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Saudi Arabia Speeds up Development of Maritime, Logistics Sector with $4.5b Investments

Commercial ships dock at Jeddah Islamic Port (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Commercial ships dock at Jeddah Islamic Port (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Speeds up Development of Maritime, Logistics Sector with $4.5b Investments

Commercial ships dock at Jeddah Islamic Port (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Commercial ships dock at Jeddah Islamic Port (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) said that it strengthened the Kingdom’s maritime, logistics and ports sector with investment projects amounting to around SAR 17 billion riyals ($4.5 billion) during 2023.

Mawani revealed that Saudi Arabia witnessed progress in various international rankings, including container handling and logistics efficiency.

The country jumped eight ranks in container handling, reaching the 16th position out of the largest 100 ports worldwide, according to Lloyd’s List. Moreover, the Kingdom climbed 17 ranks to reach the 38th position out of 160 countries in the logistics efficiency index, which is issued by the World Bank.

According to the Authority, the Kingdom made significant progress in the Liner Shipping Connectivity Index, achieving the highest regional advancement, according to the UNCTAD report. The index recorded 79.01 points in the fourth quarter of 2023, compared to 77.66 points in the previous quarter.

Mawani signed agreements in 2023 to establish five new logistics parks and centers, with investments exceeding SAR 4 billion. These agreements included the development of logistics parks at King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam, an integrated logistics park at Jeddah Islamic Port, and a comprehensive bunker station at King Fahad Industrial Port in Yanbu.

In the same context, Mawani celebrated the laying of the foundation stone for the largest integrated logistics area for Maersk in the Middle East at the Jeddah Islamic Port, with investments amounting to SAR 1.3 billion ($346 million), over an area of 225,000 square meters.

The Authority also launched the construction of a logistics park at the same port in partnership with CMA CGM. Mawani also opened a new logistics park at Jeddah Islamic Port in collaboration with LogiPoint, marking the company’s first integrated logistics park in the region.

Mawani continued its steps to support global trade by adding 28 new maritime services, connecting Saudi ports to eastern and western ports.

The Authority signed about 16 partnership agreements with a number of international ports and national entities in the government and private sectors. Those are aimed at raising the status of Saudi ports in the field of maritime transport, regionally and globally.

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Business

Saudi Economy Accelerates as Diversification and Legal Reforms Drive Growth

Quality of life represents a strategic national priority in Saudi Arabia (SPA). 
Quality of life represents a strategic national priority in Saudi Arabia (SPA). 
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Saudi Economy Accelerates as Diversification and Legal Reforms Drive Growth

Quality of life represents a strategic national priority in Saudi Arabia (SPA). 
Quality of life represents a strategic national priority in Saudi Arabia (SPA). 

Saudi Arabia’s economy has undergone nearly a decade of transformation under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as sweeping reforms and diversification efforts reshape the country’s economic landscape.

Since the launch of Saudi Vision 2030 in April 2016, the Kingdom has embarked on its most significant economic shift in decades. The transformation has extended far beyond fiscal adjustments or limited diversification programs, evolving instead into a broad structural reform aimed at reducing reliance on oil and building a more diverse and dynamic economy.

Economic indicators suggest the strategy is gaining traction. Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product (GDP) rose from about SAR 2.6 trillion in 2016 to nearly SAR 4.7 trillion in recent years, roughly $1.3 trillion, according to the latest official figures. That represents an average cumulative annual growth rate of about 8 percent, placing the Kingdom among the fastest-growing major economies globally during this period.

The shift reflects Vision 2030’s broader strategy to expand non-oil industries and widen the country’s production base beyond hydrocarbons.

 

Faisal Al-Fadhel, a legal expert in economic legislation and a member of the board of trustees of the Riyadh Economic Forum, said the reforms launched under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman have introduced a more diversified and sustainable economic model.

“Saudi Arabia has moved toward reducing its dependence on oil while expanding promising sectors such as tourism, technology, logistics and advanced industries,” Al-Fadhel told Asharq Al-Awsat. “This approach enhances the resilience of the national economy and increases the attractiveness of the Saudi market for both domestic and foreign investors.”

Recent economic indicators support that assessment. Non-oil activities have recorded strong growth, the private sector’s contribution to GDP has expanded, and foreign direct investment inflows have increased. At the same time, Saudi Arabia has improved its standing in global competitiveness indicators, reinforcing its ambitions to become a regional hub for business and investment.

Al-Fadhel noted that the transformation has also been supported by a broad legislative reform agenda designed to modernize the regulatory environment. Key economic and commercial laws — including the Companies Law, Investment Law, and Bankruptcy Law — have been updated, alongside regulations related to corporate governance, investor protection and competition. The reforms aim to improve transparency, regulatory certainty and the efficiency of the investment environment.

Non-Oil Sectors Lead Growth

One of the most visible outcomes of the economic shift is the rising contribution of non-oil sectors, which now account for 56 percent of GDP. Data show that non-oil activities were the primary driver of real economic growth in 2025.

Saudi Arabia ended 2025 with its strongest growth in two years, with GDP expanding 4.5 percent, according to estimates by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). The economy grew 5 percent in the fourth quarter, with all major sectors contributing to the expansion compared with 2024.

Labor Market Changes

The Saudi labor market has also seen notable shifts. Unemployment among Saudi nationals has declined, while female participation in the workforce has reached record levels following a series of labor and regulatory reforms.

More than 2.48 million Saudis have joined the private sector in recent years, reflecting the impact of job localization policies. Economic transformation programs have also generated roughly 800,000 new jobs, with strong growth in engineering professions.

Employment opportunities have expanded particularly in tourism, supported by major entertainment and tourism projects, as well as in the pharmaceutical and medical manufacturing industries, where job numbers have doubled.

Investment at the Center

Investment has become a central pillar of the Kingdom’s economic strategy. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has positioned both domestic and foreign investment as key drivers of growth and diversification.

The government established the Ministry of Investment and launched the National Investment Strategy as a comprehensive framework to boost capital formation. Total investment — measured by fixed capital formation — has risen from about SAR 672 billion in 2017 to roughly SAR 1.44 trillion by the end of 2024, more than doubling in less than a decade.

Al-Fadhel emphasized that the private sector is a critical partner in achieving Vision 2030 goals through expanded investment, technological adoption, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

Public Investment Fund Expands Role

The Public Investment Fund (PIF) has emerged as a central instrument of the transformation. With assets estimated at SAR 3.47 trillion, it has become one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds.

PIF is leading major investments in tourism, renewable energy, industry, technology and entertainment while launching large-scale development projects designed to create new industries and strengthen Saudi Arabia’s position as a global economic hub.

 

 

Business

US Fed Expected to Hold Rates Steady as Iran War Roils Outlook

The US-Israel war on Iran has seen energy infrastructure damaged across the Middle East, sending shockwaves through global markets. AFP
The US-Israel war on Iran has seen energy infrastructure damaged across the Middle East, sending shockwaves through global markets. AFP
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US Fed Expected to Hold Rates Steady as Iran War Roils Outlook

The US-Israel war on Iran has seen energy infrastructure damaged across the Middle East, sending shockwaves through global markets. AFP
The US-Israel war on Iran has seen energy infrastructure damaged across the Middle East, sending shockwaves through global markets. AFP

US Federal Reserve policymakers are expected to leave interest rates unchanged at their meeting next week, as the US-Israel war on Iran sends shock waves through markets and recent economic data has begun to show weakness.

The Fed will start its two-day meeting on Tuesday, with an announcement of the benchmark lending rate in the world's largest economy a day later.

The central bank cut rates three consecutive times last year before holding them steady at its January meeting, said AFP.

It has a dual mandate of holding inflation near a long-term target of two percent while ensuring maximum employment.

With war in the Middle East causing global oil prices to spike, potentially increasing overall inflation and curbing growth, analysts say policymakers are unlikely to make any moves now.

"This is certainly a bind for the Fed, because supply shocks are extremely hard to deal with in that they lift inflation and they curb output," EY-Parthenon chief economist Gregory Daco told AFP.

Affordability is a key political issue for President Donald Trump, who has claimed that prices are cooling even as consumers complain of the high costs of basic goods.

Trump has repeatedly insulted Fed Chair Jerome Powell as he demands lower rates, and the Justice Department threatened Powell with a criminal indictment as part of an investigation into cost overruns for a Fed renovation project.

While consumer inflation has dropped from a peak of 9.1 percent during the Covid pandemic, it remains well above the Fed's two- percent target.

"Unlike other countries, which have already achieved some level of price stability, we're five years in without price stability," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at KPMG.

She warned that, depending on how long the Iran war lasts, inflation could again soar past four percent.

"I think the main story here is that we are seeing inflation moving away from the Fed's two-percent target, and that will lead many Fed policymakers to adopt an even more hawkish stance," said Daco.

- Duelling mandates -

Raising rates to cool the economy, however, could bring the Fed into tension with its other mandate: managing unemployment.

The United States unexpectedly lost 92,000 jobs in February, government data showed, while the unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent.

Analysts say a relatively steady unemployment rate has been masking churn beneath the surface.

Labor demand has been dropping, but unemployment has not spiked because that has been accompanied by a drop in supply due to Trump's immigration crackdown.

Daco said labor demand gauges were showing signs of concern, including a weak hiring rate "at a decade low," slowing wage growth and business leaders talking about labor replacement due to AI.

Swonk noted that spiking uncertainty due to war in Iran and its knock-on effects would further curb labor demand.

"Uncertainty acts as its own tax on the economy, and one of the first lines of defense that firms do is they freeze hiring," she said.

And recent data ahead of the Fed meeting is not encouraging, with US GDP growth revised sharply lower in the final months of 2025.

- 'Rock and a hard place' -

Some Fed policymakers, however, have been cautious in describing the possible inflationary shocks of the war.

Fed Governor Christopher Waller expressed sympathy on Bloomberg TV last week for consumers facing spiking gasoline prices.

"But for us thinking about policy going forward, this is unlikely to cause sustained inflation," he said.

Swonk warned however that any economic slowdown from the war could be tough to recover from in the immediate term.

"I think people are discounting the risk of the lingering effects," she said, noting that supply disruptions affect more than oil prices.

"There's no question they're between a rock and a hard spot, and it just got harder," Swonk said of policymakers having to balance inflation and unemployment.

To Daco, however, uncertainty means the Fed is more likely to hold rates steady "for a long period of time."

Traders have begun to reduce their outlook for rate cuts, and Swonk said that hikes could even be on the menu.

"This is not a one-way street. We're at a busy intersection, and the stoplight's broken," she said.

Business

Fitch Affirms ‘AA’ Credit Rating for Qatar

As LNG production increases, Fitch projects the general government budget surplus will rise ⁠to ⁠4.1% of GDP in 2027 (Reuters)
As LNG production increases, Fitch projects the general government budget surplus will rise ⁠to ⁠4.1% of GDP in 2027 (Reuters)
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Fitch Affirms ‘AA’ Credit Rating for Qatar

As LNG production increases, Fitch projects the general government budget surplus will rise ⁠to ⁠4.1% of GDP in 2027 (Reuters)
As LNG production increases, Fitch projects the general government budget surplus will rise ⁠to ⁠4.1% of GDP in 2027 (Reuters)

Fitch Ratings affirmed Qatar's long-term foreign-currency rating at "AA" and a "stable" outlook on Friday, saying its strong balance sheet and plans to sharply increase LNG output should help cushion the impact of the escalating Middle East conflict.

The US-Israel war with Iran has disrupted shipments from the world's most important oil artery, the Strait of Hormuz, which is responsible for 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas supply.

The impact on LNG exports is likely ⁠to widen Qatar's ⁠fiscal deficit in 2026, contingent on how long the conflict lasts, but the country should be able to more easily tap debt markets or draw on its sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), which has built up ⁠assets over decades of investing at home and globally.

Fitch said it assumes the conflict would last less than a month and the strait would remain closed during that period, with no major damage to regional hydrocarbon infrastructure. Under its baseline scenario, the agency expects Brent crude to average $70 a barrel in 2026.

As LNG production increases, Fitch projects the general government budget surplus will rise ⁠to ⁠4.1% of GDP in 2027 and exceed 7% by 2030. Excluding investment income, the budget is expected to return to surplus from 2027, with most excess revenue likely to be transferred to QIA for overseas investment.

The agency expects Qatar to meet its 2026 funding needs through a combination of central bank overdrafts, domestic and international market borrowing, and drawdowns on the finance ministry's deposits in the banking sector.