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Snapshot of the Week Past |
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Oil
Market Oversupplied: OPEC President
"OPEC's president said [May 9] the oil market
is oversupplied and that any increase in output at
the organization's meeting next month must take
into consideration prices and growth in demand.
"The OPEC-10 real production now in the
market based on our latest information from OPEC
and other sources is 29.7 million barrels per day
(bpd)", Ahmed Fahd Al-Sabah told reporters.
"We believe there is two million bpd of
overproduction in the market .. In the third
quarter the required demand from OPEC-10 will be
28.5 million bpd," he added.."
Saudi-Thai
Trade Crosses $2 Billion in 2004
"There has been a 40 percent jump in the
volume of trade between Saudi Arabia and Thailand,
with the figure for 2004 reaching $2.3 billion
over the previous year, according to the top
official at Thai Trade Center (TTC) of the Thai
Consulate General.. ..Thai imports from the
Kingdom are mostly of oil, chemicals and
fertilizers, while its exports to this part of the
world include cars and auto parts, and consumer
goods like refrigerators, air conditioners, and
washing machines.."
Kingdom
Takes Precautions to Prevent Polio Outbreak
"Saudi Arabia has taken all precautions to
prevent the polio virus from entering the country
following the outbreak of a major epidemic in
neighboring Yemen.. ..The latest case reported in
Saudi Arabia by the World Health Organization
involved a Nigerian boy who had been living near
Makkah. He fell ill in mid-December 2004 after the
family hosted visitors from Nigeria.."
Aramco
Plans Refinery IPO
"State-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Saudi
Aramco) has announced plans to float shares of the
new $5 billion Yanbu oil refinery for public
subscription. The announcement was made at the
Saudi Mega Projects 2005 conference in Dammam by
Isam Al-Bayat, Aramco's vice president. The
refinery, to be established with the help of a
foreign partner, will produce 400,000 barrels of
oil daily.."
Sultan
Signs SR368 Million Aviation Contract
"Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and
minister of defense and aviation, [May 10] signed
a SR368 million contract with Safari Company for
the operation and maintenance of aviation systems
and equipment at the Kingdom's airports. The
contract, which lasts three years, will serve more
than 100 international airline companies,
operating flights to the Kingdom.."
Terror
Suspect Seized In Saudi Arabia
"Saudi security forces seized a terror
suspect who has been on the run since December in
the northern province of Zalfi.. ..The suspect
managed to escape from police during a clash in
December and was arrested without resistance in a
derelict house where he had been hiding.."
New
oil found in Saudi Arabia
"A new oil field with a pumping capacity of 6
000 barrels a day has been discovered in eastern
Saudi Arabia, the Oil Minister announced on [May
9].. ..About 6 000 barrels of extra Arabian light
crude flows from the onshore field per day.."
Terror
Suspect's Attorneys Link FBI to Alleged Torture by
Saudis
"Saudi officials tortured an American student
charged with conspiring to kill President Bush 'at
the direct behest' of the FBI, whose agents did
nothing to stop the abuse, attorneys for Ahmed
Omar Abu Ali said in court papers. In motions
filed late Monday, Abu Ali's attorneys said he was
tortured while FBI agents were in Saudi Arabia to
interview him in September 2003. They said the
abuse came at the hands of the Interior Ministry's
Mabahith branch, the Saudi equivalent of the
FBI.."
Kingdom
Urges Free Flow of Capital
"Saudi Arabia [May 11] called for the
elimination of barriers that prevent free flow of
capital and investment, and for giving greater
role to developing countries in the
decision-making process of global financial
organizations. 'The Kingdom also stresses that the
reforms covering international financial systems
must include adequate tools to prevent and manage
financial crises,' Foreign Minister Prince Saud
Al-Faisal said at a summit of South American and
Arab countries in Brasilia.."
Fingerprinting
to Be Mandatory for All Entering Saudi Arabia
"The fingerprints of everyone entering the
Kingdom will be taken on arrival as a new law
comes into effect in the near future.. ..The
reasons for fingerprinting, the source said, were
security-related. He pointed out that expatriates
with criminal records in the Kingdom sometimes
return to the country using a different name and
passport.."
Trade
Expo Lures Many Countries
"More than 12 countries are sending their
companies to take part in Saudi Arabia's
International Trade Fair that opens at the Jeddah
International Exhibition Center here at 5 p.m. on
Sunday (May 15). This is the Kingdom's 23rd
multisectoral trade expo for light industries,
machinery, consumer goods, clothing, leather
goods, fashion accessories, giftware and textiles,
which is being organized by Al-Harithy Company for
Exhibitions Ltd. (ACE).."
US
and Arabs: Winning Hearts or Psychological
Warfare?
"The Bush administration's interest - some
would say obsession - with the Mideast and the
Gulf goes way beyond its stated objectives of
ridding the region of regimes antipathetic to the
US. According to a four-month investigation,
written up by David Kaplan in US News,
"Washington is plowing tens of millions of
dollars into a campaign to influence" Muslim
societies. So as to achieve this goal, says the
report, 'the US government has embarked on a
campaign of political warfare unmatched since the
height of the Cold War'.."
Kingdom
Concerned
"Saudi Arabia [May 12] expressed 'deep
concern and indignation' over a media report that
interrogators at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, desecrated
the Holy Qur'an. 'The Kingdom's government urges
the American authorities to conduct a quick
investigation into these cases.."
Riyadh
to Host GCC Banking Conference
"The Saudi banks, in cooperation with the
Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), will host a
two-day 7th GCC Banking Conference from May 17 at
the Institute of Banking in Riyadh.. .. The event,
under the patronage of the GCC General
Secretariat, will be attended by the governors of
the GCC central banks and monetary agencies, heads
of GCC capital markets, and senior bankers from
the region and international financial
institutions.."
Saudi
Arabia: Big Real Estate Deal Reported
"According to Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper,
sources in the Saudi real estate sector revealed
that the Masoud Real Estate Investment Company,
which is owned by Mr. Abdul-Karim Al-Masoud, had
purchased Bani Najran market (Al-Haram Al-Madina
project) from the Aqar Holding Company. The deal,
valued SR 2 billion ($533 million), is one of the
biggest real estate deals in Saudi Arabia.."
Saudi
Religious Scholars Condemn Arab Pop Idol
"Saudi religious scholars have condemned an
Arab television `'Star Academy'' competition as a
crime against Islam and urged the Saudi Arabian
pop singer who triumphed last month to repent.
More than 60 sheikhs rounded on the fresh-faced
Hisham Abdulrahman, whose victory in the Star
Academy reality show triggered the closest thing
to pop hysteria seen in the ultra-conservative
Muslim kingdom.."
Aqeel
Sues US Officials
"The former director of Al-Haramain
Charitable Foundation has filed lawsuits against
four top US officials including Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice for listing him among
terrorists.. ..He said legal actions have been
taken against Rice, Treasury Secretary John Snow,
Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez and Assistant
Treasury Secretary for Terrorism Affairs Juan
Zarate.."
Kingdom Plans to Halt Export of Cement
"The Ministry of Commerce is considering
prohibiting the export of Saudi cement,
specifically to countries in the Gulf. The move
will be part of the ministry's attempt to deal
with a problem which first surfaced in the Saudi
market about a month and a half ago. The problem,
which originated with a shortage of cement in the
Western region, has caused the demand to increase
in both the southern and western regions.."
Reformists
jailed by Saudi court
"A Saudi court has sentenced three reformists
to jail terms of between six and nine years for
"stirring up sedition and disobeying the
ruler". The three activists were arrested in
March 2004 after urging the rulers to move towards
a constitutional monarchy and speed up reforms.
They refused to defend themselves on the grounds
that the trial was taking place behind closed
doors.."
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Saudi
Trade Mission Receives Warm Welcome in US
Saudi
Women Moving Up in Business
