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Oman Signs Three MoUs with Saudi Fund for Development

The Omani Minister of Finance and the CEO of the Saudi Development Fund sign the memorandums of understanding. (ONA)
The Omani Minister of Finance and the CEO of the Saudi Development Fund sign the memorandums of understanding. (ONA)
TT
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Oman Signs Three MoUs with Saudi Fund for Development

The Omani Minister of Finance and the CEO of the Saudi Development Fund sign the memorandums of understanding. (ONA)
The Omani Minister of Finance and the CEO of the Saudi Development Fund sign the memorandums of understanding. (ONA)

Oman’s Finance Ministry signed on Thursday three Memorandums of Understandings (MoUs) with the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) to finance several projects worth RO94 million (about $244 million).

The first MoU aims at supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by allocating funds to give access to soft loans in various sectors with a total of RO57.6 million ($149.6 million), ensuring the private sector’s contribution to the development process and providing support for job seekers.

The second and third MoUs contribute to financing infrastructure development projects in the Special Economic Zone in Duqm.

SFD CEO Sultan al-Marshad and Omani Minister of Finance Sultan bin Salem al-Habsi signed the MoUs during their meeting to discuss current and future aspects of bilateral cooperation to finance various projects.

Habsi said these MoUs are the culmination of the solid partnership between the two countries, adding that they will contribute to opening prospects for cooperation on many levels, including supporting entrepreneurship in the Sultanate and developing infrastructure, as well as promoting economic projects.

Marshad, for his part, said that the Kingdom seeks bolstering cooperation with Oman based on the SDF’s role in supporting social and economic development paths in Arab and Islamic countries.

The SDF has been working for around 45 years to finance and support development projects in Oman.

These projects aim to support the infrastructure sectors, higher and vocational education programs, the water sector, and development projects in the energy sector.

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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
TT
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Gold Pulls Back from Near 3-month High as Dollar Regains Strength

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 eased on Thursday from a near three-month peak hit in the previous session, as the dollar regained strength, while investors awaited further direction from US President Donald Trump's administration regarding trade policies.
Spot gold eased 0.1% to $2,751.99 per ounce by 0552 GMT. Prices rose to $2,763.43 on Wednesday, their highest since Oct. 31 when they hit a record high of $2,790.15.
US gold futures shed 0.4% to $2,760.20.
"It's just a technical pullback because the dollar has been taking back on $108 level, triggering some profit-booking, but the undertone for gold is expected to be positive," said Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Commodities in Mumbai.
Trump has mooted levies of around 25% on Mexico and Canada and 10% tariff on China from Feb. 1. He also promised duties on European imports, without elaborating further.
"How Trump's policies impact gold is whether the combination of tax cuts, deregulation, tariffs, and deportation will amount to a strong inflationary push," said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive.
"If so, Fed rate cuts will be limited and gold is likely to struggle."
According to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao, gold might have to face resistance at $2,759, which could trigger a correction.
The Federal Reserve is meeting next week against a backdrop of continued economic growth and declining inflation, but faces uncertainties from Trump's proposed policies that analysts see as inflationary.
The US central bank is expected to hold its benchmark interest rate steady at its next policy meeting on Jan. 28-29. Higher interest rates dampen the appeal of non-yielding gold.
European Central Bank policymakers lined up behind further rate cuts, while the Bank of Japan is widely expected to raise rates on Friday.
Spot silver dropped 0.5% to $30.63 per ounce, while platinum shed 0.2% to $944 and palladium dipped 0.7% to $970.55.