Saudi Arabia Launches Development Initiative in Africa Worth over $1 Billion

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, at the Saudi-African Summit in Riyadh on Friday. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, at the Saudi-African Summit in Riyadh on Friday. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia Launches Development Initiative in Africa Worth over $1 Billion

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, at the Saudi-African Summit in Riyadh on Friday. (SPA)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, at the Saudi-African Summit in Riyadh on Friday. (SPA)

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, deputizing for Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, inaugurated the Saudi-African Summit in Riyadh on Friday.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and African countries are keen to enhance cooperation in a way that contributes to establishing security and peace in the region and the whole world,” said Crown Prince Mohammed in opening the summit.

“We condemn the military aggression witnessed in Gaza Strip, the targeting of civilians, and the continued violation of international humanitarian law by the Israeli occupying authority. We stress the need to stop this war and forced displacement, as well as to create conditions for the return of stability and for achieving peace,” he urged.

“The Kingdom and African countries support all efforts aimed at achieving security and stability. In this regard, we welcome the resumption of the Jeddah talks, with representatives of the two sides of the crisis in Sudan, and hope that the language of dialogue will be the basis for preserving the unity of Sudan, and the security of its people and assets,” he added.

“Saudi Arabia has provided more than $45 billion to support development and humanitarian projects in 54 African countries. The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) aid has reached more than $450 million in 46 African countries. We are determined to develop cooperation and partnership with African countries and expand areas of trade and integration,” he stressed.

“In this regard, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Development Initiative in Africa by inaugurating development projects and programs worth over $1 billion in countries of the continent over a period of ten years. We also look forward to making new Saudi investments, worth more than $25 billion, in various sectors, financing $10 billion in exports and providing $5 billion in additional development financing to Africa until 2030,” revealed the Crown Prince.

Moreover, he said the Kingdom will increase the number of embassies in Africa to more than 40.

In recognition of Africa's role, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was among the first nations to publicly endorse the African Union's bid for permanent membership in the Group of Twenty (G20), he remarked.

“The Kingdom is keen to support innovative solutions to address African debt, as it sought during its presidency of the G20 in 2020 to launch initiatives to suspend debt service payments during the pandemic for low-income countries, and the Common Framework for Debt Treatments initiative in many African,” he continued.

“Saudi Arabia supports sustainable development and recognizes every country's right to utilize their resources and capacities. We reaffirm our commitment to ensuring the security and durability of energy supplies, benefiting from all energy sources, developing clean fuel solutions, and providing food to over 750 million Africans,” he added.

“We aim to host Expo 2030 in Riyadh, to present an unprecedented version in the history of this exhibition that may contribute to projecting a better future for humanity. We look forward to your participation in highlighting the important role of Africa, its human and natural resources, growth opportunities, and future potential,” he stated.

The official Saudi delegation at the event included Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of State and Member of the Cabinet Prince Turki bin Mohammed bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Minister of the National Guard Prince Abdullah bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Defense Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, and Minister of State, Member of the Cabinet and National Security Advisor Dr. Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban.



Dollar Tumbles as Investors Seek Safe Havens after US Tariffs

US Dollar banknote is seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US Dollar banknote is seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Dollar Tumbles as Investors Seek Safe Havens after US Tariffs

US Dollar banknote is seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US Dollar banknote is seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

The dollar weakened broadly on Thursday, while the euro rallied after President Donald Trump announced harsher-than-expected tariffs on US trading partners, unsettling markets as investors flocked to safe havens such as the yen and Swiss franc.

The highly anticipated tariff announcement sent shockwaves through markets, with global stocks sinking and investors scrambling to the safety of bonds as well as gold.

Trump said he would impose a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to the United States and higher duties on some of the country's biggest trading partners.

The new levies ratchet up a trade war that Trump kicked off on his return to the White House, rattling markets as fears grow that a full-blown trade war could trigger a sharp global economic slowdown and fuel inflation, Reuters reported.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency against six others, fell 1.6% to 102.03, its lowest since early October.

The euro, the largest component in the index, gained 1.5% to a six-month high of $1.1021.

Trump has already imposed tariffs on aluminium, steel and autos, and has increased duties on all goods from China.

"Eye-watering tariffs on a country-by-country basis scream 'negotiation tactic', which will keep markets on edge for the foreseeable future," said Adam Hetts, global head of multi-asset and portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors.

The risk-sensitive Australian dollar added 0.56% to $0.63365, while the New Zealand dollar climbed 0.9% to $0.5796.

The yen strengthened to a three-week high against the dollar and was last up 1.7% at 146.76 per dollar, while the Swiss franc touched its strongest level in five months at 0.86555 per dollar.

"Negotiations are now going to be front of mind. This is probably the other big part of why we're seeing some of these currencies outperform," said Nicholas Rees, Head Of Macro Research at Monex Europe.

"It's very difficult actually to see how other countries make concessions that would encourage the US to lift these tariffs. And I think that's a big underpriced risk."

Investors are worried that some US trading partners could retaliate with measures of their own, leading to higher prices.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen described the tariffs as a major blow to the world economy and said the 27-member bloc was prepared to respond with countermeasures if talks with Washington failed.

Worries about a global trade war have intensified since Trump stepped into the White House in January, combining with a slew of weaker-than-expected US data to stoke recession fears and undermine the dollar.

The dollar index is down more than 5.7% this year.

"These tariffs have certainly significantly increased the risks to the downside for global growth, so on balance we think that will eventually start to become more supportive again for the dollar," said Lee Hardman, senior currency analyst at MUFG.

In Asia currencies, China's onshore yuan slid to its weakest level against the dollar since February 13. China's offshore yuan also hit a two-month low.

The Vietnamese dong slumped to a record low.

Elsewhere, the Mexican peso and Canadian dollar strengthened.

Canada and Mexico, the two largest US trading partners, already face 25% tariffs on many goods and will not face additional levies from Wednesday's announcement.