GULF WEEKLY: OPEC+ kicks the can, Saudi provides liquidity for banks, Tahnoun visits Doha

GULF COUNTRIES - Report 01 Jul 2022 by Justin Alexander

A skimmable summary overlaid with our analysis and links. Headlines:

* OPEC+ didn’t announce September allocations, and Macron worried about Saudi and UAE capacity.
* US-Iran nuclear talks in Doha apparently made no progress but should reconvene in a few weeks.
* Coronavirus infections have surged in June, particularly in UAE and Bahrain, but deaths remain low.
* The Saudi current account surplus widened to 15% of GDP in Q1 but FDI remained flat.
* SAMA injected $13bn in discounted liquidity to ease the elevated Saudi interbank rate.
* Dubai’s economy grew by 5.9% y/y in Q1, reaching -1.9% below the 2019 level.
* UAE fuel prices rose by 11%+ in July and are now double the rate of neighbors, driving inflation.
* Qatar’s non-resident deposits declined a further -6% in May but are still a high 24% of total deposits.
* The UAE’s Sheikh Tahnoun visited Qatar again, working towards more normal relations.
* A parliamentary committee in Kuwait approved the budget; the latest draft sees a surplus with oil at $80.
* Kuwait is beginning to suffer food shortages as a result of price controls in place for two years.
* Oman issued a $390m local currency sukuk and bought back $701m in bonds.
* Egypt’s president visited Oman and Bahrain, and India’s prime minister visited the UAE.
* The IMF expects Bahrain’s official reserves to recover to 7 months of import cover in 2023.
* Israel is headed for new elections in November and has a new prime minister in the interim.
* Databank updates: Dubai GDP, Saudi BoP, Dubai inflation, Bahrain Art.4, Kuwait budget.

Now read on...

Register to sample a report

Register
Sign-in
Forgot your password?
Copyright 2024 GlobalSource Partners. All rights reserved. This report is prepared for GlobalSource Partners’ clients and may not be redistributed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, retransmitted or disclosed, in whole or in part, or in any form or manner, without the express written consent of GlobalSource Partners. This report is distributed simultaneously to our website and other portals used by GlobalSource Partners. The information herein was obtained from various sources and is believed to be reliable but GlobalSource Partners does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Neither GlobalSource Partners nor any Country Analyst, officer or employee accepts any liability whatsoever for any direct, indirect or consequential damages or losses rising from any use of this report or its contents.