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Saudi Arabia Signs Cooperation Agreements to Develop Contracting Sector

The opening ceremony of the FPF saw the signing of several MOUs with the Saudi Contractors Authority. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The opening ceremony of the FPF saw the signing of several MOUs with the Saudi Contractors Authority. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Signs Cooperation Agreements to Develop Contracting Sector

The opening ceremony of the FPF saw the signing of several MOUs with the Saudi Contractors Authority. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The opening ceremony of the FPF saw the signing of several MOUs with the Saudi Contractors Authority. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing Majed Al-Hogail said that the Future Projects Forum (FPF) will contribute to raising the efficiency and competitiveness of contractors and enable them to keep pace with the latest technologies to implement development projects within the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

The Forum, which kicked off in Riyadh on Monday, will also enhance communication between the local and international public and private sectors, according to the minister.

Secretary-General of the Saudi Contractors Authority Thabet Al-Sweid said the FPF, which extends over three days, would feature various projects pertaining to oil and gas and others within the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

He added that the virtual conference is attended by more than 10,000 local and foreign contractors and stakeholders, in addition to 39 entities, including ministries and companies, such as Aramco, SABIC, the Red Sea Project and Amaala.

The director of Mega Projects at SABIC, Dhaifallah Al-Maliki, noted that the company was seeking to support contractors in raising the quality of projects in terms of safety and execution speed.

The coronavirus pandemic has had a major impact on all sectors, Maliki said, stressing that SABIC has contributed to fighting its repercussions out of its social responsibility, with a budget equivalent of 123 million riyals.

The company has also encouraged local contractors to enhance their participation in the local content and contribute to the implementation of the best standards in the economic activity.

For his part, Khaled Al-Saif, Chairman of the Saudi Contractors Authority, said that the forum aims to raise the efficiency and competitiveness of contractors, and to keep pace with the technical requirements and capabilities necessary to implement future projects within Saudi Vision 2030.

Amaala, a premium tourist project that extends along the northwest coast of the Kingdom, signed an MOU with the Saudi Contractors Authority, to cooperate in several areas, including the establishment of an electronic platform for project sharing.

The opening ceremony of the FPF saw the signing of several MOUs with the Saudi Contractors Authority, including an agreement with the Center for Legal Studies and Research to activate joint cooperation between the two sides.

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Inflation Rose to 2.3% in Europe. That Won't Stop the Central Bank from Cutting Interest Rates

A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
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Inflation Rose to 2.3% in Europe. That Won't Stop the Central Bank from Cutting Interest Rates

A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
A view shows the Bercy Economy and Finance Ministry as a metro operated by the Paris transport network RATP passes over the Pont de Bercy bridge in Paris, France, November 28, 2024. REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq

Inflation in the 20 countries that use the euro currency rose in November — but that likely won’t stop the European Central Bank from cutting interest rates as the prospect of new US tariffs from the incoming Trump administration adds to the gloom over weak growth.
The European Union’s harmonized index of consumer prices stood up 2.3% in the year to November, up from 2.0% in October, the EU statistics agency Eurostat reported Friday.
Energy prices fell 1.9% from a year ago, but that was offset by price increases of 3.9% in the services sector, a broad category including haircuts, medical treatment, hotels and restaurants, and sports and entertainment, The Associated Press reported.
Inflation has come down a long way from the peak of 10.6% in October 2022 as the ECB quickly raised rates to cool off price rises. It then started cutting them in June as worries about growth came into sharper focus.
High central bank benchmark rates combat inflation by influencing borrowing costs throughout the economy. Higher rates make buying things on credit — whether a car, a house or a new factory — more expensive and thus reduce demand for goods and take pressure off prices. However, higher rates can also dampen growth.
Growth worries got new emphasis after surveys of purchasing managers compiled by S&P Global showed the eurozone economy was contracting in October. On top of that come concerns about how US trade policy under incoming President Donald Trump, including possible new tariffs, or import taxes on imported goods, might affect Europe’s export-dependent economy. Trump takes office Jan. 20.
The eurozone’s economic output is expected to grow 0.8% for all of this year and 1.3% next year, according to the European Commission’s most recent forecast.
All that has meant the discussion about the Dec. 12 ECB meeting has focused not on whether the Frankfurt-based bank’s rate council will cut rates, but by how much. Market discussion has included the possibility of a larger than usual half-point cut in the benchmark rate, currently 3.25%.
Inflation in Germany, the eurozone’s largest economy, held steady at 2.4%. That “will strengthen opposition against a 50 basis point cut,” said Carsten Brzeski, global chief of macro at ING bank, using financial jargon for a half-percentage-point cut.
The ECB sets interest rate policy for the European Union member countries that have joined the euro currency.