عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

Saudi ‘Jada’ Plans Attractive Investment Funds in NEOM

Part of the ‘Catalyze Saudi’ initiative activities in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Part of the ‘Catalyze Saudi’ initiative activities in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

Saudi ‘Jada’ Plans Attractive Investment Funds in NEOM

Part of the ‘Catalyze Saudi’ initiative activities in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Part of the ‘Catalyze Saudi’ initiative activities in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia’s Jada Fund of Funds plans launching funds to attract investments in favor of NEOM, revealed Jada CEO Adel Al-Ateeq.

“We are looking to increase the volume of Jada’s investment by more than SAR 4 billion ($1.06 billion),” Al-Ateeq told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Since the beginning of Jada’s launch, we have invested in more than 20 investment funds,” said Al-Ateeq.

“The volume of investment in these funds exceeded SAR2 billion ($533.3 million), distributed among a number of venture capital and private equity funds in the Kingdom,” revealed the CEO.

Al-Ateeq stressed that Jada will continue to invest in venture capital and private equity in the Kingdom. He reaffirmed that the fund would carry on with the momentum it started with three years ago.

He pointed out that Jada’s capital initially amounted to SAR 4 billion ($1.06 billion) but hoped to increase its value in the future.

“We invested SAR 2 billion in 3 years... and I expect to continue at the same level during the next three years... We invested in 20 funds in several companies,” said Al-Ateeq, adding that Jada has capitalized in 350 local and regional companies.

“NEOM is still in the process of being established, and it is working to establish many targeted projects... Therefore, we are looking forward to launching investment funds that will give NEOM a share of its investments when its projects are launched,” revealed Al-Ateeq.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment (MISA) and Jada had formed a partnership to bolster the Kingdom’s start-up and innovation sector and support economic diversification under the ‘Catalyze Saudi’ initiative.

Jada, owned by the Public Investment fund (PIF), provides funding to start-ups in the Kingdom through commercially sustainable investments in venture capital and private equity funds.

MISA and Jada aim to connect leaders from government agencies, start-up entrepreneurs, investors and leading family business representatives from the Kingdom to participate in roundtable discussions and reinforce the private sector’s impact on the local economy.

The ‘Catalyze Saudi’ initiative is in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 which aims to raise small and medium sized enterprises’ (SMEs) contribution to GDP from 21% to 35% by 2030.

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

Carney Hopes Trade War with US Will Make Canada Stronger and More Resilient

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks during a news conference at the 2026 Canada Investment Summit in Toronto, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks during a news conference at the 2026 Canada Investment Summit in Toronto, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)
TT
TT

Carney Hopes Trade War with US Will Make Canada Stronger and More Resilient

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks during a news conference at the 2026 Canada Investment Summit in Toronto, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks during a news conference at the 2026 Canada Investment Summit in Toronto, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that Canada intends to emerge from its trade war with the United States as a more resilient and independent economy, signaling that Ottawa is prepared to wait for the right conditions rather than rush into a deal with Washington.

“And to our American friends, let me say this. We will always be neighbors,” Carney told hundreds of global investors gathered in Toronto for his Canada Investment Summit. But he said the relationship works when the two countries engage as “true partners that respect each other’s traditions and sovereignty.”

“When those opportunities return, Canada will be an even better partner — stronger, more resilient, more independent,” he said.

Carney also announced that Ottawa will seek private investment through long-term concessions to operate Canada’s four largest airports, while retaining public ownership of the land and assets. He said the plan could raise tens of billions of dollars to reinvest in transportation and other infrastructure.

Without naming US President Donald Trump, Carney then took aim at the increasingly transactional and zero-sum approach to international economic relationships that has characterized Trump’s trade policies.

“Our reputation — as a reliable, predictable partner — has rarely been more valuable in a world where transactions are replacing relationships, and zero-sum is favored over win-win,” Carney said.

Carney said economic integration and national sovereignty are increasingly in tension, arguing that countries seeking to preserve their independence need to work more closely with like-minded partners. He heads to Europe later Tuesday, where he is scheduled to address the European Parliament.

Trump has repeatedly used tariffs to pressure trading partners and pressed manufacturers to shift production and investment south of the Canadian border. He has also repeatedly talked about making Canada the 51st US state, comments that have further strained relations between the longtime allies.

But Carney noted that about 80% of the trade with the US remains tariff-free.

“There is a mutually beneficial arrangement that can be had,” Carney said in a fireside chat after his speech. “When it is the right time to strike that deal, we’ll be ready to do that.”

Trade talks between Canada and the United States collapsed last month before Washington imposed 50% tariffs on about $20 billion in Canadian goods, prompting retaliation from Ottawa. The United States has since announced additional restrictions on Canadian products.

Carney also joked about the uneasy state of the US-Canada relationship, contrasting a ceremonial key he once received from his hometown of Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, with a box of gold keys to the White House that Trump later gave him.

Carney said Trump told him that if he brought the key, “They’ll let you in,” before adding: “Maybe they’ll shoot you.”

“And that sort of sums up the relationship,” Carney said. “In Canada, you get the key. In the US, they might shoot you.”

Business

Riyadh Economic Forum to Assess Role of Legislation in Saudi Sustainable Development

Riyadh Economic Forum to Assess Role of Legislation in Saudi Sustainable Development
TT
TT

Riyadh Economic Forum to Assess Role of Legislation in Saudi Sustainable Development

Riyadh Economic Forum to Assess Role of Legislation in Saudi Sustainable Development

The 12th session of the Riyadh Economic Forum, scheduled from October 12 to 14, 2026, will discuss a study on measuring the impact of legislation and public policies and their role in achieving sustainable development in Saudi Arabia, according to SPA.

The study aligns with Saudi Vision 2030 by examining how legislation guides economic, social, and environmental development, strengthens the Kingdom's capacity to achieve its sustainable development goals, and improves performance on relevant international indicators.

It aims to enable decision-makers to evaluate the real impact of legislation on economic growth, job creation, service quality, social fairness, and environmental protection, while fostering an institutional culture that assesses legislation effectiveness based on actual results rather than mere issuance.

The study also focuses on adopting advanced methodologies to measure the impact of public policies both before and after enactment, supporting evidence-based decision-making and addressing challenges facing impact assessment practices in the Kingdom.

The forum's discussions are expected to yield practical recommendations to enhance the efficiency of the public policy and legislative system in support of sustainable development and national economic competitiveness.

Business

Dollar Inches Higher as 10-Year Treasury Yield Climbs to Highest Since 2007

The dollar's six-currency index rose 0.15% to 99.633, also gaining support from weakened risk appetite as shares markets tumbled. (Reuters)
The dollar's six-currency index rose 0.15% to 99.633, also gaining support from weakened risk appetite as shares markets tumbled. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Dollar Inches Higher as 10-Year Treasury Yield Climbs to Highest Since 2007

The dollar's six-currency index rose 0.15% to 99.633, also gaining support from weakened risk appetite as shares markets tumbled. (Reuters)
The dollar's six-currency index rose 0.15% to 99.633, also gaining support from weakened risk appetite as shares markets tumbled. (Reuters)

The dollar strengthened towards a two-week high on Tuesday, as surging oil prices pushed Treasury yields to fresh peaks since 2007, and cemented expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike this week.

The benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields reversed an earlier loss and climbed to a high of 5.0266% in Asian trading hours, the highest since 2007.

Oil prices held near a four-month peak, standing at $107 a barrel, after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis launched a new wave of attacks on Saudi Arabia and Gulf-Iran talks were postponed.

Markets ‌now see a ‌Fed hike on Wednesday as a near certainty, with ‌CME's ⁠FedWatch tool pricing ⁠in a roughly 93% chance of an interest-rate increase.

"The combination of higher oil, higher US yields and weaker risk appetite helped lift the US dollar broadly," Christopher Wong, an FX analyst at OCBC, said in a note.

Near-term support may persist, but with a hike now heavily priced in, further dollar upside will likely require the Fed to keep the door open to additional tightening, he added.

Pressured by broad greenback strength, ⁠the euro hovered near a one-month low at $1.535 and sterling ‌was 0.1% weaker at $1.3485.

The yen also pulled away from ‌a seven-month high, standing down roughly 0.4% at 154.91 ahead of an expected Bank of ‌Japan rate hike on Friday.

The New Zealand dollar dipped 0.3% to a ‌two-month low of $0.5757, while the Australian dollar was also 0.2% lower at $0.7120.

The dollar's six-currency index rose 0.15% to 99.633, also gaining support from weakened risk appetite as shares markets tumbled.

RATE HIKES AWAITED

The renewed energy-induced inflation pressures follow a jobs report that was much stronger than expected and a ‌pickup in consumer prices for August, strengthening market conviction that the Fed will raise rates on Wednesday.

Economists polled by Reuters ⁠also expect at ⁠least one more hike by the end of March, reversing a fragile no-change consensus prior to Friday's official data showing firm inflation.

The inflation outlook now hinges on oil prices, but the broader macro picture does not warrant more hikes than currently priced in the curve, analysts at BCA said in a note.

"Limited hawkishness from here argues for curve steepeners and limited USD upside."

Markets are also all but certain that the Bank of Japan will raise rates on Friday. Market sentiment on the yen is starting to shift, with speculators turning to a net long position on the Japanese currency for the first time since February.

Offshore yuan was flat at 6.708 per dollar, hovering near its strongest in more than three years, after data showing China's industrial sector regained strength in August, though consumption remained sluggish.