Vision 2030 Progress Update And The Impact of Non-Oil Revenue Streams In Saudi Arabia
In this episode of The Riyal Deal with Tom Burges Watson, we deep dive into Saudi Arabia's aviation sector and how it adds value to the Kingdom's non-oil revenue streams.
The Middle East Director for the IMF explains growth trajectory in the region and explores the economics beyond oil for the Kingdom. And we see why Jeddah is quickly becoming a tourist and economic hotspot – home to the Al-Balad old town and the upcoming Trump Tower.
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Arab News
2 days ago
- Arab News
Remittances from Egyptians abroad surge over 80%, reaching $26.4bn
RIYADH: Remittances from Egyptians working overseas recorded a significant jump during the first nine months of the 2024/2025 fiscal year, reaching an unprecedented $26.4 billion. This marks an 82.7 percent annual increase compared to the $14.4 billion recorded in the same period of the previous financial year, according to data from the country's central bank. The surge was especially pronounced in the third quarter, from January to March, when remittances saw an annual climb of 86.6 percent to about $9.4 billion, up from $5 billion in the previous year. On a monthly basis, March saw inflows of approximately $3.4 billion, reflecting a 63.7 percent increase compared to the $2.1 billion registered in the same month of 2024. The rise in remittances reflects broader improvements in the country's external financial position, indicating growing trust from Egyptians abroad and helping to ease pressure on foreign currency reserves. It also highlights the impact of recent government and central bank measures aimed at stabilizing the exchange rate and encouraging the flow of foreign currency through formal channels. Net international reserves rose to $48.5 billion at the end of May, up from $47.8 billion in March, indicating stronger foreign currency inflows and improved liquidity. Egypt's foreign currency position has been further supported by ongoing economic reforms implemented under an International Monetary Fund-backed stabilization program. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly reported in May that Egypt achieved real gross domestic product growth of 3.9 percent during the first half of the fiscal year, while private sector investment rose by 80 percent and foreign direct investment increased by approximately 17 percent. Non-oil exports also grew by around 33 percent in the first nine months of the fiscal year, reflecting stronger activity in the industrial, tourism, and technology sectors. Moody's affirmed Egypt's Caa1 long-term foreign and local currency ratings with a positive outlook in February, citing improved debt service prospects, higher foreign reserves, and falling borrowing costs. The government reported a drop in the general budget deficit to 6.5 percent over the past 10 months and aims to reduce debt to 85 percent of GDP by the end of June, down from 96 percent the previous year. However, inflationary pressures have re-emerged. Monthly urban headline consumer price index inflation rose to 1.9 percent in May, up from 1.3 percent in April and compared to a contraction of 0.7 percent in May 2024. On an annual basis, urban inflation reached 16.8 percent in May, up from 13.9 percent in April. Core inflation followed a similar trajectory, rising to 13.1 percent year-on-year in May from 10.4 percent the previous month.
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Trade war is tougher threat than COVID for emerging market cenbanks, IMF says
The shock from trade war brings differential effects for central banks in emerging markets, in contrast with the COVID pandemic, when they could quickly ease monetary policy, the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Gita Gopinath said. In an interview with the Financial Times newspaper, the fund's first deputy managing director said the unpredictable impact of tariffs on developing economies and global markets would make the task of their central bankers harder. 'This time the challenge is going to be greater for them, compared to the pandemic,' she said.
Arab News
2 days ago
- Arab News
Pakistan seeks IMF nod to sell surplus power to industry, agricultural sector
KARACHI: Pakistan is seeking the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) approval to supply surplus power to the industrial and agriculture sectors at an unsubsidized tariff of seven to 7.5 cents per unit, the country's power minister, Awais Leghari, said, according to an official statement on Wednesday. The once energy-deficient South Asian nation now boasts 7,000 megawatts of surplus electricity that it began generating with Beijing's help under the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative. 'We have been consulting with the IMF for the past six months to approve the scheme,' Leghari told a consultative meeting held in the federal capital Islamabad regarding Pakistan's transition from solar net metering to a net billing system. The government plans to generate as much as 60 percent of its power from renewable energy sources like solar, wind, hydropower and nuclear energy over the next five years to cut the cash-strapped country's oil import bill. 'There is no direct financial pressure on us [from the IMF],' the minister said, adding the move would balance the nation's supply and demand of electricity, strengthen the power system and benefit consumers. The Washington-based lender approved a $7 billion loan for Pakistan last year to help support export-led growth and is reviewing the government's budgetary plans for FY26, starting in July. According to the National Accounts Committee, Pakistan's economy is expected to expand by 2.7 percent during the outgoing FY25 due to lackluster agricultural and industrial performance. The power minister said the government, since June, has provided cross-subsidies of Rs 174 billion ($617 million) to industries, a measure that brought down industrial tariffs by 31 percent and significantly increased consumption. Under its ongoing energy reforms, the minister said, the government is considering various proposals, including changing the current solar net metering system into a more effective, transparent and sustainable model. 'The government is not abolishing net metering,' he continued, adding that its scope had expanded so significantly that it was now seriously impacting the national grid, thus requiring timely intervention. In the fast-solarizing Pakistan, net metering allows consumers to utilize the electricity generated by their in-house solar systems and send the surplus to the national grid at an agreed rate.
