Saudi Arabia's PIF Invests $1.3 Bln in India’s Reliance Retail

Saudi Arabia's PIF Invests $1.3 Bln in India’s Reliance Retail
TT

Saudi Arabia's PIF Invests $1.3 Bln in India’s Reliance Retail

Saudi Arabia's PIF Invests $1.3 Bln in India’s Reliance Retail

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund said Thursday it will invest approximately $1.3 billion for a 2.04 percent stake in Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries' retail arm, RRVL.

The investment will further strengthen PIF’s presence in India’s dynamic economy and promising retail market segment, said a statement.

The investment in RRVL follows an earlier acquisition of a 2.32 percent stake in Jio Platforms, the digital services subsidiary of Reliance Industries.

The transaction is in line with PIF’s strategy as a leading global investor with a proven track record of investing in innovative and transformative companies globally and develop strong partnerships with leading groups in their respective markets.

India’s retail sector is one of the largest in the world and accounts for over 10% of its gross domestic product (GDP) which presents meaningful growth potential.

"We are pleased to be furthering our trusted partnership with Reliance Industries, the leading player in some of India’s most exciting sectors. This transaction demonstrates PIF’s commitment to investing and partnering for the long-term with innovative businesses around the world that lead and transform their sectors,” said PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

“This investment further demonstrates PIF’s commitment to generating returns for the Saudi people and driving the economic diversification of Saudi Arabia.”

Reliance Retail Limited, a subsidiary of RRVL, operates India's largest, fast-growing retail business serving close to 640 million footfalls across its 12,000 stores across the country. Reliance Retail’s vision is to galvanize the Indian retail sector through its new commerce strategy, serving millions of customers by empowering millions of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries Mukesh Ambani said: "We at Reliance have a long-standing relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. PIF is at the forefront of the economic transformation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

“I welcome PIF as a valued partner in Reliance Retail and look forward to their sustained support and guidance as we continue our ambitious journey to transform India’s retail sector for enriching the lives of 1.3 billion Indians and millions of small merchants,” he added.



Trump to Take Virtual Center Stage in Davos

Davos will finally hear from the man himself during a live video appearance, with CEOs given the chance to lob questions at Donald Trump. FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP
Davos will finally hear from the man himself during a live video appearance, with CEOs given the chance to lob questions at Donald Trump. FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP
TT

Trump to Take Virtual Center Stage in Davos

Davos will finally hear from the man himself during a live video appearance, with CEOs given the chance to lob questions at Donald Trump. FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP
Davos will finally hear from the man himself during a live video appearance, with CEOs given the chance to lob questions at Donald Trump. FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP

Donald Trump on Thursday will star in an eagerly-anticipated online appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, addressing global elites whose annual gabfest has been consumed by the US president's days-old second term.
Trump's name has come up in almost every conversation in the Swiss Alpine village this week: in formal panel discussions, in shuttles ferrying people up and down the mountain, and in exclusive parties along the promenade.
"Trump is a provocateur. He enjoys being a provocateur, and many people at Davos are bored in their life. He's not boring. So, you know, it's kind of exciting," Harvard scholar and WEF regular Graham Allison told AFP.
Davos will finally hear from the man himself during a live video appearance, with CEOs given the chance to lob questions at Trump, himself a businessman who made his fortune in real estate.
He already gave Davos a taste of what is to come since his inauguration on Monday, which coincided with the WEF's first day: tariff threats against Mexico and Canada, the US withdrawal from the Paris climate pact, a threat to take the Panama Canal, just to name a few.
His plans to cut taxes, reduce the size of the federal government and deregulate industries will find a sympathetic ear amongst many businesses.
"Trump has been running America like America Inc. He's been very focused on getting the best advantage for the US in any way that he can," Julie Teigland, a managing partner at EY consulting firm, told AFP.
"He knows that he needs trade partners to do that. He does. And so I expect him to give messages along these lines," she said.
'No winners'
His trade partners had a chance to react in Davos earlier this week.
Without invoking Trump's name, Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang warned that "there are no winners in a trade war".
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to defend free trade but he took a conciliatory tone, saying that he had good earlier discussions with Trump.
European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen said that Brussels was ready to negotiate with Trump, but she also underscored the bloc's diverging policy with him on climate, saying it would stick by the Paris accord.
Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino dismissed Trump's claims to the Panama Canal, which was built by the United States but handed to the Central American country in 1999 under two-decade old treaties.
Mulino said he was "not worried" and that Panama would not be "distracted by this type of statement".
'Celebrate Trump'
The Republican president also has fans in Davos.
One of his biggest cheerleaders on the world stage, Argentina's libertarian President Javier Milei, will make a speech to the WEF on Thursday, hours before Trump.
"The world should celebrate the arrival of President Trump," Milei said at a Bloomberg event on Wednesday.
"The golden era he proposes for the United States will shine a light for the whole world as it will spell the end of the woke ideology, which is doing so much harm to the planet," Milei said.
One of his backers in the business world, Marc Benioff, the chief executive of US tech firm Salesfoce, was also enthusiastic at the same Bloomberg chat.
"I'm very positive," he said. "I'm just looking forward to seeing what's going to happen. And it's a new day and, it's an exciting moment."