Saudi officials have finalized a detailed plan to diversify the kingdom's economy away from oil and have sent it for cabinet approval, official media said on Monday.
The National Transformation Program (NTP) will elaborate upon Vision 2030, an 84-page document released in April by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, 30, who is leading the reform charge.

Oil prices pushed higher Monday thanks to a softer dollar after last week's disappointing US jobs report, but gains were limited as producers increased their rig count.
The US Labor Department said Friday that just 38,000 new jobs were created last month, a quarter of what was expected.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed a "new era of friendship" between his country and Qatar on a two-day trip to the emirate.

Swiss voters were on course Sunday to flatly reject a radical proposal to provide the entire population with a basic income, no work required, initial results and projections showed.

Almost 60 percent of Qatar's 2.4 million population live in what the government calls "labor camps," figures from an April 2015 census showed Sunday, highlighting the issue of the emirate's huge migrant workforce.

OPEC looks to be in a happier place with oil prices recovering, but its inability to agree an output ceiling to restrain the flow of crude betrays lingering divisions that could spell trouble ahead, analysts warn.
Meeting in Vienna on Thursday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries expressed confidence that the crisis of the past two years that saw prices plunge and splits emerge was now over.

Some 17 million visitors flock to Amsterdam every year, but the tide of tourists is now threatening to swamp the historic city famous the world over for its picturesque canals.
Many residents and politicians have decided enough is enough, and are seeking creative ways to control the deluge. With the number of visitors set to reach 30 million by 2030, it's a flood that threatens to overwhelm the Dutch city known as the Venice of the North.

Mixing spices in a searing hot pan, cooking naan in the tandoor oven and juggling takeaway orders, restaurant owner Saiful Alam is short-staffed and stressed -- a situation he hopes Brexit will improve.
Like many of those running Britain's 12,000 curry houses, the Bangladeshi chef is struggling to find suitable staff as new immigration rules have made it harder to hire people from Bangladesh and India.

In a global first, the Swiss will vote Sunday on a radical proposal to provide the entire population with enough money to live on, no strings attached.
Voters are being asked whether they want all Swiss citizens, along with foreigners who have been legal residents in Switzerland for at least five years, to receive an unconditional basic income, or UBI.

A $10 billion deal between Iran and European aircraft manufacturer Airbus for 118 aircraft is still pending authorization from the United States, Deputy Transport Minister Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan told AFP Friday.
Iran has ordered about 200 planes from three Western manufacturers since nuclear-related sanctions were lifted in mid-January.
