Saudi Arabia and Thailand strengthen economic ties
Saudi Arabia is set to enhance private sector cooperation with Thailand as the Southeast Asian nation opens its first Board of Investment office in Riyadh, a top official announced.
On the sidelines of a business forum in the Saudi capital, Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih highlighted that this marks Thailand’s inaugural office in the Middle East, encouraging stronger bonds and new investment opportunities in both countries.
This came as the minister lauded the steady trade relations, that saw business soar to $8.8 billion in 2023, up from $7.5 billion following the nations’ restored ties in 2022. This represents nearly 22 percent of Thailand’s total trade with the Middle East, underscoring a flourishing economic partnership.
Drilling at Kuwait’s Durra field to start in 2024
Procedures for drilling and construction work on the Durra gas field will begin later this year after engineering studies wrap up later this summer, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation’s (KPC) CEO Sheikh Nawaf Saud Al-Sabah told Reuters on Thursday.
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait affirm they jointly own rights to natural resources in Durra while Iran claims a stake in the Gulf’s gas field.
Sheikh Nawaf said the company plans to invest 7 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($22.92 billion) on its upstream operations over the next five years.
He also said that KPC would reach a production capacity of 3.2 million barrels per day (bpd) by the end of this year and expects to increase that to 4 million bpd by 2035.
Earlier, the CEO of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation told CNBC Arabia that production operations in offshore reservoirs require seven years. “But we expect to start production from Al-Nokhatha field within a shorter period of time,” he said.
The CEO noted that the oil and gas discovery at Al-Nokhatha field supports Kuwait’s strategy to increase its capacity to 4 million bpd by 2035.
On Wednesday, State-owned Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) announced preparations to begin digging six new exploratory wells in the country’s territorial waters, which contains large hydrocarbon resources.
UAE authority issues alert
Amid global outages affecting major airlines and banks, UAE authorities on Friday issued an alert — urging users of Crowdstrike software to be wary of any software updates.
“We inform you that there is a technical defect in the Crowdstrike software update that may affect the electronic systems of the institutions that use it,” the UAE’s Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority said in a post.
Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike said it was aware of reports of a Windows vulnerability on one of the servers.
The TDRA is monitoring the situation.
Crowdstrike is a US-based cybersecurity technology firm that serves major institutions from around the world.
In Australia, media, banks and telecoms companies suffered outages, which the government said appears to be linked to a Crowdstrike issue.
Crowdstrike ran a recorded phone message on Friday when Reuters contacted its technical support saying it was aware of reports of crashes on Microsoft’s Windows operating system relating to its Falcon sensor, without mentioning Australia.
| United Arab Emirates-GDP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Related | Last | Previous | Unit | Reference |
| Full Year GDP Growth | 7.90 | 3.90 | percent | Dec 2022 |
| GDP | 504.17 | 507.06 | USD Billion | Dec 2023 |
| GDP Annual Growth Rate | 4.30 | 2.50 | percent | Dec 2023 |
| GDP Constant Prices | 1623516.81 | 1505341.23 | AED Million | Dec 2022 |
| GDP Growth Non Oil Sector | 6.70 | 5.80 | percent | Dec 2023 |
| GDP per Capita | 46877.43 | 45698.01 | USD | Dec 2023 |
| GDP per Capita PPP | 75627.05 | 73724.31 | USD | Dec 2023 |
UAE and global gold prices lose luster
Gold prices experienced on Friday a sharp decline, influenced by a combination of profit-taking and speculation around a potential second term for former U.S. President Donald Trump. The strengthening of the U.S. dollar, driven by unexpectedly robust jobless claims data, also contributed to the gold price drop.
In the UAE, gold prices fell with 24-carat gold inching up to AED293.50 per gram, while 22-carat gold fell to AED271.75. 21-carat gold also fell AED263.25 while 18-carat gold reached AED225.50.
Globally, spot gold fell 0.9 percent to $2,423.89 per ounce, while gold futures expiring in August declined 1.2 percent to $2,426.45 per ounce. The prices were now trading around $50 below the record high set earlier this week, as some investors took profits after a strong rally over the past seven days.
Towards 2050 Bahrain’s economic vision
The year 2024 is an important one for the Kingdom of Bahrain, with crucial economic programs coming to an end and new ones replacing them. It also brings to the fore the transformation in Bahrain’s economic strategy that has been gradually unfolding over the course of the last decade. In past and future challenges, the role of the state in unlocking economic diversification and growth is pivotal, in the framework of a rising trend of economic nationalism at global level.