Facts, News, Trends, Analysis
On Saturday in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a 150-men council met to discuss important issues such as water, real estate investment, adoption of international agreement on oil pollution, infrastructure development, and employment issues. The council heard from the Water and Electricity Minister, among other officials of the Saudi bureaucracy. Replace ‘the Kingdom of Saudi [...]
Today, Bill Clinton, in an unprecedented move, disclosed the names of donors to the Clinton Foundation. The move was meant to give transparency to the foundation as Hillary awaits confirmation for her appointment as the Secretary of State. Among the most controversial donors are the government of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Brunei and Oman. The [...]
The central bank of Saudi Arabia reduced key policy rates by 50 basis points to help boost banking sector liquidity. Charging or paying interest is forbidden by the Sharia, which, technically, should be the law that governs the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia is feeling the effects of the international financial crisis. One of the country’s flagship [...]
The Human Rights Commission, a government group, issued a statement outlining their commitment to improving human rights conditions in Saudi Arabia. Some of the progress includes a multi-faith dialogue recently held in New York, sponsored by King Abdullah. One of the most significant involvements of HRC is perhaps its intervention in court cases that are [...]
If historical evidence is anything to go by, the former appears to be the case. In an effort to curb falling oil prices, which could have damaging effects on some of the petro-dollar-reliant economies, OPEC has announced production cuts since crude fell from a $150/barrel high (now at $40/barrel). However, the effectiveness has obviously not [...]
Not until recently when US banks begin to topple left and right did the activities of so-called Sovereign Wealth Funds begin to occupy the headlines. Indeed, very little has been heard about what the Gulf Oil States do with their sizable petro income. What’s for sure is that the billions of dollars are not stuffed [...]
Grand Mufti Abdelaziz Al al-Sheikh told worshipers assembled for his annual sermon to pilgrims that the global financial crisis is a result of using interest as the foundation for global financial systems. The Sharia forbids the paying or receiving of interest. The mufti, without any known academic accomplishments in the area of finance, could easily [...]
Saudi Arabia is widely regarded as one of the most conservative of the Middle Eastern nations. However, a unique recent emergence may warrant a revaluation of that view. In Jidda, four college-age Saudi girls have formed a rock band, Accolade, and has released their first single “Pinocchio,” which became an instant sensation among Saudi youth. [...]
The United States state Department announced a new plan of greater cooperation between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia about a range of scientific research programs. The two nations will be cooperating and working together in the fields of plant genomics and biotechnology, health, agriculture, water purification and other areas. The memorandum [...]
A recent study has shown that the wages for citizens of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are incredibly low, as reported by the Labor Minister Ghazi al-Gosaibi. In order to promote jobs for Saudi nationals, the state is going to establish guidelines for a suggested minimum payment depending on the type of work. As of [...]
