Biden. Exasperated by prices that remain 20% higher than they were when an inflationary surge began in early 2021, they chose last month to send Donald Trump back to the White House with Republican majorities in the House and Senate.
Trump will inherit an economy that looks healthy overall. The unemployment rate remains low at 4.2% even though it is up from the 53-year low 3.4% reached in April 2023. Inflation hit a four-decade high 9.1% in mid-2002. Eleven interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in 2022 and 2023 helped bring it down — to 2.7% last month. That is above the Fed's 2% target. But the central bank still felt comfortable enough with the progress against inflation to cut its benchmark rate Wednesday for the third time this year.
Within the GDP data, a category that measures the economy’s underlying strength rose at a solid 3.4% annual rate from July through September, an upgrade from the previous estimate and up from 2.7% in the April-June quarter. This category includes consumer spending and private investment but excludes volatile items like exports, inventories and government spending.
Wednesday’s report also contained some encouraging news on inflation. The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge — called the personal consumption expenditures index, or PCE — rose at just a 1.5% annual pace last quarter, down from 2.5% in the second quarter. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core PCE inflation was 2.2%, up modestly from the previous estimate but down from 2.8% in the April-June quarter.
Thursday's report was the Commerce Department's third and final look at third-quarter GDP. It will publish its initial estimate of October-December growth on Jan. 30.