Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - US-Saudi pact

The US and Saudi Arabia are said to be nearing a historic pact that would offer the kingdom security guarantees and lay out a possible pathway to diplomatic ties with Israel. The agreement would amount to a new version of a framework that was scuttled by the Israel-Hamas war. Negotiations have sped up in recent weeks, and many officials are optimistic that Washington and Riyadh could reach a deal soon. Such an accord would potentially reshape the Middle East: Beyond bolstering Israel and Saudi Arabia’s security, it would strengthen the US’s position in the region at the expense of Iran and even China. —David E. Rovella  

If this latest idea out of the White House works, it could bring the foreign policy of President Joe Biden full circle in less than a year—and with an ironic twist, Andreas Kluth writes in Bloomberg Opinion. The potential pact between the US and Saudi Arabia is different than its first iteration, which was intended as a three-way deal with Israel to isolate Iran. This version, Kluth writes, would aim just as much to pressure Israel.

New York police detain demonstrators from a protest encampment and Hamilton Hall at Columbia University in New York City on April 30. Demonstrations over the war in Gaza continue to spread across the US. Photographer: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

No one expected a rate move, but the US Federal Reserve nevertheless garnered a lot of attention on Wednesday. The central bank signaled fresh concerns about inflation while indicating it was likely to keep borrowing costs elevated for longer rather than raising them again. Officials unanimously decided to leave the target range for the benchmark federal funds rate at 5.25% to 5.5%—where it’s been since July—following a slew of data that pointed to lingering price pressures. “So far this year, the data have not given us that greater confidence in particular” that rate cuts are appropriate, Chair Jerome Powell said.

The Fed also said it will shrink its balance sheet at a slower place beginning in June, reducing the amount of Treasuries it lets roll off every month in a step meant in part to ease potential strain on money-market rates. The Fed said it will lower the monthly cap on how much Treasuries it will allow to mature without being reinvested, to $25 billion from $60 billion, while keeping the cap for mortgage-backed securities unchanged at $35 billion. The Fed amassed a pile of debt as part of economic-stimulus measures during the pandemic. The central bank has been winding down its holdings since June 2022, a process known as quantitative tightening.

The yen advanced more than 3% against the dollar late in New York, fueling speculation that the Japanese authorities intervened for a second time this week to support the currency after a prolonged bout of weakness. The yen sharply strengthened from a level of around 157.58 per dollar to as strong as 153.04, as more than $4 billion of yen-related futures were exchanged in the last trading hour of the day. That was the largest number of contracts since Feb. 2, according to volumes data recorded by CME. “From the price action, it’s similar to an intervention move,” said Yusuke Miyairi, a currency strategist at Nomura International.

In False Creek, a waterfront community in Vancouver, Canada, the energy being used to heat homes comes from an unlikely source. Instead of a boiler, each building’s hot water arrives in underground pipes from a city-owned plant that uses alternative energy. A growing number of municipalities are incorporating this strategy into plans to cut fossil fuel consumption, using sources such as geothermal or solar instead of oil or natural gas. They’re indications of a growing understanding that every bit of renewable energy must be harnessed to avoid the worst global warming has to offer. And we mean every little bit: In the case of False Creek, for example, the energy source is sewage.

The False Creek development in Vancouver Photographer: Seong Joon Cho/Bloomberg

Kenya projected its budget deficit for the coming financial year at a 15-year low, boosted by spending cuts and aggressive revenue collection. The National Treasury forecast a shortfall of 514.7 billion shillings ($3.82 billion), equivalent to 2.9% of gross domestic product, according to estimates presented to lawmakers on Tuesday. That’s significantly lower than earlier projections. “The fiscal policy endeavors to strike an appropriate balance—addressing rising debt and social discontent—while recognizing the difficult trade-offs exerted by Kenya’s limited fiscal space,” the Treasury said.

For years, an artificial archipelago built in the shape of a world map was seen as a symbol of the excesses that brought Dubai to the brink of bankruptcy. State-owned Nakheel PJSC had finished creating “The World” archipelago of more than 250 islands in the Persian Gulf for $13 billion back in 2008. But the developer, which also created Dubai’s famed palm tree-shaped islands, was forced to suspend work on all of its projects once the global economy ground to a halt. Tumbling prices and mounting debt at parent company Dubai World eventually led to a bailout from neighboring Abu Dhabi. Since then, the market’s fortunes have reversed—and then some. Now, the children of a billionaire developer are seeking to revive the project with beachfront mansions starting at $13.6 million.

The Amali Island development Illustration: Amali Properties

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On the southern coastline of Greece’s capital, a long-awaited plan to transform the city’s former airport into the largest smart city in Europe is finally gaining momentum. After a decade of delays, a vision of the Ellinikon is emerging. The Marina Tower, soon to be Greece’s first skyscraper, is beginning to rise. Iron skeletons of condos are taking form. Standing on the marina, with a view of the Saronic Gulf on one side and the tower on the other, it’s possible to imagine the future city, which will feature the open spaces, sustainable energy sources and abundant green spaces that Athens currently lacks.

A model of the project at the Ellinikon Experience Center.  Photographer: Nick Paleologos/Bloomberg

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