Author: Steven Sahiounie

The time en route was managed to be reduced on account of the route change MOSCOW, August 17. /TASS/. RZD Logistics has expected the delivery of goods from the Chelyabinsk Region to Iran over the North-South international transport corridor by two days, the press service of the logistical provider told TASS. “We reduce the timeframe by two days. Goods are then carried by transit to the destination,” the press service said. The time en route was managed to be reduced on account of the route change, the press service of the Southern Ural Railroad told TASS. The new route is…

The traffic totaled 7.3 bln passengers MOSCOW, August 17. /TASS/. The passenger traffic in Russia moved up by 4% year on year in the first half of 2023 and amounted to 7.3 bln people, Minister of Transport Vitaly Savelyev said. “The volume of passenger transportation is growing steadily after 2020. We carried 13.7 bln passengers in 2021,” the minister said. “The traffic totaled 7.3 bln in the first half of this year, which is 4% more than in the like period of the last year,” Savelyev said. The land transport accounts for the overwhelming majority of travels, the minister said.…

RIYADH: In a significant step toward leveraging data for shared objectives, a memorandum of cooperation was formalized between the Agricultural Development Fund and the General Authority for Statistics in Riyadh on Thursday. This agreement centers on the exchange of data, information, and statistical indicators relevant to the economic activities overseen by ADF, according to the Saudi Press Agency The data sharing adheres to the guidelines and privacy regulations stipulated by the National Data Management Office, which is responsible for establishing data policies and standards. Furthermore, the collaboration aims to facilitate mutual consultations, support, and knowledge exchange across various fields of common…

RIYADH: Oman’s total outstanding credit extended by Other Depository Corporations, which consist of conventional and Islamic banks, grew by 6.5 percent to 30.3 billion Omani rials ($78.7 billion) at the end of June, according to a monthly statistical bulletin by the country’s apex bank. The Central Bank of Oman noted that the nominal gross domestic product showed an increase of 7.4 percent at the end of the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2022, adding that the rise was driven by an increase in the output of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon sectors by 6.1 and 6.7 percent,…

The Kremlin confirms that Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Thursday. According to the Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Thursday via phone, detailing a discussion that included expanding their interaction in regional and global affairs. The Kremlin statement detailed how discussions centered around Iran’s participation as a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, as well as the possibility of joining BRICS. In early August, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov revealed that the expansion of BRICS would strengthen the group, as it prepares to examine admissions of new nations including Argentina, Saudi Arabia, and…

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s economic ties with China have strengthened further, with Shanghai Lujiazui Financial City Authority setting up its office in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District. The announcement was made at an event organized on Thursday by eWTP Arabia Capital, a venture capital investment firm based in the capital city with a branch office in Beijing. The firm is the investment arm of the Electronic World Trade Platform, founded by Alibaba Group’s Jack Ma in 2016. During the event, eWTP Arabia Capital, SLFCA, and KAFD Development and Management Co. signed a memorandum of understanding to boost cooperation between the financial…

Moscow has ensured Kiev will never again be a threat, the Belarusian president has said Russia has already reached the principal aim of its military operation in Ukraine, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said in an interview aired on Thursday. “As of today, the goals of the special military operation have been met,” Lukashenko told Ukrainian journalist Diana Panchenko, during a two-hour interview posted on YouTube. “Ukraine will never be so aggressive towards Russia after this war ends, as it was before. Ukraine will be different. People in power [there] will be more cautious, smart, more cunning if you will,” Lukashenko said.…

RIYADH: Kuwait’s consumer price index increased by 3.74 percent in July 2023 compared to the same period last year, driven by high prices across multiple sectors. This rise was despite the monthly stabilization of prices. The general CPI remained stable at 130.1 in July, according to a report from the country’s Central Statistical Bureau. On a monthly basis, the food and beverage group fell by 0.14 percent in July, while four other groups, led by clothing and foot clothes, rose by 0.45 percent. The annual increase was led by a 7.07 percent price hike in the clothing and footwear sector and…

The United Nations Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the recent “heinous and cowardly terrorist attack” at the Shah-e Cheragh holy shrine in Iran’s southern city of Shiraz. “The members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the heinous and cowardly terrorist attack on innocent people and pilgrims at the Shah-e Cheragh shrine in Shiraz, Iran, on 13 August,” said a statement issued by the Security Council on Wednesday. The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran,…

KARACHI: Saudi Arabia has deposited $2 billion in Pakistan’s central bank, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced on Tuesday, just a day before the International Monetary Fund’s board is expected to give the final nod to the provision of $3 billion in bailout funds under a stand-by arrangement. In March, the IMF asked cash-strapped Pakistan to secure financing assurances from friendly states and multilateral donors as a pre-condition to releasing a $1.1 billion tranche from an Extended Fund Facility program that Pakistan entered in 2019. Subsequently, China rolled over a $2 billion loan and Saudi Arabia and the UAE pledged $2…