S Arabia races through financial toolkit to raise funds
Dubai
SAUDI Arabia's plans to bolster its finances are taking on a new sense of urgency as lower oil prices put the economy under more strain than at any other time in the past decade.
In recent weeks, the kingdom raised a US$10 billion loan, clamped down on currency speculators and informed banks of plans to raise as much as US$15 billion in its first international bond sale, people with knowledge of the matter said. It's also said to be contemplating IOUs to pay contractor bills and hired HSBC Holdings plc banker Fahad Al Saif to set up a new debt office.
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
International
Malaysian fast food operator QSR shelves IPO plans amid boycott campaign: sources
WHO warns of bird flu risk spreading to cows outside US
Sri Lanka’s key inflation rate rises to 1.5% in April
Eurozone economy rebounds in first quarter, inflation stable in April
The Fed’s quantitative easing programme has cost too much
German economy skirts recession, helped by construction and exports