FINEX 2023 inaugurated in Tehran

The 15th International Exhibition of Financial Industries (Exchange, Bank and Insurance) – Iran FINEX 2023- kicked off at Tehran Permanent International Fairground on Tuesday, IRIB reported.

The opening ceremony of the exhibition was attended by senior officials including Head of Iran International Exhibitions Company Ahmadreza Alaei and Head of Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO) Majid Eshqi.

Speaking at the ceremony, Alaei said: “The country's financial industry is growing and we are witnessing creativity in this field.”

According to the official, some 136 companies are participating in this four-day event.

Also addressing the opening ceremony, Eshqi said the exhibition is a great opportunity for people to increase their knowledge about financial markets.

“This exhibition will be a golden opportunity to increase financial knowledge for the general public and economic operators. Financial literacy is one of the important components of the new era,” he said.

“Many positive things have happened over the past two years and this exhibition is a great opportunity for the people and companies active in the capital market to present their developments and creativity,” Eshqi noted.

“For the first time and in order to measure the state of financial literacy in the country, the Securities and Exchange Organization has established a capital market Consumer Opinion Center (COC),” he added.

According to the SEO head, the COC has been established mainly with the aim of increasing the general public and stock market shareholders’ financial literacy.

The slogan of this year's exhibition is "Propelling financial industry, growth of production and containment of inflation".

Raising awareness about financial markets and their services, increasing financial literacy, promoting indirect shareholding, developing and promotion of new services in insurance and financial markets, digitization of payment, as well as electronic banking, are among the most important goals of this exhibition.

 

Iran adds 15 ships to its merchant fleet

Iran has added 15 ships to its trade maritime fleet in the Caspian Sea amid growing trade ties with Russia and other countries located to the north of Iran.

According to Mehr News Agency, the head of Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO) has said that expanding Iran’s northern fleet of commercial vessels has become a priority for the country’s Transport and Urban Development Ministry, of which the PMO is a subsidiary.

“Given that the volume of trade with neighboring countries to the north is growing, the first priority for the ministry is to expand the fleet and to increase the capacity in the Caspian Sea,” Ali-Akbar Safaei said on Saturday.

Safaei said Iran’s Caspian Sea merchant fleet will further expand in the near future with the arrival of new ships from the Volga River.

The announcement comes amid growing shipping activity in the Caspian Sea as Russia and other countries have ramped up their exports and imports via Iran and its southern ports.

Media reports and statements by Iranian authorities show there has been a major surge in trade via the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a route that connects the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean to countries to the north of Iran via the Iranian road and rail transportation network.

Iran has created new infrastructure, including modern port operation systems, in its northern ports to both facilitate cargo transit via the INSTC and to increase its own exports to Russia and other countries.

Last month, Iran and Russia signed a contract to build a key railway along the Caspian Sea that would significantly boost trade via INSTC’s western branch.

 

 

Iran will reopen embassy in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday

The Iranian Foreign Ministry announced on Monday that the country would re-open diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia in the next two days.

Nasser Kanaani, spokesman of the ministry, said in a statement that the Iranian embassy in the Saudi capital Riyadh and consulate general and representative office to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Jeddah will officially re-open on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The decision was part of the process to finish implementing the agreements, reached between Saudi Arabia and Iran to resume bilateral relations, according to a statement published on the ministry’s website. Iran has appointed Alireza Enayati, a veteran diplomat, as its ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, a diplomatic source in Riyadh said that the reopening of the Iranian embassy will take place on Tuesday at 6:00 pm in the presence of new Ambassador Enayati. “To implement the agreement...Iran’s embassy in Riyadh, our Consulate-General in Jeddah and the office of our permanent representative to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation will be officially re-opened on Tuesday and Wednesday,” Kanaani said earlier.

Kanaani added that the embassy in Riyadh and its consulate-general in Jeddah had already begun operating to help Iranian pilgrims heading to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, set to start by the end of June. The announcement comes after Tehran named Alireza Enayati as its ambassador to Saudi Arabia last month.

Under a Chinese-brokered deal reached in March, Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to re-establish relations, which were severed in 2016 following an attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad.

 

Oil production cut decision is precautionary, Saudi Energy Minister

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said that the decision to cut oil production is a precautionary one. “We will continue to hedge as long as we do not see clarity and stability in the market and our mission is to give the oil market clear data for stability,” he said while speaking to reporters after the end of the OPEC Plus meeting.

Prince Abdulaziz pointed out that independent agencies will work with OPEC Plus countries with regard to evaluating their production in 2024, “Independent agencies will end the previous controversy over production data in OPEC Plus.”

Regarding Russia’s data, Prince Abdulaziz said, “we discussed with Russia the issue of its production and asked it to clarify its data, and we have strengthened the concept of transparency with Russia about its oil production figures.”

In a press conference following the meeting of the OPEC Plus coalition on Sunday, the minister said that the OPEC Plus agreement that was reached on Sunday is unprecedented, and that independent agencies will be assigned to verify the production capacity of each country.

He emphasized that the OPEC meeting was constructive and contributed to the stability of oil markets. “The recent measures reflect our responsibility as a mature central bank for oil. We want to prove to the world that we have the tools to stabilize the oil market and our decision helps to enhance the stability of the markets and prevents volatility, because the stability of the markets is the most important thing we have,” he said.

“We are not worried about supplies in the coming year. We do not target specific oil prices, but rather we aim to reduce market volatility,” the minister said while stressing that Russia is adhered to its commitments regarding oil production.

On Saudi-American relations Prince Abdulaziz said, “Our relationship with the United States has been going on for 80 years, and we look forward to more cooperation. All American officials are welcome to Saudi Arabia,” he said.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced that the OPEC Plus group decided at its meeting on Sunday to adjust the bloc’s production level to 40.4 million barrels per day, starting from January 2024 and for a period of one year.

The alliance said, in a statement published by OPEC on its website, that it was agreed to hold the ministerial meeting of the group that includes OPEC members and non-OPEC producers, including Russia, every six months. The statement added that it was also agreed to hold the next meeting of the OPEC Plus group in Vienna on November 26.

OPEC Plus reached a deal on output policy after seven hours of talks and decided to reduce overall production targets from 2024 by a further total of 1.4 million barrels per day.

Venezuelan president arrives Saudi Arabia

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday, state media reported, as the kingdom continues to expand its diplomatic outreach beyond traditional Western alliances.

Maduro was received at the airport of the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah by Deputy Governor of Mecca region Prince Badr bin Sultan and other officials, Saudi state news agency SPA reported.

Venezuela's Maduro is the latest US foe to visit Saudi Arabia as the kingdom rebuilds alliances without the blessing of the United States, its long-time ally.

Riyadh has restored ties with Iran and Syria over the last months and strengthened its cooperation with China and Russia.

SPA did not give a reason for Maduro's visit but the fellow OPEC nation had sought coordination in the past with Saudi Arabia on falling oil prices and US sanctions.

Maduro's visit comes a day before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken lands in Saudi Arabia for talks with the Saudi leadership.

Since taking office, US President Joe Biden has eased some sanctions on Venezuela - many imposed by his predecessor Donald Trump in a maximum pressure campaign - to encourage dialogue. But negotiations have stalled again.

The United States says it will ease sanctions on the OPEC nation only in return for concrete steps toward free elections there

World spy chiefs meet in Singapore

According to Reuters, senior officials from about two dozen of the world's major intelligence agencies held a secret meeting on the fringes of the Shangri-La Dialogue security meeting in Singapore this weekend.

Such meetings are organized by the Singapore government and have been discreetly held at a separate venue alongside the security summit for several years. The meetings have not been previously reported.

The US was represented by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, the head of her country's intelligence community, while China was among the other countries present, despite the tensions between the two superpowers.

Samant Goel, the head of India's overseas intelligence gathering agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), also attended.

"The meeting is an important fixture on the international shadow agenda," said one person with knowledge of the discussions. "Given the range of countries involved, it is not a festival of tradecraft, but rather a way of promoting a deeper understanding of intentions and bottom lines.

"There is an unspoken code among intelligence services that they can talk when more formal and open diplomacy is harder - it is a very important factor during times of tension, and the Singapore event helps promote that."

A spokesperson for the Singapore Ministry of Defence said that while attending the Shangri-La Dialogue, participants including senior officials from intelligence agencies also take the opportunity to meet their counterparts.

"The Singapore Ministry of Defence may facilitate some of these bilateral or multilateral meetings," the spokesperson said. "Participants have found such meetings held on the sidelines of the (dialogue) beneficial."

The United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand operate what is called the Five Eyes network to gather and share a broad range of intelligence, and their intelligence officials meet frequently.

Larger meetings of the intelligence community are rarer, and almost never publicized.

Although few details were available on the specific discussions in Singapore, Russia's war in Ukraine and transnational crime figured in the talks on Friday. On Thursday evening, the intelligence chiefs held an informal gathering.

No Russian representative was present, one of the sources said. Ukraine's deputy defence minister, Volodymr V. Havrylov, was at the Shangri-La Dialogue but said he did not attend the intelligence meeting.

Another of the sources said the tone at the meeting was collaborative and cooperative, and not confrontational.

At the main security dialogue, more than 600 delegates from 49 countries held three days of plenary sessions, as well as closed-door bilateral and multilateral meetings at the sprawling Shangri-La Hotel.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gave the keynote address while US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu and counterparts from Britain, Japan, Canada, Indonesia and South Korea also spoke.

Haines was among the official US delegates to the Shangri-La Dialogue. At a discussion on cybersecurity in the main meeting, she said in response to a question from a Chinese military officer that cooperation between countries was essential.

"It is absolutely critical, even when there is distrust, and even when you are facing in effect adversaries, that you still try to work through and cooperate on issues of mutual interest and also try to manage the potential for escalation," she said.

US officials said on Friday that CIA Director William Burns visited China last month for talks with Chinese counterparts as the Biden administration seeks to boost communications with Beijing.

 

Challenges facing Tayyip Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been sworn in as head of state after winning an historic run-off election to extend his two-decade rule for another five years.

The 69 year old leader has to select a Cabinet, which will be tasked with handling an economic crisis that has witnessed runaway inflation and the collapse of the lira.

“I, as president, swear upon my honor and integrity before the great Turkish nation and history to safeguard the existence and independence of the state,” Erdogan said in a ceremony at the parliament in Ankara, broadcast live on television.

Erdogan, took the oath of office on Saturday, ushering in his third presidential term that followed three stints as prime minister.

President Erdogan was sworn in during a session in parliament before an inauguration ceremony at his sprawling palace complex. Supporters waited outside parliament despite the heavy rain, covering his car with red carnations as he arrived.

Erdogan defeated opposition challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu in a runoff vote held on May 28, after he narrowly failed to secure an outright victory in a first round of voting on May 14.

Kilicdaroglu had promised to put Turkey on a more democratic path and improve relations with the West. International observers deemed the elections to be free but not fair.

Saturday’s inauguration was followed by a lavish ceremony at the presidential palace in the capital attended by dozens of world leaders. Turkey’s longest-serving leader faces considerable diplomatic challenges amid tensions with the West.

78 members of the international community attended the oath-taking ceremony. Some of the guests include Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, according to the state-run Anadolu news agency.

Addressing the country’s economic troubles will be Erdogan’s priority with inflation running at 43.7%, partly because of his unorthodox policy of cutting interest rates to stimulate growth.

Analysts have warned if current policies continue, the economy is heading for greater turmoil given depleted foreign reserves, an expanding state-backed protected deposits scheme, and unchecked inflation expectations.

The lira has undergone a series of crashes in recent years and hit new all-time lows in the days after the vote.

Turkey’s new members of parliament started being sworn in on Friday in their first session after the May 14 election, also attended by Erdogan. His alliance holds a majority in the 600-seat parliament.

Meanwhile, NATO allies are anxiously waiting for Ankara to green light Sweden’s attempt to join the United States-led defense alliance before a summit in July.

Erdogan has been dragging his feet on approving the application, accusing Stockholm of sheltering terrorists of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is listed as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg attended Erdogan’s inauguration and scheduled to hold talks with him.

Sweden’s Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said on Twitter a clear message emerged at a NATO meeting in Oslo for Turkey and Hungary to start the ratification process.

His Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, responded, “A crystal clear message to our Swedish Friends! Fulfill your commitments arising from Trilateral Memorandum and take concrete steps in the fight against terrorism.”

Erdogan was sworn in amid a host of domestic challenges ahead, including a battered economy, pressure for the repatriation of millions of Syrian refugees and the need to rebuild after a devastating earthquake in February that killed 50,000 and levelled entire cities in the south of the country.

Turkey is also grappling with a cost-of-living crisis fueled by inflation that peaked at a staggering 85% in October 2022 before easing to 44% last month. The Turkish currency has lost more than 10% of its value against the US dollar since the start of the year.

Unconfirmed media reports say Erdogan plans to reappoint Mehmet Simsek, a respected former finance minister and deputy prime minister, to the helm of the economy.

The move would signify a return by the country — which is the world’s 19th largest economy according to the World Bank — to more orthodox economic policies