Author: Steven Sahiounie

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s point-of-sale spending increased by 48 percent to reach SR12.34 billion ($3.29 billion) from June 23 to 29, with the education sector registering the largest surge.

Japan began circulating its first new banknotes in 20 years on Wednesday, featuring three-dimensional portraits of the founders of financial and female education institutions in an attempt to frustrate counterfeiters.

Turkey has been battling a cost-of-living crisis that prompted President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to drop his opposition to interest-rate hikes to combat inflation.

Former US President Donald Trump, who is running again for the country’s presidential post, is unlikely to resolve the conflict in Ukraine within a 24 hours period even if he wins the election, Russian Ambassador to London Andrey Kelin said in an interview with British broadcaster Sky News. Asked whether Trump would be able to negotiate the Ukrainian conflict settlement within 24 hours, Kelin replied “Hardly.” “First of all, he should become a president. Secondly, a lot of efforts should be applied to do this and that depends on what kind of terms it is going to happen,” he said. “You…

Russian President Vladimir Putin has embarked on an official visit to Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, which hosts the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit this week. In addition to the July 4 General Meeting, the Russian leader has a series of scheduled bilateral meetings on Wednesday as he will be present at talks with at least seven heads of state in Astana. The Kremlin’s press office announced earlier that President Putin had already arrived in Astana in the early hours of Wednesday. Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov stated on Tuesday that Putin was set to hold a series of bilateral…

US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to meet in Washington D.C. later this month, a White House official stated on Tuesday, amid tensions between the Biden Administration and the Israeli government concerning the occupations’ war on Gaza. “President Biden has known Prime Minister Netanyahu for three decades,” a White House official told Axios. “They will likely see each other when the prime minister is here over the course of that week.” During his visit to Washington D.C., Netanyahu is scheduled to address a joint session of the US Congress on July 24, which US Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said…

France’s President Emmanuel Macron called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday night, informing him that a diplomatic solution is desperately needed to prevent a war on Lebanon. A statement by Macron’s office read, “The President of the Republic reiterated his extreme concern about the increase in tensions between Hezbollah and Israel along the Blue Line,” noting that a war between Lebanon and “Israel” “would harm both the interests of Lebanon and Israel and would constitute a particularly dangerous development for regional stability.” The statement added that Macron suggested working with the US to establish a diplomatic settlement to de-escalate hostilities. The…

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa met with Mohammed Sulaiman Al-Jasser, president of the Islamic Development Bank Group on Tuesday in Jeddah, Saudi Press Agency reported.The meeting focused on enhancing relations, alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people, and the bank’s role in the reconstruction and development efforts.Mustafa expressed gratitude to the IsDB for its unwavering support and assistance to the Palestinian people.A high-level Palestinian delegation accompanied Mustafa, including Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Wael ZaKout, IsDB Alternate Governor Naser Qatam, and Iyad Joudeh, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Palestinian Investment Fund. Source: Arab News

Political and Media Bureau of the Presidency of Syrian Arab Republic said in a statement to SANA that the Special Advisor to the Republic Presidency, Luna al-Shibl, was involved, Tuesday afternoon, in a traffic accident on one of Damascus city roads. The car she was in swerve off the road and was subjected to several collisions, leaving the advisor with serious injuries. Al-Shibl was rushed to a hospital in Damascus, where it was discovered that she had suffered a head hemorrhage which necessitated her admission to intensive care to receive treatment. Source: SANA

One of Egypt’s largest petrochemicals companies plans within a consortium to import US shale gas to address a shortage in natural gas supplies that forced several chemicals factories to temporarily shut down twice in June.