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7 hours ago
Wealthy Britons are seeking to move abroad, with many choosing Dubai, ahead of anticipated tax rises UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said will be aimed at “those with the broadest shoulders”. Taxpayers in Britain have been told to prepare themselves for a “painful” budget at the end of October, which is expected to include rises in capital gains and inheritance taxes. Relocation companies offering services to wealthy clients have reported a surge in inquiries. Wealth managers have said concerns over the promised tax rises are driving the demand, with separate plans to “close the non-dom tax loophole” by subjecting assets held overseas to British inheritance tax if a non-dom has lived in the UK for more than 10 years, cited as a final straw by some. Henley and Partners, a British firm which specialises in residence and citizenship by investment, told The Times 4,200 millionaires left the UK in the first five months of the year. Another 5,300 are expected to go before the end of the year. Most of them are moving to Dubai, according to the company. But Switzerland, Portugal, Italy and Cyprus are also popular destinations, it said. A record 6,700 millionaires are expected to call the UAE their new home by the end of this year, according to a recent report […]
11 hours ago
Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economic activities recorded a growth of 4.9 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2024, beating late July estimates of 4.4 percent. This growth rate is the highest in a year, according to data from the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). It was 3.4 percent in Q1 of 2024, and 4.2 percent and 3.2 percent in Q4 and Q3 of 2023 respectively. The GASTAT report showed that the seasonally adjusted real GDP in the second quarter of 2024 increased by 1.4 percent compared to the first quarter of 2024. The real GDP decreased by 0.3 percent in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period of 2023, affected by the 8.9 percent decline in oil activities. The non-oil activities achieved a growth of 4.9 percent year-on-year and 2.1 percent quarter-on-quarter. In contrast, the performance of oil activities contracted by 8.9 percent year-on-year, compared to July estimates of 8.5 percent, while achieving an increase of 0.9 percent quarter-on-quarter. Government activities achieved a growth of 3.6 percent year-on-year, and 2.3 percent quarter-on-quarter, the report pointed out. According to GASTAT, electricity, gas and water activities posted an increase of 8.9 percent year-on-year while wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels […]
12 hours ago
Saudi Arabia, represented by the Saudi General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), has won the bid to host the United Nations World Data Forum in Riyadh in 2026 after a competitive bidding process . The decision was made by the High-level Group for Partnership, Coordination and Capacity-Building for Statistics for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (HLG-PCCB), the Saudi Press Agency reported. Around 22,000 delegates from 193 countries, including data scientists, officials of the statistical offices of UN member states and individuals interested in statistics, are expected to participate in the global event. GASTAT President Dr. Fahad Aldossari presented Saudi Arabia’s bid to the HLG-PCCB group. His presentation highlighted GASTAT’s advancements in statistical work, and the Kingdom’s experience in hosting international events and its commitment to providing logistical support for a successful forum. Saudi Arabia proposed the theme “Using the latest technologies and methodologies to enhance global statistical systems and enable sustainable development” for the forum. Aldossari said in a press statement that hosting this event reflects Saudi Arabia’s prominent status among nations and underscores the commitment of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman to supporting the statistical sector. Statistical […]
1 day ago
The Saudi Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) has announced waiving the fees for all customs services for exports. The authority also reduced customs service fees for imports through a new mechanism for calculating import service fees, which involves a fee of 0.15 percent of the value of the incoming goods for customs declaration. The new fee structure will take effect on Oct. 6, 2024, the authority said in a statement. The decision regarding the Fee Rules on Customs Services was taken by the Board of Directors of ZATCA, and this includes specifying the fees on customs services provided by ZATCA and the conditions for fulfilling them. The decision also stipulates a fee of SR15 for customs declaration processing services on individuals’ shipments arriving through online stores, provided that the value of these shipments does not exceed SR1,000. ZATCA clarified that the customs services for exports for which the fees have been waived include customs declaration processing service, lead seal, land port loading services, X-ray inspection, customs data exchange, and sample analysis exchange at specialized laboratories. ZATCA added that previously the customs service fees for imports included a charge of SR100 for each container inspected by X-ray, an additional SR 100 […]
2 days ago
As we noted in recent articles on queer activist games like Dustborn, there is a vested interest by some very powerful people to dictate messaging in the video game sphere. The US government and the EU have been actively influencing gaming through ESG-like subsidies; offering developers millions of dollars if they plant woke content into their projects. It’s hard to say if Sony’s latest gaming disaster, Concord, was partially paid for with ESG cash, but the content sure feels like it was drafted up by a bunch of blue-haired weirdos in the bathroom of a progressive think-tank. Concord, a relatively generic competitive shooter with some obviously “borrowed” plot aesthetics from Marvel’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ , has all the indicators of a DEI game. This includes pie-chart diversity, no straight white males, lots of minority women, lots of fat positivity, at least one trans-woman and plenty of gender fluid pronouns. Sony spent at least eight years and $200 million (including marketing) on Concord with high expectations for the AAA title, only to discover no one wants to play as a clinically obese woman or a transgender. Concord launched with disastrous results. Gaming service Steam logged a maximum of only 697 players […]
2 days ago
Saudi Arabia’s economy has powered ahead despite Israel’s war in Gaza and Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, suggesting that the kingdom’s efforts to distance itself from regional tensions are paying off, literally. “Geopolitical events in the Middle East have not had any major impact on the Saudi economy so far,” the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in its latest report published on the kingdom’s economy. The report says that Saudi oil exports are not dependent on the Red Sea, where Iran-backed Houthis have targeted commercial ships, in what they say is in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. Likewise, Saudi Arabia’s tourism numbers “remain strong”. In general, the IMF painted a rosy picture of Saudi Arabia’s economy, with a strong banking system, growing home ownership and “robust” non-oil economic growth. The report underscores the divergence between Gulf economies and those of poorer states like Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan, whose already weak economies have been battered by Israel’s war. Saudi Arabia will take the IMF report as affirmation that it has successfully maneuvered to avoid getting sucked into the Gaza war. Saudi Arabia has become more vocal in calling for Israel to take steps towards a Palestinian state and has frozen talks to normalise ties with Israel, but […]
2 days ago
Two expat women, driven by dire financial circumstances, were lured to Bahrain with promises of work as waitresses, only to find themselves imprisoned and forced into dancing at nightclubs. The victims, who traveled from their home country to Bahrain, were tricked by a man who, in collaboration with his associates, exploited their vulnerabilities and forced them into a life of exploitation. The case unfolded when the first victim, facing financial hardship and desperate to support her family, was contacted by an unknown woman who offered her a waitress position in Bahrain with a salary ranging from 160 to 330 Bahraini Dinars. The woman, unaware of the deception, readily accepted the offer. The unknown woman then coordinated with the defendant, a Bahraini man, to arrange the victim’s travel expenses, taking advantage of her financial struggles. Upon arriving at Bahrain International Airport, the defendant greeted the victim and took her to his apartment. The following day, the defendant revealed his true intentions, demanding the victim work as a dancer at a nightclub. He provided her with clothes and makeup, but the victim refused, citing the agreement for a waitress position. She contacted the unknown woman, who responded with threats and demands to […]
3 days ago
The UK government’s plan to further raise the windfall tax on North Sea oil and gas producers will drive investments away from the region while Britain still needs oil and gas for the foreseeable future, the chief executive of Harbour Energy, the largest UKCS producer, told the Financial Times. The Labour Party, which came to power in the UK after a landslide victory in the July general election, said in July that it intends to raise the rate of the Energy Profits Levy (EPL) to 38% from 1 November 2024, from 35% now, bringing the headline rate of tax on upstream oil and gas activities to 78%, up from 75% currently. The levy will be further extended by a year to 2030. Harbour Energy’s CEO Linda Cook has criticized the levy ever since it was first introduced by the previous UK government in 2022. Now Cook told FT that a rise in the windfall tax would lift the barrier to attract investment in the UK even higher. “The fiscal regime in a lot of the other countries — in all of the other countries — in which we will have a presence will be more attractive” than the UK North […]
4 days ago
In a landmark move aimed at further boosting the burgeoning tourism and hospitality sector, Saudi Arabia has decided to waive the municipal service fees pertaining to issuing licenses for commercial activity of hotels, hotel apartments and residential resorts. The decision comes within the context of the ongoing efforts to develop and facilitate the investor journey and remove the barriers and obstacles that hinder investors from benefiting from the increasing investment opportunities in the tourism sector. The new government decision is the result of one of the initiatives of the Investment Enablers Program in the tourism sector launched by the Ministry of Tourism in March this year, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The program aims to facilitate investment in the sector and reduce operating costs to increase the competitiveness of the sector by applying the highest international standards to make the Kingdom a leading destination for investment in the tourism sector.
4 days ago
The Ministry of Commerce announced that it will allow commercial establishments and e-stores in Saudi Arabia to give 2-week special discount for consumers on the occasion of the 94th National Day. The discount period will be from September 16 to September 30, 2024. Commercial firms and e-stores can apply electronically for the seasonal discount licenses via: sales.mc.gov.sa. The electronic application aims to enable commercial establishments and e-stores to obtain discount licenses easily, print them and show them to the consumer. These discount days will not be counted in the previously allotted total annual number of days for discount sales. The ministry noted that consumers can verify the legality and validity of the discounts by scanning the barcode appearing in the discount license with a mobile camera to show him all data related to the discounts, including the type and percentage of discounts, their duration, in addition to the establishment’s data. The ministry reiterated that its officials will continue inspection tours of commercial establishments and e-stores in all regions across the Kingdom to verify the legality of discounts and monitor the compliance of the regulations issued by it in this regard.
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