Good morning, folks, and happy hump day to you all. It’s another brisk news day with very little in the way of gigaprojects and the PIF and plenty of workaday M&A and industry news. We also take a look at what recently enacted pension reforms mean for workers.

WEATHER- A spell of hazy weather is in the cards for Riyadh with a daytime high of 44°C, while Dammam will see the mercury peak at 46°C. Taif is set for some rainfall with a high of 34°C.

Need a reminder that our heat is special? This clip making the rounds on Instagram made us smile.

WATCH THIS SPACE- More calls to source lithium locally as demand for EVs grows: The Shura Council has called on the Industry and Mineral Resources Ministry to study the feasibility of extracting lithium locally to keep pace with expected future demand for electric vehicles, state news agency SPA reported yesterday. The council also called on the ministry to outline solutions for an inventory of state-owned land that could be licensed to prospectors.

Why it matters: Lithium is a critical component of both modern consumer electronics and the green transition, factoring into everything from rechargeable batteries for phones and computers to electric vehicles and grid storage.

REMEMBER- Saudi is looking to source lithium from overseas: Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Bandar Al Khorayef said in April that Saudi will continue to source lithium from abroad as part of its plans for the nascent EV sector as securing domestic supplies were still at an early stage. “Lithium is a very important mineral that happens to be part of a very important part of the supply chain, especially for batteries,” he said. Saudi companies and officials are looking at Chile and Saudi could become home to a battery anode plant.

DATA POINTS-

#1- Saudi Arabia’s M3 money supply grew 8.6% y-o-y in May to reach a record SAR 2.8 tn, according to the May 2024 Statistical Bulletin (pdf) from SAMA. M3 also increased by SAR 104.8 bn since the beginning of the year and was up SAR 32.4 bn from April. The largest contributors to the money supply were demand deposits (49.2%), time and savings deposits (31.5%), other quasi-cash deposits (11.1%), and cash in circulation outside banks (8.2%). Total liabilities were around SAR 5.1 tn.

SOUND SMART- M3 is the broadest measure of all the money in a country. It includes cash, current accounts, and other money that can be quickly mobilized (what econ-nerds call M2) as well as time deposits, money market funds and the like.

#2- Saudi and the UAE sent more oil to Japan than any of their GCC neighbors in May, accounting for 82% of total GCC oil exports to Tokyo, Mubasher reported, citing data from the Japanese government. The UAE took the lead with 30.2 mn barrels to account for 46.2% of Japan’s total oil imports, while Saudi sold 23.5 mn barrels, good for a 35.9% share of the Japanese market. Still, Japan bought less crude from the UAE (-8.2%) and Saudi (-19.8%) this past May than it did the same month the year before.

PSAs-

#1- Renewing or replacing your national ID just got a bit easier, after the Interior Ministry’s Civil Affairs Agency scrapped the requirement to submit personal photos or fill out forms when applying for an ID renewal or replacement, the agency said in a post on X. This exemption only applies to those who already have a personal photo and fingerprints on the civil registry.

#2- Some taxpayers may be able to pay taxes in installments Zatca-approved plans, the authority said in a post on X. Zatca requires applicants to have submitted all their tax returns before being considered for the installment plan. Failure to adhere to the installment plan will result in the plan being canceled and taxpayers will be required to pay fines on unpaid amounts, according to Zatca guidelines (pdf).

#3- Buraydah now has a public bus service with 12 routes covering 508 km, the Transport General Authority said in a post on X. The system, which Al Qassim province Emir Faisal bin Mishal inaugurated on Sunday, operates 18 hours a day.

IN CONTEXT- Buraydah’s new public bus service comes as part of a broader government initiative to gradually roll out transport services, including metro and bus services across the country. In the capital city, the King AbdulAziz Project for Riyadh Public Transport saw the launch of the first phase of the Riyadh bus service in March 2023 and will see metro service roll out, too. Jazan’s first-ever public bus service was launched under the initiative in May.

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THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

It’s a quiet day in the foreign press, as elections in Europe wrap and heads of state head over to Washington for the Nato summit.

Political analysts are saying it’s a “make-or-break” week for Joe Biden’s re-election as Congress returns from its Fourth of July recess, and today could be an inflection point as Democrats in the Senate hold a caucus meeting at which the way forward for Biden will be Topic #1.

“Go ahead. Challenge me at the convention,” Biden thundered on the call with the hosts of his favorite morning show. “Any of these guys don’t think I should, run against me. Announce for president.” The Financial Times has more on what it’s calling his new “offensive” to keep his campaign.

All eyes will now be on Washington, which plays host to the Nato summit. Russia launched its biggest attack in Ukraine in months on the eve of the summit, hitting a children’s hospital and killing at least 36 people, Reuters reports.

And there’s still no word from France, where centrist and left-wing parties are jostling to see how they can put together a government, France24 notes.

AND IN BUSINESS- There are still folks outside the Middle East committing to venture capital as an asset class. HongShan, formerly the China unit of Sequoia Capital, has raised a USD 2.5 bn, RMB-denominated fund to invest in Chinese startups.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

Interested candidates can apply for the Digital Government Award until Sunday 4 August, the Digital Government Authority (DGA) said in a post on X. The award recognizes projects that enhance digital services and governance. Shortlisted candidates will be announced in September, with judging in October and winners revealed in December. Applicants can apply here.

The eight-week Esports World Cup runs until Sunday, 25 August Riyadh’s Boulevard City. It will see the world’s best esports clubs competing for a pool of USD 60 mn — the largest purse in esports.

South Korea’s T1 took the League of Legends championship at the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, it said in a post on X. T1’s victory against Top ESports saw it take home USD 400k.

This year’s edition of security-focused expo Intersec Saudi Arabia will run from Tuesday, 1 October to Thursday, 3 October at the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center.

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