Riyadh Prepares For G20 with Decisive Decision, Bold Measures

 Riyadh will host the G20 leaders’ summit on Nov.21-22 (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh will host the G20 leaders’ summit on Nov.21-22 (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Riyadh Prepares For G20 with Decisive Decision, Bold Measures

 Riyadh will host the G20 leaders’ summit on Nov.21-22 (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh will host the G20 leaders’ summit on Nov.21-22 (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Few days before the annual summit of the leaders of the world’s largest economies, Riyadh is finalizing draft-decisions and recommendations that would be submitted by the G20. Those will be aimed at developing efficient solutions and bold action plans to enhance recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and restore growth to the global economy.

According to information obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, the G20 secretariat's high-level meetings concluded that great efforts should be exerted to make the Riyadh summit “decisive” and capable of restoring hope and reassurance to the peoples of the world through a set of brave measures.

Work is currently underway to issue a strong and approved final statement for the G20 leaders’ summit, which would include commitments and pledges and underline the importance of solidarity and international cooperation to coordinate a unified response for the G20 members.

According to the information, the Saudi G20 presidency will hence highlight the following vision: “The health and economic challenges facing the world cannot be managed separately by every country. The world is interconnected, so there is a need to work together, while respecting the different views, circumstances and traditions.”

Riyadh will host the G20 leaders’ summit on Nov. 21-22, after a busy year that witnessed 180 conferences, including senior ministerial meetings and two summits.

Moreover, the Saudi Presidency of the G20 has taken rapid and unprecedented measures to protect the most vulnerable.

The G20 members have contributed nearly $21 billion to support health systems, develop a vaccine, and provide more than $14 billion to alleviate the debts of developing countries. This year’s presidency also saw the pumping of about $12 trillion to protect the global economy.



Bitcoin Rises Above $94,000 for First Time

FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Illustration/File Photo
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Bitcoin Rises Above $94,000 for First Time

FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Illustration/File Photo

Bitcoin rose to a record high above $94,000 as a report that Donald Trump's social media company was in talks to buy crypto trading firm Bakkt boosted expectations of a crypto-friendly regime under his incoming administration.
Bitcoin, the world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, has more than doubled this year. It was last at $93,521 on Wednesday, having hit a high of $94,078 in early Asian trading hours.
The Financial Times said Trump Media and Technology Group, which operates Truth Social, is close to an all-stock acquisition of Bakkt, which is backed by NYSE-owner Intercontinental Exchange.
"Trump's seeming interest to push further into crypto on a personal level has contributed to optimism that crypto will be a top priority when Trump takes office," said Stéphane Ouellette, chief executive officer of crypto trading firm FRNT Financial.
Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal reported Trump was meeting privately with the crypto exchange CEO Brian Armstrong, further aiding sentiment.
Cryptocurrencies have soared since the Nov. 5 US election as traders bet President-elect Trump's promised support for digital assets would lead to a less restrictive regulatory regime.
Options trading over BlackRock's spot bitcoin ETF on the Nasdaq made a strong debut on Tuesday with a bullish call-to-put ratio of 4.4:1, according to QCP Capital.
"We expect these options to be popular and, in turn, may positively influence trading volumes of these ETPs (exchange traded products) as the underlying," said Kenneth Worthington, analyst at J.P.Morgan.
The growing excitement has taken the global cryptocurrency market's value above $3 trillion to a record high, based on analytics and data aggregator CoinGecko.
US spot bitcoin exchange traded products have attracted about $4.2 billion in inflows since Trump's election victory, about 15% of the total inflows since the products were launched on US stock exchanges in January, Reuters reported.
Chris Weston, head of research at Australian online broker Pepperstone, said there is real underlying buying pressure for bitcoin, and "another kick higher should bring in a fresh chase from those who like to buy what's strong".