Good morning, friends. We have a packed issue for you as we start the second week of Ramadan, including lots of news from and about the Public Investment Fund, a barrel of economic indicators, and plenty of sports news.

WEATHER- Expect some light rainfall in Riyadh today with a daytime high of 34°C falling to 21°C overnight. It’s shaping up to be a mostly cloudy week in the capital, with some sun peeking out on Wednesday.

In Jeddah, expect brisk winds through Thursday with temperatures reaching a daytime high of 33°C and an overnight low of 29°C.

Meanwhile in Dammam, expect some scattered clouds as the weather hits a high of 26°C before cooling down to 19°C.

WHISPERS-

The Public Investment Fund is said to be eyeing UK department store Selfridges, which is seeking a capital injection after the collapse of Austrian outfit Signa, a key shareholder that owns half of Selfridges property company, the Telegraph reports.

PIF may already have exposure to Selfridges: The Telegraph said last year that the fund had provided funding to a Signa vehicle that took the Austrian firm’s Selfridges stake.

Francois Pinault’s Paris-listed Kering could also be looking to acquire a stake, the newspaper suggests. The group owns brands including Gucci, Balenciaga, and Yves Saint Laurent.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- One step closer secondary share sale from Aramco: Aramco is in talks with bulge bracket investment banks to quarterback a secondary share sale that could see the oil giant raise up to USD 20 bn, Bloomberg reported, citing sources it says have knowledge of Aramco’s plans.

Already on the job: HSBC as well as Citigroup and Goldman Sachs have already gotten, the business information service wrote last month.

In the running: JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley as underwriters while Moelis & Co. has been acting as financial advisor.

BACKGROUND- Aramco raised its dividend payout by 30% earlier this month to a near USD 100 bn for 2023 despite sagging oil prices and lower production. This came days after the Public Investment Fund (PIF) doubled up its stake in Aramco to 16%, a transfer of stock worth about USD 164.

#2- Homegrown supermarket BinDawood is mulling acquisitions in the local market and the wider GCC region, CEO Ahmed BinDawood told Argaam in an interview. The retailer is currently not looking to expand to Egypt, he said.

BinDawood is also interested in investing in wholesale for food and non-food products and is looking to deploy capital in financial technology and data solutions, he said. BinDawood has 86 branches here and one in Bahrain.

#3- A reconciliation center to settle consumer disputes? The Consumer Protection Association (CPA) plans to set up a reconciliation center meant to resolve disputes between consumers and businesses in coordination with the Justice Ministry, state news agency SPA reported yesterday, citing statements by CPA Chairman Abdullah Alnuaim. He did not provide further details on the mechanism.

The goal: Making the Kingdom more consumer-friendly while giving businesses a path to resolution that doesn’t involve dealing with lengthy court proceedings.

Background: The CPA is a non-profit organization tasked with developing voluntary mechanisms and measures to ensure consumer protection. It was approved by the Cabinet in 2008.

#4- The General Authority for Competition is asking prosecutors to file criminal charges against mining companies after they were found guilty of price-fixing, it said in a statement on X last week. It didn’t name the companies and provided no additional information.

DATA POINTS-

Abdul Latif Gameel is the king of Arab family businesses: Abdul Latif Jameel edged out the UAE’s Al Futtaim and Egypt’s Mansour Group to sit atop the Forbes Middle East list for the Top 100 Arab Family Businesses in 2024. GCC families led the list, with 34 of the 100 companies included coming from the Kingdom.

OIL WATCH-

An olive branch from Iran? Iran international, a London-based media outfit funded by opponents of the government in Tehran, claims that National Iranian Oil Company CEO Mohsen Khojasteh-Mehr has said NIOC is open to co-development with Saudi of the Durra gas field.

The catch: Saudi and Kuwait emphasized earlier this month that Al Durra is 100% owned by the Kingdom and Kuwait.

Background: Three-way talks on where the border falls collapsed last year. Tehran and Riyadh have slow-walked the resumption of full diplomatic ties after exchanging ambassadors last year.

SPORTS-

#1- The Saudi Pro League is taking a breather and will be back with a bang on Friday, 29 March, get ready for five showdowns, all kicking off at 10:00 pm. Check out the full schedule here.

Last week in the SPL: Friday saw Al Nassr clinch a 1-0 victory against Al Ahli. Al Fayha battled Al Riyadh to a 1-1 draw — the same scoreline for Al Tai vs. Al Ettifaq. Meanwhile, on Thursday, Al Wehda suffered a 1-0 defeat against Al Abha, while Al Shabab beat Al Hazem 3-0, and Al Khaleej and Al Okhdood settled for a 2-2 draw.

#2- Taekwando athlete Donia Abu Taleb is the first Saudi female athlete to qualify for the Olympics as she will be competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics in July— in the 49 kg category, state news agency SPA reports.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s unusually quiet in the global press even for a Sunday, with no single story dominating the headlines.

Joe Biden gave a thumb-up to the US Senate majority leader’s speech slamming Benjamin Netanyahu, in which Chuck Schumer called the Israeli PM an obstacle to peace in our region.

On planet finance: Sam Bankman-Fried could face up to 50 years in jail — that’s the recommendation from prosecutors, while his lawyers are saying he should face no more than 6.5 years behind bars. He was found guilty of seven charges in a crypto scheme last year.

The latest sign that PE loves advisory firms: The US arm of Grant Thornton is selling a majority stake to buyout firm New Mountain Capital. Check out the joint press release.

AND- Consulting firms may be doing amazing business in our part of the world, but it’s not like that in the US of A, prompting the Wall Street Journal to ask on its front page why, if consultants are paid to fix businesses, can’t they fix their own?

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The Saudi Super Cup kicks off in Abu Dhabi on Monday, 8th of April, and wraps up on Thursday, 11 April. The cup will feature Al Hilal, Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, and Al Wehda.

The Smart Future Expo will be running from Monday, 13 May, until 15 May, and will feature everything smart city related, from infrastructure to smart learning.

Townhall Expo kick starts Thursday, 2 May, at Holiday Inn Hotelin Riyadh, featuring Saudi-Egyptian real estate developers and investors. The event wraps up on Sunday, 5 May.

The Saudi Giga Projects 2024 is slated for Monday, 13 May, at Crowne Plaza Riyadh. The summit will provide an overview of the USD 870 bn vision 2030 projects throughout the Kingdom and will convene contractors, suppliers, and top execs from the region.

Future Projects Forum kick starts on Monday, 20 May, and wraps up the next day, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Riyadh. The Forum will be a dynamic hub for contractors, stakeholders, and project owners.

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