AlUla Agrees to Enhance Palm, Date Production Ahead of Global Promotion

The Royal Commission for AlUla signs an MoU to enhance the palm and date sector. (SPA)
The Royal Commission for AlUla signs an MoU to enhance the palm and date sector. (SPA)
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AlUla Agrees to Enhance Palm, Date Production Ahead of Global Promotion

The Royal Commission for AlUla signs an MoU to enhance the palm and date sector. (SPA)
The Royal Commission for AlUla signs an MoU to enhance the palm and date sector. (SPA)

The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Center for Palms and Dates (NCPD) to boost the palm and date sector.

The MoU also aims to achieve production efficiency from AlUla dates, ahead of promoting them locally and internationally.

The agreement includes improving the quality of the palm and dates sector in AlUla to produce crops of high economic value.

It also studies the establishment of centers dedicated to providing services to farmers, setting up workshops for them and those interested, and enabling distributors to market their produce through e-commerce.

Agriculture is one of the main economic sectors included in the Journey Through Time Masterplan, which aligns with the Vision for AlUla, and is in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 to promote sustainable development in the governorate by investing all available factors in creating a diverse and prosperous economy.

Under the memorandum, the two parties will work to enhance understanding in their familiar fields, including inviting investors and those interested in the palm and dates sector to participate in the annual festival of dates in AlUla.

In addition, it includes presenting distinguished business models for existing facilities and services and motivating AlUla farmers to obtain the Saudi dates mark.

CEO of the National Center for Palms and Dates Mohammad al-Nuwairan said AlUla farms have a qualitative production center for many types of dates, which are very popular in the local and international market.

AlUla boasts more than two million palm trees with production exceeding 90,000 tons of dates annually.



US Economy Shrinks 0.3% in 1st Quarter as Trump Says 'Be Patient'

President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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US Economy Shrinks 0.3% in 1st Quarter as Trump Says 'Be Patient'

President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Americans should be patient in the face of a first quarter economic contraction, arguing that his tariffs would eventually lead to a boom in the US economy.

The economy shrank 0.3% from January through March, first drop in three years. It was slowed by a surge in imports as companies in the United States tried to bring in foreign goods before Trump imposed massive tariffs.
The January-March expansion was the slowest in almost three years and was down from 2.4% in the last three months of 2024. Imports shaved 5 percentage points off first-quarter growth. Consumer spending also slowed sharply.
Trump inherited a solid economy that had grown steadily despite high interest rates imposed by the Federal Reserve to fight inflation. His trade policies — including 145% tariffs on China — have paralyzed businesses and threatened to raise prices and hurt consumers.

Republican Trump blamed his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, for the poor showing.

"This is Biden’s Stock Market, not Trump’s," he said. "Our Country will boom, but we have to get rid of the Biden 'Overhang.'

Trump added: "This will take a while, has NOTHING TO DO WITH TARIFFS, only that he left us with bad numbers, but when the boom begins, it will be like no other. BE PATIENT!!!"