TODAY: Qatar pauses LNG shipments through the Red Sea

Good morning, friends. We have a brisk read for you this morning with all the latest from the Red Sea and some significant aviation news emerging from KSA, but first…

ICYMI- There is now an EnterpriseAM for the UAE: Think of it as the UAE analogue to your morning read in Egypt — your essential report on business, finance, the economy, and regulation in one of the world’s most vibrant and exciting economies. You can sign up to have the newsletter delivered fresh to your inbox here.

EnterpriseAM UAE is produced in the United Arab Emirates and in Egypt by the same team that brings you Enterprise Climate, Enterprise Logistics, and our flagship product EnterpriseAM and EnterprisePM in Egypt.

** Stay tuned for the launch later this month of EnterpriseAM KSA. You can tap or click here if you’d like to be added to our list for launch day.

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WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- Abu Dhabi is expected to award the supervision consultancy contract for its Khaleej Al Arabi underpass and two bridges projectby 2Q 2024, a source told Zawya Projects. The tender was issued on 11 January by Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT), with bid submission scheduled for 12 February and the contract to be awarded in early April 2024, the source added. The scope of the tender covers contract administration, design management, construction supervision, and independent cost consultant services, the outlet adds. The project is slated for completion in 1Q 2026 at an estimated cost of USD 50 mn, the source told the outlet.

#2- A trade route running through India, Iran, and Armenia is set to be opened as soon as May 2024, Azernews reported, citing Armenia’s Economic Minister Vahan Kerobyan. The route will connect India to Iran’s Chabahar port before continuing north to Armenia and onwards to the Black Sea. Last month, Iranian and Indian diplomats in Armenia lobbied for the country to assume a role in the International North-South Transport Corridor extending from India to Europe.

#3- Multinational parcel delivery giant FedEx has rolled out a data-driven platform for end-to-end e-commerce solutions, dubbed fdx, according to a statement. The new tool is slated for launch in Fall 2024, but businesses can sign up for a preview today. The new platform brings to bear previously existing FedEx tools and new ones to help clients navigate the entire e-commerce process including demand generation, conversion, order fulfillment, and post-purchase.

#4-US lawmakers have called on Panama to crack down on Panamanian-flagged vessels contributing to Iran’s “ghost fleet,” which Iran has used to sidestep sanctions and sell 100 of mns of barrels of oil in the past few years, according to an open letter (pdf) dated 11 January and addressed to the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP). The letter, sent by Republican and Democratic senators including Bob Casey and Marco Rubio, says that of the 383 Iran ghost vessels identified by the non-profit organization United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), 189 (49%) are Panama-flagged. Accordingly, the letter asks PMA to investigate the vessels mentioned, de-flag vessels deemed to be involved in evading US sanctions on Iranian oil, refuse to re-flag the vessels in the future, and extend the same scrutiny to other vessels carrying oil for other sanctioned countries.

MARKET WATCH-

#1- Oil fell more than 1% on Monday in spite of Middle East tensions, as traders sold to lock in gains from last week’s 2% rally, Reuters reported. Brent crude fell 1.5% to USD 77.15 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) declined 1.6% to USD 71.53 a barrel. Tankers have been avoiding Red Sea transits since US-led strikes against the Houthis began, but disruptions have so far not affected oil stocks. “The realization that oil supply has not been adversely impacted is leading last week’s bulls to take profit, with the move down somewhat exacerbated by a slightly stronger dollar,” PVM Oil’s Tamas Varga told the newswire.

#2-Iran saw the biggest oil production growth among OPEC members in 2023, Mehr reported, citing a US Energy Information Administration report. Iran’s total oil production reached an estimated 2.87 mn bpd in 2023, growing 330k bpd y-o-y from 2.54 mn bpd in 2022.

#3-Equatorial + TFG + Sinopec lead marine bunker supplies in Singapore in 2023:Equatorial Marine Fuel Management Services maintained top spot, Trafigura’s TFG Marine came in as the second largest supplier, and Sinopec Fuel Oil leaped 16 spots to settle as the third largest supplier, Reuters reported yesterday citing Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority data. Singapore is the world’s largest bunkering hub, the newswire said. The UAE’s Fujairah follows as the world’s second-largest bunkering hub.

DATA POINT-

#1- Iran and the EU exchanged over EUR 3.7 bn worth of products in the first 10 months of 2023, a 13% y-o-y decline, Tasnim News Agency reports, citing a report from the statistical office of the European Union. Germany had the lion’s share of trade with Iran, accounting for 31% of Iran’s total trade volume with Europe, as it imported EUR 191 mn worth of non-oil products from Iran and exported EUR 977 mn worth of products to the country. Exports from the EU to Iran fell by 10% y-o-y, while the 27 member states imported some EUR 647 mn worth of products, a 27% decrease y-o-y.

#2- E-commerce sales in Saudi Arabia tripled to some USD 13.71 bn in 4Q 2023, according to a statement from e-commerce platform Flexstock. The annual growth rate of the sector is expected to reach 14.37%, bringing the value of the Saudi e-commerce market to USD 23.46 bn by 2027. The kingdom accounts for 45% of the MENA region’s digital economy and is expected to reach 20 mn users by 2030, the release adds.

CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR-

The UAE will host Transport Middle East from Tuesday, 23 January through to Thursday, 25 January in Abu Dhabi. The event will see more than 30 speakers come together to tackle the current challenges in global transportation and logistics.

The UAE will host the Middle East Bunkering Convention from Monday, 5 February through to Wednesday, 7 February in Dubai. The event will bring together industry experts to tap into issues affecting the global marine fuel sector, including supply chains, decarbonization, and new fuels.

The UAE will host Sustainable Aviation Futures MENA from Monday, 12 February through to Wednesday, 14 February in Dubai. The event will see 80 expert speakers and upwards of 200 high level attendants and will handle topics pertaining to regulation, financing, and investments in Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) in MENA.

The UAE will host the Future Warehouse & Logistics 2024 Conference from Monday, 12 February to Wednesday, 14 February in Dubai. The event will handle means for supply chain leaders to boost resilience and overcome challenges, with discussions on disruptions, sustainability, Internet of Things (IoT), automation, workplace management and other topics.

Check out our full calendar at the bottom of this email for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events and news triggers.