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Riyadh Air Wins Approval to Operate US Flights

A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft of Saudi airline Riyadh Air is pictured on the tarmac at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on June 7, 2026. (AFP)
A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft of Saudi airline Riyadh Air is pictured on the tarmac at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on June 7, 2026. (AFP)
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Riyadh Air Wins Approval to Operate US Flights

A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft of Saudi airline Riyadh Air is pictured on the tarmac at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on June 7, 2026. (AFP)
A Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft of Saudi airline Riyadh Air is pictured on the tarmac at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on June 7, 2026. (AFP)

Saudi Arabia's new airline Riyadh Air won the right to operate flights to and from the United States, the US Transportation Department said in an order Tuesday.

The airline launched its first London flight on its new Boeing fleet last week. Launched in 2023, Riyadh Air is Saudi Arabia's second national airline ‌after Saudia, ‌and is owned by the country's ‌Public ⁠Investment Fund.

USDOT ⁠said "the grant of this authority is consistent with the public interest."

Riyadh Air told USDOT when it sought approval last month that it intends to operate to more than 100 international destinations by 2030 and currently ⁠has or is planning partnerships with ‌at least 10 ‌international air carriers including Delta Air Lines.

Delta has said ‌it plans to begin nonstop service ‌to Riyadh from Atlanta in October.

Deliveries are set to bring its fleet to eight by the end of July, and it plans to fly ‌to 22 cities by March 2027, Riyadh CEO Tony Douglas said last ⁠week.

With ⁠up to 72 787s and as many as 60 A321neos and 50 A350s on order, Douglas calls it "the biggest global aviation startup in modern history".

The airline is part of the Kingdom's plan to diversify its economy into new industries such as tourism, logistics and technology.

Riyadh Air has announced routes to Cairo, Dubai, Jeddah, Madrid and Manchester so far, and cities in India are likely to follow, Douglas said.

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Strait of Hormuz Ship Crossings Remain in Single Digits

FILE PHOTO: Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
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Strait of Hormuz Ship Crossings Remain in Single Digits

FILE PHOTO: Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

Vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz remained in the single digits at four on Tuesday, down from seven a day earlier, preliminary shipping data showed on Wednesday, falling well short of the 10-day average of 18.

The drop in traffic through the waterway that handled one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied ⁠natural gas supply before ⁠the Iran war comes after attacks in the region intensified.

Of the total on Tuesday, two ships were exiting and two were entering, according to the data.

No very large crude carriers ⁠or liquefied natural gas tankers were involved.

Some ships may be sailing through the waterway with their transponders turned off and they are therefore not counted.

One very large gas carrier, Salute, carrying around 470,000 barrels of liquefied petroleum gas exited via the Iranian route, while Panamax-sized tanker Nautilus, carrying around 510,000 barrels of naphtha, exited ⁠via ⁠an unknown dark route, Reuters reported.

The two ships that entered were both laden, with one being a short-range dirty products tanker and the other a dry bulk carrier. Both entered via the Iranian route.

Meanwhile, the number of ships sailing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait was at 22, little changed on Tuesday compared with a day ago at 24.

Business

Türkiye 2027 Inflation Target Realistic, Minister Says

People shop at the Eminonu district of Istanbul, Türkiye, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)
People shop at the Eminonu district of Istanbul, Türkiye, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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Türkiye 2027 Inflation Target Realistic, Minister Says

People shop at the Eminonu district of Istanbul, Türkiye, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)
People shop at the Eminonu district of Istanbul, Türkiye, April 25, 2025. (Reuters)

Türkiye's 2027 inflation target in its medium-term program is regarded as realistic by markets, provided that the Iran war does not continue next year, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said in an interview with broadcaster Haberturk on Wednesday.

Türkiye should normally operate a floating ‌exchange rate regime, ‌as it provides the ‌basis ⁠for responding correctly ⁠to shocks, Simsek said.

Türkiye has always provided wage increases of at least the rate of inflation for all public workers and retirees, and will continue to do so, ⁠he added.

Once inflation ‌falls to ‌single digits, mandatory export proceeds sales requirements could ‌be lifted in favor of ‌a freer regime, he also said.

Conditions for removing the mandatory export sales requirement have not yet been met and ‌Türkiye will review the matter when they arise.

The government expects ⁠inflation ⁠to slow to 28.4% this year and to 21% in 2027 before dropping to single digits in 2029 — about two years later than previously predicted.

The US-sanctioned Golden Global Yatirim bank is small and poses no systemic risk, Simsek also said, calling on other banks to comply with international regulations and strengthen compliance.

Business

Bahrain's Alba Says Produces 1.3 Million Tons Per Year of Aluminium

The Bahraini capital (Reuters)
The Bahraini capital (Reuters)
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Bahrain's Alba Says Produces 1.3 Million Tons Per Year of Aluminium

The Bahraini capital (Reuters)
The Bahraini capital (Reuters)

Aluminium Bahrain, known as Alba, is currently producing aluminium at an annualized rate of 1.3 million metric tons, versus a pre-Iran war capacity of around 1.6 million tons, its CEO said on Wednesday.

Alba, which describes itself as the world's biggest aluminium smelter on one site, shut down production ⁠lines 1, 2, and ⁠3 following the outbreak of the war as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz restricted exports. The plant was then hit by an Iranian attack in late March.

Alba is now operating lines 4, 5 and 6 at its smelter, equivalent to 1.3 ⁠million tons per year, Ali Al Baqali told Reuters on the sidelines of the Fastmarkets Aluminium Conference in Budapest.

He described the Iranian strike as a "small, minor attack.”

"We got damages and we already repaired them. Nothing needed," Al Baqali said, adding that Alba had been covered by insurance.

Its overall capacity will return to 1.6 million tons when it completes its acquisition of French smelter Aluminium Dunkerque in the next couple of months, Al ⁠Baqali said.

To ⁠maintain production, Alba is bringing in 300 to 350 trucks carrying raw material alumina on a daily basis, the CEO said.

"We are managing to receive around 7,000 metric tons of alumina every day," Al Baqali said, describing the logistics operation as "expensive,” but offset by the high London Metal Exchange aluminium price and premiums for physical metal.

Alba is exporting metal via the Saudi port of Jeddah on the Red Sea and from Sohar in Oman, Al Baqali said, as hostilities in the Middle East continue.