RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rose on Thursday, gaining 9.01 points, or 0.07 percent, to close at 12,097.75. 

The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR7.48 billion ($1.99 billion), as 96 stocks advanced, while 133 retreated.    

The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased by 3.28 points, or 0.22 percent, to close at 1,510.14. 

The Kingdom’s parallel market, Nomu, surged, gaining 251.24 points, or 0.82 percent, to close at 31,027.39. This comes as 56 of the listed stocks advanced, while 32 declined. 

The best-performing stock was Nice One Beauty Digital Marketing Co. for the second day in a row, with its share price increasing by 7.69 percent to SR49. 

Other top performers included Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair Co., which saw its share price rise by 6.5 percent to SR14.74, and Abdullah Saad Mohammed Abo Moati for Bookstores Co., which saw a 4.42 percent increase to SR35.45. 

Arabian Pipes Co. and Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Services Group also saw positive change with their share prices moving up by 4.10 percent and 3.89 percent to SR12.70 and SR298.80, respectively. 

The worst performer of the day was Salama Cooperative Insurance Co., whose share price fell by 5.88 percent to SR19.52. 

Almoosa Health Co. and Al Hassan Ghazi Ibrahim Shaker Co. also saw declines, with their shares dropping by 5.13 percent and 3.91 percent to SR133.20 and SR28.25, respectively.   

On the announcements front, Riyad Bank declared its intention to fully redeem its $1.5 billion fixed-rate reset tier 2 sukuk, issued in February 2020, on Feb. 25, 2025.  

According to a Tadawul statement, the sukuk originally maturing in 2030, will be redeemed at face value in accordance with the terms and conditions. The redemption, approved by the regulators, will include any accrued but unpaid periodic distributions.  

On the redemption date, Riyad Sukuk Limited will deposit the full amount into the accounts of sukuk holders, marking the completion of the issuance. This redemption will conclude the sukuk’s life, with no remaining value post-redemption. 

Riyad Bank ended today’s trading session edging up by 0.91 percent to SR27.85.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Asir region is set to shift from the planning phase to execution in 2025, with several major projects, including the Seven Entertainment Complex, scheduled for completion, according to a senior official.

Speaking to Arab News on the sidelines of the second day of the third Saudi Tourism Forum held in Riyadh from Jan. 7 to 9, Acting CEO of Asir Development Authority Hashem Al-Dabbagh explained that the entity is working with several parties to ensure that the projects in the pipeline progress this year.

This falls in line with the authority’s aim to attract approximately 8 million tourists by 2030.

It also aligns well with the entity’s goal to transform the region into a global destination that will become a world-class tourist hub, both within the Kingdom and internationally, by striking a balance between development and conservation.

Al-Dabbagh said: “2025 is a very exciting year for a number of reasons. Maybe the first one is that the first large project, Seven Entertainment Complex by the airport, will be completed in 2025. So, we launched a number of projects, but this is the first one that should be completed this year. So, we’re very excited about that.” 

He added: “Many of our projects underway, which have to do with the planning of the Asir region, should be completed in 2025. So it’s nice to see us transition from planning and ideation to actual investment and execution in this year.” 

The acting CEO highlighted that over the past three years, the authority has been working diligently with all counterparts in Saudi Arabia. He underlined that many agreements with key stakeholders, including government entities such as the Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of Investment, and the Ministry of Culture, have already been signed.

“We’ve already signed with them, and we have ongoing relationships with all these entities, that allow us to see through our mandate,” Al-Dabbagh said.

“It’s also worthwhile to mention that the Asir Development Authority has a mandate to oversee, to coordinate, and to plan and to make sure everything goes well but the actual development on the ground takes place through other entities that either have a development mandate if they’re a public sector or by private sector entities,” he added.

During the interview, the acting CEO also shed light on how the investment sector within the Asir Development Authority works to distill capital regionally.

“So, they have a pipeline and every investment that we are following is in one of five phases, starting from the ideation phase to the operating phase,” Al-Dabbagh said.

He added: “We have been exceeding our targets over the past couple of years. As a matter of fact, if we sum the number of investments that just the investment sector has in the pipeline, it comes out to about SR28 billion ($7.45 billion), not including PIF (Public Investment Fund) investments. PIF investments are larger than that amount. So, when you add them together, you get a very large number.”

The acting CEO explained that this figure sums up the investments across all phases.

“Now naturally some of these investments are going to materialize and some of them are going to materialize in a way that is different from what we understand today, and some of them will not. So, that 28 (billion) number is sort of a goal if everything materializes as per the plan,” Al-Dabbagh said.
 
“Asir is the place to be if you are looking to invest in the tourism sector or adjacent sectors in Saudi Arabia,” he added.

The acting CEO explained that Asir is the only region among Saudi Arabia’s 13 areas with an approved strategy from the central government. The vision of this approach is to establish Asir as a premier year-round destination, leveraging its unique cultural and natural assets.

“This is very intimately related to the tourism strategy of Saudi Arabia,” he said.

Al-Dabbagh also discussed the Kingdom’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2034.

“There are five regions within Saudi Arabia that are going to be hosting this World Cup , and they include Abha. So, Saudi Arabia and its five regions, including Abha, is going to be a host to probably the largest number of visitors coming from an event outside of the religious pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia,” he concluded.

Organized in partnership with the Saudi Tourism Authority and the Tourism Development Fund, the third edition of the forum features over 100 exhibitors.

It is a comprehensive platform for exploring the latest developments in the Kingdom’s tourism sector.

The event also offers visitors insights into major investment projects, prospects to elevate their skills, and avenues for forging collaboration that drives national tourism growth.