Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to a jam-packed Wednesday issue. We have not one, not two, but three M&A stories on the Public Investment Fund this morning, along with a couple of IPO updates and big news on a real estate fund from our friends at Cenomi.

WEATHER- In Riyadh, expect a warm day with a high of 35°C and a low of 21°C today. Jeddah’s mercury will also peak at 35°C before dropping to 27°C. Meanwhile, Makkah will be markedly hotter, with a high of 40°C and a low of 29°C.

PSAs-

Property owners in some areas of Riyadh, Al Muzahmiyya, and Diriyah can register their assets next month: The Real Estate General Authority is asking property owners in 22 neighborhoods in Riyadh, 25 in Al Muzahmiyya, and 11 in Diriyah to register their properties in the real estate registry between 10 November and 13 February 2025, according to a statement.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Pakistan is set to sign agreements worth around USD 2 bn with a Saudi delegation led by Investment Minister Khalid Al Falih, who is arriving in Islamabad today, Pakistani news outlets the Tribune reports, citing a statement from Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. This follows discussions held in April about a potential USD 5 bn investment package to support Pakistan’s economy. (**Editor’s note: We incorrectly reported the dates of the minister’s visit in yesterday’s issue. The story has been corrected on our web edition.)

#2- CMA OKs Alpha Capital’s equity fund offering on Nomu: Alpha Capital lined up approval from the Capital Market Authority for the public offering of its Alpha Capital Freestyle Nomu Fund, the authority said in a statement. No further information about the offering was provided.

DATA POINTS-

#1- Cargo handling at Saudi ports was up 7.8% y-o-y to 28.1 mn tons in September, according to figures released by the Ports Authority (Mawani). The number of export containers grew 9% y-o-y to 255.6k TEUs, while imported containers climbed 18% to 258k TEUs last month. Meanwhile, general cargo reached 975.k tons, solid bulk cargo totaled 4.47 mn tons, and liquid bulk cargo hit 15.3 mn tons. Transshipment containers dropped 43% to 159.5k, and total container volume dipped 8.1%.

#2- Saudi aquaculture production hit an all-time high of 140k tons in 2023, a 56.4% increase from the 90k tons recorded in 2021, the Environment, Water, and Agriculture Ministry said in a statement.

SPORTS-

The Kingdom is set to take on Japan in Jeddah in a World Cup qualifier tomorrow, Reuters reports. Having racked up 12 goals in theri last two games, Hajime Moriyasu’s side sits comfortably atop Group C, while the Kingdom is currently in second place.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s a mixed bag in the foreign press this morning, as the intensification of the war in Gaza and Lebanon and Hurricane Milton in the US continue to grab headlines.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israeli airstrikes killed two successors to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a video on X, hours after Hezbollah seemed to drop demands for a ceasefire in Gaza as part of a ceasefire agreement for Lebanon. Netanyahu did not name the successors, but the video suggests that Hashem Safieddin, who was widely expected to succeed Nasrallah and who was reportedly killed last week, has been eliminated. (Reuters)

Israel had expanded its ground invasion of Lebanon yesterday with a fourth division deployed in the south of the country, as it continued with intense airstrikes that killed at least 36 people over the past day. (The Guardian | BBC)

Over in the US, Hurricane Milton is now a Category 5 storm as it heads towards Florida, with President Joe Biden saying the “devastating” storm could be the worst to hit the state in more than a century.

AND- Politics continue to be in focus: The latest Reuters/Ipsos poll showed Vice President and democratic candidate Kamala Harris leading Trump with 46% of votes, as opposed to Trump’s 43%.

IN THE BUSINESS PRESS- Samsung issued a rare apology yesterday after it warned of worse-than-expected 3Q earnings, adding that its high-end chips will see a delay in sales, and chalking up the decline in performance to one-off costs and higher supply of older products from Chinese rivals that have hit demand for its chips. (CNBC | Reuters | The Verge)

AND IN A SIGN OF THE TIMES- The Nobel prize for physics went to two researchers credited for laying the foundations for modern AI, US professor John Hopfield and British-Canadian professor Geoffrey Hinton. (The Guardian)

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The four-day Saudi Film Forum 2024 will kick off Wednesday, 9 October in Riyadh, featuring areas for agreement signings, consulting, studio simulation, film talks, cinematic arts, and a little filmmaker section for children.

The Saudi Winter festivities are back, continuing until the end of March 2025, with over 1k events spread across seven key destinations: Riyadh, Jeddah, AlUla, the Red Sea, Eastern Province, Madinah, and Hail. The events include Riyadh Season, the Dakar Rally, MDL Beast’s music festival, hiking trails, camps, and winter caravans, with special offers available through the Visit Saudi app (Google Play | App Store).

The three-day 6 Kings Slam event at Riyadh’s Venue kicks off on Wednesday, 16 October, featuring all-star players competing for the largest purse in tennis history. The matches will see face offs between tennis champs Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and Holger Rune (watch, runtime: 5:15). The final and third-place match will be held on Saturday, 19 October. Book your tickets here.

The Professional Fighters League’s (PFL) Battle of the Giants is coming to Riyadh on Saturday, 19 October. Headlining the card, MMA superstar Francis Ngannou will face PFL heavyweight champion Renan Ferreira for the title of inaugural PFL Super Champion. Meanwhile, women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg will square off against Larissa Pachecho for the World Title Fight in the co-main event. Expect fireworks with additional matchups featuring Johnny Eblen vs. Fabian Edwards and A.J. McKee vs. Paul Hughes.

Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol will lock horns next Saturday, 12 October in the Four-Crown Showdown event. WBC, WBO, and IBF belt holder Beterbiev and WBA champion Bivol will put all their belts on the line, with the winner set to be crowned undisputed champion of the 175-pound division. The fight was originally slated for June, but was pushed back due to Beterbiev’s knee injury.

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