GULF WEEKLY: OPEC+ pauses hikes for Q1, Saudi PMI surges, Microsoft boosts UAE AI investments, Qatar issued $4bn
A skimmable summary overlaid with our analysis and links. Headlines:
* OPEC+ announced a small Dec hike followed by a 3-month pause; Brent dipped back to $63.
* Aramco beat profit expectations and hiked its gas production target for 2030 by about 13%.
* The Saudi PMI surged to 60.2, the second highest in a decade, with FDI supporting strong sales.
* PMIs were mixed elsewhere in the GCC, dipping in Qatar and the UAE but rising in Kuwait.
* Adnoc signed a 1m t/yr LNG offtake with Shell and has now contracted >80% of Ruwais’s capacity.
* Microsoft secured Nvidia AI chip export licenses for the UAE and will invest $8bn over four years.
* Abu Dhabi has invested £20bn in the UK since 2021, double its original target.
* Qatar issued $4bn with near record spreads, +20bp for a 10yr sukuk and +15bp for a 3yr bond.
* The EU has indicated that it will adjust its ESG rules on imports, after complaints from Qatar.
* Qatari Diar plans to invest $30bn in its Egyptian tourism project, including $3.5bn cash for land.
* Qatar Airways is selling its 9.6% stake in Cathay Pacific for $0.9bn.
* Kuwait’s GDP growth accelerated to 1.7%, mainly due to oil and construction. Manufacturing lagged.
* Oman India Fertilizer Company has hired banks for its potential IPO.
* Bahrain’s debt may have reached as much as 150% of GDP in October, at least temporarily.
* The first Qatar-Bahrain passenger ferry has launched, a 70-minute link between the countries.
* National Bank of Bahrain and Bank of Bahrain & Kuwait signed an MoU for merger talks.
* AirAsia is considering setting up a hub in Bahrain, targeting 25 daily flights by 2030.
* Databank updates: Saudi fiscal (Aramco), Qatar forecasts, Abu Dhabi inflation, PMIs, OPEC plans.
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