The unemployment rate among Saudis is expected to decline further this year, falling to 7.8 per cent by the end of December, after a sharp drop in 2022, as the kingdom's non-oil sector continues to expand, according to estimates by Jadwa Investment.
Unemployment among citizens dropped to 8 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2022, from 9.9 per cent in the third quarter, the General Authority for Statistics (Gastat) said last month.
The overall unemployment rate in the Arab world's largest economy, for Saudis and non-Saudis, was at 4.8 per cent in the fourth quarter, down from 5.8 per cent in the previous quarter and 6.9 per cent a year ago, the authority said.
The kingdom's overall improvement of the labour market in 2022 was “better than our expectations” and reflects the broader growth seen in the Saudi economy, Jadwa said in a new report.
“More specifically, unemployment dropped by 3 percentage points during 2022, and we believe this improving trend will continue during the coming years. In light of this, we expect unemployment to see further declines and reach 7.8 per cent by end of 2023,” the Saudi investment bank said.
Saudi Arabia's gross domestic product exceeded $1 trillion for the first time in 2022 as its economy grew 8.7 per cent, driven by oil and non-oil sector growth in the country.
The kingdom recorded the highest annual growth rate among the world’s 20 biggest economies in 2022, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Its non-oil economy has continued to expand this year and business activity remained robust in March on increasing output and new business, further supporting employment growth in the kingdom, according to the Riyad Bank purchasing managers’ index.
The country's PMI reading, which hit 58.7 in March, signalled a marked improvement in operating conditions, and one that was among the strongest reported since early-2015.
As part of Saudi Arabia's ambitious Vision 2030 agenda, aimed at diversifying its economy away from oil, the kingdom plans to lower the unemployment rate to 7 per cent, from a previous high of 11.6 per cent, while also increasing the participation of women in the workforce to 30 per cent from 22 per cent.
Last year, the number of Saudi workers in the private sector rose by 15 per cent annually to 2.2 million, according to Jadwa.
Labour force participation also rose during the year to 52.5 per cent from 51.5 per cent in 2021, with higher participation among both genders and the youth.
“During the past three years, female labour force participation has seen tremendous improvement … reflecting the overall improvement in labour policies,” the report said.
Female representation in labour force increased to 36 per cent over the past three years from 20 per cent, according to Jadwa.
The increase was spurred by expanding childcare and transport services, which added to the new job opportunities in developing sectors such as tourism, leading to more women joining the labour market, it said.
“We expect female participation rate to continue rising in the years ahead,” it said.
In terms of sectors, the largest annual rise in the hiring of Saudis took place in three sectors, according to Gastat data.
They are administrative and support services (which mainly comprises rental and leasing services, travel agencies, landscape and building services); professional and technical services (covering legal services, accounting, architecture and engineering, marketing and others) and construction.
The three sectors accounted for 56 per cent of total new Saudi recruitments in 2022, on a net basis.
Accommodation and food services also accounted for 10 per cent of new Saudi hires in 2022, on a net basis, with Saudi worker numbers in this sector rising by 30 per cent annually.
Meanwhile, the number of foreign workers in the kingdom's labour market also rebounded in 2022 to pre-pandemic levels to reach 7.3 million, up from 6.4 million at the end of 2020, according to Gastat.
The majority (55 per cent) of new non-Saudi recruitments on a net basis were in two sectors — construction and agriculture, which grew due to developments in giga-projects and the various Vision 2030 initiatives.
Meanwhile, the wholesale and retail sector recorded the largest departure of foreign workers during the year, “which is likely affected by the Ministry of Human Resources localisation initiatives in recent years in related sectors, such as cinemas, shopping malls and jewellery shops”, Jadwa said.
Overall, the “significant improvement” in the labour market for Saudis during the past few years is associated with strong economic growth, particularly in the non-oil sector, the report said.
“Since we expect the non-oil sector to continue growing at 5.5 per cent and 5.6 per cent in 2023 and 2024, respectively, we believe this improving trend is likely to continue,” Jadwa said.
The continuous growth in tourism activities around the kingdom has attracted many Saudi jobseekers to work in venues such as hotels, restaurants, entertainment companies and museums.
Sectors such as transport are also expected to add more job opportunities both in new and existing projects.
Meanwhile, intensified localisation efforts will also support Saudi employment in sectors such as wholesale and retail.
“Looking ahead, we expect more employment opportunities for Saudis as a result of the growth in several sectors,” the report said.
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
If you go
The flights
Etihad flies direct from Abu Dhabi to San Francisco from Dh5,760 return including taxes.
The car
Etihad Guest members get a 10 per cent worldwide discount when booking with Hertz, as well as earning miles on their rentals. A week's car hire costs from Dh1,500 including taxes.
The hotels
Along the route, Motel 6 (www.motel6.com) offers good value and comfort, with rooms from $55 (Dh202) per night including taxes. In Portland, the Jupiter Hotel (https://jupiterhotel.com/) has rooms from $165 (Dh606) per night including taxes. The Society Hotel https://thesocietyhotel.com/ has rooms from $130 (Dh478) per night including taxes.
More info
To keep up with constant developments in Portland, visit www.travelportland.com. Good guidebooks include the Lonely Planet guides to Northern California and Washington, Oregon & the Pacific Northwest.
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
More on Quran memorisation:
FOOTBALL TEST
Team X 1 Team Y 0
Scorers
Red card
Man of the Match
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HEADLINE HERE
- I would recommend writing out the text in the body
- And then copy into this box
- It can be as long as you link
- But I recommend you use the bullet point function (see red square)
- Or try to keep the word count down
- Be wary of other embeds lengthy fact boxes could crash into
- That's about it
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
AUSTRALIA%20SQUAD
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Women’s World T20, Asia Qualifier, in Bangkok
UAE fixtures Mon Nov 20, v China; Tue Nov 21, v Thailand; Thu Nov 23, v Nepal; Fri Nov 24, v Hong Kong; Sun Nov 26, v Malaysia; Mon Nov 27, Final
(The winners will progress to the Global Qualifier)
The specs: McLaren 600LT
Price, base: Dh914,000
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 600hp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 620Nm @ 5,500rpm
Fuel economy 12.2.L / 100km
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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What is an FTO Designation?
FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes.
It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.
Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.
Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.
Source: US Department of State
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (all kick-offs UAE time)
Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (10.30pm)
Saturday
Freiburg v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Paderborn v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Borussia Dortmund (5.30pm)
Borussia Monchengladbach v Bayer Leverkusen (5.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)
Sunday
Schalke v Augsburg (3.30pm)
Mainz v RB Leipzig (5.30pm)
Cologne v Fortuna Dusseldorf (8pm)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
MATCH INFO
UAE Division 1
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 12-24 Abu Dhabi Saracens
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Fixtures:
Wed Aug 29 – Malaysia v Hong Kong, Nepal v Oman, UAE v Singapore
Thu Aug 30 - UAE v Nepal, Hong Kong v Singapore, Malaysia v Oman
Sat Sep 1 - UAE v Hong Kong, Oman v Singapore, Malaysia v Nepal
Sun Sep 2 – Hong Kong v Oman, Malaysia v UAE, Nepal v Singapore
Tue Sep 4 - Malaysia v Singapore, UAE v Oman, Nepal v Hong Kong
Thu Sep 6 – Final
Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
In The Heights
Directed by: Jon M. Chu
Stars: Anthony Ramos, Lin-Manual Miranda
Rating: ****
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
The Freedom Artist
By Ben Okri (Head of Zeus)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
