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RIYADH: Gold prices inched higher on Tuesday as risk appetite weakened ahead of US inflation data that could support the Federal Reserve’s aggressive policy stance to contain rising pricing pressures. Spot gold was up 0.3 percent at $1,958.61 per ounce, as of 0407 GMT, after hitting its highest in nearly a month on Monday.
US gold futures rose 0.8 percent at $1,962.90.
Auto-catalyst metal palladium gained 1 percent at $2,457.49, after hitting its highest since March 24 at $2,550.58 on Monday following a sale block by London markets.
Among other precious metals, spot silver rose 0.4 percent to $25.18 per ounce and platinum was up 0.5 percent at $981.56.
US grains futures rose on Tuesday, with wheat climbing to its strongest level in more than two weeks and corn near a five-week high on persistent concerns over the Russia-Ukraine conflict that continues to disrupt Black Sea exports.
As Black Sea shipments from major wheat exporters Ukraine and Russia remained hampered, further tightening global supplies, the spotlight now is on winter wheat production in the US Plains, where farmers face risks from drought.
The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade was up 1.8 percent at $11.08-1/2 a bushel, as of 0408 GMT, shortly after touching $11.09-1/2, its highest since March 24.
The CBOT corn contract gained 0.9 percent at $7.71-1/4 a bushel, hovering near a five-week high of $7.78 scaled in the previous session.
CBOT soybeans climbed 0.6 percent to $16.65-1/2 a bushel, below a two-week high of nearly $17 hit in the previous session.
Shanghai aluminium prices fell for a sixth straight session on Tuesday to their lowest in more than three months, as COVID-19 curbs in top consumer China and bets over aggressive policy tightening fanned growth and demand concerns.
The most-traded May aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SAFcv1 was down 1.4 percent at $3,300.84 a ton by noon break, after falling to its lowest since Jan. 6 at $3,233.37.
Three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.5 percent at $3,265 a ton as of 0430 GMT.
RIYADH: Fahd Hamzh Cynndy is the CEO of Saudia Aerospace Engineering Industries. He is also an executive board member at Saudi Ground Services.
SAEI is a world-class maintenance, repair and overhaul organization, one of the largest and most experienced of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Before this position, Cynndy served as CEO of SGS, the driving force behind efficient and safe ground handling at 28 airports in Saudi Arabia.
Cynndy earned an associate degree in commercial aviation at North Dakota University in the US. In addition, he has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Western New England University, Massachusetts and received an MBA at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Cynndy attended a certificate course in leadership at Stanford Graduate School of Business in 2019. He has more than 6,300 flight hours and has obtained an American a US federal license for commercial aviation. He is also an IATA-certified aviation instructor.
Since 2019, Cynndy has been a part-time vice chairman of the Helicopter Company, established in 2018. He has also been a board member of the Saudi Amad for Airport Services and Transport since 2019.
He worked for Saudi Aramco as the manager of its aviation department from 1995 to 2019. He was also the chairman of the Gulf Flight Safety Aviation.
Recently, SAEI and Prince Sultan Aviation Academy signed an agreement with the US-based Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology to exchange training experiences, qualify national cadres, and enhance the quality of training in aircraft maintenance.
NEW YORK: Climate action is essential to help ensure a sustainable future for the global tourism industry, Saudi Arabia’s tourism minister told the UN on Thursday.
In a speech during the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly, Ahmed Al-Khateeb underscored the vulnerability of the sector in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and amid the ongoing effects of climate change and extreme weather events.
He pointed out that carbon dioxide emissions resulting from tourism are forecast to increase by 25 percent by 2030, compared with 2016 levels, and it is therefore “critical” that action on climate change be scaled up.
“The tourism sector lost an estimated 62 million jobs globally during the global pandemic,” he said. “COVID-19 highlighted the vulnerability of the sector, not only to pandemics but also to the effects of extreme weather.
“Addressing climate change is at the heart of building a more resilient tourism industry and there is no resilience without sustainability. We must work collaboratively to put sustainable and resilient tourism at the heart of inclusive recovery, to ensure long-term sector resilience for people and the planet.
“Only by doing these things together will we ensure a better and more resilient future for the millions of people around the world who rely on tourism.”
Al-Khateeb said the effects of the pandemic had underscored the need to secure the future of the tourism sector and further highlighted the need to protect the environment.
Saudi authorities have launched a range of biodiversity and conservation initiatives designed to breed and protect endangered species, in line with the aims of the country’s Vision 2030 development and diversification plan.
By the end of the decade, the Kingdom aims to be conserving a total area of land 11 times the size Belgium and has committed to protecting 20 percent of its land, coastal and marine environments. In partnership with the Middle East Green Initiative, as part of which 40 billion trees will be planted across the region, the project will restore 200 million hectares of degraded land. This represent 5 percent of a global target of planting 1 trillion trees.
At COP 26, the UN Climate Change Conference held in Glasgow last November, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced the launch of the Sustainable Tourism Global Center, a multi-stakeholder platform for action that will help to accelerate the sector’s transition to net-zero emissions.
In addition, a new Tourism Panel on Climate Change, a climate science assessment and measurement initiative by the STGC, will help to advance climate-resilient tourism and demonstrate the important role of the travel and tourism sector in contributing to improved human development.
RIYADH: Ryyan Tarabzoni is the CEO of Jeddah Airports Co. He also chairs the board of directors of Al-Tanfeethi Co. that manages and operates all airport executive terminals and offices in Saudi Arabia.
Tarabzoni has more than 25 years of experience in business development and transformation, with expertise in operational excellence, maximizing productivity, building quality assurance and developing supply chain excellence in both public and private sectors.
In his current role, Tarabzoni will lead and oversee the overall transformation and corporatization of the King Abdulaziz International Airport, which is part of the Kingdom’s aviation strategy. Before his current role at Jeddah Airport Co., Tarabzoni was the CEO and board member of Saudi Air Navigation Services Co.
He began his career at Saudi Aramco and held senior positions at Proctor & Gamble, Tasnee & Aviation. He also sits on the board of several companies.
Tarabzoni earned his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of the Pacific, California, US. He completed several executive programs at INSEAD Business School, France and received a certificate of management excellence from Harvard Business School.
A Bahraini national, Captain Waleed Abdulhameed Al-Alawi joined Gulf Air as the deputy CEO in 2017, bringing over 37 years of experience in various aviation-related positions.
In addition to his extensive flying qualifications, Al-Alawi holds an MBA in aviation management from the City University of London.
Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, commenced operations in 1950, becoming one of the first commercial airlines established in the Middle East. The airline operates scheduled flights from its hub at Bahrain International Airport to cities in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Indian sub-continent and the Far East. The company currently serves all its destinations with a wide- and narrow-bodied fleet of Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
Renowned for its traditional Arabian hospitality, evidenced by its signature family and business-friendly products, the airline is committed to being an industry leader and developing products and services that reflect its passengers’ evolving needs and aspirations.
Gulf Air connects Bahrain to the world and, as such, is a critical national infrastructure asset, serving as a powerful driver for the economy and supporting the Kingdom’s ongoing economic growth.
With its mobile app and Bahrain stopover program, the airline promotes Bahrain as a tourist destination to the world.
Gulf Air has been the title sponsor of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix held in the Middle East since 2004. In addition, the airline has been the official carrier of the biennial Bahrain International Airshow since it was first held in 2010.
Saudi Arabia’s Tourism Development Fund approved six strategic tourism projects worth SR1.5 billion ($400 million) in the first quarter of 2022, Argaam has reported.
On its official Twitter account, the fund stated that it launched three main programs, in cooperation with the Small and Medium Enterprises Loan Guarantee Program.
The fund also concluded partnerships and agreements with the Ministry of Culture, the Cultural Development Fund, Radisson Blu and Deutsche Hospitality.