MAWANI, Tabadul Sign MoU to Develop New Saudi Ports Management Systems

MAWANI, Tabadul Sign MoU to Develop New Saudi Ports Management Systems
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MAWANI, Tabadul Sign MoU to Develop New Saudi Ports Management Systems

MAWANI, Tabadul Sign MoU to Develop New Saudi Ports Management Systems

The Saudi Ports Authority (MAWANI) and Saudi Company for Exchanging Digital Information (Tabadul) signed on Sunday a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the aim of developing new Saudi ports management systems as part of their endeavors to lead the change of the future of commercial movement and guarantee competitiveness and realizing sustainable growth at Saudi ports.

The MoU aims at expanding and doubling services provided at Saudi ports from their current number of 46 to 150; empowering modern and emerging technologies according to the best international practices, mainly technologies related to geographical borders and the Internet of Things; and providing safe, quick and advanced services to beneficiaries in the fields of payments and billing with the use of the latest applications FinTech.

The memorandum also stipulates re-engineering procedures and operations at Saudi ports, ensuring the level of its conformity to international standards, enhancing their connection to global ports, facilitating the application of smart gates and applying modern emerging technologies that are directly and indirectly related to the Saudi ports management systems.

This is part of the Smart Ports initiative that MAWANI has launched to apply modern and advanced automation technologies in a way that realizes plans for digital transformation in the logistical sector, in line with the goals of the National Transport and Logistics Strategy to instill the status of the Kingdom as a global logistical hub and a gateway for three continents.

MAWANI, through the initiative that was launched in the first quarter of 2022, also seeks to enhance its contributions in realizing the targets of the Saudi Vision 2030 towards a prosperous digital economy through speeding up and enabling 5G technologies in the logistical sector, enhancing cooperation in offering ICT services, activating the approach of innovation, research and development in a way that makes Saudi ports at the top of applying modern technologies and harnesses its competitiveness at the regional and international levels in terms of trading goods and serving importers and exporters.



Israel's Shekel and Bonds Slide as Gaza Ceasefire Buckles

New Israeli Shekel banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken November 9, 2021. REUTERS/Nir Elias/Illustration/File photo
New Israeli Shekel banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken November 9, 2021. REUTERS/Nir Elias/Illustration/File photo
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Israel's Shekel and Bonds Slide as Gaza Ceasefire Buckles

New Israeli Shekel banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken November 9, 2021. REUTERS/Nir Elias/Illustration/File photo
New Israeli Shekel banknotes are seen in this picture illustration taken November 9, 2021. REUTERS/Nir Elias/Illustration/File photo

Israel's currency fell alongside its bonds and stock market on Tuesday as a wave of deadly airstrikes by its military in Gaza threatened the complete collapse of an already fragile two-month ceasefire with Hamas.

Concerns about both the humanitarian and economic costs of a return to intense fighting spiked as Israel's resumption of bombing of Gaza, which it said was a "preemptive offensive" to try to force the release of its remaining hostages, prompted anger from Hamas.

Israel's shekel dropped as much as half a percent against both the dollar and euro, while many of its government bonds, which suffered a wave of rating downgrades last year due to the war, had their biggest falls in over a month, Reuters reported.

Ronen Menachem, chief markets economist at Mizrahi Tefahot Bank, said a resumption in the conflict could see further falls in the shekel and a renewed rise in Israel’s bond market risk premium.

"The market will react based on whether this is perceived as a defined and limited operation or the opening of a broader campaign," he said.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had instructed the military to take Tuesday's "strong action" in response to Hamas's refusal to release the remaining 59 hostages it holds following its October 7, 2023 attacks and its rejection of other ceasefire proposals.

The Palestinian militant group accused Netanyahu of breaching the ceasefire deal and jeopardizing efforts by mediators to secure a permanent truce.

Negotiating teams from Israel and Hamas had been in Doha as mediators from Egypt and Qatar sought to bridge the gap between the two sides after the end of an initial phase in the ceasefire, in which 33 Israeli hostages and five Thais were released in exchange for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.