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Saudi Factories Surpass 2023 Targets, Boosting Product Competitiveness

A Saudi factory located in the industrial city of Asir in the southern region of the Kingdom (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A Saudi factory located in the industrial city of Asir in the southern region of the Kingdom (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Factories Surpass 2023 Targets, Boosting Product Competitiveness

A Saudi factory located in the industrial city of Asir in the southern region of the Kingdom (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A Saudi factory located in the industrial city of Asir in the southern region of the Kingdom (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi factories are increasingly adopting automation to improve product quality and competitiveness while cutting costs.
A total of 479 factories have completed the Smart Industry Readiness Index “SIRI” assessment, exceeding the Kingdom’s 2023 targets.
The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources started evaluating the second group of factories under the Future Factories Program in July 2023. This phase covers 260 factories, each with licensed capital over SAR 200 million ($53.3 million).
According to a recent report reviewed by Asharq Al-Awsat, the Ministry resolved 97 challenges last year and provided consultancy support to 17 factories to protect national industries from unfair competition.
In the 2023 Digital Transformation Measurement Program, the Ministry achieved 87.08% success and connected with over 67 government entities. It also launched several systems and websites to support its strategic goals.
Saudi Arabia’s mining sector achieved a 98% compliance rate in licensing, with 15 new mining sites designated last year.
The government launched a geological mapping project for the Arabian Shield, producing 271 reports and maps, and introduced a service to match petrochemical raw materials with industrial needs.
The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources reported a 10% increase in operational factories in 2023, from 10,518 in 2022 to 11,549. New licenses totaled 1,379, attracting over SAR 81 billion ($21.6 billion) in investments. Production began in 1,058 factories, with investments of SAR 45 billion ($12 billion).
By the end of December 2023, the total number of operational factories in Saudi Arabia reached around 11,549, with investments totaling SAR 1.541 trillion ($410.9 billion).
New licenses covered 25 industries, led by food production (244 licenses), non-metallic minerals (176), fabricated metals (165), and rubber and plastics (123).
National companies received the majority of new licenses (1,043), followed by foreign investments (194) and joint ventures (142).
Small enterprises received the most licenses (1,203), followed by medium-sized enterprises (158), micro-enterprises (15), and large enterprises (3).

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G7 Leaders Meet in Canada Hoping to Avoid Trump Clash

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney attends a bilateral meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (not pictured), before the start of the G7 summit, at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario Canada, June 15, 2025. (Reuters)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney attends a bilateral meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (not pictured), before the start of the G7 summit, at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario Canada, June 15, 2025. (Reuters)
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G7 Leaders Meet in Canada Hoping to Avoid Trump Clash

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney attends a bilateral meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (not pictured), before the start of the G7 summit, at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario Canada, June 15, 2025. (Reuters)
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney attends a bilateral meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (not pictured), before the start of the G7 summit, at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario Canada, June 15, 2025. (Reuters)

Group of Seven leaders gather in the Canadian Rockies starting on Sunday amid growing splits with the United States over foreign policy and trade, with host Canada striving to avoid clashes with President Donald Trump.

While Prime Minister Mark Carney says his priorities are strengthening peace and security, building critical mineral supply chains and creating jobs, issues such as US tariffs and the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine are expected to feature heavily.

Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight into Sunday, killing scores hours before the leaders of the world's industrialized democracies meet.

"This issue will be very high on the agenda of the G7 summit," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said. He said his goals are for Iran to not develop or possess nuclear weapons, ensuring Israel's right to defend itself, avoiding escalation of conflict and creating room for diplomacy.

The summit takes place in the mountain resort of Kananaskis, some 90 km (56 miles) west of Calgary.

The last time Canada played host, in 2018, Trump left the summit before denouncing then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as "very dishonest and weak" and instructing the US delegation to withdraw its approval of the final communique.

"This will be a successful meeting if Donald Trump doesn't have an eruption that disrupts the entire gathering. Anything above and beyond that is gravy," said University of Ottawa international affairs professor Roland Paris, who was foreign policy adviser to Trudeau.

Trump has often mused about annexing Canada and arrives at a time when Carney is threatening reprisals if Washington does not lift tariffs on steel and aluminum.

"The best-case scenario... is that there's no real blow-ups coming out of the back end," said Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at the Atlantic Council think tank and a former White House and State Department official.

Carney's office declined to comment on how the Israeli strikes would affect the summit.

Diplomats said Canada has ditched the idea of a traditional comprehensive joint communique and would issue chair summaries instead, in hopes of containing a disaster and maintaining engagement with the US.

A senior Canadian official told reporters that Ottawa wanted to focus on actions the seven members - Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States - could take together.

Canadian Senator Peter Boehm, a veteran former diplomat who acted as Trudeau's personal representative to the 2018 summit, said he had been told the summit would last longer than usual to give time for bilateral meetings with the US president.

Expected guests for parts of the Sunday to Tuesday event include leaders from Ukraine, Mexico, India, Australia, South Africa, South Korea and Brazil.

"Many will want to talk to President Trump about their own particular interests and concerns," Boehm said by phone.

A senior US official said on Friday working discussions would cover trade and the global economy, critical minerals, migrant and drug smuggling, wildfires, international security, artificial intelligence and energy security.

"The president is eager to pursue his goals in all of these areas including making America’s trade relationships fair and reciprocal," the official said.

The visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to the Oval Office in February descended into acrimony and has served as a warning for other world leaders about the delicate dance they face in negotiating with Trump.

But diplomats say the frustration of dealing with the Trump administration has made some keener to assert themselves.

'THE BIG TEST'

Canada has long been one of Ukraine's most vocal supporters. Trump came to power promising to end the war with Russia within 24 hours, but diplomatic efforts have stalled.

One Ukrainian official involved in preparations for the summit said hope had faded for a strong statement in support of Ukraine. Instead, success for Kyiv would merely constitute an amicable meeting between Trump and Zelenskiy.

A European official said the G7 summit and the NATO summit in The Hague later in June provided an opportunity to underscore to Trump the need to press ahead with a sanctions bill put together by US senators alongside a new European package to pressure Russia into a ceasefire and broader talks.

Trump’s first international summit of his second term will offer some early clues on whether he is interested in working with allies to solve common problems, said Max Bergmann, a director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“The big overarching question here is, basically, is the United States still committed to formats like the G7? That is going to be the big test,” Bergmann said.