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Saudi REDF, SRC Sign Refinancing Agreement for $2.7 Billion Property Portfolio

Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Reuters)
Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Reuters)
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Saudi REDF, SRC Sign Refinancing Agreement for $2.7 Billion Property Portfolio

Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Reuters)
Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Reuters)

The Saudi real estate sector witnessed on Monday the conclusion of the first agreement to refinance a Saudi real estate portfolio, with the Saudi Real Estate Refinance Company (SRC) announcing a partnership deal with the Real Estate Development Fund (REDF) to refinance a real estate portfolio worth 10 billion riyals ($2.7 billion).

The agreement was signed by REDF CEO Mansour bin Madi, and the CEO of SRC Fabrice Susini.

A statement issued on Monday said that the agreement supports REDF by “enhancing its financial stability” and aims to boost liquidity in Saudi Arabia’s home financing market, cut the cost of home financing for Saudis and support the country’s housing objectives.

In this regard, Susini said: “The agreement aims to increase the supply of home loans for affordable housing that aligns with our vision to develop a robust secondary home financing market for the benefit of the primary housing market in the kingdom.

“Therefore, the agreement with REDF positions us as a catalyst in achieving the housing goals stipulated by Vision 2030,” he added.

Bin Madi, for his part, stated that the agreement comes within the framework of the National Development Fund’s strategy that supports the goals and future plans of the Real Estate Fund to provide various financing and housing options in the residential real estate financing market.

He added that the Fund provided more than 560,000 subsidized real estate loans from June in 2017 until the third quarter of this year as part of the subsidized loan program.

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A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Pavel Mikheyev/File Photo
A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Pavel Mikheyev/File Photo
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Oil Edges Down amid Bearish Trump Tariff Outlook

A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Pavel Mikheyev/File Photo
A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Pavel Mikheyev/File Photo

Oil prices declined moderately on Thursday as investors weighed the potential impact of US President Donald Trump's tariffs on global economic growth.

Brent crude futures were down 23 cents, or 0.3%, at $69.96 a barrel by 0904 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude fell 32 cents, or 0.5%, to $68.06 a barrel.

On Wednesday, Trump threatened Brazil, Latin America's largest economy, with a punitive 50% tariff on exports to the US, after a public spat with his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

He has also announced plans for tariffs on copper, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals and his administration sent tariff letters to the Philippines, Iraq and others, adding to over a dozen letters issued earlier in the week including for powerhouse US suppliers South Korea and Japan.

Trump's history of backpedaling on tariffs has caused the market to become less reactive to such announcements, said Harry Tchilinguirian, group head of research at Onyx Capital Group.

"People are largely in wait and see mode, given the erratic nature of policy making and the flexibility the administration is showing around tariffs," Tchilinguirian said.

Policymakers remain worried about the inflationary pressures from Trump's tariffs, with only "a couple" of officials at the Federal Reserve's June 17-18 meeting saying they felt interest rates could be reduced as soon as this month, minutes of the meeting released on Wednesday showed.

Higher interest rates make borrowing more expensive and reduce demand for oil, Reuters said.

Supporting oil prices however was a weaker US dollar in Thursday's Asia trading session, said OANDA senior analyst Kelvin Wong. A weaker dollar lifts oil prices by making it cheaper for holders of other currencies.

US crude stocks rose while gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Gasoline demand rose 6% to 9.2 million barrels per day last week, the EIA said.

Global daily flights were averaging 107,600 in the first eight days of July, an all-time high, with flights in China reaching a five-month peak and port and freight activities indicating "sustained expansion" in trade activities from last year, JP Morgan said in a client note.

"Year to date, global oil demand growth is averaging 0.97 million barrels per day, in line with our forecast of 1 million barrels per day," the note said.

Additionally, there is doubt the recent increase in production quotas announced by OPEC+ will result in an actual increase in production, as some members are already exceeding their quotas, said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG.

"And others, like Russia, are unable to meet their targets due to damaged oil infrastructure," he said.

OPEC+ oil producers are set to approve another big output boost for September, as they complete both the unwinding of voluntary production cuts by eight members, and the United Arab Emirates' move to a larger quota.