Events Email Briefings
rotating globe
Privacy© 2026 Semafor Inc.
  • D.C.
  • BXL
  • Lagos
  • Riyadh
  • Beijing
  • SG
Events Email Briefings

Intelligence for the New World Economy

  • D.C.
  • BXL
  • Lagos
Semafor Logo
  • Riyadh
  • Beijing
  • SG
rotating globe
Intelligence for the New World Economy
Semafor World Economy
Matthew Martin

Matthew Martin

Saudi Arabia Bureau Chief

Email Matthew@MattMartin128

Saudi’s expat workforce shrinks for the first time in more than two years

Foreigners employed in the country, excluding domestic workers, fell by 16,000 in the three months to June, driven by a drop in construction jobs.
Workers clean the glass facade of a building in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. July 13, 2022.
Mohammed Salem/Reuters

Gulf SWFs on track for major investments despite war

Gulf sovereign wealth funds are on track for one of their most active years of dealmaking ever, even as war disrupts businesses and economic growth.
Mubadala tower
Courtesy of Mubadala

Saudi market reforms could stall IPO recovery

Proposed new listing rules could pull down valuations and deter banks from backing deals
An investor monitors a screen at the Tadawul.
Faisal Al Nasser/Reuters

Saudi Arabia sees deeper budget deficits ahead

Higher oil prices have largely offset lower export volumes, lifting revenue above prewar estimates, but spending is set to rise faster.
Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz
Saudi Press Agency/Reuters

Singapore’s Temasek to open Gulf offices despite war uncertainty

Temasek will use Abu Dhabi and Riyadh as hubs for investing in the Middle East and bringing portfolio companies to the region
Singapore skyline.
Edgar Su/Reuters

Saudi Aramco considers a gas spinoff

The plans are a sign of the pressure the company faces to raise cash for the government and draw foreign investment into the kingdom.
The Saudi Aramco logo.
Maxim Shemetov/Reuters

Saudi Arabia’s $1.3 billion biotech push following Riyadh summit

One deal includes a $130 million vaccine manufacturing plant, which would be the Gulf’s largest, in a push to become a global biotech hub by 2040.

Qatar Investment Authority deepens US ties with JPMorgan

The deal includes a $15 billion customized public equities portfolio managed by the US bank and a $5 billion private markets initiative.

Saudi’s Ceer unveils first EVs in push to become autos hub

PIF-backed carmaker’s luxury EVs aim to make Saudi a manufacturing center and challenge Chinese brands.

Aramco says technology delivered $5 billion in value last year

The Saudi oil producer is using AI, digital twins, and other tools to improve operations and adapt to wartime disruptions.

Humanoid robots fight it out in Riyadh

Sponsored by Hero Esports, the brainchild of Chinese billionaire Dino Ying, the event was the first of its kind outside China.

Citi raised more than $40 billion for Saudi clients this year

US bank says it increased direct exposure to Saudi Arabia since the US-Iran war began.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala takes stake in China’s Luckin coffee with $1B deal

Private equity firm Centurium Capital has contributed to the $1 billion investment alongside Mudabadala’s minority stake into China’s Luckin Coffee.

Saudi Arabia could give UN nuclear watchdog greater inspection powers

This is part of Saudi Arabia’s attempts to get a nuclear deal with the US approved.

Saudi wealth fund takes its capital pitch to Wall Street

PIF and some of its portfolio companies are courting investors including Blackstone and Carlyle this week to fill its funding gap.

HUMAIN prepares to go public

HUMAIN CEO posted on LinkedIn he was hiring a team to prepare the barely two-year-old company for an initial public offering.

The ‘Switzerland’ of AI: Saudi Arabia’s big AI bet

HUMAIN CEO Tareq Amin says the Kingdom plans to transform its economy and become a global AI leader.

Saudi Arabian data center firm races to export compute from NEOM

DataVolt is aiming to slash development times for its $1 billion data center as it looks to make Saudi a global AI hub.