Lenovo, the world’s biggest maker of personal computers, will issue $2 billion in convertible bonds to Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund as part of a broad investment agreement that is expected to boost the kingdom’s technological ambitions.
The agreement was signed with Alat, the technology-focused arm of the Public Investment Fund, Lenovo said on Tuesday.
The deal includes the setting up of Lenovo’s Middle East and Africa head office in Riyadh, which will include a research and development centre, adding to a growing number of global companies that have set up strategic centres in the Arab world’s biggest economy.
The kingdom will also become home to a new PC and server manufacturing plant, adding to the more than 30 such factories Lenovo has globally.
The partnership will allow Lenovo to tap into “significant resources and financial flexibility to further accelerate our transformation and grow our business by capitalising on the incredible growth momentum in the MEA region”, its chairman and chief executive Yuanqing Yang said.
The proceeds of the convertible bonds will be used to repay debt and generate working capital, Lenovo said.
They are due in three years and will be convertible to equity at maturity at an initial conversion price of 10.42 Hong Kong dollars ($1.33) a share.
The bonds are zero coupon, meaning they will not accrue interest during the tenure to maturity. Such instruments are bought by investors at a deep discount and they offer full face-value profits when they mature.
The deal comes at a time when Saudi Arabia aims to increase foreign direct investment to $100 billion annually under its Vision 2030 agenda to diversify its economy away from oil.
The kingdom hopes to have 480 global companies establish their headquarters in the kingdom by 2030 amid efforts to improve economic output.
To attract businesses, Riyadh announced its regional headquarters programme in 2021, which came into effect on January 1.
The initiative offers several business-friendly benefits to companies, including a 30-year tax break, which includes a zero per cent rate for corporate tax and a withholding tax related to the “approved regional headquarters activities”.
It also provides companies with access to loan programmes, energy and utility enablement, employment support, export credit lines, land solutions and financial incentives for research and development, among others.
The initiative will also give companies access to government contracts as the kingdom moves ahead with several developments and initiatives to advance its economic and industrial strategies.
To date, the regional headquarters programme has licensed more than 200 companies, spanning sectors from technology to energy, and consultancy to food and beverage, according to the kingdom's Ministry of Investment.
Alat was launched in February and seeks to make the kingdom a global centre for sustainable technology manufacturing.
The company has seven business units focused on domestic and international markets. These cover advanced industries, semiconductors, smart appliances, health, devices, buildings and next generation infrastructure.
It will manufacture products across more than 30 categories, including robotic systems, communication systems, advanced computers and digital entertainment, as well as advanced heavy machinery used in construction, building and mining.
Alat is chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and aims to create 39,000 direct jobs in the kingdom and achieve a direct non-oil gross domestic product contribution of $9.3 billion by 2030.
Lenovo said its expansion in Saudi Arabia is expected to “enhance its global supply chain resilience and flexibility”.
The company, which has several bases in Hong Kong, Beijing and North Carolina, controlled about a quarter of the global PC market at the end of 2023, data from Statista shows.
PAST 10 BRITISH GRAND PRIX WINNERS
2016 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2015 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2014 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-GP)
2012 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2011 - Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
2010 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2009 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2008 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2007 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
Mrs%20Chatterjee%20Vs%20Norway
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ashima%20Chibber%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rani%20Mukerji%2C%20Anirban%20Bhattacharya%20and%20Jim%20Sarbh%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
'Unrivaled: Why America Will Remain the World’s Sole Superpower'
Michael Beckley, Cornell Press
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
Find the right policy for you
Don’t wait until the week you fly to sign up for insurance – get it when you book your trip. Insurance covers you for cancellation and anything else that can go wrong before you leave.
Some insurers, such as World Nomads, allow you to book once you are travelling – but, as Mr Mohammed found out, pre-existing medical conditions are not covered.
Check your credit card before booking insurance to see if you have any travel insurance as a benefit – most UAE banks, such as Emirates NBD, First Abu Dhabi Bank and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, have cards that throw in insurance as part of their package. But read the fine print – they may only cover emergencies while you’re travelling, not cancellation before a trip.
Pre-existing medical conditions such as a heart condition, diabetes, epilepsy and even asthma may not be included as standard. Again, check the terms, exclusions and limitations of any insurance carefully.
If you want trip cancellation or curtailment, baggage loss or delay covered, you may need a higher-grade plan, says Ambareen Musa of Souqalmal.com. Decide how much coverage you need for emergency medical expenses or personal liability. Premium insurance packages give up to $1 million (Dh3.7m) in each category, Ms Musa adds.
Don’t wait for days to call your insurer if you need to make a claim. You may be required to notify them within 72 hours. Gather together all receipts, emails and reports to prove that you paid for something, that you didn’t use it and that you did not get reimbursed.
Finally, consider optional extras you may need, says Sarah Pickford of Travel Counsellors, such as a winter sports holiday. Also ensure all individuals can travel independently on that cover, she adds. And remember: “Cheap isn’t necessarily best.”
The specs
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Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
England squads for Test and T20 series against New Zealand
Test squad: Joe Root (capt), Jofra Archer, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Jack Leach, Saqib Mahmood, Matthew Parkinson, Ollie Pope, Dominic Sibley, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes
T20 squad: Eoin Morgan (capt), Jonny Bairstow, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Pat Brown, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Lewis Gregory, Chris Jordan, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Matt Parkinson, Adil Rashid, James Vince
Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
