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Former Asir governor Prince Faisal Bin Khalid Bin Abdelaziz has purchased an unspecified stake in White Abarrio, ahead of the champion racehorse’s appearance in the $20m Saudi Cup on 24 February.

Efforts to bring the Gaza conflict to an end continue, with little apparent prospect of short-term success. Arab states are pushing for Israel to end its bombardment but there is just as much focus on trying to ensure the war doesn’t escalate into a regional conflagration. A key challenge is the Houthis’ campaign against commercial shipping in the Red Sea, which Washington and allies are struggling to counter despite a major attack on targets in Yemen on 12 January.

The Saudi government said its non-oil mineral resources are now thought to be worth some $2.5trn, based on recent discoveries and rising demand for rare earth elements. It is following the UAE’s lead in looking to strike deals with African mineral producers such as Democratic Republic of Congo.

From the ruling family’s Al-Muqrin branch, new Saudi ambassador in Madrid Princess Haifa Bint Abdelaziz previously served as the kingdom’s envoy to the UN’s cultural and educational arm Unesco.

Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s favoured Public Investment Fund has been among the most prominent clients of US lobbying and legal firms over the past year, as Saudi Arabia seeks to strengthen its relations with Washington and support its subsidiaries’ investments in the American market.

The Saudi offer of long-term tax incentive comes just before new rules are introduced in January stipulating that international companies must base their regional headquarters in the kingdom if they want to compete for government contracts. Saudi Arabia has made the most high-profile recent moves to attract foreign investment, but even the more conservative Kuwait and ‘revolutionary’ Iran are easing terms for incomers.

King Salman Bin Abdelaziz has made changes to the leadership of six of Saudi Arabia’s 13 regions and one of its governorates. GSN analyses the new round of appointments and profiles those on the up.

Royal Saudi Air Force pilot Prince Talal Bin Abdelaziz Bin Bandar Al-Saud died on 7 December, the same day an RSAF F-15 crashed in Dhahran.

An extensive diplomatic effort by Saudi officials paid off on 28 November, when Riyadh was selected to host the World Expo 2030, seeing off competition from Busan in South Korea and the Italian capital Rome. 

The Saudi government has set out SR1.25tn ($333.6bn) worth of spending plans for 2024, in a budget statement issued on 6 December.

Russian President Vladimir Putin made an unexpected visit to the UAE and Saudi Arabia on 6 December – a rare foreign excursion for a leader who has tended to stay close to home since launching the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Notably, neither Gulf country is a signatory to the International Criminal Court, which in March issued an arrest warrant for Putin over Russian war crimes in Ukraine.

A showcase mega-event has its downsides, even while the climate  talks place the UAE at the centre of the global stage.

Saudi-headquartered multilateral the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) unveiled a new identity, rebranding as The Arab Energy Fund, during the COP28 climate talks on 4 December.

The Royal Court announced on 1 December the death of Prince Mamdouh Bin Abdelaziz, a half-brother of King Salman Bin Abdelaziz. Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) performed the funeral prayers at the Grand Mosque in Mecca on the same day.

The Riyadh-based Hevolution Foundation, set up in 2018 and now jointly run by Princess Haya Bint Khalid Bin Bandar Al-Saud and former Mayo Clinic endocrinologist Mehmood Khan, is due to hold its inaugural Global Healthspan Summit in late November. The event will focus on extending healthy years of life and announce investments in the sector.