Saudi Arabia's working week change widens UAE trade window

The change to the working week in Saudi Arabia that begins from this weekend is set to benefit UAE companies as much as those in the kingdom, cutting the cost of doing business there by as much as half.

Lawyers, accountants and other professional services firms servicing Saudi Arabia out of the Emirates have applauded the move to align the weekend in the country with the rest of the Arabian Gulf, switching from Thursdays and Fridays to Fridays and Saturdays.

The Emirates has emerged as a business hub where many firms have set up their regional headquarters.

Consultants were often seconded to the kingdom on a "fly in, fly out" basis, and until now had suffered from the weekend misalignment.

"The whole consulting industry is cheering," said Hannes Reinisch, a consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Personal down time was not the only thing affected; the mismatch also reduced the time during which offices in both countries were open. It has now been eliminated by the new timings.

"It gives us a full day more when everyone is working," said Abdul Aziz Al Yaqout, a regional managing partner at DLA Piper. The law firm has two offices in Saudi Arabia, but its regional head office is in Dubai.

The move could also help to integrate the economies of the Gulf.

"Things can be done at a quicker pace. It's a further step towards the alignment of GCC economies," said Mr Al Yaqout.

The new weekend timings also bring Saudi Arabia closer to the working rhythm of North and South America, Asia and Europe, where previously the kingdom shared only three working days per week.

To professionals from western companies stationed in Saudi Arabia, this represented the worst of both worlds. "People would always call you anyway, so you'd end up working almost seven days a week," said one consultant who used to work in the kingdom.

The cost of doing business in Saudi Arabia could be cut by as much as half for some multinationals estimates Fahad Alturki, the chief economist at Jadwa Investment, the Saudi investment bank.

Traders in the Emirates and financial professionals are also set to reap dividends from the weekend change.

"The window of opportunity for foreigners to trade will be bigger," said Fadi Al Said, the head of investments at ING Investment Management in Dubai.

Saudi Arabia's bourse has a market capitalisation of more than US$383 billion, with more than 150 companies listed.

Airlines serving the kingdom from the region are already assessing their schedules to cope with the change in travel demand.

"flydubai operates to nine cities in Saudi Arabia, six of which have a minimum of a daily flight. We are looking to complement the existing service to the other three destinations with additional flights to cater for the change in the weekend," said a spokesperson in a statement yesterday.

* with reporting by Lucy Barnard, Gillian Duncan and Sananda Sahoo

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