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Saudi Arabia Launches 1st Transit Corridor Linking Seaport to Airport

A view of the Jeddah Islamic Port. (SPA)
A view of the Jeddah Islamic Port. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia Launches 1st Transit Corridor Linking Seaport to Airport

A view of the Jeddah Islamic Port. (SPA)
A view of the Jeddah Islamic Port. (SPA)

Saudi Arabia launched on Monday the first transit corridor linking a seaport to an airport in the Kingdom, in a move aimed at facilitating the transit of sea cargo through multiple media and linking it to airports.

LogiPoint established the bonded corridor between Jeddah Islamic Port (JIP) and King Abdulaziz International Airport.

The first trial was applied to a marine shipment that reached the deposit and re-export area of a company in Jeddah Islamic Port and then was sent by air to its final destination in the Netherlands.

Farouk Sheikh, the CEO of Logipoint, said: “The bonded corridor facilitates trade for customers by providing a multimodal bonded access to regional target markets combining sea, land and air freight. It also gives Jeddah a significant advantage to compete in the transshipment cargo segment.”

He added that the corridor was developed with the support of the Saudi Customs and Jeddah Islamic Port and in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NDLIP).

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Sheikh stressed that the new project would contribute to enhancing competitiveness in the region, through the establishment of an effective low-cost marine-air and air-marine link that makes the city of Jeddah a multi-modal logistic center for transit shipping.

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PIF Anchors State Street’s Newly Launched Saudi Equity ETF

Officials from PIF and State Street IM (Saudi PIF)
Officials from PIF and State Street IM (Saudi PIF)
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PIF Anchors State Street’s Newly Launched Saudi Equity ETF

Officials from PIF and State Street IM (Saudi PIF)
Officials from PIF and State Street IM (Saudi PIF)

The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) and State Street Investment Management (State Street IM), one of the world’s largest asset managers, launched on Thursday the State Street Saudi Arabia Enhanced Active Equity (SAQL) with PIF as anchor investor.

The fund actively invests in equities of companies in Saudi Arabia using a quantitative multi-factor stock selection model, PIF said in a statement.

SAQL has its primary listing on the Xetra exchange in Germany and is cross listed on the LSE in the United Kingdom, where a bell ringing ceremony was held. The fund will be available to investors in both markets as well as investors across other key markets in Europe, the statement said.

The investment marks another step in PIF’s strategy to further deepen and diversify the Saudi capital market by attracting international capital flows, empowering financial institutions, broadening financing options for the private sector and introducing new products.

The newly launched fund is the second State Street IM ETF in which PIF has made an anchor investment, and the fifth ETF investment for PIF across nine global markets with leading international asset managers. New and innovative Saudi-focused products were listed in Hong Kong, London, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Tokyo, Frankfurt, Italy and Singapore.

“PIF is further strengthening Saudi Arabia’s capital market ecosystem, working with our partners to open gateways for international investors, enable access and drive global capital inflow into the country,” said Deputy Governor and Head of MENA Investments at PIF Yazeed Al-Humied.

“Our continued partnership with State Street IM reinforces a shared commitment to enhance and diversify the product range, to present new opportunities for international investors into the Saudi market and unlock capital pools,” he said.

“The launch of this ETF further deepens the Saudi market and builds on a series of PIF-anchored ETF listings across international markets, cementing PIF’s role in driving increased product diversification to enhance liquidity and fulfill market needs,” Al-Humied added.

Chief Executive Officer of State Street Investment Management Yie-Hsin Hung praised Saudi Arabia’s "success story," adding: “At State Street, as with PIF, innovation is in our DNA and we’re pleased to offer a new product in this same vein, drawing on our decades of experience and commitment to quality to underpin an exciting new offering, anchored by PIF.”

Quantitative funds, such as SAQL, use mathematical modeling, algorithmic, and data-driven methods to manage portfolios. The Saudi capital market has evolved beyond legacy sectors, with maturation of market structure and data quality – enabling SAQL to use a systematic active approach when investing in Saudi equity securities.

SAQL provides an opportunity for international investors to obtain investment exposure to this rapidly evolving economy.

The fund is registered for sale in Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

Business

Morocco’s Inflation Rises to 0.9% in March

People stand looking across the river at the skyline in the coastal city of Rabat on April 20, 2026. (AFP)
People stand looking across the river at the skyline in the coastal city of Rabat on April 20, 2026. (AFP)
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Morocco’s Inflation Rises to 0.9% in March

People stand looking across the river at the skyline in the coastal city of Rabat on April 20, 2026. (AFP)
People stand looking across the river at the skyline in the coastal city of Rabat on April 20, 2026. (AFP)

Morocco's annual inflation, measured by the consumer price index, rose to 0.9% in March from -0.6% a month earlier, the statistics agency said on Wednesday.

Food prices, ‌the main ‌driver of ‌inflation, ⁠rose 0.6% from a year ⁠earlier, while non-food inflation increased 1.1%.

Core inflation, which excludes more volatile goods, rose 0.6% year-on-year ⁠and 0.1% month-on-month.

The ‌rise ‌in fuel prices following ‌the Iran conflict ‌led the Moroccan government to reintroduce subsidies for professional transporters, including taxis, buses ‌and trucks, to keep prices stable.

Fuel subsidies, ⁠along ⁠with aid to keep electricity and cooking gas prices stable, would cost the government 1.6 billion dirhams ($170 million) monthly, the minister in charge of the budget, Fouzi Lekjaa, said.

Business

Strait of Hormuz Blockade Drives up Costs at Panama Canal

Aerial view of the One Contribution container ship sailing under the Tokio flag as it enters the Panama Canal in Panama City on April 21, 2026. (EPA)
Aerial view of the One Contribution container ship sailing under the Tokio flag as it enters the Panama Canal in Panama City on April 21, 2026. (EPA)
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Strait of Hormuz Blockade Drives up Costs at Panama Canal

Aerial view of the One Contribution container ship sailing under the Tokio flag as it enters the Panama Canal in Panama City on April 21, 2026. (EPA)
Aerial view of the One Contribution container ship sailing under the Tokio flag as it enters the Panama Canal in Panama City on April 21, 2026. (EPA)

The war in the Middle East has boosted demand to move vital cargo through the Panama Canal to such an extent that one vessel carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) paid $4 million to skip the line and avoid a wait that can take up to five days, according to an official report.

A surge in such payments has been recorded since the US-Israeli attacks on Iran began February 28, which led to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for one-fifth of the world's oil and natural gas exports from Gulf countries.

To meet fuel demand, Asia's refineries are choosing to buy oil or gas from the United States and ship it through the transoceanic waterway instead of purchasing from Gulf countries who rely on the Strait of Hormuz, according to reports from the Panama Canal Authority.

The average number of ships passing through the canal on a daily basis has "remained strong," the authority told AFP in a statement Tuesday, with 34 ships in January and 37 ships in March. Some days exceeded 40 transits.

"The increase reflects changes in global trade patterns and market conditions, including geopolitical factors affecting key routes," the authority said.

Ships transiting the canal book their passage well in advance, and ships without bookings wait an average of five days to get through, but there is an auction where last-minute transits can be purchased.

The most recent auction included a $4 million bid for an LNG vessel, and in recent weeks two oil tankers exceeded bids of $3 million, the authority said.

Past average auction prices between October and February stood at around $130,000, and rose to $385,000 in March and April.

Five percent of global maritime trade passes through the Panama Canal, and its main users are the US and China. The route primarily connects the US East Coast with China, South Korea and Japan.

In the first half of the 2026 fiscal year, which runs October to September, the Panamanian waterway recorded passage of 6,288 ships, a year-on-year increase of 3.7 percent, according to official figures.