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Saudi Offers 76 Investment Opportunities in Military, Defense Industries

General Authority for Military Industries in Saudi Arabia organizes a workshop in the capital, Riyadh, to reveal investment opportunities (Asharq Al-Awsat)
General Authority for Military Industries in Saudi Arabia organizes a workshop in the capital, Riyadh, to reveal investment opportunities (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Offers 76 Investment Opportunities in Military, Defense Industries

General Authority for Military Industries in Saudi Arabia organizes a workshop in the capital, Riyadh, to reveal investment opportunities (Asharq Al-Awsat)
General Authority for Military Industries in Saudi Arabia organizes a workshop in the capital, Riyadh, to reveal investment opportunities (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia has revealed that it has an estimated 76 investment opportunities in six different areas of defense and military industries.

Ayma al-Hazmi, head of the Saudi Local Content and Government Procurement Committee at the Federation of Saudi Chambers, stressed that the General Authority for Military Industries plays important roles in supporting the process of localizing the sector, and contributing to strengthening the country's strategic independence to build local and sustainable industries.

Speaking at a workshop recently organized by the General Authority for Military Industries in Riyadh, al-Hazmi revealed that coordination is underway for maximizing the benefit of national companies from procurement contracts and military spending.

Al-Hazmi noted that coordination for enhancing the position of national companies in the military industry aligns with the Kingdom’s goals for localizing this sector and making it a part of its sustainable economic development.

The workshop also showcased the most prominent investment opportunities in supply chains across six areas in the military and defense industries sector.

The workshop also highlighted the roles and tasks of the authority aimed at embodying the national ambition to localize more than 50% of government spending on military equipment and services by 2030.

In other news, the Federation of Saudi Chambers, represented by the Saudi-French Business Council, participated in a meeting organized by the Movement of the Enterprises of France (MEDEF).

The meeting focused on investment opportunities in the mining sector in the Kingdom and was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, the Ministry of Investment and several Saudi and French companies operating in the mining field.

Chairman of the Saudi-French Business Council Mohammed bin Laden highlighted in his speech the economic importance of the Kingdom's mining sector as one of the most important pillars of the Saudi industry, and the objectives of Vision 2030 to maximize its impact on the gross domestic product and its contribution in the local content and trade balance, achieving its sustainability and improving legislative and investment environment.

The meeting also discussed the investment opportunities available to French companies in the Kingdom's mining sector, and the efforts made during the past years to strengthen the sector, introduce its components and capabilities, attract foreign investors, and improve its business environment, through the relevant competent authorities, led by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources and the Ministry of Investment.

The French side expressed the interest of French investors to invest in the Saudi mining sector, reiterating that this participation would achieve an added value for the sector through the transfer and localization of the leading French expertise.

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Business

Citibank Closes UAE Branches Temporarily as Precautionary Measure

A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)
A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)
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Citibank Closes UAE Branches Temporarily as Precautionary Measure

A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)
A photograph shows Dubai's skyline with the Burj Khalifa at the center on March 11, 2026. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)

Citibank will close its branches and financial centers in the United Arab Emirates through March 14 as a precautionary measure, the bank's website showed on Thursday, following a wave of banks sending staff home as the crisis in the Middle East deepens.

The ⁠US bank plans ⁠to reopen all affected branches on March 16, but the branch in the Mall of the Emirates in central Dubai, will remain open ⁠during this period, it said.

Earlier this week, Citi told its staff to evacuate offices in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Dubai's Oud Metha neighborhood, telling them to work from home until further notice.

HSBC, another major global bank, has closed all branches in ⁠Qatar ⁠until further notice, according to a customer notice, saying the measure was to ensure the safety of staff and customers.

Banks across the region have stepped up precautions after Iran threatened banking interests linked to the US and Israel.

Business

OPEC: Ongoing Geopolitical Developments Warrant Close Monitoring of Markets

OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)
OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)
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OPEC: Ongoing Geopolitical Developments Warrant Close Monitoring of Markets

OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)
OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak (Reuters)

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has maintained, for the seventh consecutive month, its 2026-2027 global oil demand growth projections unchanged.

OPEC kept its forecast for global oil demand growth at 1.38 million bpd for 2026 and at 1.3 million bpd for 2027.

The Iran war has severely impacted global supply chains, as the Gulf region is crucial to the world's oil and gas supply.

The war sent oil prices surging close to $120 a barrel on Monday before they later eased to around the low $90s, as markets weighed the risk of wider disruption against hopes the conflict might still be contained.

OPEC's report focused on February market conditions prior to the Feb. 28 conflict outbreak, therefore, not reflecting the war’s impact on the volume or price of oil.

“Ongoing geopolitical developments warrant close monitoring, although their impact, if any, on the growth forecast may be too early to determine,” OPEC said ⁠in the report, referring to economic growth.

OPEC also ⁠said output by the wider OPEC+, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries plus other producers such as Russia, averaged 42.72 million bpd in February, up 445,000 bpd from January, citing secondary sources.

Crude oil production by OPEC rose by 164,000 bpd in February compared to January 2026, reaching around 28.63 million bpd, according to the group's latest Monthly Oil Market Report.

The largest output increase came from Venezuela, while Nigeria recorded the biggest decline last month.

And for the second month, OPEC kept its forecast for the growth of oil supply of non-OPEC countries at 630,000 bpd in 2026, and at 610,000 bpd in 2027.

Early this month, the eight OPEC+ countries agreed to a modest oil output boost of 206,000 bpd for April, a decision framed as a response to steady market fundamentals and global economic growth.

The eight members had raised production quotas by about 2.9 million bpd from April through December 2025, roughly 3% of global demand, before pausing increases for January to March 2026 due to seasonal weakness.

Business

IMF Says it Has Made Progress in Pakistan Funding Talks

Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
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IMF Says it Has Made Progress in Pakistan Funding Talks

Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
Students ride on motorbikes with their parents while heading to schools, after the government announced that schools would close for two weeks, starting March 16, following austerity measures to save fuel amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Karachi, Pakistan, March 10, 2026. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro

The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday it has made "considerable progress" in talks with Pakistan ⁠over its funding ⁠facilities and that discussions will continue.

"While considerable progress was made ⁠in the discussions, these will continue in the coming days, including to more fully assess the impact of recent global developments on Pakistan’s economy ⁠and ⁠the EFF-supported (Extended Fund Facility) program," IMF advisor Iva Petrova said in the statement.

Pakistan is in an ongoing $7 billion IMF program.

Tanker drivers in Pakistan said they were facing long waits at depots due to a shortage of fuel, as the government played down fears of another rise in prices.

The US-Israeli war with Iran has disrupted shipping and damaged oil and gas facilities in the Middle East, raising global oil prices as countries scramble to deal with concerns over supply.

Dozens of tankers, which supply fuel across Pakistan, were seen parked at the side of the road on Tuesday at depots near Lahore, the capital of Punjab, the country's most populous province.

Last week, the government in Islamabad hiked prices by about 20 percent, triggering long lines and panic buying at filling stations across the country.