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Small and Medium Enterprises in Saudi Arabia Grow by 3.5% during 3Q of 2023

A night view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AP)
A night view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AP)
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Small and Medium Enterprises in Saudi Arabia Grow by 3.5% during 3Q of 2023

A night view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AP)
A night view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AP)

The number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Kingdom increased by 3.5% quarter-on-quarter in the third quarter of 2023, reaching 1.27 million enterprises.

This growth is attributed to the government's support for the private sector's development and investor confidence in the Saudi economic system, reported the Saudi Press Agency on Wednesday.

The total number of SMEs in the Riyadh region reached 549,346 enterprises, representing 43% of the total small and medium enterprises, while the number of enterprises in the Makkah region reached 232,039, representing 18.3%.

The number of SMEs in the Eastern Region reached 136,689, representing 10.8%, while the total number of SMEs in the rest of the other regions of the Kingdom reached 351,190 enterprises, constituting 27.7%.

The number of micro-enterprises reached 1.1 million, while the number of small enterprises reached 151,170, and the number of medium enterprises reached 18,176.

The success of SMEs boosts Saudi Arabia's position as a regional and industrial hub, diversifies the Saudi economy, and ensures long-term viability, all of which are goals of Saudi Vision 2030.

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Nippon Steel, US Steel Send Letter to Biden on Merger Plans

The Edgar Thomas Plant of the United States Steel Corporation in Braddock, Pennsylvania, on October 27, 2022. Branden Eastwood/AFP/Getty Images
The Edgar Thomas Plant of the United States Steel Corporation in Braddock, Pennsylvania, on October 27, 2022. Branden Eastwood/AFP/Getty Images
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Nippon Steel, US Steel Send Letter to Biden on Merger Plans

The Edgar Thomas Plant of the United States Steel Corporation in Braddock, Pennsylvania, on October 27, 2022. Branden Eastwood/AFP/Getty Images
The Edgar Thomas Plant of the United States Steel Corporation in Braddock, Pennsylvania, on October 27, 2022. Branden Eastwood/AFP/Getty Images

Nippon Steel and US Steel have sent a letter to US President Joe Biden about their planned $15 billion merger after media reported that he was preparing to block the deal, a spokesperson for the Japanese steelmaker said.

The spokesperson did not provide details about the letter's content, but said it was signed by Nippon Steel Chief Executive Eiji Hashimoto and US Steel CEO David Burritt as well as other executives.

US Steel did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside of US business hours. The US embassy in Japan did not immediately have comment.

Japan's biggest steelmaker is pursuing a cash deal to buy the 123-year-old US Steel, despite resistance from Biden, the United Steel Workers (USW) union and many members of Congress while a US national security review is conducted.

The deal has also been opposed by both Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. Both are vying to win the critical swing state of Pennsylvania, where US Steel is headquartered.

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) told the companies in an Aug. 31 letter seen by Reuters the deal would create national security risks because it could hurt the supply of steel needed for critical transportation, infrastructure, construction and agriculture projects.

A top Nippon Steel executive and US Steel's CEO met with senior US officials on Wednesday in an effort to salvage the deal, a person familiar with the matter said.

The outcome of the meeting was not immediately clear.

The Japan Business Federation and a number of US business groups, in a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday, raised concerns that the Biden administration's national security review of the deal is being unduly influenced by political pressure.

On Friday, Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ken Saito declined to comment on the deal, saying that doing so would interfere in US domestic affairs.

But Saito added: “It is extremely important that Japanese and US companies continue to make transactions and the growth in deals constitutes a key element of the strong economic relationship between the two nations.”