Saudi Banks’ risk profiles stronger than GCC counterparts
Saudi banks exceed their Gulf Cooperation Council counterparts in terms of risk profiles underpinning their asset quality, according to Fitch Ratings.
The credit rating agency said in a statement that there is a strong correlation between asset quality and risk profile scores among regional banks, particularly in the GCC, due to their lending-focused business models. Saudi banks boast a weighted-average risk-profile score slightly below “bbb+” and a similar asset quality score.
Conversely, in the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait, both weighted-average scores stand two notches lower, at “bbb-.”
Despite experiencing credit growth around double the GCC average between 2022 and 2023, Saudi banks maintain stronger scores. This surge is attributed to heightened government spending and robust non-oil gross domestic product growth.
UAE construction, manufacturing businesses are hiring to clear backlogs
Businesses in the UAE are taking on new hires, especially in the manufacturing and construction sectors, as they seek to clear backlogs that built up after the April 16 rains and subsequent disruptions. New staff intake also made sense for these companies as demand for their products and services remained high.
The UAE’s non-oil companies faced a ‘record uplift’ in outstanding business levels during May, putting ‘immense pressure on business capacity,” says the latest S&P Global PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) data.
UAE, Malaysia seek deeper trade
Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, received Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, on a visit to the country designed to deepen trade and investment ties between the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia.
Dr. Al Zeyoudi also held talks with Zafrul Aziz, Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, in which they discussed collaboration in high-growth sectors such as technology, manufacturing, and services, and reviewed the progress of negotiations towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. The visit reflects the strengthening ties between the UAE and Malaysia. In 2023, the two counties shared non-oil trade worth US$4.7 billion dollars, maintaining the record-setting levels achieved in 2022.
Al Zeyoudi stated, “Malaysia is a highly valued and long-standing trade and investment partner for the UAE, and this visit underlines the importance of face-to-face meetings as we seek to elevate our relationship. Our nations both recognise the developmental importance of open, rules-based trade and are committed to ensuring our private sectors are able to maximise the opportunities available in each other’s economies.
France keen to help Saudi Arabia transition away from oil: Le Drian
Saudi Arabia “no longer wants to be an oil country” and wants “a diversified and innovative economy,” and France is keen to collaborate with the Gulf country to achieve its aims, former French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Tuesday.
Speaking at the Vision Golfe summit in Paris, Le Drian, who was speaking in his capacity as president of the French Agency for AlUla Development, said that Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda presented opportunities for French companies. Al-Ula is a tourism project in Saudi Arabia’s Medina province with a number of major archaeological sites, including the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Nabataean city of Hegra. Vision Golfe is an annual event held by Business France at the French Ministry of Economy and Finance that aims to strengthen business ties between France and the Gulf countries.
In 1st quarter Bahrain’s economy grows 2pc
Bahrain’s economy expanded 2 percent in the first quarter of this year, driven by non-oil growth of 3.5 percent, the finance ministry said.
“In contrast, the oil sector saw a decrease of 5.9 percent, mainly due to the reduction in oil production caused by seasonal maintenance,” the ministry said in a quarterly report released late on Monday.
Real GDP growth was boosted by 11.2 percent expansion in the transport and communication sector, with real estate and business activities, financial corporations, hotels and restaurants and trade all growing between 4.2 percent and 5.3 percent. Manufacturing shrank 1.1 percent and construction was down 1.3 percent.
The real GDP is forecast to grow 2.9 percent this year, with the non-oil sector seen rising 3.5 percent and the oil sector expected to be steady, the report said, citing revised figures from the Information & eGovernment Authority. Growth is seen at 3.2 percent in 2024.
Kuwait, Pakistan sign bilateral deal
Kuwait and Pakistan on Thursday signed a bilateral agreement to ratchet up industrial cooperation, a deal hailed by Commerce Minister Omar Al-Omar as a step aiming to push forward economic diversification plans.
The deal, co-signed by the Kuwaiti commerce minister and Pakistani Privatization, Investment and Communication Minister Abdul Aleem Khan, is part of Kuwaiti efforts to reduce reliance on oil revenues by exploring other business investments, he said.
Discussing the intricacies of the aforementioned plans, the Kuwaiti minister outlined the primary objectives including strengthening the rapport between the public and private sectors, in addition to providing support for fledgling small and medium-sized enterprises, said the minister, underlining a the growing significance of the private sector’s role towards economic growth.
Amid joint ministerial committee (JMC) talks linking Kuwait and Islamabad, the minister praised the palpable progress seen in trade relations between the two countries, which surged to USD 590 million last year, saying the visit by a high-level Pakistani trade delegation is an effort to keep these ties on an upward trajectory, subsequently bringing to fruition “common ambitions,” he added.