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RIYADH: Leading gold firms from across the world have signed an agreement pledging to work closer with governments to support robust standards in the industry.
The Declaration of Responsibility and Sustainability Principles was agreed at the Global Precious Metals Conference in Lisbon on Oct. 18.
Signatories to the declaration include the industry’s global trade association LBMA, the World Gold Council, the Singapore Bullion Market Association, and the Swiss Association of Precious Metals Producers and Traders.
Other firms to agree to the principles include the China Gold Association, Dubai Multi Commodities Center, and the Indian Bullion and Jewellery Association.
David Tait, CEO at the World Gold Council said: “I believe this is just the starting point, as we move to improve collaboration across the supply chain for the benefit of all stakeholders, end-users and the future of the gold industry.”
The declaration has ten key sustainability objectives, including commitments to responsible sourcing standards, respect for human rights, the advancement of the UN’s sustainable development goals, and action and disclosures on climate change.
As a part of the declaration, gold industry players are also expected to continue to work with governments, international organizations, other private sector actors, and civil society to define and support robust standards of integrity and governance.
“I am pleased that we have been able to define a shared pathway to progress and unite our industry around these principles. By coming together in this way, we can demonstrate our collective commitment to responsible and sustainable business practices,” said Ruth Crowell, CEO at LBMA.
RIYADH: Egypt is preparing to issue an estimated 9.8 billion Egyptian pounds ($500 million) worth of green bonds during the current fiscal year ending in June 2023, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said in an interview with Al-Sharq.
This comes amid optimism that the global markets will improve during that period.
This comes weeks before the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP 27, to be held in Sharm El Sheikh city.
Egypt also plans to raise external finances by 87 percent to 146.4 billion Egyptian pounds in the new fiscal year 2022-2023, up from 78.4 billion Egyptian pounds in the previous fiscal year’s budget.
As part of the new budget, the north African country is also planning to issue international bonds equivalent to 91.5 billion Egyptian pounds, up from 66 billion Egyptian pounds in the last budget.
Excluding the International Monetary Fund financing, Egypt will borrow as much as 54.9 billion Egyptian pounds from global financial institutions in the 2022-23 fiscal year, compared to the current fiscal year’s 12.4 billion Egyptian pounds.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s main index ended in green on Thursday as oil prices edged higher.
The Tadawul All Share Index rose 1.43 percent to end at 11,963, while the parallel market Nomu gained 0.95 percent to finish at 19,746.
Saudi oil giant Aramco ended the session 0.84 percent higher, while Rabigh Refining and Petrochemical Co. increased 0.28 percent.
The Saudi National Bank, the Kingdom’s largest lender, rose 2.18 percent, while Saudi British Bank decreased by 2.08 percent.
The Kingdom’s most valued bank Al Rajhi increased by 2.33 percent, while Alinma Bank rose by 0.95 percent.
Among the top gainers were Saudi Cement Co., which rose 5.66 percent and Al-Omran Industrial Trading Co., that rose by 5.36 percent.
Almarai Co. was among the top losers, declining by 3.11 percent and Alamar Foods Co. decreased by 2.11 percent.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s National Debt Management Center has received more than $27 billion in bids for its dollar-denominated sukuk and bonds issuance, as it announced the completion of receiving investor requests for this year’s first international issuance.
The issuances were made under the Kingdom’s Global Trust Certificate Issuance Program and Global Medium Term Note Issuance Program, NDMC said in a statement.
This was oversubscribed by five times of the total issuance of $5 billion, which was divided into two tranches — $2.5 billion for a six-year sukuk maturing in 2028, and $2.5 billion for a 10-year bond maturing in 2032.
Also, NDMC, on behalf of the Ministry of Finance, announced its arrangement of the first partial repurchase offer for the Kingdom’s dollar-denominated bonds maturing in 2023, 2025 and 2026.
The tender offers are being made as part of the Kingdom’s debt management exercise, which includes the pro-active management of its refinancing risk and debt maturities of the debt portfolio, the statement added.
The repurchase amounts will be announced upon completion of the offers’ window on Oct. 24, it added.
Riyadh: Two high profile green forums spearheaded by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will take place in November alongside the UN’s flagship climate change summit to be held in Egypt.
The Crown Prince has announced the second editions of the Middle East Green Initiative Summit and the Saudi Green Initiative Forum will be held in Sharm El Sheikh in tandem with the global Climate Change Conference, known as COP27.
The MGI Summit will be held on Nov. 7, while the SGI Forum will be held on Nov. 11-12.
“I would like to thank His Excellency President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and the Egyptian government for hosting the MGI Summit and SGI Forum in Egypt this year. We are holding them in tandem with COP27, an event bringing nations from around the world together under one roof, to advance global climate ambitions by inspiring joint activity at the local, regional, and international levels,” the crown prince said.
“Our partnership with Egypt reflects a shared belief in the importance of collaborative action to address the environmental and climate challenges facing the region and the world today,” he added.
#Breaking: HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announces the 2nd editions of the Middle East Green Initiative Summit and the Saudi Green Initiative Forum in November 2022.
#MGISummit: 7 November
┃#SGIForum: 11-12 November
The MGI Summit is a strategic regional platform that promotes cross-border cooperation, knowledge exchange and discussion between heads of state, relevant government ministers and policy makers.
The second edition of the SGI Forum meanwhile, will convene an elite lineup of climate experts and thought leaders to discuss the progress that has been made towards achieving the climate targets announced by the Kingdom last year.
The theme of this year’s forum, ‘From ambition to action’, reflects Saudi Arabia’s determination to turn these targets into reality by catalyzing collective action to confront climate challenges that impact the entire world, according to a press release.
MGI and SGI were launched by the Crown Prince in 2021 to enhance Saudi Arabia’s environmental action, in line with the Kingdom’s Saudi Vision 2030.
The Crown Prince used the opening of the first SGI Forum in October 2021 to announce the Kingdom aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2060 through the Carbon Circular Economy approach.
It was also confirmed that the Kingdom will plant 10 billion trees across the country and designate 30 percent of country’s land and sea territories as protected areas during the coming decades.
In addition, Saudi Arabia has committed to reducing carbon emissions by 278 million tons annually by 2030, SPA reported.
The national goals contribute to achieving regional targets set out by the Kingdom at the MGI Summit.
These focus on reducing regional carbon emissions by more than 10 percent of global contributions and planting 50 billion trees across the region as part of the world’s largest afforestation program.
RIYADH: Lamar Holding will provide any financial support needed to ensure Aramco’s program to boost the small and medium enterprises sector in Saudi Arabia is a success, the firm’s managing director has told Arab News.
Hani Abdelhadi said his Saudi-based company — an investment and development platform that delivers public private partnerships and innovative startups to the region — is keen to back Aramco’s Taleed Program, which aims to provide funding and financial solutions to existing and new businesses through five funds.
Setting out the help Lamar Holding can offer, Abdelhadi told Arab News: “It can be equity, it can be debt, it can be any sort of financial support that is needed, technical support, expertise regionally.”
“The program is more to help companies grow, not just from the financial side, but also from the setup and technical side, as well,” he added.
With capital of over SR3 billion ($800 million), the Taleed Program targets sustainable growth of SMEs across multiple sectors through a portfolio of 20 initiatives, providing a wide range of support from capability building and strategy development to training, market access, advisory services and business planning.
Speaking of Lamar’s latest projects with Aramco, Abdelhadi said they are currently doing the East-West residential compound for the oil major.
He added that the company is also involved with the Saudi government on its large PPP programs.