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Saudi Arabia Contributes to Space Sector

The Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology described the astronauts as “the heroes of the nation." Asharq Al-Awsat
The Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology described the astronauts as “the heroes of the nation." Asharq Al-Awsat
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Saudi Arabia Contributes to Space Sector

The Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology described the astronauts as “the heroes of the nation." Asharq Al-Awsat
The Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology described the astronauts as “the heroes of the nation." Asharq Al-Awsat

As Saudi Arabia announced on Thursday sending the first Saudi astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) in May, the Saudi space sector has imposed its presence on the international map, making Riyadh a regional leader in this field.

Astronauts Rayana Bernawi and Ali Al-Qarni will join the Axiom Space crew (AX-2) in order to take advantage of the promising opportunities offered by the space industries and to contribute to scientific research that serves humanity in a number of priority areas, such as health, sustainability and space technology.

Eng. Abdullah bin Amer Alswaha, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, said: “With the support and empowerment of the Crown Prince, Chairman of the Supreme Council for Space… the first Saudi female astronaut, Rayana Bernawi, and astronaut Ali Al-Qarni, [will conduct] a historical scientific mission to the International Space Station to empower people through research and innovations.”

The minister described the astronauts as “the heroes of the nation.”

Saudi Arabia’s contribution to the space sector includes steady and rapid steps in all directions. The Kingdom has succeeded in graduating qualified Saudi cadres in the global space industry.

Dr. Hussein Al-Zahrani, expert in the aviation and space sector, told Asharq Al-Awsat that sending the first Saudi woman to space underlines the Kingdom’s support for the sector, on the one hand, and its endeavor to empower women and highlight their important contribution to society.

Al-Zahrani added that Saudi Arabia has been a pioneer in the field of space, since the establishment of the Saudi Space Commission in 2018.

Today, the Kingdom is increasing its capabilities, as has built terrestrial space stations and used them in many fields.

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Business

UK Economy Claws Back Some Growth as Burnham Prepares to Take Power

FILE PHOTO: People walk outside the Bank of England in the City of London financial district in London, Britain May 11, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People walk outside the Bank of England in the City of London financial district in London, Britain May 11, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo
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UK Economy Claws Back Some Growth as Burnham Prepares to Take Power

FILE PHOTO: People walk outside the Bank of England in the City of London financial district in London, Britain May 11, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People walk outside the Bank of England in the City of London financial district in London, Britain May 11, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo

Britain's economy eked out minimal growth in May as the services industry expanded but other sectors shrank, suggesting fragile confidence among businesses against the backdrop of the Iran war and a change of prime minister at home.

Gross domestic product expanded by 0.1% in May, in line with the median forecast in a Reuters poll of economists and reversing a 0.1% fall in April, official data showed on Thursday.

Services output expanded by 0.3% on the month but industrial production and construction both contracted, falling by 0.5% and 0.8% respectively.

Figures showing robust overall economic growth of 0.7% in the three months to May offered a positive send-off to finance minister Rachel Reeves before her expected replacement next week under new prime minister Andy Burnham. Reeves' ⁠job appears likely ⁠to go to Shabana Mahmood, currently Britain's interior minister, who is set to be named finance minister next week by Burnham, according to news reports on Wednesday including in the Financial Times.

An upwardly revised growth figure of 0.8% in the three months to April represented the fastest expansion since the Labour Party came to power and matched the rate achieved under Reeves' Conservative predecessor Jeremy Hunt in May 2024.

Compared with a year earlier, output in May was 1.3% higher, the biggest annual rise in 10 months.

However, ⁠the outlook for the economy remains darkened by the shadow of the conflict in the Gulf and uncertainty over the latest change of political leadership at home — Britain's seventh in the past 10 years. On Wednesday, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said it expected British GDP to grow by only 0.9% this year and 1.1% in 2027, although the forecast for 2026 was the strongest for the major European economies.

Neil Birrell, chief investment officer at fund management firm Premier Miton, said uncertainty around economic policy in Burnham's government was likely to weigh on growth in the months ahead.

"It's unlikely businesses and individuals will be actively hiring or spending ahead of getting policy details," Reuters quoted Birrell as saying. "All that, when the starting point is an economy that is barely growing."

Sanjay Raja, chief UK economist at Deutsche Bank, saw more positive details in the GDP data and said Britain ⁠was likely to remain near ⁠the top of the Group of Seven growth table in the April-to-June period.

"In short, PM Starmer hands over the economy to his successor on a much better footing," he said.

The OECD urged Burnham, who is due to replace Keir Starmer as prime minister on Monday, to keep the government's budget discipline, tackle high pension spending and address soaring energy prices to speed up the economy.

The Office for National Statistics, which published Thursday's figures, said the growth in services over the three months to May was driven by computer programming and advertising alongside the often-volatile pharmaceutical industry.

In May, growth in research and development in medical sciences was particularly strong, the statistics agency said.

Britain's goods trade deficit narrowed in May to its smallest since January at £18.7 billion, a bigger drop than economists had expected from April's £24.6 billion.

Business

Gold Falls as Mideast Conflict Dims Easing Inflation Hopes

Gold jewelry being prepared before melting to produce gold bars at the Austrian gold and silver refinery 'Oegussa' in Vienna (AFP)
Gold jewelry being prepared before melting to produce gold bars at the Austrian gold and silver refinery 'Oegussa' in Vienna (AFP)
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Gold Falls as Mideast Conflict Dims Easing Inflation Hopes

Gold jewelry being prepared before melting to produce gold bars at the Austrian gold and silver refinery 'Oegussa' in Vienna (AFP)
Gold jewelry being prepared before melting to produce gold bars at the Austrian gold and silver refinery 'Oegussa' in Vienna (AFP)

Gold fell on Thursday as an escalating Middle East conflict fueled concerns that the US Federal Reserve could hike interest rates this year, overshadowing recent optimism over easing inflation.

Spot gold was down 0.8% at $4,029.29 per ounce by 0518 GMT. US gold futures for August delivery lost 0.4% to $4,034.40, Reuters said.

"June's inflation figures did not reflect the impact of the latest escalation ‌in the US-Iran ‌conflict, as the interim peace union reached ‌last ⁠month has effectively ⁠unraveled," said Jigar Trivedi, a senior research analyst at IndusInd Securities.

The US launched two waves of attacks on Iran's coastal defenses and missile sites on Wednesday after reimposing a naval blockade of its ports, while Iran struck back by targeting US military sites in neighboring countries in what it called an "existential war" ⁠with America.

Oil prices have risen 11% so ‌far this week, stoking concerns about ‌inflation and higher-for-longer interest rates. While gold is traditionally seen as an ‌inflation hedge, it loses its appeal in a high interest ‌rate environment.

US consumer and producer inflation slowed in June, amid a pullback in the cost of energy products, reinforcing evidence that inflation was subsiding before the recent escalation in the Middle East conflict.

The moderation ‌in inflation was, however, not enough to convince financial markets to rule out a Fed ⁠rate hike ⁠this year.

Traders are still pricing in bout a 73% chance of a December Fed hike, CME FedWatch Tool's data showed.

Fed Governor Lisa Cook said on Wednesday she is "prepared to act" if inflation does not soon begin to slow. Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh also declared his determination to bring inflation down without hinting at how.

Investors are now looking out for remarks from Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan and Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson, due to speak later in the day.

Elsewhere, spot silver fell 1.2% to $57.07 per ounce. Platinum eased 0.6% to $1,664.75 and palladium edged 0.4% lower to $1,308.49.

Business

Japan to Recognize Cryptocurrency As 'Financial Assets'

A man stands near an advertisement of a cryptocurrency exchange in Tokyo, Japan March 30, 2018. Picture taken March 30, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai 
A man stands near an advertisement of a cryptocurrency exchange in Tokyo, Japan March 30, 2018. Picture taken March 30, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai 
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Japan to Recognize Cryptocurrency As 'Financial Assets'

A man stands near an advertisement of a cryptocurrency exchange in Tokyo, Japan March 30, 2018. Picture taken March 30, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai 
A man stands near an advertisement of a cryptocurrency exchange in Tokyo, Japan March 30, 2018. Picture taken March 30, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanai 

Japan’s parliament approved new amendments on Wednesday that will recognize cryptocurrencies as financial assets, a move that would put their regulation under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, according to Japanese Broadcaster NHK.

Crypto had previously been regulated mainly under Japan’s Payment Services Act, which treated it more as a payment method than an investment product.

With the latest change, cryptocurrency trading will become subject to rules closer to those governing stocks and other securities, including restrictions on trading based on insider information.

That could give regulators clearer grounds to pursue project founders, exchange employees and other people who trade before market-moving information becomes public.

The law also raises the maximum punishment for operating an unregistered crypto trading business from three years in prison and a fine of about $20,000 to 10 years and roughly $67,000.

The new regulations don’t limit themselves to the fight against insider trading. The regulations will require crypto exchanges to comply with the general structure of Japan’s financial services industry, according to Anderson Mori & Tomotsune Law Firm in Japan, according to Japanese law firm Anderson Mori & Tomotsune.

Additionally, some crypto issuers will have to make certain disclosure requirements similar to those made by firms issuing securities.

Crypto lenders will be subjected to regulation, and firms that offer wallets and other technologies to exchanges may face new notification and compliance requirements, per the report.

Economic Plan

Separately, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday said she saw no link between her government's draft economic blueprint ‌and a recent market rout that has driven Japanese government bond (JGB) yields to multi-decade highs.

“I do not believe that a single draft government document, which has not even been approved by the cabinet yet, ⁠is the cause of the market shock,” Takaichi told parliament.

Concerns about political interference in monetary policy have grown since the government in its draft blueprint said it was "very important for monetary policy to be guided appropriately to achieve a stronger economy". The draft was followed by a selloff in JGBs.

Takaichi also said interest rates, as ‌well ⁠as foreign exchange rates, are "determined by a variety of factors. Looking at today's market moves, for example, there are influences from US interest rates and employment data," she said.

The prime ⁠minister said she saw the current debate on temporary cuts in food sales tax as a chance to establish a ⁠system in which consumption tax rates could be changed flexibly.

Asked about the yen's persistent weakness, she said boosting ⁠domestic investment and strengthening international competitiveness would raise potential growth and maintain confidence in the yen.