1 PRIME MINISTER OYUN-ERDENE VISITS EGIIN GOL HYDROPOWER PLANT PROJECT SITE WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/30      2 ‘I FELT CAUGHT BETWEEN CULTURES’: MONGOLIAN MUSICIAN ENJI ON HER BEGUILING, BORDER-CROSSING MUSIC WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM PUBLISHED:2025/04/30      3 POWER OF SIBERIA 2: ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY OR GEOPOLITICAL RISK FOR MONGOLIA? WWW.THEDIPLOMAT.COM PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      4 UNITED AIRLINES TO LAUNCH FLIGHTS TO MONGOLIA IN MAY WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      5 SIGNATURE OF OIL SALES AGREEMENT FOR BLOCK XX PRODUCTION WWW.RESEARCH-TREE.COM  PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      6 MONGOLIA ISSUES E-VISAS TO 11,575 FOREIGNERS IN Q1 WWW.XINHUANET.COM PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      7 KOREA AN IDEAL PARTNER TO HELP MONGOLIA GROW, SEOUL'S ENVOY SAYS WWW.KOREAJOONGANGDAILY.JOINS.COM  PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      8 MONGOLIA TO HOST THE 30TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF ASIA SECURITIES FORUM WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      9 BAGAKHANGAI-KHUSHIG VALLEY RAILWAY PROJECT LAUNCHES WWW.UBPOST.MN PUBLISHED:2025/04/29      10 THE MONGOLIAN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT AND FDI: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITY WWW.MELVILLEDALAI.COM  PUBLISHED:2025/04/28      849 ТЭРБУМЫН ӨРТӨГТЭЙ "ГАШУУНСУХАЙТ-ГАНЦМОД" БООМТЫН ТЭЗҮ-Д ТУРШЛАГАГҮЙ, МОНГОЛ 2 КОМПАНИ ҮНИЙН САНАЛ ИРҮҮЛЭВ WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     ХУУЛЬ БУСААР АШИГЛАЖ БАЙСАН "БОГД УУЛ" СУВИЛЛЫГ НИЙСЛЭЛ ӨМЧЛӨЛДӨӨ БУЦААВ WWW.NEWS.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     МЕТРО БАРИХ ТӨСЛИЙГ ГҮЙЦЭТГЭХЭЭР САНАЛАА ӨГСӨН МОНГОЛЫН ГУРВАН КОМПАНИ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     "UPC RENEWABLES" КОМПАНИТАЙ ХАМТРАН 2400 МВТ-ЫН ХҮЧИН ЧАДАЛТАЙ САЛХИН ЦАХИЛГААН СТАНЦ БАРИХААР БОЛОВ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     ОРОСЫН МОНГОЛ УЛС ДАХЬ ТОМООХОН ТӨСЛҮҮД ДЭЭР “ГАР БАРИХ” СОНИРХОЛ БА АМБИЦ WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/30     МОНГОЛ, АНУ-ЫН ХООРОНД ТАВДУГААР САРЫН 1-НЭЭС НИСЛЭГ ҮЙЛДЭНЭ WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     ЕРӨНХИЙ САЙД Л.ОЮУН-ЭРДЭНЭ ЭГИЙН ГОЛЫН УЦС-ЫН ТӨСЛИЙН ТАЛБАЙД АЖИЛЛАЖ БАЙНА WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     Ц.ТОД-ЭРДЭНЭ: БИЧИГТ БООМТЫН ЕРӨНХИЙ ТӨЛӨВЛӨГӨӨ БАТЛАГДВАЛ БУСАД БҮТЭЭН БАЙГУУЛАЛТЫН АЖЛУУД ЭХЛЭХ БОЛОМЖ БҮРДЭНЭ WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     MCS-ИЙН ХОЁР ДАХЬ “УХАА ХУДАГ”: БНХАУ, АВСТРАЛИТАЙ ХАМТРАН ЭЗЭМШДЭГ БАРУУН НАРАНГИЙН ХАЙГУУЛЫГ УЛСЫН ТӨСВӨӨР ХИЙЖЭЭ WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29     АМ.ДОЛЛАРЫН ХАНШ ТОГТВОРЖИЖ 3595 ТӨГРӨГ БАЙНА WWW.EGUUR.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2025/04/29    

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MBCC “Doing Business with Mongolia seminar and Christmas Receptiom” Dec 10. 2024 London UK MBCCI London UK Goodman LLC

NEWS

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2016 'very likely' to be world's warmest year www.bbc.com

With data from just the first nine months, scientists are 90% certain that 2016 will break the global record for the warmest year.
Temperatures from January to September were 1.2C above pre-industrial levels.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says they will remain high enough for the rest of the year to pass the mark set in 2015.
El Nino has had an impact, but the most significant factor driving temperatures up continues to be CO2 emissions.
What is climate change?
The provisional statement on the status of the global climate in 2016 has been released early this year to to help inform negotiators meeting in Morocco, who are trying to push forward with the Paris Climate Agreement.
The document says the year to September was 0.88 above the average for the period between 1961-90, which the WMO uses at its baseline.
The whole of 2015, which broke the previous record by a significant amount, was 0.77 above the 1961-90 average.

While there are still a couple of months to go this year, a preliminary analysis of the October data indicates that 2016 is very much on track to surpass the 2015 level, which in turn broke the previous high mark set in 2014.
"Another year. Another record. The high temperatures we saw in 2015 are set to be beaten in 2016," said WMO secretary-general Petteri Taalas.
"In parts of Arctic Russia, temperatures were 6°C to 7°C above the long-term average. Many other Arctic and sub-Arctic regions in Russia, Alaska and north-west Canada were at least 3°C above average. We are used to measuring temperature records in fractions of a degree, and so this is different," said Mr Taalas.
The report highlights the fact that other long-term climate change indicators are also breaking records. The amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere continued on its upward march in 2016.
Arctic sea ice continued to melt in significant amounts, while the Greenland ice sheet displayed very early melting this year.
Experts believe that the El Nino weather phenomenon played a role in the record warm temperatures seen in 2015 and 2016.
They quantify it as roughly 0.2 of a degree - but the bulk of the warming is coming from the accumulation of greenhouse gases. And the impacts of that warming are being widely felt.
"Because of climate change, the occurrence and impact of extreme events has risen," said Petteri Taalas.
"'Once in a generation' heatwaves and flooding are becoming more regular. Sea level rise has increased exposure to storm surges associated with tropical cyclones," he said.
The surprise election of Donald Trump as president of the US has increased expectations that he will bring a more sceptical view of climate change to the White House.
Scientists are stressing that the evidence for the reality of climate change is getting stronger all the time.
"We are seeing the impacts of climate change on extreme weather," said Dr Peter Stott, who leads the climate attribution team at the UK Met Office.
"One degree may sound a relatively small number but in the context of such a stable climate that we've had over the past millennia, and the rapidity of that warming, we are seeing this real world evidence that doesn't come from a model or a projection."
According to the WMO analysis, 16 of the 17 warmest years have been recorded this century. The only exception was 1998.

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Kaspersky attacks Microsoft as anti-competitive www.rt.com

The founder of cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab has accused US software giant Microsoft of making it unfairly difficult for antivirus companies to complete following a Windows 10 update.

“Microsoft has created obstacles to third-party products and is acting against the interests of the antivirus developers,” company CEO Eugene Kaspersky wrote in a blog post entitled Enough is enough.

Microsoft has reportedly reduced the period for independent developers to adapt their antivirus software to the Windows 10 operating system to just six days, compared with two months for earlier versions.

Russia's Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) opened an investigation into Microsoft after Kaspersky filed a complaint.

“As Microsoft is the firm developing Windows Defender antivirus software, which plugs in automatically, if third-party software fails to adapt to Windows 10 in due time, these actions are leading to unreasonable advantages for the company in the software market,” said Deputy Head of FAS Anatoly Golomolzin.

Kaspersky Lab is also planning to file complaints against Microsoft in the EU for being anti-competitive, according to company representative Julia Ilyina.

Kaspersky claims to have spent “months of fruitless discussions and multiple exhausting attempts to resolve the issue directly with Microsoft.”

“The trend is clear: Microsoft is gradually squeezing independent developers out of the Windows ecosystem if it has its own application for this or that purpose,” Kaspersky wrote.

 
 
 
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'Trump Thump' whacks bond market for $1 trillion loss www.reuters.com

Donald Trump's stunning victory for the White House may mark the long-awaited end to the more than 30-year-old bull run in bonds, as bets on faster U.S. growth and inflation lead investors to favor stocks over bonds.
 
A two-day thumping wiped out more than $1 trillion across global bond markets worldwide, the worst rout in nearly 1-1/2 years, on bets that plans under a Trump administration would boost business investments and spending while firing up inflation.
 
"We’ve had a sentiment shift in the bond market. We’ve seen it, too. People have already started reallocating out of bonds and into stocks,” said Jeffrey Gundlach, chief executive officer of Los Angeles-based DoubleLine Capital, which has more than $106 billion in assets.
 
"The cracks have been forming for five years – we’re in this slow-grinding higher phase in yields,” he said.
 
The stampede from bonds propelled longer-dated U.S. yields to their highest levels since January with the 30-year yield posting its biggest weekly increase since January 2009, Reuters data showed. US30YT=RR US10YT=RR
 
In the stock market, the blue chip Dow Jones industrial average finished out its best week in five years on Friday as it marked a record high close.
 
The 10-year German Bund yield rose to its highest level in eight months, while the 10-year British gilt yield climbed to its highest level prior to Britain's decision to leave the European Union on June 23, known as Brexit. DE10YT=RR GB10YT=RR
 
Bank of America Merrill Lynch's Global Broad Market Index fell 1.18 percent this week, the steepest percentage drop since June 2015, which is equivalent to more than $1 trillion. Its U.S. Treasury index suffered a 1.91 percent decline on a total return basis, the biggest weekly drop since June 2009 .MERGBMI .MERG0Q0.
 
Many investors, who have loaded up on bonds on the belief of protracted easy monetary polices worldwide due to sluggish global economy, are not ready to throw in the towel.
 
They are counting on insurers and pension plans, together with European and Japanese investors who are struggling with negative yields at home, to preserve the bull run for bonds.
 
"Are we going to see a dramatic backup in yields? It's too soon to make a conclusion about that," said Mihir Worah, chief investment officer in asset allocation and real assets at PIMCO in Newport Beach, California, which manages $1.55 trillion in assets.
 
Goldman Sachs and BAML forecast the 10-year U.S. yield could climb to 2.50 percent, compared with 2.11 percent at Thursday's close. The U.S. bond market was closed on Friday for Veterans Day. US10YT=RR
 
BREXIT TWO?
 
Fund managers at top bond firms and analysts on Wall Street are weighing whether the impact of Trump's win on financial markets will be similar to Brexit. European stocks sold off violently after the Brexit vote, but by mid-August had recovered all the losses. Even so, there is a great deal of uneasiness as investors wait for details on how Britain will exit the EU - not unlike the waiting game on what Trump will actually do as president.
 
"We need more of a cushion given the uncertainties. That's exactly what is being played out in the global debt market," said Mark Lindbloom, portfolio manager at Western Asset Management in Pasadena, California, which oversees $445 billion.
 
Trump, who beat Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, campaigned on tax cuts, trade restrictions and fiscal spending on infrastructure. It remains unclear how these promises translate into policy and the degree to which they would affect the economy.
 
Since Election Day, the U.S. bond market's gauge on investors' 10-year inflation outlook jumped to its highest level since July 2015. USBEI10Y=RR
 
Bond and stock markets suggest whatever Trump may do with the help of a Republican-controlled Congress would give a lift to the U.S. economy, which is growing at about 2 percent this year.
 
"It is a bit early to be calling the Big Rotation," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Securities in New York, referring to the idea that the three-decade-old rally in bonds is ending.
 
"We’ve been declaring that rotation for years. ... I’m afraid it’s hard to think about that happening in the current demographics we have. Baby boomers have more investable assets than millennials do."
 
Betting the U.S. economy may fare better on possible tax cuts and more federal spending, investors scooped up financial and biotech stocks, driving the S&P 500 to its best week since 2014 on Friday.
 
For a rotation into equities from bonds to materialize, it would require “a pick-up in the global economy, and for central banks globally at the very least to halt accommodation -and in our case remove some,” Hogan said.
 
TIPS APPEAL
 
While investors dumped most types of bonds after Trump's victory, they piled into Treasury inflation-protected securities as a hedge against a pick-up in inflation.
 
"You are seeing interest in TIPS right now from a widening investors base," said Brian Smith, portfolio manager at TCW in Los Angeles, which has $197 billion in assets.
 
Investors poured $1 billion into TIPS in the week ended Nov. 9, the second-biggest inflows since records began in October 2002, data from Thomson Reuters' Lipper service showed on Thursday.
 
Trump's win dovetailed with a rise in U.S. yields, reversing the safe-haven trade that stemmed from fears over the fallout of Britain's vote to leave the EU.
 
Yields have also risen as some Federal Reserve officials reasserted calls for a rate increase by year-end, a move that is increasingly seen as likely by the market.
 
Inflation concerns have also been stoked by a recovery in U.S. oil prices, which tumbled to a 12-year low in February due to concerns over a supply glut. That is seen as another factor behind the rise in bond yields. CLcv1
 
"The trend was already in play and it has accelerated," Pimco's Worah said, adding there is more room for yields to rise but not much further from current levels.
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Samsung Electronics agrees to buy Harman for $8 billion www.reuters.com

Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) said on Monday it had agreed to buy Harman International Industries (HAR.N) for about $8 billion, a deal that enables the South Korean electronics giant to expand its presence in the automotive electronics market.
 
Samsung said in a statement it expected to use cash to fund the deal, which represents a premium of 28 percent to Harman's Friday closing price.
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Volkswagen's Audi in talks with China's SAIC Motor on tie-up www.reuters.com

Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) Audi premium brand is in talks with China's largest automaker, SAIC Motor, on a potential long-term collaboration, Audi said in a statement on Monday.
 
Reuters reported on Saturday, citing a source familiar with the matter, that the two had signed an agreement that could pave the way for Volkswagen's joint venture with SAIC to make Audi brand cars.
 
An early entrant to China, the world's largest car market, Audi is the best-selling premium car brand although it is rapidly losing ground to newer car models from Daimler's Mercedes-Benz and non-German automakers like Toyota's Lexus and General Motor's Cadillac.
 
Audi cars are now only made in China through a joint venture with China FAW Group Corp [SASACJ.UL], providing a lifeline to a state-owned company whose own brand cars have struggled with falling sales.
 
Audi reaffirmed its commitment to FAW in the release announcing the talks with SAIC, saying it had outlined growth plans with FAW for the next 10 years that include making green energy SUVs and sedans in every major segment.
 
Audi will also form a new joint venture company with FAW to be based in Beijing and focus on mobility and digital services, according to the statement.
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McDonald's hopes tech convenience will help lock-in customers www.chinadaily.com.cn

McDonald's Corp, which replaced its CEO last year in the hope of turning around sales, plans to increase its investment in digital endeavors, including self-serve kiosks and a mobile-ordering application.
 
The investment marks a "very significant acceleration" from current levels, Jim Sappington, executive vice-president of operations and technology systems, said in an interview. He declined to give specific numbers, but said the spending will continue during the next two years and will be booked as capital expenditures and general and administrative costs.
 
"Enhancing the overall experience is a critical part of us growing our business," he said. "If we're more convenient, our customers are going to be more willing to come to McDonald's."
 
While the world's largest restaurant chain has managed to revive same-store sales growth, it has lagged behind competitors on the technology front. Starbucks Corp and Dunkin' Donuts boast millions of rewards-program members, while Taco Bell allows diners to order via a mobile app. Those types of programs frequently allow restaurants to lock in customers.
 
McDonald's has had success since it started all-day breakfasts in the US more than a year ago. But that growth has slowed, and the company may need something new to sustain sales. It also has seen a positive customer response since declaring its chicken antibiotic-free in the US, adding real butter to its breakfast muffins and promising cage-free eggs.
 
A boost in technology may help－the push will be focused on McDonald's 10 largest markets, which include the US, Australia, Canada, France and China.
 
Next year, McDonald's will begin introducing smartphone ordering and paying to its domestic locations, building on its current app, which mainly features discounts. The Big Mac seller plans to add mobile order-and-pay capabilities to as many as 25,000 of its approximately 36,500 locations globally next year and in 2018.
 
After ordering, customers will be able to pick up their food curbside in a McDonald's parking lot, or by going through the drive-through. The company is still trying to pick a digital partner to help it deploy the mobile app.
 
Another focus will be kiosks, digital menu boards, table service and the chain's so-called Experience of the Future, which highlights burger customization. The touch-screens are now in about 7,000 of its restaurants across the globe, heavily concentrated in Europe.
 
Self-serve kiosks and mobile ordering may ultimately speed up McDonald's service, which has been criticized as being too slow in the past. Customers can build meals at their own pace, taking time to tailor fare, check nutrition facts and compare prices, Sappington said.
 
"It's very difficult now to ask for something to be added to your double cheeseburger, or ask for no onions," he said. "Doing that through the kiosks, doing that through the app, is very easy, is very natural."
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China to become Asia Pacific's largest cruise tourism market www.chinadaily.com.cn

BEIJING - China looks set to be the largest cruise tourism market in the Asia Pacific region as marine tourism gains steam among domestic travelers.
 
China's cruise liner ports reported 629 cruise liners leave for trips in 2015, up 35 percent, with cross-border cruise travelers up 44 percent, according to Li Shihong, deputy head with China National Tourism Administration.
 
The world's top five cruise liner giants have all made forays into the Chinese market, helping China to become the largest and most dynamic cruise tourism market in the Asia Pacific region, Li explained during a conference on cruise tourism cooperation between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong and Macao. The government is looking to develop cruise tourism, with ports at Guangdong province, Hong Kong and Macao as important bases, according to Li.
 
South China's largest cruise liner home port Prince Bay in Shenzhen opened Saturday, which can support cruise liners with up to 220,000 tons of displacement.
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Japan economy: Exports help faster-than-expected growth www.bbc.com

Japan's economy expanded at a faster-than-expected rate between July and September, due to higher exports.
Gross domestic product rose at an annualised rate of 2.2% in the three months to September, the third consecutive quarter of expansion.
Japanese firms have relied on overseas sales to make up for lacklustre domestic demand.
There are concerns a Donald Trump US presidency will hurt Japan if anti-free trade rhetoric became a reality.
But since the election result, the yen has fallen against the dollar. That makes Japanese goods cheaper abroad, which is good news for the country's exporters.
The latest official data showed the world's third-largest economy expanded by 0.5% compared with the three months to June - better than the forecast of 0.2% growth.
Export reliance
It was some rare good news for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's projects to help stimulate the economy - dubbed Abenomics.
However, analysts said this pace could not be sustained given Japan's reliance on exports.
"Consumption is barely there, and in capital expenditure there no growth ... so Japan is relying very much on the outside," Takuji Okubo, chief economist of Japan Macro Advisers, told the BBC.
And Kohei Iwahara, an economist at Natixis Japan Securities, said the figures could be a "one-off windfall", predicting a slowdown in the last three months of 2016.
In August, Japan's cabinet approved an economic stimulus package worth more than 28 trillion yen ($275bn; £207bn) - Mr Abe's latest attempt to boost growth through spending.
However economists were largely disappointed with both its scope and likely impact.
And last month Japan's central bank again pushed back the timeline for hitting its 2% inflation target to March 2019 - a move that raised more questions about the country's economic recovery.
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Lonmin ups stake in Pandora platinum mine www.mining.com

Consolidation in South African's platinum mining sector continued on Friday with Lonmin's decision to buy Amplats' stake in the Pandora platinum mine.
 
According to a press release from Lonmin (LON:LMI), the world's third largest platinum producer, the company will pay between 400 million and 1 billion rand for Amplats' 42.5% stake, thereby giving Lonmin a 92.5% stake in the project. Northam Platinum (JSE:NHM) would be left with a 7.5% stake.
 
Lonmin will pay for the acquisition with 20% free cash flow generated from the Pandora mine over the next six years, with the final price dependent on platinum prices.
 
The Pandora mine is currently a joint venture between Lonmin's subsidiary Eastern Platinum Limited (EPL), Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) through Rustenburg Platinum Limited, and Northam Platinum. It accounts for 5% of Lonmin's production.
 
"The acquisition of AAP’s 42.5% stake in the Pandora JV allows Lonmin to consolidate its position in this relatively shallow and high-grade mineral resource providing an attractive option for development by EPL in both the short and longer term. The Pandora JV area, which is contiguous with our existing EPL operations, relies on Lonmin’s mining and processing infrastructure and is already operated by EPL. The Pandora JV contributed 37,553 Platinum ounces(74,019 platinum group metal (“PGM”) ounces) to Lonmin in the 2015 financial year," Lonmin states in the PR.
 
Reuters reported the transaction will "[bring Amplats] closer to its goal of offloading its labor intensive mines to focus on mechanized mines."
 
It's the second arrangement made between major South African platinum miners in recent weeks – evidence of the troubled South African platinum industry as miners struggle to meet labour demands from unions representing workers who mine the precious metals in some of the deepest and difficult conditions in the world.
 
On Oct. 11 Northam Platinum agreed to buy a mining right from Anglo American Platinum for 1 billion rand, which will enable it to extend the life of its Zondereinde mine, the world’s deepest platinum mine, beyond 30 years.
 
This will be possible, said Northam, because part of Amplats’ Amandelbult mining right is contiguous with the north-western boundary of Zondereinde.
 
Last week Amplats completed the sale of its Bathopele, Siphumelele and Thembelani mining operations to Sibanye Gold (NYSE:SBGL). Sibanye paid 1.5 billion rand for the mines upfront, along with two concentrating plants, a chrome recovery plant, and a tailings facility.
 
 
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Saudi Arabia admits owing billions of dollars to contractors over oil slump www.rt.com

The Saudi Arabian finance minister has admitted billions of dollars are owed to private construction firms and foreign workers following the fall in oil revenue. Workers have been struggling for months without pay.
 
The kingdom has already paid off 70,000 redundant laborers, but tens of thousands remain stranded and unpaid. It has also suspended new contracts. The Council on Economic Affairs and Development (CEDA) does not expect all the workers to be paid off until the end of the year.“I don’t recall the exact amount now, but its billions of dollars,” said the new Finance Minister Mohammed Aljadaan, according to the Guardian.
 
“The ministry is now every day seeking to make thousands of payment orders,” he added.According to the official Saudi news agency, “the sharp decline in oil revenues and the measures taken by the kingdom to reduce spending on a number of projects” is what led to the delays in payment.
 
Saudi Arabia gets three-quarters of its revenue from oil. The 2014 slump in energy prices created a $98 billion budget deficit in 2015.
 
To curb this year’s deficit it raised $17.5 billion in its first international bond sale. According to CEDA – which is headed by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman – “a package of solutions” is being prepared to “complete payments of amounts owed to the private sector.” The council said the awarding of future contracts has been stopped, as “the scale of spending was not compatible” with returns and development.
 
These contracts could be worth as much as one trillion riyals ($267 billion).
 
The government appears to have delayed payments and canceled contracts to offset losses, but in doing so it has sunk many of the country’s biggest construction companies into near bankruptcy, including the Saudi Binladen Group and Saudi Oger, which is run by Lebanon’s new premier, Saad Haririr. Oger’s workers have gone unpaid for months.
 
The kingdom has spent $1 billion paying off a portion of the stranded Asian workers with Saudi Binladin, according to sources familiar with the matter. This was intended to prevent a labor crisis and help send the workers home after massive layoffs.
 
The wider strategy of holding back payment and canceling contracts also threatened to have an adverse effect on subcontractors and smaller companies, which in turn threatened the country’s banks.
 
Currently, Saudi Arabia is expected to have a deficit of $87 billion in 2016. According to economist Giyas Gokkent, from the US-based Institute of International Finance, this is around 13 percent of the country’s GDP.
 
But the Saudis aren’t out of the woods yet, as more financial maneuvering is expected in view of the oil revenue decline.This may mean further “rearranging priorities of spending", according to their significance and efficiency. Recommendations are also being made to include better oversight of new contracts to help the country curb its reliance on oil, something the government says would help save “tens of billions” of dollars.
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