CNBC Arabiya launches its Saudi news operations in Riyadh

CNBC Arabiya, the region's leading business news channel, has opened a fully-fledged news bureau in Riyadh, becoming the first international news channel to be granted a business license that permits newsgathering and reporting from the Kingdom.

HRH Prince Turki bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Minister of Culture and Information welcomed the launch of CNBC Arabiya's Riyadh Bureau. "The Saudi economy is growing and diversifying and there is a wealth of news and information about business and economic developments that CNBC Arabiya will be able to report," he said. "The opening of the CNBC Arabiya Riyadh Bureau will facilitate the delivery of comprehensive, in-depth and up-to-the-minute news of our economy and business environment. We believe CNBC Arabiya will bring its credibility, objectivity, expertise, resources and understanding of our culture and traditions to the task of covering all the many aspects of Saudi Arabia's economic development and business news."

At a press conference announcing the new CNBC Arabiya news bureau, Zafar Siddiqi, CNBC Arabiya Chairman and CEO, expressed his appreciation to the Kingdom for allowing CNBC Arabiya to operate in Saudi Arabia. "We are grateful to the Ministries of Interior, Information and Commerce and to SAGIA for giving CNBC Arabiya the opportunity to open our newsgathering operations in Saudi Arabia. It is a responsibility we take very seriously and we will undertake to cover the news objectively and with sensitivity to the Kingdom's traditions and values."

Dr. Waleed Kurdi, CNBC Arabiya Chief Editor, said, "CNBC Arabiya is committed to bring our viewers across the region a clear understanding of regional and international business news as it unfolds. We continually strive to meet the demand for on-time information of the business world by building our newsgathering infrastructure and resources. Our presence in the Kingdom will significantly enhance our coverage of the largest economy in the Middle East. The launch of our Riyadh office will allow us to deliver in-depth business news about the Kingdom with on-ground understanding and insight."

Kurdi added that since launching the channel less than six months ago, CNBC Arabiya has established itself as the leading source of television business news in the region. CNBC Arabiya delivers a ground-breaking program schedule that includes the first daily program covering the region's corporate news, the first daily regional stock market report, its signature 24-hour stock market ticker providing current prices of regional and international stocks, currencies and commodities and the first nightly international business news program live from London. "CNBC Arabiya editorial content is developed and generated by Arabs for our Arab audiences. It is not imported or pre-packaged," he said.

CNBC Arabiya is the leading business news channel in the Middle East broadcasting from Dubai Media City with dedicated news bureaus across the region.