Hydac Spare Parts Medina Archives

July 9, 2018

Saudi unemployment increases despite decline in expat workers

Saudi Arabia is moving ahead with plans to curtail its dependence on foreign labour, but the intended benefits haven’t yet trickled down to the country’s own nationals as intended.

Expat jobs declined by 2.3 percent, or 234,191 over the first three months of 2018 to just over 10.18 million, according to results revealed by the country’s General Authority for Statistics.

However, Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate for nationals over the age of 15 creeped up to 12.9 percent, up from 12.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017.

A closer look at the results shows that Saudi Arabia’s male and female workforce participation rates registered increases, now amounting to 63.5 percent and 19.5 percent of each gender’s active and employable population.

Those increases contrast with unemployment rates for each: Saudi women’s unemployment rate decreased during the quarter to 30.9 percent from 31.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017; the unemployment rate for Saudi men increased to 7.6 percent during the same period.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Labour and Social Development issued a new decree earlier in the year limiting retail and other operational jobs in 12 different sectors to Saudi nationals.

The country’s Ministry of Civil Service has also announced it wants only nationals to staff roles in its public sector.

The nationalisation initiatives are intended to create over 1 million jobs over the next decade.

But the latest measures from the state of Saudi Arabia’s workforce show that the total number of workers in the Kingdom has actually declined by 247,628 to 13,333,513.

Unemployment across the country, including rates for both nationals and expats, has risen to 6.1 percent in the first quarter of 2018 from six percent in the last quarter of 2017.

Source:https://www.arabianbusiness.com/politics-economics/400163-saudi-unemployment-increases-despite-decline-in-expat-workers

June 19, 2018

The rise and fall of Abraaj, the region’s largest private equity firm

Dubai: The past four months have seen a steady trickle of news that has broken in to a full flood of revelations in recent weeks, concerning Abraaj Group’s funds, and allegations of poor corporate governance.
Last Thursday, the former golden child of the regional private equity scene filed for provisional liquidation in the Cayman Islands, as it seeks to execute a $1 billion debt restructuring.

On today’s podcast, we try to decipher how Abraaj reached this point, and we talk about where things go from here.
With the company filing for liquidation, creditors and investors are scrambling to retrieve their money, including publicly traded companies such as Air Arabia.
Many are asking how, and when, these firms will get their money back, and what will be done in the future to prevent this kind of thing happening again.

May 7, 2018

Saudi-led group wins deal to build key Oman water project

A consortium led by Saudi-based ACWA Power has been awarded the Salalah Independent Water Project by the Oman Power and Water Procurement Company.

The plant will be located in Salalah, Dhofar region and will have a capacity to generate 25 million gallons per day of desalinated water using reverse osmosis technology.

The consortium also includes Veolia and Veolia Middle East and Dhofar International Development & Investment Holding Co (DIDIC), a statement said.

The project is being procured by OPWP under a build-own-operate framework on the back of a 20 year water purchase agreement, it added.

Dhofar Desalination Company, the project company, will be owned by ACWA Power, Veolia Middle East and DIDIC.

Paddy Padmanathan, president and CEO of ACWA Power, said: “Water is the most vital commodity for human life as well as a necessity for all enterprises. We are delighted to have been awarded this project and the opportunity to continue supporting Oman as a reliable supplier of desalinated water and power.”

The engineering, procurement, and construction of the plant will be handled by a consortium of Fisia Italimpianti and Abeinsa Infraestructuras Medioambiente while the operations and maintenance of the plant will be undertaken by a consortium of Veolia Middle East, NOMAC Oman and DIDIC.

Thamer Al Sharhan, managing director at ACWA Power, said: “Oman is a strategic country for ACWA Power – our portfolio of six plants can generate over 4,300 MW of power and 42 million gallons per day of desalinated water. ACWA Power is committed to ensuring the success of this project while creating real value for the local communities.”

Demand for water in Oman is expected to rise by about six percent per annum over the next seven years.

Source:http://www.arabianbusiness.com/industries/construction/385461-saudi-led-group-wins-deal-to-build-key-oman-water-project

May 7, 2018May 7, 2018

Oman forecast to see double digit growth in tourists to 2021

Tourism arrivals to Oman will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13 percent between 2018 and 2021, according to a new report.

The Colliers International data, released ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2018 (ATM), which takes place at Dubai World Trade Centre next month, predicts the rise will be fuelled by visitors from across the GCC, who accounted for 48 percent of guests in 2017.

In addition, arrivals from India (10 percent), Germany (6 percent), the UK (5 percent) and Philippines (3 percent) are also expected to contribute heavily to the growth, supported by new visa processes and improved flight connections, the report said.

Historically, the Middle East has been the largest source market for Oman, with arrivals from this group increasing at an annual rate of 20 percent between 2012 and 2017, it added.

Simon Press, senior exhibition director, ATM, said: “The latest data demonstrates the growth in visitors to Oman will continue, supported by strategic investment from the government as it turns to tourism to diversify its income streams.

“Oman is a fantastic destination with responsible, eco, cultural and heritage attractions, as well as being a key travel hub, with significant opportunity to capitalise on transit itineraries for stopover visitors.”

Accommodating the predicted influx, a number of major hotel chains have recently announced properties in Muscat, driving the 12 percent CAGR over the next three years – from 10,924 rooms in 2017 to 16,866 keys in 2021.

Supply in Muscat is dominated by five-star properties, accounting for 21 percent, and four-star, accounting for 24 percent.

Press said: “With strong existing demand from GCC leisure and business travellers, Oman is preparing for even more 4- and 5-star guests over the coming years as work completes on the Oman Exhibition and Convention Centre and Muscat Opera. Occupancy could rise by as much as 5 percent in 2018, so Oman really is one to watch.”

Complementing its hotel pipeline, Oman has made significant investments in other tourism infrastructure, including airports, the report said, adding that expansions at Muscat and Salalah International Airports pushed passenger figures to 12 million and 1.2 million in 2016.

Source:http://www.arabianbusiness.com/travel-hospitality/391937-oman-forecast-to-see-double-digit-growth-in-tourists-to-2021

September 4, 2017

Iran hits back to US sanctions

Iran, an Islamic republic, is increasingly attracting the foreign investors, despite restrictions imposed by the United States over its missile programs and the military activities in this country. President Trump signed into the new implementations in the sanctions against Iran, Russia and North Korea. American restrictions stop most international banks from providing financial help to Iran, and the country is cut off from international payments systems for using debit and credit cards. The economy still hasn’t received a boost from sanctions relief, and many big banks that left the country have not returned. This slow pace of change has left many senior leaders at multinational companies frustrated about Iran’s potential.

However, despite a weakened economy, political tensions, market uncertainty, and the lingering effects of sanctions, Iran remains an important opportunity for investors in emerging markets. The foreign companies, foreign governments, and Iranians hoped to see the improvements of Iran’s investment weather after implementing a nuclear deal and sanctions relief in the country.

Some eminent Economistsays that the Iran has the potential to expand its economy and become more prosperous now that many economic sanctions have been lifted.The most obvious area of expansion in the new post-sanctions environment is Iran’s vital ‘energy and manufacturing’ sectors. When sanctions made imports difficult, Iran’s manufacturing sector turned out all kinds of merchandise from socks to home appliances. He explains that there is likely to be a “huge sorting out” to see which of these businesses can survive a new, post-sanctions era that is likely to include competition from imports that are often cheaper.

Renault, the French carmakerdealsany unilateral United States trade barriers still in place against business with Iran. Renault has pledged to open two factories with Iranian partners. One partner, the Industrial Development and Renovation Organization, a government conglomerate named as IDRO and which controls the 117 companies, was long under sanctions by the United States and Europe which accused it of supporting Iran’s missile program. Those sanctions were lifted under Iran’s nuclear agreement with world powers last year, which allowed Renault and other foreign companies, to do more businesswith the country.

Iran hits back by this agreement with French company. When the manufacturing industry develops so the demand of spare items are increasing higher.

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