KSA Enables Private Sector to Invest In State Development Projects

Saudi Arabia seeks to enable the private sector to participate in government development projects. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia seeks to enable the private sector to participate in government development projects. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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KSA Enables Private Sector to Invest In State Development Projects

Saudi Arabia seeks to enable the private sector to participate in government development projects. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia seeks to enable the private sector to participate in government development projects. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Real Estate announced the signing of a MoU with the Projects Support Fund at the Ministry of Finance to enhance mutual cooperation in the field of partnerships with the private sector.

The memorandum gives the private sector the opportunity to invest in development projects in the sectors covered by the fund, namely education, health care and real estate development.

The governor of the Real Estate General Authority, Ihsan Bafakih, said on Thursday that the MoU reflected the Authority’s approach towards enhancing integration and partnership between all components of the government system in order to achieve the desired goals.

According to Bafakih, the Authority and the Fund seek, through the MoU, to achieve several goals, including contributing to financing real estate development projects, such as buildings and integrated service projects, in accordance with the financing policies approved by the Fund, in addition to qualifying private sector institutions and introducing them to the financial and technical requirements and providing an favorable environment to attract various qualitative investments.

On a different note, the National Debt Management Center at the Ministry of Finance (NDMC) signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI). The agreement was signed by Fahad Al-Saif, Chief Executive Officer of the NDMC, and Atsuo Kuroda, Chairman and CEO of NEXI.

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, who is also the chairman of the NDMC’s Board of Directors, said that the signing of the Memorandum came in parallel with the fifth Saudi-Japan Vision 2030 Ministerial Meeting and aimed to expand the opportunities of financing government projects implemented by Japanese companies in the Kingdom.



Gold Stabilizes after Selloff as Wider Markets Regain Balance

FILE PHOTO: An employee places ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold in a workroom at the Novosibirsk precious metals refining and manufacturing plant in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia, September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An employee places ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold in a workroom at the Novosibirsk precious metals refining and manufacturing plant in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia, September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo
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Gold Stabilizes after Selloff as Wider Markets Regain Balance

FILE PHOTO: An employee places ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold in a workroom at the Novosibirsk precious metals refining and manufacturing plant in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia, September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: An employee places ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold in a workroom at the Novosibirsk precious metals refining and manufacturing plant in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Russia, September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo

Gold prices held steady on Tuesday, anchored by stability in European equities and US stock futures, a day after bullion's sharp decline amid a tech-led selloff.

Spot gold was steady at $2,742.37 per ounce by 12:05 GMT. US gold futures rose 0.3% to $2,746.70.

"After the drop yesterday, with gold likely being used to cover losses in other asset classes, stable equity markets in Europe are keeping gold stable too," UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said, Reuters reported.

Gold fell over 1% on Monday, marking its steepest drop since Dec. 18, as investors rushed to liquidate bullion to offset losses triggered by a sharp pullback in technology stocks, spurred by DeepSeek's low-cost, low-power AI model, casting doubt on the dominance of traditional AI giants.

Investors' focus is now set upon the Federal Reserve's first meeting this year, scheduled to start later in the day.

Policymakers are expected to leave interest rates unchanged at the end of the two-day meeting.

However, US President Donald Trump saying he wants borrowing costs to be lowered cast some doubt over the independence of the Fed's decision.

"Market uncertainty should still support demand for gold over the coming months, we still look for higher prices later this year, driven also by further rate cuts by the Fed," Staunovo added.

Trump's policies, in addition to being perceived as inflationary, could potentially trigger trade wars, increasing safe-haven demand for bullion.

Gold prices look set for a record-breaking year due to heightened economic uncertainty and inflation concerns, a Reuters poll showed.

However, analysts downgraded their 2025 price forecasts for platinum and palladium as demand struggles to improve significantly.

Spot silver fell 0.1% to $30.17 per ounce, palladium was down by 0.1% to $959.75 and platinum also shed 0.1% to $946.05.