RIYADH: Kuwait’s $600 billion sovereign wealth fund has been trapped in the midst of a power struggle, entering in limbo since its board’s tenure expired two months ago, Bloomberg reported.
A new term has yet to be approved as political differences extend to a disagreement over the make-up of the nine-member board, Bloomberg said, citing a person familiar with the matter.
The Future Generations Fund is run by the Kuwait Investment Authority KIA and designed as a savings pot for life after oil, and is largely unbreakable without parliament’s approval.
KIA is in a state of uncertainty and policy making is paralyzed, which prompted ratings agencies to warn of downgrades, leaving the government scrambling for cash.
The deep confrontation between members of the only elected parliament in the Gulf and a government whose leader is appointed by the ruling Emir has prevented the state from borrowing and left it with barely enough cash to pay public sector salaries, Bloomberg said.
This dispute is also delaying investment and economic reforms, including welfare reform, which the government said is needed to end eight consecutive years of budget deficits, Bloomberg reported.
Kuwaiti sovereign fund trapped in a power struggle
https://arab.news/n7svc
Kuwaiti sovereign fund trapped in a power struggle
- A new term has yet to be approved as political differences extend to a disagreement over the make-up of the nine-member board
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in red at 11,183
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index dipped on Monday, losing 44.79 points, or 0.4 percent, to close at 11,183.85.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR4.05 billion ($1.08 billion), as 69 of the listed stocks advanced, while 191 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased, down 6.63 points or 0.44 percent, to close at 1,504.73.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 328.20 points, or 1.36 percent, to close at 23,764.92. This comes as 22 of the listed stocks advanced, while 49 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Maharah Human Resources Co., with its share price surging by 7.26 percent to SR6.50.
Other top performers included Arabian Cement Co., which saw its share price rise by 6.27 percent to SR22.71, and Saudi Research and Media Group, which saw a 4.3 percent increase to SR104.30.
On the downside, the worst performer of the day was Arabian Internet and Communications Services Co., whose share price fell by 8.01 percent to SR207.80.
Jahez International Co. for Information System Technology and Al-Rajhi Co. for Cooperative Insurance also saw declines, with their shares dropping by 5.61 percent and 4.46 percent to SR12.79 and SR75, respectively.
On the announcement front, Etihad Etisalat Co. announced its financial results for 2025 with a 7.9 percent year-on-year growth in its revenues, to reach SR19.6 billion.
In a Tadawul statement, Mobily said that this growth is attributed to “the expansion of all revenue streams, with a healthy growth in the overall subscriber base.”
Mobily delivered an 11.6 percent increase in net profit, reaching SR3.4 billion in 2025 compared to SR3.1 billion in 2024.
The company’s share price reached SR67.85, marking a 0.37 percent increase on the main market.
