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☆ Sovereign debt is the biggest risk to global growth in 2025, Saudi finance minister says
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

RIYADH — National debt is a major threat to markets in the near future, Saudi Arabia's finance minister said, expressing particular concern over lower income countries as well as what he described as rapidly growing global fragmentation. "I think globally, the serious, serious issue that we need to watch is sovereign debt issues, particularly in low income countries and emerging economies that do not have the fiscal buffers to lean into in case of disruptions in the market," Mohammed Al-Jadaan told CNBC's Dan Murphy Wednesday from the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh. "And hopefully between the IMF and the G20 we will find a solution, and we will be ready to support the world economy in case of shocks in that area, but it is an area that we need to watch, as global leaders, to make sure that it doesn't surprise us." Global public debt hit a record $97 trillion in 2023, prompting the United Nations to call for urgent reforms for governments and financial systems around the world.

Persons: Mohammed Al, Jadaan, CNBC's Dan Murphy Organizations: Saudi, Future Investment, IMF, Global, United Nations Locations: RIYADH, Riyadh

☆ Franklin Templeton CEO says focus is on 'doing what's right' for clients amid SEC probe
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-31 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

RIYADH — Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson said the firm is focused on doing right by its clients, in her first public comments after the company saw its worst quarter for financial outflows in its history and the Securities and Exchange Commission started a probe into suspicious trading at its fixed-income unit. Franklin Templeton's fixed-income business has also dealt with years of underperformance, which many investors expected to reverse course as money moves into bonds and other fixed-income products, which make up about 30% of the firm's assets. Johnson told CNBC Wednesday that the issue with Western Asset Management was damaging, but stressed that it stemmed from an isolated case, and that supporting clients was Franklin Templeton's top focus. "We've had an issue at Western which is isolated to an individual and a subset of strategies, but there's definitely been outflows in those strategies," Johnson told CNBC's Dan Murphy in Riyadh. "I mean, the good news — Western has a significant amount of other strategies that are outside of this and have a lot of global clients there, but we've definitely been hurt by the issues on those three strategies."

Persons: Franklin Templeton, Jenny Johnson, Ken Leech, Franklin Templeton's, Johnson, Franklin, We've, CNBC's Dan Murphy Organizations: Securities and Exchange Commission, Western Asset Management, SEC, Financial Times, CNBC Wednesday, Franklin Templeton's Locations: RIYADH, California, outflows, Riyadh

☆ Morgan Stanley CEO says the era of zero interest rates and inflation 'is over'
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-29 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

RIYADH — The days of easy money and zero interest rates are firmly in the past, Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick said Tuesday, speaking at a panel of finance CEOs in Riyadh. "The end of financial repression, of zero interest rates and zero inflation, that era is over. Interest rates will be higher, will be challenged around the world. And the end of 'the end of history' — geopolitics are back and will be part of the challenge for decades to come," Pick said, referencing the famous 1992 Francis Fukuyama book, "The End of History and the Last Man," which argued that conflicts between nations and ideologies were a thing of the past with the ending of the Cold War. Repressed rates and easy monetary policy have been in the rearview mirror since 2022, when — after slashing rates to near zero to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic — the Federal Reserve cranked its benchmark rate up by around 500 basis points over the course of 18 months.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Ted Pick, Pick, Francis Fukuyama Organizations: Federal Reserve Locations: RIYADH, Riyadh

☆ Saudi Arabia is building the world's first Dragon Ball Z theme park
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Visitors try out the latest version of Dragon Ball Z Kakarot at the 2019 Gamescom gaming trade fair in Cologne, Germany. Saudi Arabia is set to become home to the first-ever Dragon Ball Z theme park — a 5.3 million square foot entertainment venue announced as part of the kingdom's huge Qiddiya project. Five of the rides at the Dragon Ball Z theme park will be "world firsts," according to the release, one of which will be a 230-foot-high roller coaster called Shenron, named after the series' magical dragon. Vision 2030, the name of this project, a brainchild of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has also set a target of 150 million tourists visiting the kingdom annually by 2030. Tourism reached a record for the country in 2023 at 106 million, according to its tourism ministry — an increase of 56% from 2019.

Persons: Prince Mohammed bin Salman, It's Organizations: Toei Animation, Saudi, Public Investment Fund, Nintendo, Tourism Locations: Cologne, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Riyadh —, Riyadh, City

☆ Saudi Arabia is serious about its Jan. 1 deadline for companies to move regional headquarters to Riyadh — or lose out on government contracts
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Saudi National Bank headquarters and other buildings in Riyadh. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesRIYADH — Saudi Arabia is holding on to its ultimatum that foreign companies will need to base their regional headquarters in the kingdom or be barred from lucrative government contracts. In a bold surprise move back in February 2021, the Saudi government announced that it would, by 2024, cease doing business with any international companies whose regional headquarters were not based within the country. The news stunned investors and expat workers, many of whom saw the move as a shot at Dubai, the United Arab Emirates commercial capital that is home to the highest concentration of Middle East regional headquarters. Faisal Al Ibrahim, Saudi minister of economy and planning, told CNBC that the plan is still going ahead and discussed how the kingdom aims to support foreign companies with the change.

Persons: Faisal Al Ibrahim, CNBC's Dan Murphy, Al Ibrahim, that's, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia — Organizations: Saudi National Bank, Riyadh . Bloomberg, Bloomberg, Getty, United Arab Emirates, East, CNBC, Future Investment Initiative, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund Locations: Riyadh ., RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Dubai, Riyadh

Here are the meanings of the least-found words that were used in (mostly) recent Times articles. It created a temporary toll of 5,000 Saudi riyal (about $1,330) for those driving across the border during the tournament. — Can Elon Musk Make the Math Work on Owning Twitter? (Oct. 30, 2022)4. dotard — one whose faculties are declining, especially as a result of age:North Korea tested a hydrogen bomb and launched intercontinental ballistic missiles. — Here’s What Happens as the Era of Mass Incarceration Winds Down (March 31, 2023)The list of the week’s easiest words:

Persons: riyal, cortado, “, Will, allocator, ”, Chamath Palihapitiya, —, Elon, dotard, Donald J, Trump, ” —, Kim Jong, wangling —, ’, wigwag —, Giles wigwagged, tomtit, Carolina chickadee, Tennessee —, Pierre Tallet, Lehner, enfeeble Organizations: — Doha, Oil, Twitter, South Korean, State Legislature, Scrolls Locations: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Qatar, Riyadh —, Saudi, Doha, North Korea, “, Carolina, North Carolina, Indiana, — Connecticut, Iowa , New Jersey, Tennessee

☆ Khashoggi's fiancée says the slain journalist 'died again' after Biden argued for MBS to have immunity in lawsuit over the murder
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Azmi Haroun | John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The fiancée of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi criticized the Biden administration on Thursday. argued that the Saudi Crown Prince deserves immunity, per international law. Hatice Cengiz said Khashoggi "died again" as a result of the US position on Prince Mohammed. "I'm not going to meet with MBS," Biden told reporters in June. Khashoggi's fiancée also criticized the meeting between Biden and MBS, sharing a tweet captioned, "What Jamal Khashoggi would tweet today."

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