Saudi Arabia to Invest Insurance Authority Funds to Ensure Sustainability

The new authority will regulate the insurance sector in the Kingdom. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The new authority will regulate the insurance sector in the Kingdom. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia to Invest Insurance Authority Funds to Ensure Sustainability

The new authority will regulate the insurance sector in the Kingdom. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The new authority will regulate the insurance sector in the Kingdom. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi government has granted both the Minister of Finance and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Insurance Authority the power to set the appropriate mechanisms to invest the funds of the new entity.

Earlier this month, the Saudi Cabinet, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, approved the establishment of the Insurance Authority, within an endeavor to foster robust and competitive insurance entities within the Kingdom.

Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan described this measure as pivotal within the developmental blueprint of the financial sector, a component of the Vision 2030 program designed to boost the role of the insurance sector in the Kingdom.

According to information made available to Asharq Al-Awsat, the Council of Ministers decided to form a committee that includes representatives from the Central Bank and the ministries of finance, human resources, social development and health, as well as the Financial Sector Development Program (FSDP) and the Council of Health Insurance.

The committee is concerned with transferring properties, documents, financial allocations and initiatives related to the insurance sector from the Central Bank to the new body.

The Saudi Cabinet has called on the Health Insurance Council, when studying its draft organization, to take into account that its roles include implementing compulsory health insurance, identifying those covered by compulsory coverage, approving and qualifying health service providers, and operating the Nphies platform.

The Insurance Authority shall coordinate with the Central Bank when exercising the powers and tasks stipulated in its organization and the regulations related to the insurance sector, which have an impact on the monetary conditions and the stability of the financial sector.

The establishment of an independent unified entity concerned with regulating insurance in the Kingdom is expected to enhance the efficiency of this sector, raise its contribution to the non-oil domestic product, and keep pace with developments in the insurance industry around the world.

The Authority will complete the process of the Saudi Central Bank in developing the insurance sector, by providing the appropriate environment to create strong entities capable of competition and growth, supporting the stability of the insurance sector in particular, and the national economy in general, and protecting the interests of beneficiaries and policyholders.



Trump Adds Lumber to List of Goods Facing Tariffs Over 'Next Month or Sooner'

FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump returns a salute as he steps from Air Force One to tour the Boeing South Carolina facility in North Charleston, South Carolina, US, February 17, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump returns a salute as he steps from Air Force One to tour the Boeing South Carolina facility in North Charleston, South Carolina, US, February 17, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
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Trump Adds Lumber to List of Goods Facing Tariffs Over 'Next Month or Sooner'

FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump returns a salute as he steps from Air Force One to tour the Boeing South Carolina facility in North Charleston, South Carolina, US, February 17, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump returns a salute as he steps from Air Force One to tour the Boeing South Carolina facility in North Charleston, South Carolina, US, February 17, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he will announce fresh tariffs over the next month or sooner, adding lumber and forest products to previously announced plans to impose duties on imported cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.
"I'm going to be announcing tariffs on cars and semiconductors and chips and pharmaceuticals, drugs and pharmaceuticals and lumber, probably, and some other things over the next month or sooner," Trump said at a conference in Miami.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One as he travelled back to Washington, Trump said he was thinking about a 25% tariff on lumber and forest products, to take effect around April 2, when a tariff on autos of around the same amount is expected, Reuters reported.
He said he expected tariffs to generate large revenues for the United States, but also offered countries a reprieve if they lowered or removed their own tariffs on US goods.
Trump on Tuesday said he also intends to impose similar duties on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, the latest in a series of measures threatening to upend international trade.
Those tariffs would also start at "25% or higher", rising substantially over the course of a year. He did not provide a date for announcing those duties and said he wanted to provide some time for drug and chip makers to set up US factories so they can avoid tariffs.
Since returning to office four weeks ago, Trump has imposed an additional 10% tariff on all imports from China over China's failure to halt fentanyl trafficking. He also announced, and then delayed for a month, 25% tariffs on goods from Mexico and non-energy imports from Canada.
Last week, he unveiled plans to slap reciprocal tariffs on all countries that have tariffs on US goods or set up non-tariff barriers to limit US access to their markets.
EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic met with US counterparts - Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Trump's nominee to be US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett - in Washington on Wednesday to discuss the various tariffs facing US trading partners.
Trump's threats have changed over time, leaving other nations and businesses unclear of what is to come next. Some economists and experts have warned Trump's sweeping tariffs will stoke inflation.