- July 16, 2021
- Posted by: Stratford Team
- Category: Business
People wearing protective face masks and gloves shop at a supermarket, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 11, 2020. REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri/File Photo
LONDON, July 16 (Reuters) – Shops in Saudi Arabia may now stay open during prayer times, a leading government-linked newspaper said on Friday, relaxing the kingdom’s strict rules on closing shops and businesses for prayer five times a day.
It is the latest in a series of social and economic reforms intended to modernise the conservative kingdom and boost the private sector’s contribution to its oil-dependent economy. read more
The decision, taken by the Council of Saudi Chambers, will end decades where all shops had to shut for at least half an hour during daily Muslim prayers. These are held at dawn, midday, mid-afternoon, sunset and evening.
“To prevent crowding, gatherings, long waiting under preventive measures to fight coronavirus and to maintain the…
