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Saudi Arabia Establishes Largest Regional Port for Importing, Processing Grains

Flour mill worker. Asharq Al-Awsat
Flour mill worker. Asharq Al-Awsat
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Saudi Arabia Establishes Largest Regional Port for Importing, Processing Grains

Flour mill worker. Asharq Al-Awsat
Flour mill worker. Asharq Al-Awsat

The Saudi Ports Authority (MAWANI) and SALIC, the Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company, a Public Investment Fund owned company, signed an agreement through video conferencing to lease a land in Yanbu Commercial Port to be used to develop the Kingdom’s largest and first grain terminal.

With a land mass of 313,000 square meters, the terminal will be importing, processing and exporting grains in the Kingdom in two phases, and with a total capacity of 5 million tons annually.

The ceremony was attended by Minister of Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture (MEWA) Eng. Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Mohsen al-Fadhli and Minister of Transport Eng. Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, and was signed by Eng. Saad bin Abdulaziz Al-Khalb, President of MAWANI and the CEO of SALIC, Eng. Sulaiman bin Abdul Rahman Al-Rumaih.

Commenting on the signing, Al-Jasser, who is Chairman of Mawani’s Board of Directors, said: “The Yanbu grain project aims to build the first regional center and logistic platform for importing, processing and exporting grains in KSA, taking advantage of the Yanbu commercial port’s exceptional location on the Red Sea coast and the competitive advantage its provides given its proximity to local and regional markets in the Red Sea Basin and the Horn of Africa.”

“This partnership plays a vital role in the ports and logistic services sector, given they are the main enablers of many key industries and sectors, including the food security sector,” he added.

“It also goes in line with MAWANI’s strategic objectives of fully utilizing the huge absorptive capacity in Saudi ports and raising the percentage of private sector investment in the port sector to 90% by 2030. By doing this it will serve the establishment of various development projects that contribute to achieving added value to the national economy, and supporting the investment landscape and commercial traffic in the Kingdom.”

“This regional project will support the operational traffic in the Yanbu Commercial Port, attract additional international shipping lines, and increase investment in the logistic services sector which will bring about significant growth in operational traffic and the increase in the number of ships that lead the port,” Al-Jasser concluded.

One of SALIC’s key strategic objectives is to significantly contribute to the import of basic commodities that are in line with the food security strategy in the Kingdom. Furthermore, the company aims to invest in supply chains and ports in Saudi and countries where SALIC holds investments to ensure the sustainability of the supply of all basic commodities.

For its part, one of MAWANI’s strategic objectives is to partner with public and private sector organizations to support the Kingdom's ports in becoming the leading regional and international ports and providing an efficient, high capacity, integrated port network.

This will significantly support the Kingdom's economic growth plans, stimulate the logistics services industry and global supply chains, and position Saudi Arabia as a global logistical hub and link to the three continents, in line with Vision 2030.

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Dollar Recovers as Trump Proposes Canada, Mexico Tariffs

US Dollar and Euro banknotes are seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US Dollar and Euro banknotes are seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Dollar Recovers as Trump Proposes Canada, Mexico Tariffs

US Dollar and Euro banknotes are seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US Dollar and Euro banknotes are seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

The US dollar rose on Tuesday, recovering from its biggest daily percentage drop in 14 months after President Donald Trump suggested the US could impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico by Feb. 1, countering expectations he might take a gradual approach.

Trump told reporters he was thinking about implementing tariffs of around 25% on imports from Canada and Mexico at the start of February over illegal immigrants and fentanyl crossing into the country. He also raised the possibility of a universal tariff but said the US was "not ready" for that yet.

The dollar fell sharply on Monday after Trump's first day in office passed with no specific plans on tariffs and officials said any new taxes would be imposed in a measured way, a major relief for trade-exposed currencies, Reuters reported.

"What you're seeing here, too, is just how crowded long dollar positioning is, so all you need is some ambiguity on the tariff front, and you get these kind of moves," said Erik Bregar, director, FX & precious metals risk management, at Silver Gold Bull in Toronto.

"The bigger outside moves are going to come now if we see some deals happening, some stuff being negotiated and some of this fear getting priced out. The dollar positioning is long enough that you're going to see some smart people trying to bet on a turn."

The dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of currencies, rose 0.32% to 108.33 after dropping 1.24% on Monday. It was up as much as 0.68% earlier in the session.

The euro was down 0.22% at $1.0391. The EU is also seen as a likely target for Trump's tariff policies. Sterling weakened 0.26% to $1.2291.

Talking to reporters on Monday, Trump said he would remedy the trade imbalance either through tariffs or by Europe buying more US oil and gas.

A subsequent trade memo directed agencies to investigate and remedy persistent trade deficits. Analysts at Jefferies said the memo should be seen as a "blueprint for what to expect next on tariffs," and April 1 will be an important date as the agency reports are due by that date.

The Canadian dollar weakened 0.8% versus the greenback to C$1.44 per dollar while the Mexican peso was down 0.86% versus the dollar at 20.698.

The inauguration speech focused on emergencies in immigration and energy and a more expansionist foreign policy, including a pledge to take back the Panama Canal.

In his first term in office, Trump had a history of announcing imminent plans for policy proposals, including on healthcare and infrastructure, only for nothing to take shape.

Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened 0.11% to 155.42.

The yen has strengthened against the dollar in three of the last four sessions, supported by growing expectations the Bank of Japan will raise interest rates on Friday.

Japan's top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura said on Tuesday at a Reuters NEXT Newsmaker event that a weak yen would increase inflation by boosting import costs. Mimura said the government and the central bank were communicating closely every day through various channels.

Markets are pricing an 86.2% chance of a quarter-point increase.

The dollar strengthened 0.23% against the offshore Chinese yuan to 7.278. Trump has threatened China with tariffs of up to 60% but did not detail any plans on Monday.

Beijing later set a stronger fix for the yuan, suggesting it was still inclined to take steps to prop up the currency.