US President Donald Trump is set to host Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House next month, according to reports, in a bid to deepen security, trade and diplomatic relations.
US media reported that the meeting − their first in the US since Mr Trump took office for a second term in January − will take place on November 18. The Crown Prince last visited Washington in 2018.
The White House has not yet officially confirmed the date.
They last met in May, on Mr Trump's first major international trip of his second term that took him to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.
This Washington visit is likely to focus on negotiating a formal security pact, similar to the one reached to between the US and Qatar.
The urgency comes after Israel launched an air strike against Hamas leaders in Qatar in September. The attack killed several members of the Hamas negotiating team, as well as a Qatari security officer.
The strike outraged Qatari and US officials, and it also raised concerns among Gulf nations about the strength of American security guarantees.
In late September, Mr Trump issued an executive order to guarantee Qatar’s security, including a promise to take military action if the country comes under attack. The move appeared to be aimed at reassuring Doha that such a strike would not happen again.
The visit comes after a fragile ceasefire was reached in Gaza this month. This may open up the potential to discuss establishing ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, which the Trump administration views as a cornerstone of its broader Middle East strategy.
During his first term, Mr Trump championed the Abraham Accords, a series of US-brokered agreements that established diplomatic ties between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan.
Reaching a Saudi-Israeli agreement would represent a major breakthrough for the region. Progress remains tied to Saudi conditions, however, including tangible progress on the creation of a Palestinian state and guarantees that Israel would not annex the occupied West Bank − conditions Israel has so far resisted.
Israel has, however, expressed a strong interest in establishing ties with Saudi Arabia, viewing it as a major diplomatic and economic opportunity.
During the Crown Prince's visit, the US and Saudi Arabia are expected to announce expanded partnerships in artificial intelligence, energy and infrastructure.
Saudi Arabia is reportedly considering additional investments in US technology and manufacturing sectors, as well as encouraging American companies to establish artificial intelligence research hubs in the kingdom.
Also potentially on the agenda is nuclear energy collaboration, with the US offering technical assistance for civilian nuclear projects.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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