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Trump to Visit Saudi Arabia as Major Announcements Expected

Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)
Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)
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Trump to Visit Saudi Arabia as Major Announcements Expected

Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)
Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to arrive in Riyadh next Tuesday on his first official foreign trip since beginning his second term in office. The visit comes on the heels of an unplanned stop in Rome, where he attended the funeral of Pope Francis.

Saudi Arabia is once again Trump’s first international destination - mirroring his 2017 visit, which he described at the time as “highly successful.” This year, his Gulf tour will also include stops in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, running from May 13 to 16.

Since Trump’s first visit eight years ago - just a year after the launch of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 - the Kingdom has made significant strides toward economic transformation. The upcoming trip is expected to offer a real-time snapshot of that progress and serve as a tangible endorsement of the reforms set in motion by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Trump is expected to witness a vastly changed Saudi Arabia, with developments that reflect the ambitions of its long-term strategic agenda.

High-Level Deals

In the days leading up to Trump’s visit, expectations are mounting over a series of high-profile announcements. Speaking after his meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday, Trump hinted at “major developments” to be revealed during his Gulf tour.

Among the expected announcements is a preliminary agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, which US Energy Secretary Chris Wright discussed during his visit to Saudi Arabia last month. Wright said both sides were close to finalizing an agreement focused on civil nuclear energy and technological collaboration.

Deepening Strategic and Economic Ties

Trump’s return to Riyadh underscores the Kingdom’s importance in US foreign policy and economic strategy. The visit also aligns with the administration’s push to encourage foreign investment in the United States while expanding bilateral cooperation with key regional allies.

The trip is expected to attract a wave of influential American business leaders to the Saudi capital. Executives from Wall Street and Silicon Valley, including BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and Palantir CEO Alex Karp, will attend the Saudi-US Investment Forum, scheduled to coincide with Trump’s arrival.

Senior figures from CitiGroup, IBM, Qualcomm, Alphabet, and Franklin Templeton are also expected to participate. David Sacks, the White House’s top advisor on artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, will also be present at the talks.

Coinciding with the upcoming summit, the Trump administration announced plans to roll back the “AI Export Restriction Rule” imposed under former President Joe Biden. The rule had placed strict controls on the export of advanced AI chips, even to allied nations.

A Longstanding Economic Partnership

Economic ties between the United States and Saudi Arabia remain robust, diversified, and steadily growing. In 2024, bilateral trade reached $32.3 billion, up from $22.9 billion in 2020. According to the Federation of Saudi Chambers, the US ranks as the Kingdom’s second-largest supplier and sixth-largest export destination.

Data from the US Census Bureau show that total US-Saudi goods trade in 2024 stood at $25.9 billion, with American exports valued at $13.2 billion and imports from the Kingdom at $12.7 billion. This left the US with a trade surplus of $443.3 million.

Saudi Arabia’s exports to the US include crude oil, fertilizers, organic chemicals, and metal products. Meanwhile, American exports to the Kingdom span pharmaceuticals, chemicals, grains, plastics, and high-tech equipment, including aerospace and medical devices.

According to a 2023 McKinsey report, transportation equipment led Saudi imports from the US at $5.9 billion, followed by medical instruments at $1.4 billion and pharmaceuticals at $1.3 billion. On the other side, energy products topped Saudi exports to the US at $14 billion, followed by chemicals and metals.

Bilateral Investment on the Rise

The investment relationship between the two nations is equally strong. As of the end of 2023, US foreign direct investment in Saudi Arabia totaled $57.7 billion, accounting for 23% of the Kingdom’s total FDI, according to the Saudi Ministry of Investment. These investments span critical sectors such as energy, infrastructure, real estate, and technology.

Saudi Arabia also holds substantial assets in the US, including approximately $127 billion in Treasury bonds as of February 2025. The Public Investment Fund (PIF) continues to pursue major stakes in key US companies, including Lucid Motors, Uber, Arm, PayPal, and Amazon. The PIF has also expanded into the gaming and tech sectors through investments in Scopely, Magic Leap, and Savvy Games Group.

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan has previously stated that the Kingdom’s total investments in the US exceed $770 billion.

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Business

Gold Recovers from Two-Week Low Ahead of US Inflation Figures

A customer holds a gold chain at a jewellery store in Mumbai, India, January 30, 2026. (Reuters)
A customer holds a gold chain at a jewellery store in Mumbai, India, January 30, 2026. (Reuters)
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Gold Recovers from Two-Week Low Ahead of US Inflation Figures

A customer holds a gold chain at a jewellery store in Mumbai, India, January 30, 2026. (Reuters)
A customer holds a gold chain at a jewellery store in Mumbai, India, January 30, 2026. (Reuters)

Gold rose on Tuesday after hitting a two-week low earlier in the session, as markets awaited key US inflation data, with escalating US-Iran tensions driving oil prices higher and reinforcing expectations of further Federal Reserve rate hikes.

Spot gold was up 0.5% at $4,021.62 per ounce by 0440 GMT, recovering from its lowest level since July ‌1. US gold ‌futures for August delivery gained 0.6% at $4,028.

Gold shed ‌about ⁠3% in the ⁠previous session, its biggest daily percentage decline in more than a month, as continued fighting between the US and Iran drove oil prices to a one-month high.

While gold is often viewed as a hedge against inflation, higher rates tend to weigh on the non-yielding metal by increasing the appeal of interest-bearing assets.

"You ⁠have a situation where the markets probably ‌don't want to commit. They have ‌a big batch of event risks in front of them. There's, of ‌course, the Warsh testimony and then the CPI print, so ‌there's a lot for people to look at in addition to the headlines out of the Middle East," said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive.

Investors will closely watch June US CPI data ‌due later in the day for fresh clues on inflation and the Fed's policy path, ⁠with PPI data ⁠and Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's first semi-annual testimony before Congress this week also in focus.

The US central bank may need to raise interest rates "in the near term" if coming data show inflation continuing well above the 2% target, Fed Governor Christopher Waller said on Monday.

Traders have ramped up bets on a September US interest rate hike, with CME Group's FedWatch Tool showing the probability rising to around 76% from 57% a week ago.

Elsewhere, spot silver inched 0.1% higher to $57.70 per ounce, having earlier touched a two-week low. Platinum fell 0.1% to $1,603.72 and palladium rose 1.4% to $1,264.61.

Business

China’s June Oil Imports Hit Near 10-Year Low Amid Iran War

Containers are seen at the port in Shanghai on July 14, 2026. (AFP)
Containers are seen at the port in Shanghai on July 14, 2026. (AFP)
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China’s June Oil Imports Hit Near 10-Year Low Amid Iran War

Containers are seen at the port in Shanghai on July 14, 2026. (AFP)
Containers are seen at the port in Shanghai on July 14, 2026. (AFP)

China's June crude imports slumped 41.3% to their lowest in almost a decade as refinery run rates hit a ten-year low due to weak domestic demand and export curbs on refined oil products to safeguard energy security amid the Iran war.

China imported 29.27 million tons of crude oil in June, or 7.12 million barrels per day, the lowest since October 2016, customs data showed on Tuesday.

The slump extended into June from May, with imports falling by another 12%, after oil imports hit an eight-year low ‌in May.

China's seaborne ‌crude imports stood at around 6 ‌million ⁠bpd in June, with ⁠imports from the Middle East hitting their lowest level in ten years and Iranian oil imports also dropping 40% month on month to below 800 thousand barrels per day, according to ship-tracking company Vortexa.

In June, the utilization rate of China's crude distillation units stood at 57.72%, down 3.28 percentage points month on month and down ⁠13.09 percentage points year on year, according to Chinese ‌consultancy Oilchem.

"Refinery run rates were ‌likely near a 10-year low, weighed down by weak domestic demand and ‌refined oil product export restrictions. But if refined product exports ‌are eased, run rates could see a partial rebound," said Emma Li, analyst at Vortexa.

Lower Chinese imports are freeing up oil for other buyers, while the market is also weighing the permanent loss of demand from China, ‌as the steep drop in fuel consumption after oil prices soared suggests China can live on ⁠less oil ⁠due to its massive EV fleet.

Customs data also showed natural gas imports rose 3.7% year on year to 10.9 million tons in June.

However, natural gas imports in the first half of 2026 dropped 3.4% to 57.45 million tons from the same period last year.

The data does not separate LNG from gas piped overland.

China's refined oil product exports stood at 4.36 million tons in June.

In the first six months, China exported 23.59 million tons of refined oil products, down 13.2% year-on-year due to export restrictions imposed in March to safeguard domestic supply amid the Iran war.

Business

Saudi Arabia Revamps Payroll Deduction and Financing Services Through Etimad

Saudi banknotes in 500-riyal and 100-riyal denominations (Reuters) 
Saudi banknotes in 500-riyal and 100-riyal denominations (Reuters) 
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Saudi Arabia Revamps Payroll Deduction and Financing Services Through Etimad

Saudi banknotes in 500-riyal and 100-riyal denominations (Reuters) 
Saudi banknotes in 500-riyal and 100-riyal denominations (Reuters) 

Saudi Arabia has introduced a new regulatory framework for payroll deduction, financing, and the sale of receivables through the Etimad platform, in a move aimed at improving financial services, expanding competition, and strengthening the Kingdom’s digital financial ecosystem.

According to information obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, the Cabinet approved the new framework, replacing Cabinet Decision No. 490. Under the new rules, the National Center for Government Resources Systems will provide payroll deduction services for government employees in favor of lenders, as well as financing and the sale of receivables for public and private sector entities through Etimad, subject to compliance with the requirements and regulations of the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA).

The reform supports the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 by advancing the digitalization of government services, improving access to finance, and developing the government receivables financing market. It is also expected to enhance liquidity and enable financial institutions to offer a broader range of financing products.

The new framework replaces Cabinet Decision No. 490, under which the Ministry of Finance was responsible for payroll deduction services, financing, and the sale of receivables, as well as collecting service fees and annual subscription charges.

Beyond reallocating responsibilities, the decision establishes a more advanced regulatory framework that combines Etimad’s digital infrastructure with SAMA’s oversight. It is expected to improve the efficiency of the receivables financing market, boost competition among financing providers, and encourage the development of more flexible financing products.

Etimad, the Ministry of Finance’s digital platform, provides financial and procurement services to government entities, businesses, and individuals. It is designed to enhance transparency, improve efficiency, streamline government transactions, and support the Kingdom’s digital transformation agenda.

Under the new framework, the National Center for Government Resources Systems will coordinate with the National Development Fund to determine the fees it will receive for providing the two services to the fund and its affiliated development funds and development banks, ensuring their long-term sustainability under a clear financial and regulatory framework.

The reform also strengthens SAMA’s supervisory role by requiring all payroll deduction and financing services offered through Etimad to comply with its regulatory requirements. The move is expected to enhance customer protection and reinforce financial sector stability while opening the market to a wider range of banks and financing companies operating under unified rules, fostering greater competition and potentially improving both pricing and service quality.