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Saudi Sakani Delivers Homes to Over 130,000 Families in 9 Months

Saudi Arabia continues to increase the homeownership rate through Sakani (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia continues to increase the homeownership rate through Sakani (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Sakani Delivers Homes to Over 130,000 Families in 9 Months

Saudi Arabia continues to increase the homeownership rate through Sakani (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Arabia continues to increase the homeownership rate through Sakani (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Sakani, a Saudi program concerned with housing, has said that 130,400 Saudi families owned their first homes during the first nine months of 2022.

Sakani indicated that it comes within the framework of the program's endeavor to support beneficiaries to achieve the objectives of the housing program and increase the percentage of home ownership to 70 percent by 2030.

It explained that 12.1 thousand families benefited from the options and solutions it provided last September, while 12.9 thousand families received their first home in the same month.

Sakani offers nine new optional support programs within its solutions to Saudi families. The new packages included: the provided support package, the rental package, the furniture package, the self-construction package, and the housing renewal package.

The packages provide the beneficiary multiple flexible solutions by delivering immediate, non-refundable support to beneficiaries of ready-made, under-construction, and self-construction housing units in partnership with The Real Estate Development Fund and financing agencies and real estate developers.

The agency's website and application provide residential facilities and services, which include the real estate advisor, issuance of real estate tax certificates for the first house, obtaining a quotation from financing agencies, issuing e-land contracts, benefiting from the engineering designs service, the e-financing service, and the real estate market.

Meanwhile, the Saudi Ministry of Interior announced that digital transformation directly impacted various aspects and saved over $4.5 billion annually.

The Ministry announced that it succeeded in curbing forgery and manipulations, saving time and effort for beneficiaries on a social level.

The statement noted that, environmentally, 35,000 trees were preserved with 559 million leaves. Carbon emissions were also reduced by 500 million kilograms between 2018 and 2020, and more than 5.1 trillion gallons of water were saved during the same period.

The Ministry also presented many technical and digital achievements during the GITEX Technology Week 2022 in Dubai, which contributed to raising the quality of life for citizens, residents, and visitors to the Kingdom.

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Business

Saudi Arabia Activates Major Investment Engines With Approval of Special Economic Zone Rules

 King Abdullah Economic City, located in western Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
 King Abdullah Economic City, located in western Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
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Saudi Arabia Activates Major Investment Engines With Approval of Special Economic Zone Rules

 King Abdullah Economic City, located in western Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
 King Abdullah Economic City, located in western Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat). 

Saudi Arabia has taken a pivotal step toward strengthening its standing as a global investment destination after the Cabinet approved the regulatory frameworks for four Special Economic Zones (SEZs): Jazan, Ras Al-Khair, King Abdullah Economic City, and the Cloud Computing Special Economic Zone.

The move marks the effective start of the operational and legal phase for the zones, offering investors a clear roadmap on how to benefit from the incentives and competitive advantages the Kingdom is rolling out.

Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid al-Falih said the regulations will come into force in early April 2026, calling the decision a major leap in developing the regulatory ecosystem for SEZs.

He said it underscores Saudi Arabia’s commitment to boosting investment competitiveness regionally and globally, while building an enabling environment that attracts high-quality investments and supports sustainable growth in line with Vision 2030.

The four zones are designed to serve strategic sectors that place the Kingdom at the heart of global supply chains. The Jazan zone is set to become a hub for food processing, mining, and manufacturing, leveraging its port and proximity to African markets.

Ras al-Khair is being developed into a global center for maritime and mining industries, providing an integrated platform for shipbuilding, offshore drilling rigs, and marine support services.

King Abdullah Economic City is positioned as an advanced hub for logistics, high-value manufacturing, and the automotive sector, while the Cloud Computing and Informatics Zone in Riyadh represents a major leap in the data economy, hosting global technology firms offering local data storage and processing services.

The new regulations introduce flexible licensing regimes, attractive tax and customs standards, and streamlined operating procedures, including flexible ownership structures.

Investors will be allowed to use multiple languages for trade names, and investments within the zones will be exempt from certain provisions of the traditional Companies Law, giving global firms greater operational freedom.

On workforce policy, Al-Falih said the regulations include tailored Saudization frameworks aligned with each zone’s economic activities, balancing national talent development with the rapid growth needs of major investors.

The frameworks are part of an integrated governance model that clarifies mandates and aligns government entities, accelerating licensing processes and creating a fast, flexible business environment aligned with Saudi Arabia’s economic ambitions.

 

 

 

Business

Turkish Manufacturing Nears Stabilization as PMI Rises in December

An employee works at an assembly line in the Toyota manufacturing plant in Sakarya October 10, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal
An employee works at an assembly line in the Toyota manufacturing plant in Sakarya October 10, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal
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Turkish Manufacturing Nears Stabilization as PMI Rises in December

An employee works at an assembly line in the Toyota manufacturing plant in Sakarya October 10, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal
An employee works at an assembly line in the Toyota manufacturing plant in Sakarya October 10, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal

Turkish manufacturing activity shrank at a slower pace in December, marking two consecutive months of improvement, signaling a slight moderation in operating conditions at the end of 2025, a business survey showed on Friday.

The Istanbul Chamber of Industry Turkiye Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, rose to a 12-month high of 48.9 from 48.0 in November thanks ‌to softer slowdowns ‌in output, new ‌orders, ⁠employment and purchasing activity.

Readings ‌below 50.0 indicate contractions in overall activity, while figures above that suggest growth, Reuters said.

"With PMI reaching its highest level for a year in December, the manufacturing sector takes some momentum into 2026, giving hope that we will ⁠see growth in the months ahead," said Andrew Harker, ‌Economics Director at S&P ‍Global Market Intelligence.

New ‍orders eased at the slowest pace ‍since March 2024, with some firms noting improvements in customer demand. However, both total new business and new export orders continued to moderate.

Production was scaled back, though at a slower rate than in November. Employment saw ⁠a marginal reduction, while purchasing activity also experienced a softer decline, according to the survey.

Input costs rose sharply, driven by higher raw material prices, leading manufacturers to increase selling prices, the survey said.

"While inflationary pressures rebounded following the recent lows seen in November, rates of increase in input costs and output prices were still comfortably below the highs ‌we have seen at times in recent years," Harker said.

Business

Asia Stocks Make Bright Start to 2026

Stock markets welcomed the New Year with healthy gains. Punit PARANJPE / AFP
Stock markets welcomed the New Year with healthy gains. Punit PARANJPE / AFP
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Asia Stocks Make Bright Start to 2026

Stock markets welcomed the New Year with healthy gains. Punit PARANJPE / AFP
Stock markets welcomed the New Year with healthy gains. Punit PARANJPE / AFP

Asian markets made a bright start to 2026 on Friday but volumes were thin with Tokyo and Shanghai still closed as investors awaited fresh direction from Wall Street.

Stocks had a bumper 2025, with the S&P adding 16.4 percent, the tech-rich Nasdaq 20.4 percent and London's FTSE enjoying its merriest Christmas in 16 years, said AFP.

In Asia, Seoul stocks whooshed 75 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index bounced 28 percent and Tokyo's Nikkei 225 rocketed more than 26 percent.

"Naturally, the start of the new year comes with the question everyone asks moving from one year to the next: will this continue? The consensus is that, yes, it will," said Kyle Rodda at Australian brokerage Capital.com.

"When it comes to the all important US economy, Wall Street is pricing in growth will accelerate this year while inflation still moderates and interest rates get cut. Meanwhile, analysts predict that corporate fundamentals will improve," Rodda said.

Hong Kong was up 2.2 percent Friday with chip designer Biren Technologies roaring 80 percent higher after its initial public offering.

The Shanghai-based firm's listing raised more than $700 million, suggesting that investor appetite for anything related to artificial intelligence remains insatiable.

Biren "enjoys scarcity value and high market attention", said Kenny Ng, a strategist at China Everbright Securities.

"The industry is in a flourishing stage, with many firms striving for breakthroughs and significant growth potential," Ng said.

Search-engine giant Baidu jumped almost seven percent after saying its AI chip unit Kunlunxin had filed a listing application in Hong Kong.

Taipei, Sydney, Jakarta, Manila and Singapore also advanced while while Seoul's Kospi, which soared 76 percent in 2025 in large part due to AI boom, was up 1.7 percent.

Samsung Electronics added three percent after co-CEO Jun Young Hyun said customers had praised its high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, some saying that "Samsung is back", Bloomberg News reported. 

After volatile recent days, following record highs for silver, precious metals started the new year on a bright note with gold up 0.64 percent per ounce and silver 1.5 percent shinier.