Ras Al-Khair Announces $8.5Bn-Worth Opportunities

Ras Al-Khair Announces $8.5Bn-Worth Opportunities
TT

Ras Al-Khair Announces $8.5Bn-Worth Opportunities

Ras Al-Khair Announces $8.5Bn-Worth Opportunities

The industrial city of Ras al-Khair, located in eastern Saudi Arabia, has revealed $8.5 billion-worth (SAR31.9 billion) investment opportunities.

The Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu (RCJY) disclosed 20 investment opportunities in the fields of mineral industries.

The Commission is assigned to plan, promote, develop and manage petrochemicals and energy-intensive industrial cities through successful customer focus and partnerships with investors, employees, communities, and other stakeholders.

During a virtual seminar on Thursday to review investment opportunities, the RCJY explained that these are focused on mining industries such as iron, aluminum, and copper, as well as marine industries, industrial fertilizers, glass and silica, and energy equipment and services.

Investment in these fields is expected to provide more than 7,000 jobs, the Commission noted.

Director of the Business Development Department at RCJY Abdullah Yassin al-Eid said offering investment opportunities in Ras al-Khair Industrial City affirms the support and empowerment of industrial projects.

He pointed to RCJY’s involvement in preparing general and industrial plans to develop the city.

This aims at accommodating a group of industrial sectors specialized in mining industries, in an attempt to link Ras al-Khair's products to the manufacturing industries to achieve added value.

It would also enhance local content, as well as working to find and provide job opportunities for Saudi youth.



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.