The Daily Circuit
👋 Hello from the Middle East!
Today in The Daily Circuit we’re listening in on the World Economic Forum’s special meeting in Riyadh and looking at the Gulf’s ambitions to export more metals, the movie biz in Saudi six years after the cinema ban lifted and an additional new gig for Abu Dhabi Investment Office head Badr Al Olama. But first, prepare for take-off in Dubai.
The world’s busiest international airport plans to move to a sprawling $35 billion transport hub over the coming decade as the Gulf pins some of its post-oil future on clinching a larger share of global tourism and trade. On Sunday Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid gave his go-ahead on the final design for new passenger terminals at Al Maktoum International Airport, 40 miles south of DXB toward Abu Dhabi, as the UAE continues to “prepare the ground for the next 40 years of anticipated growth” in aviation.
The upgraded airport, spread across 43 square miles and five times the size of DXB, will have 400 aircraft gates and the capacity to handle 260 million passengers and 12 million tons of cargo annually, making it the largest in the world. The first phase of the project is expected to be ready in 10 years.
“As we build an entire city around the airport in Dubai South, demand for housing for a million people will follow. It will host the world’s leading companies in the logistics and air transport sectors,” Sheikh Mohammed said. “We are building a new project for future generations … Dubai will be the world’s airport, its port, its urban hub and its new global center.”
Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International, less than an hour down the highway from the planned Dubai South complex, is aiming to increase capacity to 65 million passengers over the next ten years. Saudi Arabia, for its part, is also gearing up for growth. Low-cost airline Flynas, partially owned by billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Co., is preparing for an IPO and Riyadh Air plans to start international service in 2025. Air traffic across the country increased 26% last year, reaching 112 million passengers.
📰 Developing Stories
RITZ SOUNDBITES
Geopolitics may be the single biggest threat to the global economy, already hampered by slower growth and high interest rates, Saudi Arabia’s finance minister warned. “Today, to me, geopolitical risks are possibly the No. 1 risk as you look at the global economy,” Mohammed Al-Jadaan said at a special meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh on Sunday. “Policymakers will need to be very agile in dealing with this,” he added. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.K. Foreign Secretary David Cameron arrived in Riyadh this morning to meet with Arab officials on Gaza. Meanwhile, Reema Bandar Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the U.S., reflected on the kingdom’s cultural awakening on Sunday, saying, “right now, what you’re watching is a renaissance of this country falling in love with its heritage.” And UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei said the country may surpass its target of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030 amid low clean energy prices and greater solar energy capacity.
TESTING METAL
Gulf aluminum producers are eyeing export opportunities to the U.S. and Europe after the U.S. and U.K. banned trading of Russian aluminum, copper and nickel on global metal exchanges and prohibited their imports into the U.S., The National reports. The GCC produced 9% of total primary aluminum in the world in 2023, with the UAE producing 44% of that. The UAE is the fifth biggest producer of aluminum in the world after China, India, Russia and Canada, with Bahrain in sixth position, according to the London-based commodities research firm CRU Group. “There are more opportunities for GCC producers to gain market share with the diversion of metal away from Western Europe and the U.S. amid new sanctions,” Zaid Aljanabi, an analyst at CRU, told The National.
MOVIE MAGIC
From AlUla to Cannes: Saudi film industry blooms six years after cinema ban is lifted
Saudi Arabia celebrated six years since cinemas reopened in the kingdom this month following a 35-year ban, Rebecca Anne Proctor reports for The Circuit.
Lights, camera, action: Filmmakers who were unable to shoot in the city streets for fear of the now-defunct religious Mutawa have returned home; the government has begun a range of incentives to encourage young Saudi filmmakers; film festivals are being staged across the kingdom and famous actors and producers from Hollywood and Bollywood are shooting in the rugged landscapes of AlUla and Neom.
Director’s cut: Big money is now being made from Saudi Arabia’s rising film industry, with cumulative box office profits approaching the $1 billion mark.
Click here to read the full story.
💲 Sovereign Circuit
ADQ: The UAE will tender this year for the construction of a new nuclear power plant that would double the number of reactors in the first and only Arab country to operate a nuclear plant, Reuters reports. ADQ-owned Emirates Nuclear Energy Co., which opened its Barakah facility in 2021, did not comment on whether or not it is involved. The UAE signed an agreement to triple global nuclear energy capacity by 2030 at the U.N. climate meeting COP28 in Dubai last December.
Public Investment Fund: Saudi Arabia’s Finance Minister Mohammed Al Jadaan, who sits on the PIF’s board, on Sunday said the kingdom would adapt to current economic and geopolitical challenges and “downscale” or “accelerate” some of the projects being carried out under its Vision 2030 program, speaking at the special meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh.
Mubadala: Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners joined the board of Brazilian fast-food operator Zamp SA after making an investment of about $200 million earlier this year alongside Mubadala Capital, Bloomberg reports. Asad Naqvi, a partner at Affinity, was elected as a board member alongside new investor Santiago Jariton, the chief investment officer at Emerging Variant Capital Management. Mubadala Capital, a wholly-owned unit of the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, owns 58% of Zamp, an operator of more than 1,000 Burger King and Popeyes restaurants in Brazil.
International Holding Co.: IHC has secured a nearly 15% stake in processed food company Grupo Nutresa, the largest in Colombia, the Abu Dhabi conglomerate said in a disclosure on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange on Friday.
↪↩ Closing Circuit
🏘️ Home Run: Chinese construction companies are expected to sign agreements to build thousands of homes in Saudi Arabia during a visit to Beijing by Saudi Housing Minister Majed bin Abdullah Al-Hogail this week.
🏢 Growth Spurt: Dubai International Financial Centre reported record 23% growth year-on-year in underwriting volumes as it looks to cement its position as a global hub for the insurance industry.
🚄 Baghdad Connection: Iraq has approved designs for a metro project in Baghdad and a rail network linking Najaf and Karbala cities, with Abu Dhabi-based CHSS and Malaysian company HSS confirmed as consultants.
⚡ Energy Targets: Japan’s biggest utility, JERA, is eyeing low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia projects in the Middle East and has established a division for investment headed by Tsuyoshi Oyama.
🗣 Circuit Chatter
💉 Polio Push: Saudi Arabia has partnered with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and pledged $620 million to eradicating polio and fighting poverty across 33 Islamic Development Bank member countries. The foundation will open a regional office in Riyadh.
🛎️ Room to Grow: Abu Dhabi’s Rotana hotel group is in discussions to expand via franchise deals in Pakistan, Africa and Europe, its new CEO Philip Barnes told The National.
🔋 Battery Power: Saudi Arabia is determined to secure a lithium supply, as it attempts to become an EV manufacturing hub, Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources Bandar Alkhorayef told Reuters.
🛳️ Dirty Business: Ships avoiding the threat of attack by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea by taking the long way around have spewed carbon emissions equal to 9 million cars, Bloomberg reports.
🥛 Drink Up: Authorities have reassured consumers that Perrier water in the UAE is safe, after Nestlé destroyed millions of bottles in France because of the potential presence of fecal bacteria.
🌍 Power Circuit
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan chaired an Arab ministerial coordination meeting in Riyadh on Saturday, attended by Dr. Anwar Gargash, Diplomatic Adviser to the UAE President; Dr Ayman Hussein Safadi, Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan; Sameh Shukri, Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs; Hussein Al-Sheikh, Palestinian Minister of Civil Affairs; and Dr. Muhammad bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, Qatari Minister of State.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed bin Zayed attended the inaugural Abu Dhabi Mobility Week at Yas Marina Circuit last week, visiting pavilions at the DriftX exhibition and meeting with some of the emirate’s strategic partners in its ambitious plans to grow the autonomous vehicle sector.
➿ On the Circuit
Badr Al Olama, Director General of Abu Dhabi Investment Office, has been appointed Chairman of SHUAA Capital, after Fadhel Al Ali stepped down following nearly five years leading the Dubai-based asset manager and investment bank. Ahmed Alahmadi, CEO of Al Baher Real Estate, has been appointed Managing Director.
Oscar-nominated Lebanese filmmaker Nadine Labaki has been picked as a jury member for the 77th Cannes Film Festival. The jury, headed by “Barbie” Director Greta Gerwig, will review 22 films competing in the festival, which starts on May 14.
“Deadpool” star and serial investor Ryan Reynolds has been revealed as Yas Island Abu Dhabi’s new “Chief Island Officer,” taking over from Jason Momoa. The Canadian actor appears in a new promotional video where he skydives onto the island, mistakenly landing on the F1 circuit.
🎶 Culture Circuit
💅 New Woo: A new women-only club offering wellness treatments from around the world has opened on Abu Dhabi’s Reem Island. A three-month membership at Kintsugi Space will set you back just shy of $4,000, including an initial consultation to measure your “inner vibrations.” Services range from Greek Hammam to Tibetan sound healing, Chinese abdominal massage and a hyperbaric oxygen chamber. The concept was developed by Patrizia Bortolin, the wellness guru behind prestigious spas including Preidlof in the Italian Dolomites.
📷 Photo of The Day
🗓️ Circuit Calendar
Apr. 29-May 1, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Future Hospitality Summit. An international gathering hosted in cities around the world bringing together the most influential hospitality investors and developers. Mandarin Oriental Al Faisaliah.
Apr. 29 – May 5, Abu Dhabi, UAE: Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. A key event for the publishing industry in the Middle East and North Africa. Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.
Apr. 30-May 1, Abu Dhabi, UAE: Mobility Live. A conference and exhibition sponsored by the Abu Dhabi transport regulators, gathering disruptive technology developers in transportation and the public sector. Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.
Apr. 30-May 1, Abu Dhabi, UAE: Middle East Rail. The leading conference in the region for rail innovation, technology and strategy. Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.
May 1-2, Dubai, UAE: Capital Market Summit. A gathering of investors and entrepreneurs hosted by the Dubai Financial Market aimed at sparking interest in IPOs. Madinat Jumeirah.
May 5-8, Los Angeles: Milken Institute Global Conference. Politicians, financiers, media and philanthropists convene to discuss challenges across themes like innovation and technology, health and medical research, diversity and inclusion. The Beverly Hilton.
May 6-7, Dubai, UAE: Dubai FinTech Summit. The second annual gathering of financial leaders meet to spotlight innovation and discuss disruptions in the industry, organized by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Madinat Jumeirah.
May 7-9, Abu Dhabi, UAE: AIM Congress. The Annual Investment Meeting will convene inter-governmental leaders, executives, entrepreneurs and policymakers on the theme “Adapting to a Shifting Investment Landscape: Harnessing New Potential for Global Economic Development.” Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center.
May 13-15, Abu Dhabi, UAE: Abu Dhabi Global Healthcare Week. A conference focusing on investments, and innovation to solve the most important global health challenges. Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center and Abu Dhabi City.
May 14-15, Abu Dhabi, UAE: J.P. Morgan Asset Management: Life Sciences Innovation Summit. A gathering aimed at drawing startups and investors from the life sciences sector to Abu Dhabi. Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi.
May. 14-16, Doha, Qatar: Qatar Economic Forum, Powered by Bloomberg. A news-driven event dedicated to global business and investment. This year’s theme is “A World Remade: Navigating the Year of Uncertainty.” Request your invitation here. Fairmont & Raffles, Doha.
May 29-31, Marrakech, Morocco: GITEX Africa. The second edition of the biggest tech and startup gathering in Africa. Place Bab Jdid.