Initiatives Boost Progression of Saudi Investment Environment Internationally

Initiatives Boost Progression of Saudi Investment Environment Internationally
TT

Initiatives Boost Progression of Saudi Investment Environment Internationally

Initiatives Boost Progression of Saudi Investment Environment Internationally

The Saudi trade and investment system has strengthened its success through a series of qualitative initiatives that have been undertaken over the past period in the light of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

In the past period, global indicators have witnessed many achievements that contributed to improving the ranking of the Global Competitiveness Report for the first time in six years.

It reached the 39th position in the world, achieved the fourth place at the G20 level in business environment reforms in the World Bank 2019 report, and the seventh globally in the minority shareholder protection index.

The system implemented initiatives aimed at improving the business environment, facilitating business, enacting new legislative regulations and other amendments to provide an attractive and fair investment and trade environment, raise awareness and protection of consumer and merchant, and develop e-services.

The trade and investment system has taken advanced steps in improving the business environment. During the past period, a number of initiatives and projects have been launched.

Among these projects and initiatives is the establishment of the General Authority of Small and Medium Enterprises, the Saudi Intellectual Property Authority (SIPA), the Saudi Business Center and the E-Commerce Council.

It has also launched Maras initiative, the Small and Medium Enterprises Support Center in Riyadh, new customer service centers for the business sector, Bayan Credit Bureau and Investment Atlas and issued Business Licensing Guide to business activities.

The system continues to work to improve the business environment within the framework of planned strategies and projects aimed at making business easier in order to attract value-added foreign investments.



China Expands Visa-free Entry to More Countries in Bid to Boost Economy

Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
TT

China Expands Visa-free Entry to More Countries in Bid to Boost Economy

Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

China announced Friday that it would expand visa-free entry to citizens of nine more countries as it seeks to boost tourism and business travel to help revive a sluggish economy.
Starting Nov. 30, travelers from Bulgaria, Romania, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Estonia, Latvia and Japan will be able to enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
That will bring to 38 the number of countries that have been granted visa-free access since last year. Only three countries had visa-free access previously, and theirs had been eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The permitted length of stay for visa-free entry is being increased from the previous 15 days, Lin said, and people participating in exchanges will be eligible for the first time. China has been pushing people-to-people exchange between students, academics and others to try to improve its sometimes strained relations with other countries, The Associated Press reported.
China strictly restricted entry during the pandemic and ended its restrictions much later than most other countries. It restored the previous visa-free access for citizens of Brunei and Singapore in July 2023, and then expanded visa-free entry to six more countries — France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia — on Dec. 1 of last year.
The program has since been expanded in tranches. Some countries have announced visa-free entry for Chinese citizens, notably Thailand, which wants to bring back Chinese tourists.
For the three months from July through September this year, China recorded 8.2 million entries by foreigners, of which 4.9 million were visa-free, the official Xinhua News Agency said, quoting a Foreign Ministry consular official.