- Title: As online shopping picks up, business thrives for Saudi shipment company
- Date: 11th June 2020
- Summary: RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA (JUNE 9, 2020) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WAITING IN TWO LINES OUTSIDE 'NAQEL' SHIPMENTS STORAGE FACILITY PACKAGES AND EMPLOYEES AT NAQEL SHIPMENTS STORAGE FACILITY PART-TIME EMPLOYEE LOOKING THROUGH PACKAGES VARIOUS OF SUPERVISOR READING PAPERS AND SPEAKING TO EMPLOYEE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) NAQEL COUNTRY DIRECTOR, ABDULRAHMAN ALZAHRANI, SAYING: "The '
- Embargoed: 25th June 2020 11:23
- Keywords: COVID-19 Saudi Arabia economy jobs market
- Location: RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA
- City: RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA
- Country: Saudi Arabia
- Topics: Economic Events
- Reuters ID: LVA001CHXEU19
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A Saudi shipment company has achieved the seemingly impossible - it created job opportunities in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak.
As many private sector employees across the kingdom face salary cuts, the Naqel Express Company provided part-time employment for thousands of young Saudis.
The company stepped up its delivery services after the outbreak drove up online shopping. With many companies unable to fulfill the delivery of their products, Naqel sought the help of young part-time employees to sort and deliver packages for customers across the country.
"The Tarikak program depends on the Saudi youth to deliver the packages. The (programme) was around before the pandemic, but it became more efficient after the pandemic, and it helped cover over 60 percent of clients' package deliveries across the kingdom," said director of gateway and customs clearance at the company, Ammar Alharbi.
More than 50,000 Saudis applied to work with the company, managers say. Orders received by the company increased to 200 percent after the pandemic.
One man, Abo Bader, said he applied for this job after facing a 40 percent salary cut at his company. Adding that this would help supplement his income during these difficult times.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman shook up the conservative kingdom in 2016 with an ambitious vision to wean the economy off oil income, create a thriving private sector and generate millions of jobs in new industries and mega projects.
But low oil prices and the coronavirus have battered the finances of the world's largest oil exporter at a time when state spending remains its economic engine and large foreign capital inflows have proven elusive. Unemployment among Saudis stands at 12 percent.
The economy is expected to shrink 2.3 percent this year versus 0.3 percent growth in 2019, according to the International Monetary Fund. Central bank foreign exchange reserves fell in March at their fastest rate in 20 years as the kingdom recorded a $9 billion budget deficit in the first quarter.
(Production: Nael Shyoukhi, Mohammed Benmansour) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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