by admin | May 25, 2021 | Investing, Muslim World
Jeddah : Saudi Arabia and China plan to establish and operate jointly a $20 billion investment fund, sharing costs and profits on a 50:50 basis, Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said on Thursday.
Al-Falih was speaking on the sidelines of an economic conference of senior officials and businessmen from the two countries. It was attended by Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli. Al-Falih said a company will be established between the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, Aramco and a Chinese company in order to attract Chinese industrial investments. This, he said, is in favor of both the Saudi Vision 2030 and the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative. China has announced plans to establish such joint investment funds around the world in recent years as a way to cement bilateral economic ties. In December 2015, Beijing said it would establish a $10 billion fund with the United Arab Emirates, and last October a plan for a fund with France was revealed.
Meanwhile, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman received Gaoli at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah on Thursday. The Chinese leader conveyed the greetings of President Xi Jinping to the King, who also sent his greetings to the Chinese president. King Salman commended the level of relations between the two friendly countries and the important role of the high-level Saudi-Chinese Joint Committee in developing and enhancing bilateral cooperation between the Kingdom and China. King Salman and Gaoli reviewed the prospects of cooperation between the two countries in various fields and the latest developments in regional and international arenas
—HA/IINA
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Muslim World
Riyadh (IINA) : Saudi Arabia projected a 33 percent reduction in the budget deficit for 2017.
In an extraordinary session in Riyadh on Thursday, the Council of Ministers said that next year’s budget deficit would be SR198 billion. Expenses next year will reach SR890 billion against revenues of SR692 billion. Oil revenues are estimated at SR480 billion, 46 percent higher than the 2016 projections. Non-oil revenues are estimated at SR212 billion, a SR13 billion increase over the 2016 projections, or 6.5%. It said this year’s deficit will be SR297 billion, down 8.9 percent from 2016’s original budget forecast. Revenues for this year are expected at SR528 billion, higher than projections a year ago of SR513.75 billion. Meanwhile, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman on Thursday underlined the need for ensuring implementation of the general budget very carefully in a way achieving comprehensive and balanced development and improve the services being extended to the citizens. The King made the remarks in his speech while chairing the Cabinet session to approve the general budget. King Salman noted that the unveiling of the budget comes at a time when most of the countries are suffering from extremely volatile economic situations that led to slow pace in the global economic growth and drop in oil prices. “Despite its impact, our nation is dealing with these fluctuations so as not to affect the goals that we aspired to achieve,” the King was quoted by Saudi Press Agency (SPA) as saying.
The 2017 state budget is set to chart a course for the future that puts economic reforms on the agenda, coinciding with the country’s Vision 2030. A key objective of Vision 2030 is to reduce government spending and increase non-oil revenues to establish financial stability, diversify revenue sources, increase spending efficiency, focus on projects that have high returns and apply effective systems for performance monitoring and evaluation. The government continues to work toward achieving a balanced budget in 2020.
Throughout the past decade, the Kingdom has built a strong financial position by accumulating reserves during the period of high oil prices. This helped the country manage local and global economic volatility as well as oil price fluctuations. The Kingdom was able to significantly increase its reserves and reduce the national debt to increase future borrowing capability, with the national debt amounting to only SR44 million or 1.7% of GDP at the end of 2014.
However, due to the decline in oil prices, the government needed to finance its budget deficit partly by issuing local and international debt instruments with a value of SR 200.1 billion in 2016, in addition to drawing from reserves. The Kingdom’s revenues were impacted by fluctuations in the price of oil. The financial strategy in the medium term aims to achieve a balanced budget by 2020 by increasing non-oil revenues, benefiting from efficiency savings on expenditures and ensuring greater fiscal discipline.
The main pillar for effective national financial management will be to provide more transparency primarily through a clear and comprehensive fiscal reform program over the next five years. These measures will increase financial stability and limit the effects of oil price fluctuations on the Kingdom’s financial position.
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Business Summit, Events, Muslim World
Riyadh (IINA) – Riyadh Governor Prince Faisal bin Bandar on Sunday will inaugurate the 15th Trade Fair of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) which will kick off in Riyadh under the auspices of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman.
The event is being organized by the Ministry of Commerce and Investment (MCI) in cooperation with the OIC, the Islamic Center for Development of Trade and the Council of Saudi Chambers at the Riyadh International Convention Center and Exhibition. “The Kingdom seeks to increase the level of trade exchange and promote two-way investments among OIC member states,” Turki Al-Toaimi, adviser to the minister of commerce and investment and its official spokesman, said here on Thursday. He expressed his deepest thanks and appreciation to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman for his noble role in boosting the activities of the 15th OIC Trade Fair.
Al-Toaimi added that the trade fair will witness the participation of more than 30 OIC member states and the Kingdom’s pavilion will be the largest among OIC member states. A large number of Saudi companies and establishments will be displaying and offering a variety of goods and products made in Saudi Arabia, pointing out in the same context that Saudi products are currently being exported to more than 100 countries worldwide. Al-Toaimi said that the Kingdom seeks to increase its trade and investment with Islamic countries.
The 15th OIC Trade Fair is expected to witness the signing of a number of agreements and deals among OIC member countries and companies. A number of OIC ministers and ambassadors will participate in the trade fair, as well as businessmen and industrialists in and outside of the Kingdom. Al-Toaimi confirmed that the trade fair will provide various opportunities for businessmen to cooperate in various fields in private sector activities, such as finding new markets for their products and services, establishing joint ventures, providing new methods of funding for two-way trade, identifying available opportunities for cooperation in industrial projects, and expanding trade exchange among OIC member countries.
The OIC Trade Fair, held every two years, aims to introduce the products and services of OIC member states to raise the level of trade, promote two-way investments and open new markets for the products of participating countries. On the sidelines of the 15th OIC Trade Fair, the Council of Saudi Chambers and the Islamic Chamber will organize the 9th Forum for Businesswomen in Islamic Countries on Wednesday evening at its headquarters in Riyadh.
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Muslim World
Riyadh (IINA) – Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman announced sweeping changes and named new ministers as well as chiefs of local government bodies in a series of royal decrees issued here Saturday.
King Salman replaced the long-serving Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Al-Naimi with Saudi Aramco chief Khalid Al-Falih, who will now be responsible for energy, industry and mineral resources, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, who was in charge of commerce and industry, becomes the new health minister; while Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) Governor Fahad Al-Mubarak has been replaced with Ahmed Al-Khulaifi.
King Salman appointed Sulaiman Al-Hamdan to the post of minister of transport. The outgoing petroleum minister Al-Naimi and Sheikh Saad bin Nasser Al-Shathri will now serve as advisers at the royal court with the rank of minister. Another new face is Majid Al-Qasabi, who has been appointed minister of commerce and investment. Mohammed Salih Bentin has been named minister of Haj and Umrah in the reshuffle that comes within the framework of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 plan, according to Arab News newspaper. “The move to restructure the ministries and to appoint new faces is mainly intended to provide the best services to citizens and expatriates to achieve a prosperous future and sustainable development,” said the royal court statement.
“In order to achieve these objectives, a number of royal orders were issued Saturday, restructuring some ministries and government bodies and appointing a number of ministers and officials.” The king, in fact, announced major changes and replaced the ministers in charge of energy, water, transport, commerce, social affairs, health and Haj besides establishing a new recreation and culture commission. He removed, renamed and combined some ministries, while explaining the need to carry out reforms to boost the economy and ensure development in the wake of falling oil prices.
The king dissolved the ministry of water and announced a new ministry for water, environment and agriculture. The Haj Ministry has been renamed Ministry of Haj and Umrah. Referring to the central bank’s operations, the royal court statement said that Al-Khulaifi, who has been named SAMA governor, was deputy governor for research and international affairs at the central bank. His predecessor, Al-Mubarak, was named central bank governor in 2011.
The changes announced by King Salman come in line with the ambitious plans of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that call for a radical overhaul of the economy by reducing the Kingdom’s dependence on oil. The deputy crown prince recently unveiled Vision 2030, which stipulates several measures including privatization of state-owned institutions and a stake in Saudi Aramco to help fund the sovereign wealth fund.
According to the royal decrees, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has been renamed the Ministry of Commerce and Investment, while the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources will be known as Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources. It will also be entrusted with the task to undertake the management of the National Industrial Cluster Development Program.
The Ministry of Islamic Affairs has been named as the ‘Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance’. On the other hand, the Ministries of Labor and Social Affairs have been integrated to become one. The names of several national bodies have also been changed with additional mandates, rights and duties delegated to them.
The General Presidency of Meteorology and Environment Protection has been now named as the ‘General Authority for Meteorology and Environment Protection,’ and it will have a board of directors. The youth welfare presidency will be now known as ‘General Authority for Sports,” and the Saudi Public Education Evaluation Commission will be called ‘Education Evaluation Commission.’
Referring to other national organizations, the royal decrees said that the Zakat Department has been renamed ‘General Authority for Zakat and Income,’ with a board of directors chaired by the minister of finance. A General Authority for Entertainment has also been established besides a General Authority for Culture. In terms of supervisory roles, the minister of health shall chair the board of directors of the Saudi Red Crescent Authority.
The minister of energy, industry and mineral resources shall chair the board of directors of the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF), Saudi Organization for Industrial Estates and Technology Zones, Saudi Geological Survey, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), Saudi Exports Development Authority and the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy.
In terms of appointments, the chairman of the board of directors of the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) and the president of the Council of Competition as well as the chairman of the board of directors of Electricity and Cogeneration Regulatory Authority shall be appointed by royal order. The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) will be linked to the minister of transport.
Prince Turki bin Mohammed bin Saud Al-Kabeer has been named as adviser to the king with the rank of minister.
Other important appointments include that of Prince Khalid bin Saud bin Khalid to the post of adviser at the Royal Court (excellent rank), Prince Mohammed bin Saud bin Khalid as member of Shoura Council; Prince Bandar bin Saud bin Mohammed as adviser at the Royal Court; Prince Faisal bin Khalid bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz as adviser at the Royal Court (excellent rank) and Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz as adviser at the Royal Court.
Sulaiman bin Abdullah bin Humoud Abalkhail was named the new rector of Imam Mohammed bin Saud Islamic University with the rank of minister, while Prince Abdullah bin Musaad bin Abdulaziz, will be new president of General Authority for Sports. Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, the outgoing minister of state and member of the Council of Ministers, will now head the Education Evaluation Commission.
