Kuwait Endorses Law to Permit Residential Cities Firms – Asharq Al-awsat – English

The Kuwaiti National Assembly unanimously approved, Thursday, a law that allows the government to establish companies with the participation of Kuwaiti and foreign private sectors, specialized in establishing cities and residential areas.
The National Assembly approved in a special session a bill allowing the formation of companies specialized in the construction of new residential cities and referred it to the government.
Minister of Justice and Minister of State for Housing Affairs Faleh al-Rqubah said that approving the law will accelerate the pace of processing the housing applications.
During the Assembly’s discussion, the Chairman of Housing and Real Estate Affairs Committee, Hasan Johar, explained that the law is based on establishing joint stock companies to build new housing cities designated for housing care.
Johar elaborated that the aim is to create a partnership between the government, the citizens, and the investor in a way that guarantees benefit-sharing and earnings.
He recalled the benefits of such projects, noting that housing represents the third highest national income in Saudi Arabia, with increased profits.
The law focuses on preparing the infrastructure for mega projects in three cities to accommodate 100,000 housing units and guarantees the completion of all services, according to the official.
In turn, the committee’s rapporteur, Abdulaziz al-Saqobi, said there were 92,000 housing requests expected to reach 220,000 in 20 years.
Saqobi explained that residential real estate prices are skyrocketing, and according to some reports, their increase rate reached 19.5 percent in 2020/2021.
He indicated that there are more than 25,000 vacant lands in private housing, 15,000 monopolized by 146 people, negatively affecting Kuwaiti families.
The National Assembly finished discussing the report of the Parliamentary Housing and Real Estate Affairs Committee regarding proposals for laws on establishing companies to establish cities or residential areas and develop them economically.
The Assembly unanimously agreed on the new law enacted by the Housing Committee two weeks ago. It includes 40 articles divided into six chapters.
Before announcing the Initial Public Offering (IPO), the Public Authority for Housing Welfare must publish a summary study of the economic feasibility of the project company to be established and the plans for the cities or residential areas.
It must include the urban planning approved by the Corporation, the number of housing units to be completed, the various facilities to be established in each sector of the city or region, and the capital of each company based on the provisions of the law.
Under the law, the authority guarantees the safety of cities and residential areas, extending to ten years.
Egypt’s Finance Ministry stated in a press release on Friday that the preliminary final account of the budget for the fiscal year 2022-2023 shows a total deficit of 6.2% of the gross domestic product (GDP), slightly higher than the previous fiscal year’s 6.1%.
According to the statement, published by the Egyptian Cabinet on its Facebook page, the budget achieved an initial surplus of 1.7% of the GDP, despite an increase in expenses to 2.13 trillion Egyptian pounds ($69 billion), with a growth rate of 16.3%.
The initial surplus excludes debt interest.
The ministry also stated that the debt ratio was affected by exchange rate fluctuations and expected to be around 98% of the GDP, gradually decreasing over the next four years of the current fiscal year, ranging from 75% to 79% of the GDP.
The statement clarified that Egypt increased the support for subsidized commodities to 130 billion Egyptian pounds ($4.23 billion) in the fiscal year ending in June.
General revenues increased by 11.5 % to 1.501 trillion Egyptian pounds ($48.9 billion), while tax revenues increased by approximately 23.1%, according to a Finance Ministry statement.
The fiscal year in Egypt starts on July 1 and ends on June 30 of each year.
In a presser on Friday, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait noted that “without the rise in interest rates, exchange rate fluctuations, and inflationary effects, the rates would have been much better.”
He emphasized that “maintaining the deficit rate at 6.2% , considering the international variables and the urgent and continuous interventions to contain the negative repercussions and expand social protection networks, indicates the ability of the Egyptian state to effectively manage public finances.”
According to Maait, this is achieved through leveraging modern technology to enhance the governance of revenue and expenditure systems and directing financial allocations towards specified paths in line with national priorities, as reflected in the government’s action plan, consistent with Egypt’s Vision 2030.
The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is set to launch the “UNWTO Women in Tech Startup Competition: Middle East” on September 27 in the Saudi capital city of Riyadh.
The initiative aims to empower women in the tourism sector and increase their presence, while also supporting pioneering technological projects in the Arab region.
Furthermore, it seeks to financially support participating women by attracting investors from around the world.
The competition aligns with Saudi Arabia’s drive to develop its tourism system, injecting 3 trillion riyals ($800 billion) in the coming years to establish colossal projects that support its plan of attracting 100 million tourists by 2030.
Relevant authorities in the Kingdom have already begun enhancing their workforce and supporting Saudi entrepreneurs in developing their specialized companies within the sector.
Additionally, efforts are being made to empower women due to their low participation in the tourism industry in the Arab region compared to the global average.
Natalia Bayona, who leads the innovation, education, and investments strategy of the UNWTO, told Asharq Al-Awsat that it is time to specifically focus on supporting talented women entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East to shape the future of tourism in the region.
Women represent 34% of startup founders in the technology field in the region and over 50% of graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in the Arab world.
Therefore, the competition represents a convergence of empowering women, innovation, and tourism.
Tourism has a special impact on the lives of women and youth, as it is the primary sector in which they work at a global level, emphasized Bayona.
It is interesting to note that while women represent approximately 54% of the workforce in international tourism, they account for only 8% in the Middle East, she added.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has revealed receiving pledges from several Gulf countries to make significant investments in the country.
Erdogan hoped Thursday investment deals would be reached with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates during his visit to the Gulf countries next week.
Erdogan spoke to journalists who accompanied him on his return trip from Lithuania, where he participated in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit.
“There are pledges from Gulf countries … to pump large investments in Türkiye, and we will put the finishing touches during our next tour. He pointed to several visits by Turkish officials to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE to prepare for his visits to the three countries.
Erdogan reiterated willingness to strengthen his country’s ties with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE during his visit to the region.
On Wednesday, the Turkish President received a phone call from his Emirati counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, who said they would discuss the recent developments during their meeting.
The Turkish Finance Minister, Mehmet Simsek, concluded a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia, during which he was accompanied by the Governor of the Central Bank, Hafize Gaye Erkan.
Saudi Arabia and Türkiye signed 16 cooperation agreements worth more than SR2.3 billion in several fields and investment sectors on the sidelines of the Saudi-Turkish Business Forum, which started in Istanbul on Wednesday.
The Forum reviewed the Saudi-Turkish investment opportunities and the enhanced partnership between the two sides in the fields of urban development, building, contracting, and smart cities in cooperation with the Federation of Saudi Chambers (FSC) and the Council for Foreign Economic Relations of Türkiye (DEIK).
The Forum was attended by the Saudi Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing, Majed al-Hogail, and Turkish Minister of Trade Omer Polat.
Hogail said the Forum is an opportunity to enhance cooperation, joint work, and exchange expertise in the municipality and housing sectors.
He pointed out that Saudi Arabia is witnessing qualitative progress in different economic and development sectors, of them the municipality and housing sectors, which was achieved through effective strategic planning to realize the goals of Vision 2030.
The Minister expressed his aspiration to strengthen the cooperation between the two sides in real estate development, automation, and infrastructure projects.
Hogail confirmed that Saudi Arabia provides several diverse and promising investment opportunities in a qualitative environment suitable for investment.
Saudi Arabia has started building more than 300,000 housing units in an area exceeding 150 million square meters, with an investment value exceeding SR100 billion, Hogail stated, calling on Turkish companies to invest in real estate development in the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with French energy company Engie, PIF said in a tweet.
The MoU focuses on integrated utilities management and will explore the joint development of green hydrogen projects and derivatives in Saudi Arabia, it said.
The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) has recorded a 6.79% year-on-year uptick in container numbers across its trade hubs during the month of June, handling 685,645 TEUs in comparison to 642,024 TEUs in 2022.
According to the monthly report, a 9.90% surge was recorded in exported containers from 192,507 TEUs to 211,568 TEUs last month, with imported boxes edging up a slight 0.12% to 205,046 TEUs over last year’s tally of 204,798 TEUs. Transshipments shared a similar trend, with a 9.93% spike to 269,031 TEUs against 244,719 TEUs a year earlier.
Food commodities passing through Mawani’s ports hit a total of 1,858,175 tons, beating the previous year’s throughput of 1,574,632 tons by 18.01%. Livestock imports, on the other hand, have seen the best growth trend among all categories with a 101.1% leap from 990,190 to 1,991,248 cattle heads during June 2023. Likewise, automobile units coming into the Kingdom shot up by 5.87% to 68,511 vehicles when compared to last year’s 64,713 vehicles.
Cargo volumes, however, plummeted by 6.23% to 25,320,536 tons from 27,003,127 tons in the year before. These figures comprise 675,449 tons of general cargo, 4,194,465 tons of dry bulk cargo, and 13,199,403 tons of liquid bulk cargo.
The Kingdom’s ports also witnessed a 4.75% rise in vessel traffic, berthing 993 ships this year in contrast to 948 ships a year ago. Similarly, 67,579 travelers used the country’s maritime gateways in the past month, up 58.26% over the preceding year’s 42,701 travelers.
The national maritime regulator has adopted a series of industry-leading innovations to automate and optimize overall productivity and efficiency as part of efforts to build a 40-million-TEU-strong ports network within the Kingdom, which represents a crucial step in transforming the country into global logistics destination as envisioned by the National Transport and Logistics Strategy (NTLS).
Factory investments in Saudi Arabia touched 1.433 trillion riyals ($382.1 billion) during the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 6.5 percent compared to the same period last year.
According to the statistical bulletin of industrial licenses issued by the Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, on Wednesday, the total number of industrial facilities hit 10,819 by the end of March — up from 10,518 factories at the end of 2022 — with the estimated capital of these factories amounting to over SAR 1.43 trillion ($381 billion).
Saudi factories were able to employ more than 725,000 workers during the first quarter of this year, compared to around 648,000 workers in the same period of 2022, with a growth rate of 11.8 percent.
The Eastern region led the size of investments in the factories with SAR 603 million ($161 billion) in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 12.8 percent over the same period last year.
Riyadh came in the second place, with an investment volume that exceeded SAR 312.5 billion ($84.1 billion), up 2.7 percent from the first quarter of last year.
As for the number of industrial facilities according to administrative regions, Riyadh ranked first with more than 4,100 factories, followed by the eastern region with 2,400, then Makkah Al-Mukarramah with more than 2,000 factories.
According to the bulletin, national factories topped by type of investment with more than 83.5 percent, followed by foreign companies with 8.5 percent, then jointly invested factories with 8 percent.
Small establishments represented the largest percentage of industrial facilities until the end of the reported period, as they amounted to 5,600 factories, followed by medium factories with 4,300, then large enterprises, which accounted for 824 of the total number of factories.
Earlier this week, the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources announced it has begun evaluating the second tranche of facilities as part of its “Future Factories Program” to modernize the sector.
The initiative seeks to establish a strong technological ecosystem and transform the manufacturing sector based on modern practices and principles.
The Arab Gulf region is witnessing a rapid growth in private aviation, led by Saudi Arabia, and followed by the Emirates and Qatar.
Dubai-based company, Vista Global, which specializes in business travel services, said that the Middle East region maintained its position as one of the company’s top markets, during the first quarter of 2023.
Europe is one of the main destinations for flights departing from the Middle East, starting with France, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. In addition, the most frequent routes for regional flights within the Middle East were between the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
The business travel company said that a number of factors stimulated growth during the last period. Those included an increasing demand from India, and private travel from and to the city of Neom in Saudi Arabia.
Moreover, many international companies are opening their regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, while the Saudi tourism sector is developing at a rapid pace.
In information sent to Asharq Al-Awsat, Vista Global said that Qatar was witnessing an increasing interest in tourism and business after the World Cup. The UAE, for its part, has become an international travel hub linking East and West.
Vista Global expressed optimism about the outlook for the rest of 2023 and beyond.
“We have witnessed tremendous growth in this vital market,” it said, adding that more and more travelers were seeking the services provided by the company.
The information also revealed that the company has expanded its fleet to meet the growing demand, noting that it added 117 net aircraft in 2022, including 85 through the acquisition of Air Hamburg and Jet Edge, expanding scale in the Middle East, Europe and the US.
Vista Global also indicated that the first quarter of 2023 showed exceptional growth in the Middle East, stressing that the region contributed significantly to the overall global growth of the group. It added that combined flights to Dubai International Airports continue to strengthen the Emirate’s position as the number one destination for the company in the GCC countries.
Sales of the group’s subscription products set all-time records during the first quarter of 2023, registering a 55 percent global increase in total flying hours sold under the VistaJet program.
Chief Commercial Officer for Vista Ian Moore said that the first quarter of 2023 saw record results and ground-breaking progress worldwide, reinforcing the company’s position as a global leader in the industry.
He added that the Middle East has been “a major and growing market for several years now.”
The Saudi-Turkish Business Forum kicked off in Istanbul on Wednesday, with the presence of the Saudi Minister of Municipal, Rural Affairs, and Housing, Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, and Turkish Minister of Trade Omer Bolat.
On the forum’s sidelines, the Saudi Minister witnessed the signing of 16 cooperation agreements worth over SAR2.3 billion between the Saudi side and Turkish companies operating in various investment sectors, including real estate development, construction, and engineering consulting.
The forum’s objective is to explore investment prospects between Saudi Arabia and Türkiye and strengthen bilateral partnerships in urban development, construction, contracting, smart cities, and urban development.
This collaboration between the Federation of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Türkiye (DEIK) aims to foster cooperation and exchange expertise in the municipal and housing sectors.
During his opening speech, Al-Hogail emphasized that the forum provides an opportunity to improve cooperation, unite efforts, and exchange expertise in the municipal and housing sectors.
Al-Hogail also highlighted the remarkable progress made by the Kingdom in the economic and developmental sectors, particularly municipal and housing. He emphasized the importance of efficient strategic planning to achieve the targets outlined in Saudi Vision 2030.
Al-Hogail expressed his aspiration for enhanced cooperation in real estate development, automation, and infrastructure projects through this forum.
Furthermore, the Saudi Minister emphasized that the Kingdom offers a wide array of promising and diverse investment opportunities within an attractive investment environment. He highlighted the Kingdom’s ongoing efforts to construct over 300,000 housing units across an area exceeding 150 million square meters, with an investment value surpassing SAR100 billion.
Al-Hogail urged all Turkish companies to consider investing in real estate development in the Kingdom.
The Turkish Minister of Trade also expressed his satisfaction with hosting the Saudi-Turkish Business Forum, which opens up new avenues for collaboration between the two nations in diverse economic sectors.
Al-Hogail engaged with the Saudi delegation participating in the forum to address the challenges faced by Saudi investors and propose potential solutions. He also attended a meeting with the Turkish Minister of Trade, along with Saudi and Turkish investors and businesspeople, to discuss investment opportunities and areas of cooperation between the two sides.
Morocco plans to quadruple the number of aircraft in its national carrier over the next 15 years to boost the tourism sector, a pillar of the North African country’s economy.
Royal Air Maroc (RAM) “will quadruple its air fleet” by increasing the number of its aircraft from 50 to 200 over the next 15 years, a statement from Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch’s office said on Tuesday.
Akhannouch and RAM chief Hamid Addou signed a modernisation agreement in Rabat as part of a tourism development plan which aims to attract 65 million visitors annually to the country by 2037.
According to AFP, the carrier also plans new routes to international and domestic destinations.
Tourism is a major earner for the Moroccan economy, and tens of thousands of people work in the sector nationwide.
Tourism was hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic but has largely recovered, with around 11 million tourists visiting in 2022 — 84 percent of pre-pandemic arrivals in 2019.
Morocco hopes to attract 17.5 million tourists by 2026 with an expected revenue of 120 billion dirhams (about 11 billion euros), according to the tourism ministry.
US consumer inflation cooled in June to its lowest rate since early 2021, according to government data released Wednesday.
The key inflation gauge, the consumer price index (CPI), rose 3.0 percent from a year ago last month, the smallest increase since March 2021 and down from 4.0 percent in May, said the Labor Department.
The US Federal Reserve has raised interest rates rapidly over the last year to ease demand and bring down price growth.
While Fed officials have signaled that further rate hikes are likely needed to bring inflation back to their two percent target, the June CPI report will heighten market doubts about the number of additional increases needed down the line.
“Today’s report brings new and encouraging evidence that inflation is falling while our economy remains strong,” President Joe Biden said in a statement, lauding the progress made while maintaining low unemployment, AFP reported.
In a further positive sign, Labor Department data showed that the monthly “core” rate — excluding the volatile food and energy components — came to its lowest reading since late 2021, at 0.2 percent.
Wall Street stocks surged after the report, closing higher on hopes that inflation can come down without the world’s biggest economy tipping into a recession.
“The economy is defying predictions that inflation would not fall absent significant job destruction,” Lael Brainard, director of the National Economic Council, said in remarks to the Economic Club of New York.
While “too many Fed officials have made it clear that they think further hikes are needed,” suggesting another bump this month, a good CPI reading could change prospects as to whether a rise in September is still needed, Pantheon Macroeconomics said in a report.
According to the latest Labor Department data, the index for shelter remained the “largest contributor” to the overall monthly CPI increase and the index for car insurance also contributed — but other areas saw declines including airfares and used vehicles.
“We know rents are going to roll over, over the next several months, so we’re going to see a lot of disinflation coming through the rest of this year,” said Ryan Sweet, chief US economist at Oxford Economics.
“That’s good news for consumers,” he told AFP, adding that he expects the Fed could end its tightening cycle in July.
“The labor market is showing signs of softening, inflation is coming down, we’re still on that path to a soft landing, but it’s a very narrow path,” Sweet said.
The easing of underlying inflation was driven by a “plunge in airline fares” and dip in hotel room rates, along with a drop in used vehicle prices, said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
Although insurance and repair costs have rocketed over the past year, “flattening demand and rising inventory are now pushing new vehicle prices down” after a surge, he said. Insurance and repair inflation will follow, he added.
Key parts of inflation highlighted by Fed Chair Jerome Powell, including the core readings for goods and services, have “slowed to end the second quarter,” said Rubeela Farooqi, chief US economist at High Frequency Economics.
“While inflation remains elevated, the deceleration will be welcome news to policymakers,” she added in a note.
But these data are not likely to change the outcome of a Fed officials’ meeting later this month, with a rate hike of 25 basis points the most likely outcome, Farooqi said.
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