Saudi Arabia, the Arab world’s biggest economy, has signed five investment agreements in aerospace, technology and finance in a bid to strengthen the kingdom’s position in global value chains.
The agreements were signed by the Saudi Ministry of Investment on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh.
In aerospace, the ministry linked up with Boston-based plane maker Boeing and local advanced metals maker Tasnee.
It signed another pact with the US space training company Orbite to develop investment opportunities in space tourism and entertainment.
Saudi Arabia aims to localise nearly 50 per cent of the aerospace and defence sector’s expenditure by 2030.
In the past, it has attracted investment from various companies in the aerospace and defence supply chain sector, from global original equipment makers and small and medium enterprises.
Major business reforms, including easy online licensing, 100 per cent foreign ownership and the establishment of the General Authority of Military industries as the regulatory body have enabled this swift progress.
The ministry also signed two agreements in technology and the finance sector.
It joined forces with the US biotech company Ginkgo Bioworks to expand capabilities in the kingdom.
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Saudi Arabia's Future Investment Initiative 2022 - in pictures
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The agreement intends to implement innovative public health technology, establish synthetic biology support for public health and provide other tools for training and data infrastructure.
It also signed an agreement with Korea’s Taihan Cable and Solution to set up a new, extra-high voltage cable and copper rod factory.
Saudi Arabia has had strong growth in foreign direct investment in recent years as the kingdom’s economic reforms have unlocked a broad range of opportunities for international investors.
Last year, the net FDI growth increased by 257.2 per cent, with inflows totalling almost $20 billion — the highest in 10 years, according to official figures.
This momentum continued into 2022, with inflows growing 10 per cent year on year in the first quarter.
Saudi Arabia is expected to be the fastest-growing G20 economy this year, due in part to sweeping pro-business reforms, with gross domestic product expected to expand by 7.6 per cent, the fastest growth in almost a decade, according to the International Monetary Fund.
The ministry also signed a deal with Brazilian financial company BTG Pactual, one of the Latin America’s largest investment banks, to establish a regional headquarters in Riyadh.
The agreements “illustrate sustained confidence in the kingdom as a world-class investment destination, one of the key goals of the National Investment Strategy launched a year ago”, an official statement said.
Last week, Saudi Arabia introduced an initiative that aims to attract global industrial companies to the kingdom and seeks to shore up 40bn riyals ($10.6bn) worth of investments in the first two years of the launch.
