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☆ Saudi’s MBS wants more than peace at his Ukraine summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( Nic Robertson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“Our goal in Saudi Arabia is to develop a unified vision of the formula and to work out the possibilities of holding the future Global Peace Summit,” they said, referring to Ukraine’s peace plan. That summit produced no major headlines, nor a discernable drift to Ukraine’s prerequisite for peace that Russian troops exit Ukraine. Like the roads that led to Rome in its day, Saudi Arabia is increasingly at the confluence of competing global interests. In spring this year, Saudi Arabia and China announced a confidence-building peace plan with Iran to repair their hostile relationship. All of this of course is way outside the scope of the Jeddah peace summit and Russia’s unprovoked war of aggression in Ukraine.

Persons: Prince Mohammed bin Salman, ”, “, Jake Sullivan, Biden, Xi, Putin, It’s, Volodymyr Zelensky’s Organizations: CNN, Saudi, MBS, Peace, National, CNN US State Department, Danes, NATO, African Union Locations: Jeddah, stewing, Ukraine, Russia ”, India, Saudi Arabia, Moscow, ”, Kyiv, Denmark, Rome, Yemen, China, Iran, Russia, Washington, Saudi, Gulf, Israel, Europe, Africa, St Petersburg, Ukrainian

☆ Aston Martin flips from cash-guzzler to carmaker
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Aug 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Aston Martin Lagonda (AML.L) is making a painful transition from cash-guzzler to viable carmaker. A 216 million pound cash call on Monday brings its total capital raised since 2018 to just under 1.8 billion pounds. By this year, Aston Martin will have grown revenue by 13% per annum since 2019, according to Refinitiv data, thanks to new models like the DB12 and higher prices. Aston’s current enterprise value is just under 2 times forecast 2024 sales, a discount to Porsche, and far below Ferrari’s (RACE.MI) more than 8 times multiple. Yet Aston still needs to show it can make an electric vehicle, with the first due in 2025.

Persons: Aston Martin Lagonda, James Bond, Lawrence Stroll’s, Aston Martin, Aston, Neil Unmack, Steve Cohen, Liam Proud, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Public Investment Fund, Porsche AG, Porsche, Twitter, Sequoia, Thomson Locations: Japan, India

☆ Saudi Mbappé bid even less rational than it looks
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Yet a possible outlay of 1 billion euros, including compensation, takes the country’s sporting tactics to surreal new heights. Added to the transfer fee, that takes the outlay to around 1 billion euros. Spain’s LaLiga generated about 900 million euros in international broadcast revenue in the 2020-2021 season, according to Deloitte. CBS Sports reported that Al Hilal was also offering Mbappé a total one-year compensation package worth 700 million euros. The Guardian reported that Mbappé’s one-year salary would be 200 million euros, rising to 700 million euros after including other commercial arrangements and proceeds from image rights.

Persons: Al Hilal’s, Kylian, Germain, Declan Rice, Mbappé, Mbappé aren’t, Al Hilal, George Hay, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Paris Saint, Arsenal, Saudi Pro League, Guardian, Deloitte, English Premier League, Saudi, Newcastle United, Premier League, Economics, Regional, Qatar, Britons, Al, Financial Times, Bloomberg, CBS Sports, Thomson Locations: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Paris, China, Saudi, France’s, Saudi Arabian, French

☆ UK is in danger of becoming the Nigeria of wind
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( George Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, July 20 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Britain is supposed to be the Saudi Arabia of wind power. Vattenfall’s decision on Thursday to halt the 1.4 gigawatt (GW) Norfolk Boreas project is just the latest sign that Britain’s most appropriate fossil-fuel comparator may not be the biggest and most efficient producer. Vattenfall, a state-held Swedish power company, has gone cool for reasons that are well-discussed in the wind sector. The obvious move for UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would be to allow developers to charge more for power, to make up for higher costs. Follow @gfhay on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSVattenfall is stopping the development of its 1.4 gigawatt (GW) Norfolk Boreas offshore wind project off the coast of Britain, the state-owned Swedish utility said on July 20.

Persons: Boris Johnson’s, Vattenfall, Rishi Sunak, Liam Proud, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Siemens, UK, FTI, Norfolk, Thomson Locations: Britain, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Riyadh, Norfolk Boreas, Swedish, Norfolk, Orsted, Nigeria

☆ BlackRock’s Aramco embrace makes sense in a vacuum
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The $109 billion asset manager run by Larry Fink said on Monday it would add Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) Chief Executive Amin Nasser to its 16-strong board. But judged through an investment lens the appointment makes sense. Nasser, who led Aramco through its 2019 initial public offering, will take the seat currently occupied by Bader Alsaad, a former managing director of the Kuwait Investment Authority. Follow @thereallsl on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSBlackRock on July 17 said Amin Nasser, chief executive of Saudi Aramco, would join its board as an independent director. “Amin’s distinguished career at Aramco, spanning more than four decades, gives him a unique perspective on many of the key issues facing our firm and our clients,” BlackRock Chief Executive Larry Fink said in a statement.

Persons: Larry Fink, Amin Nasser, Nasser, Bader Alsaad, Jamal Khashoggi, Randall Stephenson, Fink, Richard Blumenthal, T Rowe Price, Fink –, “ Amin’s, Peter Thal Larsen, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, BlackRock, Aramco, Kuwait Investment Authority, of, Petroleum, Saudi, Golfers ’ Association, Global Energy, Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Shell, Thomson Locations: BlackRock, Saudi Aramco, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United States, U.S, Texas, Connecticut, Aramco

☆ Saudi golf shot plays through CFIUS hazards
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Jennifer Saba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

U.S. congressional lawmakers scrutinized PGA Tour officials on Tuesday this week about the group’s tie-up with a rival golf tournament owned by Saudi Arabia. Enter the Saudis, who launched an upstart golf tournament last year, LIV Golf, that competed with the U.S.-based PGA Tour and its European counterpart DTP. There are worries that Saudi Arabia, a regime viewed as hostile to women and LGBTQ groups, would have significant sway over golf’s culture. LIV Golf is owned by Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. Former AT&T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson resigned from the PGA Tour policy board, the Washington Post reported on July 9.

Persons: State Condoleezza Rice, Darla Moore, Covid, LIV Golf, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Yasir Al, Ed Herlihy, Wachtell, Lipton, Katz, hasn’t, Randall Stephenson, Jamal Khashoggi, ”, Richard Blumenthal, –, Sherrod Brown, Maxine Waters, Janet Yellen, LIV Golf’s, Joe Biden hasn't, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Khashoggi, Uncle Sam, Refinitiv, China’s ByteDance, LIV, Stephenson, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, Public Investment Fund, Augusta National Golf Club, State, U.S, PGA, LIV, Rosen, Breakingviews, Former AT, PGA Tour, Saudi, Department of Justice, Foreign Investment, U.S . Treasury, Saudi Arabian Crown, Walmart, Visa, Uber Technologies, Nation Entertainment, National Basketball League, Houston Rockets, People’s, NBA, backtrack, FIFA, Qatar, The Justice Department, Treasury, Committee, Homeland Security, Governmental Affairs, Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, T, Washington Post, Thomson Locations: Saudi Arabia, United States, American, U.S, South Carolina, Iran, China, Saudi, Hong Kong, People’s Republic, Beijing

☆ PGA Tour and LIV Golf: Newly obtained document details framework agreement between the sport’s leading organizations
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Jill Martin | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —On June 6, a shocking announcement was made by the PGA Tour sending reverberations around the golf world. On Monday, multiple news outlets started to circulate the framework agreement that had been quietly made by those groups. CNN has since obtained a copy of the framework agreement. The document was sent to Congress on Monday, according to a source with knowledge of the framework agreement. Lawmakers are inviting Monahan, Al-Rumayyan and LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman to testify at the hearing.

Persons: LIV, ”, ” PIF, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, “ NewCo, OWGR’s criterial, LIV Golf, Jay Monahan, Yasir Al, Keith Pelley, Monahan, Greg Norman, Patrick Cantlay, Rory McIlroy, Charley Hoffman, Peter Malnati, Webb Simpson Organizations: CNN, PGA, Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf, US Department of Justice, PGA Tour, Wall Street, Investigations, Rocket, “, Management, TOUR’s Locations: Saudi, NewCo, Al, Detroit

☆ Aston Martin pulls out of slow lane in EV race
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, June 26 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Aston Martin Lagonda’s (AML.L) route to viability is a brain-teaser worthy of Q, James Bond’s quartermaster famous for turning everyday objects into whizzy tools. The 2.6 billion pound carmaker’s latest deal with $11 billion Lucid (LCID.O) shows the marque made famous by the fictional spy is, however, making progress. The deal with Lucid – majority-owned by the PIF, handily enough – will make Aston’s ambition to roll out its first electric vehicle by 2025 more credible. The deal sent Aston shares up over 9% in early Monday trading. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Aston Martin Lagonda’s, Q, James Bond’s, Aston, Lawrence, –, Mercedes, Neil Unmack, George Hay, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Jefferies, Public Investment Fund, Porsche, Mercedes, Benz, U.S, Aston, Twitter, Canada, Siemens, Telecom Italia, Vivendi, Thomson

☆ Saudi Arabia is now stealing sporting headlines as prince pursues global ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Nic Robertson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Saudi Arabia has been in the headlines a lot lately – this time for trying to find its place in the sporting world. The kingdom’s golfing coup is perhaps the crowning sporting achievement so far of heir apparent Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS). Regional outlierBy the time King Salman came along, the 21st century was passing Saudi Arabia by. Saudi Arabia has led efforts to bring Syria in from the cold and tried to mediate in conflicts such as those in Sudan and even Ukraine. On oil, he has made Saudi Arabia a bolder player.

Persons: LIV Golf, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ballon d’Or, Karim Benzema, Jamal Khashoggi, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, King Salman’s, King Salman, LIV, Liberalizations, Al Hathloul, can’t, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Bashar al, Assad, Yemen’s, Putin, Xi Organizations: CNN, golf’s, Dubai, Saudi Pro League, France, Washington Post, Formula, MBS, Ritz, Saudi, Washington Locations: Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Portuguese, Istanbul, Riyadh, Mecca, Dubai, Moscow, Beijing, Ukraine, Syria, Sudan, Turkey, Syrian, Iran, Asia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, Jeddah

☆ Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund just reshaped professional golf with the PGA Tour-LIV merger. That's just the start
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The Saudi Public Investment Fund is a government-controlled fund that has $650 billion in assets under management, according to its most recent filing. A state-owned investment fund like the PIF is not unique. Critics of LIV Golf accused the Saudis of backing the new tour as a form of “sportswashing” its reputation. For example it’s not clear exactly how much it invested to start up LIV Golf. CNN has not been able to confirm that report, but what is known is that LIV Golf tournaments have been held on Trump Organization properties.

Persons: petro, LIV Golf, LIV, Yasir Al, Rumayyan, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, ”, Elon Musk, Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s, Kushner, Mohammed bin Salman, Bin Salman, Jamal Khashoggi, – CNN’s Coy Wire, Jack Bantock, Steve Almasy Organizations: New, New York CNN, Saudi, Saudi Public Investment Fund, Sovereign Wealth Fund, PGA, Soccer, Saudi Aramco, Newcastle United, Saudi Pro League, CNBC, Electronic Arts, EA, Activision Blizzard, Ticketmaster, Carnival Corp, Twitter, Washington Post, CNN, Trump Organization, US State Department, Congress Locations: New York, Europe, Saudi, English, Al, Saudi Arabia, al Qaeda

☆ Is Karim Benzema about to be the first of many soccer superstars to join Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —French soccer player Karim Benzema has played his last game for Real Madrid and may soon be joining the great Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia. Saudi’s state-run Ekhbariya news on Sunday reported that Benzema and the Saudi Al Ittihad club had reached an agreement on a two-season contract. The Frenchman could be the first of many established star names to join Ronaldo in the Saudi Pro League next season. In an interview with the Saudi Pro League, Ronaldo last week said that he was happy in Saudi Arabia and encouraged other players to join him. According to Saudi state-owned media, Ronaldo will earn an estimated $200 million a year, making him the world’s highest-paid soccer player.

Persons: Karim Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema, Fabrizio Romano, “, Al, ”, ” Romano, Ballon, Carlo Ancelotti, ” Benzema, Frenchman, Ronaldo, Al Nassr, Lionel Messi –, –, Karim Djaziri Organizations: CNN, Real Madrid, Saudi Al, Sunday, Twitter, Saudi, Spanish, Ronaldo, Saudi Pro League Locations: French, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Saudi Al Ittihad, Italian, Al Ittihad, Spain, Al Hilal

☆ Saudi Arabia says LGBTQ visitors are now welcome
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Julia Buckley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —As Saudi Arabia continues its drive to attract tourists, authorities in the country appear to be reaching out to a particularly lucrative section of the market: LGBTQ travelers. “Everyone is welcome to visit Saudi Arabia and visitors are not asked to disclose such personal details,” is the website’s response to the question on its FAQ page: “Are LGBT visitors welcome to visit Saudi Arabia?”It is not known exactly when the website was updated. Same-sex sexual activity is an offense in Saudi Arabia, according to Human Rights Watch. LGBTQ+ travelers are a lucrative market, according to Darren Burn, CEO of Out Of Office, a luxury travel planning service for the community, and of Travel Gay, the world’s largest LGBTQ+ travel platform. Human rights researcher Nora Noralla told CNN that the kingdom is following Qatar and Dubai in its bid to attract LGBTQ+ travelers.

☆ Saudi Arabia wants to be a bigger player in the Middle East — this time with diplomacy
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“And that can only reflect well on the Kingdom.”This new diplomacy comes as Saudi Arabia prioritizes economic growth at home, which requires regional stability to succeed. Saudi efforts at revamping its image as a peace-broker may face credibility challenges, however, given its near decade-long combative foreign policy and the bad press it attracted. That group is party to the Sudan conflict that Saudi Arabia is trying to help end. Despite its controversial past, Saudi Arabia may still carry enough influence to bring quarreling parties to the negotiating table, analysts say. “Saudi (Arabia) does not pretend to be an impartial mediator but its voice carries weight with many parties in the region,” Shihabi said, adding that where it can, Saudi Arabia wants to use that influence to reduce tensions.

☆ Saudi $5 bln gaming play only works on some levels
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, April 6 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Saudi Arabia is defriending read more Uncle Sam on oil, while deploying its video-game war chest in his backyard. Savvy Games, owned by the country’s Public Investment Fund, announced on Wednesday that it was buying U.S. mobile games specialist Scopely for $4.9 billion. Though privately held Scopely doesn’t disclose its financials, Savvy looks to be getting a good price. Less clear is how Scopely contributes to Saudi’s aims of becoming the “ultimate global hub” for gaming and pivoting its economy away from fossil fuels. If Saudi wants to create jobs from the rapid growth of domestic game consumption, it needs to turn its games M&A into gaming boots on the ground.

The de facto leader of the world’s main oil producer club sent crude prices spiking on Monday after proposing a further cut to crude production. Bank collapses on both sides of the Atlantic sent oil prices down by 15% to $73 a barrel in March. More importantly, while a Chinese post-Covid demand recovery should boost oil prices, it’s not totally clear by how much. Unlike Europe and the U.S., Chinese oil consumption is more led by industry than travel, and the former has yet to properly pick up. The U.S. administration said on April 2 the surprise oil output cuts were not “advisable”.

☆ The high-speed train in Saudi Arabia that connects Mecca and Medina
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia CNN —In the distant past, Muslim pilgrims came to the holy city of Mecca on foot. Haramain means “two sanctuaries” in Arabic, named for the holy cities of Mecca and Medina that sit on the line’s opposite ends. Business class passengers on the train can watch seat-back TVs. Even on a short journey like the one from Jeddah to KAEC, business class passengers are entitled to a full meal service. When it comes to high-speed railway, it seems as though the Haramain line is only the beginning in Saudi Arabia.

Persons: Tawfiq Al Rabiah, ” Al Rabiah, King Abdullah, King, Saudi riyals, Lilit Marcus, Foster, they’re, KAEC, isn’t, it’s, Umrah, Khalid al, Falih Organizations: CNN, Saudi Arabia CNN —, King Abdulaziz International Airport, King Abdullah Economic, King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi, CNN Station, Foster + Partners, du Nord, Getty, Saudi Gazette, Bandar, Saudi Railway Polytechnic, Saudi Arabia’s Investment Locations: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Mecca, Hajj, Medina, Jeddah’s, Jeddah Al, New York, Paris, du, Sulimaniyah, Bandar Aldandani, AFP, KAEC, umrah, Islam, Riyadh

☆ Middle East pivot to Asia is strategic this time
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Una Galani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Xi Jinping has brokered a deal the United States would have found hard to secure, despite its traditional military influence in the Middle East. The Middle East has trained its financial sights on Asia before. At current rates of growth, emerging Asia will become the top trade partner for the Gulf countries by 2028, per Asia House, surpassing advanced economies. As U.S.-China relations continue to sour, the Asian financial centre is looking to the Middle East to find new foreign companies to trade in the territory. Delegations from the two Middle East countries held talks in Beijing between March 6 and 10, the statement added.

☆ Olam’s Saudi-Singapore IPO sign of shifting times
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, Jan 11 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Signs of deepening ties between Asia and the oil-rich Gulf are coming thick and fast. A planned Saudi Arabia-Singapore dual listing this year for Olam Agri, a trader of grains and seeds, is the latest example. Corporate and financial moves underscore how the global pin-code, as Olam’s co-founder and Chief Executive Sunny Verghese puts it, is changing. Between population trends, the Russia-Ukraine war and polarising geopolitics, expect the Gulf and Asia to get cosier. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Saudi Arabia has suggested the United States asked it to wait a month before cutting oil production, defending a move heavily criticized by the White House as helping Russia's war in Ukraine. Bandar Al-Jaloud / AFP - Getty ImagesAs the de facto head of OPEC+, Saudi Arabia rejected that appeal, with the alliance instead announcing earlier this week it would be cutting global supply by 2 million barrels. John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said that Saudi Arabia was trying to "spin and deflect" on the issue. "Other OPEC nations communicated to us privately that they also disagreed with the Saudi decision, but felt coerced to support Saudi’s direction." Like many Western governments, Washington has long sought to balance reliance on Saudi Arabia, the world's second largest oil producer, with holding it to account on human rights.

☆ Sovereign debt greens yet net-zero pledges darken
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( George Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

LONDON, Oct 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Governments are increasingly getting into green bonds. Nearly 40 sovereigns as well as other local public entities have issued green bonds in recent years. And they are also issuing green debt at increasingly longer tenors: in August the Monetary Authority of Singapore raised $2.4 billion via a 50-year green bond. Still, the boom in sovereign green bonds has not been accompanied by much progress towards net zero. The bonds’ proceeds will be earmarked for environmental investments, such as energy efficiency projects.

☆ Petrodollar rush may disappoint Western financiers
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Yet Western financiers hoping to share in the spoils of a 1970s-style petrodollar boom will be disappointed. In previous petrodollar booms, energy producers have recycled their windfalls into the Western financial system. These financial flows, known as petrodollar recycling, mean that the money Westerners spend on fuel eventually makes its way back into their economies through energy producers’ financial investments. Either way, it would mean that Westerners miss out on some of the spoils of the new petrodollar boom. A more muted petrodollar boom might not be such a bad thing after all.

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