The first day of the Arab-Chinese Business Conference in Riyadh resulted in the signing of investment agreements worth $10 billion with Chinese companies, including deals worth at least $8 billion for the benefit of entities in the Kingdom.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, on behalf of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, inaugurated the tenth edition of the Arab-Chinese Business Conference, attended by about 3,500 people from 24 countries, according to investment ministry data. It takes place just months after Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Riyadh, where he held several summits to strengthen Beijing’s ties with the region.
The Saudi Ministry of Investment announced in a statement that “investment agreements worth $10 billion” were signed on the first day.
The amount was distributed among “more than 30 agreements in the sectors of technology, renewable energy, agriculture, real estate, metals, supply chains, tourism, and healthcare.”
This included “a $5.6 billion memorandum of understanding between the Saudi Ministry of Investment and Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Human Horizons to establish a joint venture for automotive research, development, manufacturing, and sales.”
Another $533 million agreement was signed between Saudi Arabia’s Amar First Company and Zhonghuan International Group (Hong Kong) Limited to establish an iron ore processing plant in Saudi Arabia. “A $500 million agreement was signed between Saudi Arabia’s ASK Group and China National Mining and Geological Corporation to develop, finance, establish and operate a copper mining project in the Arabian Shield region.”
In the opening speech of the conference held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah stressed “the keenness of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Salman to raise the level of work to come up with results worthy of the long-standing and advanced partnership in all vital investment fields between the Arab countries and the People’s Republic of China.
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He added that the slogan of the conference, “Cooperation for prosperity, confirms the great importance, great potential, and common visions that lie in the investment and trade relations between the Arab world and China. It sheds light on how to come together, exchange experiences and unlock new opportunities for growth and investment, which will bring prosperity, progress, and prosperity to the people of the region and the world.”
During the opening ceremony of the conference, the Minister of Investment, Eng. Khalid Al-Falih, delivered a speech in which he welcomed China’s participation in this renaissance, which is comprehensive towards growth and expansion, and creates tremendous opportunities for the next renaissance, and for economic, trade, and investment cooperation, explaining that energy exports from the Arab world contributed to advancing industrial development in China, and in return, goods manufactured in China reached every home, office, and factory in Arab countries.
The second day of the conference will feature keynote speeches and special meetings with government leaders and VIPs, as well as specialized workshops that will explore in depth a number of key topics, such as private supply chains in the oil and gas sectors, innovation and research partnerships, challenges and solutions for global commercial supply chains, mining, and food processing, in which senior officials from the public and private sectors will participate, while the closing speech of the conference will be presented by Dilma Rousseff, former President of Brazil and current President of the New Development Bank.
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