Saudi Arabia’s industrial output rises in Jan., driven by manufacturing 

RIYADH: The number of licensed hospitality facilities in Makkah reached 1,030 by the end of 2024, marking an 80 percent increase compared to the previous year, according to Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism. 

The surge positions Makkah as the leader in the Kingdom for the highest number of licensed facilities and rooms, underscoring the region’s dedication to enhancing visitor experiences, the Saudi Press Agency reported. 

The move highlights the region’s commitment to enhancing the visitor experience while reinforcing the ministry’s dedication to protecting the rights of visitors and Umrah pilgrims using hospitality services in Makkah, as part of its ongoing efforts to improve service quality. 

“The ministry’s inspection teams conduct regular monitoring and inspection visits throughout the year to ensure that all facilities comply with licensing requirements, detect violations, and impose fines under the Tourism Law and Regulations of Tourist Accommodation Facilities,” SPA said. 

Saudi Arabia’s hospitality sector is growing beyond Makkah. By the end of the third quarter of 2024, the total number of licensed hospitality facilities across the Kingdom surpassed 3,950, marking a 99 percent increase from the third quarter of 2023. Licensed rooms climbed to 443,000, a 107 percent jump from the 214,000 recorded a year earlier. 

According to CoStar, a global real estate data provider, Makkah and Madinah have 17,646 and 20,079 rooms, respectively, in various stages of development in 2025. 

This comes as Saudi Arabia recorded 30 million inbound tourists in 2024, up from 27.4 million in 2023, government data shows. The Kingdom aims to attract 150 million visitors annually by 2030, with plans to raise the tourism sector’s gross domestic product contribution from 6 percent to 10 percent. 

Ahead of the 2024 Hajj season, the Ministry of Tourism said Makkah’s licensed hospitality facilities reached 816, providing 227,000 rooms to accommodate pilgrims. Authorities have also introduced new initiatives, including enhanced crowd management, digital meal distribution, and an expanded electric golf cart fleet at the Grand Mosque. 

The General Authority for the Care of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque has further implemented spatial guidance systems and multilingual support to improve visitor navigation, ensuring a seamless pilgrimage experience. 

Saudi Arabia’s aggressive expansion in hospitality and tourism underscores its ambition to position itself as a global travel hub, catering to both religious and leisure visitors. 

RIYADH: Egypt’s annual urban consumer price inflation fell sharply to 12.8 percent in February, down from 24 percent in January, according to the latest data from the country’s statistics agency.

The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics  attributed the decline to the base effect, noting that the exceptionally high price increases observed over the past two years are no longer influencing the inflation rate.

A Reuters survey of 15 analysts had predicted a median inflation rate of 14.5 percent, meaning February’s actual figure was significantly lower than anticipated.

On a month-to-month basis, consumer prices increased by 1.4 percent in February, a slight decrease from January’s 1.5 percent rise. This marks the fourth time in the last seven months that inflation has slowed, following a period of acceleration that began in August 2023.

Last year’s inflationary pressures were primarily driven by rising fuel prices, higher public transportation fares — including for trains and the metro—and a 300 percent hike in the price of subsidized bread in May, marking the first such increase in over 30 years.

The February slowdown was mainly attributed to an 8.2 percent drop in vegetable prices, while costs for water, electricity, and gas remained stable. On the other hand, grain and bread prices rose by 0.8 percent, meat and poultry saw a 3.2 percent increase, and fruit prices climbed by 3 percent.

Egypt’s economic foundations have been showing positive results. The banking sector saw a significant 26.9 percent increase in total deposits for the 2023/2024 fiscal year, compared to the previous 12-month period.

Earlier in February, CAPMAS reported that total banking deposits reached 11.99 trillion Egyptian pounds ($237 billion), reflecting a surge in banking activity across various sectors.

The country’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30 of the following year.

This growth in banking deposits comes amid high inflation, which peaked at 38 percent in September 2023, prompting both individuals and businesses to deposit more money in banks as a safeguard against currency devaluation.

The central bank’s attractive interest rates, along with financial inclusion initiatives under Egypt's Vision 2030 plan, also played a significant role in encouraging deposit growth.

CAPMAS data indicated that the household sector dominated Egypt’s banking deposits, accounting for 7.03 trillion pounds—an increase of 27.5 percent from the previous year. Individual depositors represented 95.9 percent of household deposits, underscoring strong saving trends among Egyptians. Overall, the household sector controlled 58.6 percent of total banking deposits.

Meanwhile, the business sector also experienced notable growth, with deposits rising to 1.99 trillion pounds—up 37.6 percent from the previous fiscal year.