If you live in the Middle East, you may think that the Pacific Ocean is far away. Please, think again.

All’s well that ends well: After two weeks of tussle between OPEC stalwarts and long-time allies Saudi Arabia and the UAE over whether Abu Dhabi should be permitted to increase its baseline from which production cuts are calculated, a pre-Eid grand bargain was reached.

The visit by Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq to Saudi Arabia was a double first. It was the first visit to the Kingdom by an Omani leader in more than a decade, and the sultan’s first foreign trip since he ascended the throne on Jan. 11 last year.

Three days of talks ended in an impasse for OPEC+, the alliance of OPEC members and 10 friendly nations led by Russia.

Who would have thought a little over a year ago on that doomed day in April when WTI went into negative territory, as the pandemic shut down economies and travel alike, that Brent would surpass $75 per barrel? It did so last week.

In asset management, size matters because it gives materiality and buying power.

Under Vision 2030, which aims to wean Saudi Arabia off its dependency on oil, the Kingdom is keen to establish national champions. The quest for efficiency straddles all aspects of the economy.