150 Global Companies Show Interest in NEOM Projects

The sun sets over NEOM. (NEOM via Twitter)
The sun sets over NEOM. (NEOM via Twitter)
TT

150 Global Companies Show Interest in NEOM Projects

The sun sets over NEOM. (NEOM via Twitter)
The sun sets over NEOM. (NEOM via Twitter)

After concluding a four-day assembly, NEOM Chief Projects Officer Brett Smythe revealed that more than 150 local and international design and construction corporations have displayed interest in the Saudi mega project.

“What we now have edited at these conferences confirms the nice curiosity we’re aiming for at NEOM,” he said.

“We’re critical about constructing the NEOM in a totally completely different approach and we’re working to carry the sector to technological improvement, improvements and innovation,” he added.

NEOM is the cornerstone project supporting the realization of Saudi Arabia’s national transformation plan Vision 2030, especially in terms of diversifying sources of income.

NEOM is distinguished by the magnitude and diversity of businesses and projects it covers.

In its “The Line” project, NEOM is looking to create 380,000 jobs and to add SAR 180 billion to the Kingdom’s GDP by 2030.

“The scale and complexity of this project require strong partnerships between NEOM and the entire industry value chain to make NEOM’s vision a reality,” its Chief Executive Officer Nadhmi Al-Nasr said.

There was particular interest in NEOM’s focus on innovation, Smythe noted.

“We are serious about building NEOM in a completely different way and are steering the industry toward technological advancement, greater innovation and efficiency,” he stressed.



Oil Prices Fall More than 1% as Hurricane Rafael Risk Recedes

FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
TT

Oil Prices Fall More than 1% as Hurricane Rafael Risk Recedes

FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)

Oil prices fell on Friday on receding fears over the impact of Hurricane Rafael on oil and gas infrastructure in the US Gulf while investors also weighed up fresh Chinese economic stimulus.

Brent crude oil futures lost $1.04, or 1.38%, to $74.59 a barrel by 1243 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down $1.22, or 1.69%, at $71.14.

The benchmarks have reversed Thursday's gains of nearly 1%, but Brent and WTI are still on track to finish 2% up over the week, with investors also examining how US President-elect Donald Trump's policies might affect oil supply and demand, Reuters reported.

Hurricane Rafael, which has caused 391,214 barrels per day of US crude oil production to be shut in, is forecast to weaken and move slowly away from US Gulf coast oilfields in the coming days, the US National Hurricane Center said.

Downward price pressure also came from data showing crude imports in China, the world's largest oil importer, fell 9% in October - the sixth consecutive month to show a year-on-year decline.

"The weakening of oil imports in China is due to weaker demand for oil as a result of the sluggish economic development and rapid advance of e-mobility," said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.

China kicked off a fresh round of fiscal support on Friday, announcing a package that eases debt repayment strains for local governments.

The nation's economy has faced strong deflationary pressures in the face of weak domestic demand, a property crisis and mounting financing strains on indebted local governments, limiting their investment capability.

"There were no additional stimulus measures targeting domestic demand, hence the disappointment weighing on prices," UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo told Reuters.

Prices had risen on Thursday on expected actions by the incoming Trump administration, such as tighter sanctions on Iran and Venezuela, which could limit oil supply to global markets.

"In the short-term, oil prices might rise if the new President Trump is quick on the draw with oil sanctions," said PVM analyst John Evans.

US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Thursday that Trump's proposed policies of broad-based tariffs, deportations and tax cuts would have no near-term impact on the US economy, but the Fed would begin estimating the impact of such policies on its goals of stable inflation and maximum employment.

The Fed cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point on Thursday.