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Saudi Fund for Development Signs $10M Deal With National Bank of Iraq

Agreement between the Saudi Fund for Development and the National Bank of Iraq to encourage buying Saudi products (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Agreement between the Saudi Fund for Development and the National Bank of Iraq to encourage buying Saudi products (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Fund for Development Signs $10M Deal With National Bank of Iraq

Agreement between the Saudi Fund for Development and the National Bank of Iraq to encourage buying Saudi products (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Agreement between the Saudi Fund for Development and the National Bank of Iraq to encourage buying Saudi products (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) announced signing a finance agreement with the National Bank of Iraq (NBI) to provide SAR37.5 million ($10 million) in credit facilities to Iraqi investors willing to import products and services from Saudi companies.

The agreement aims to bolster bilateral cooperation in various fields and affirm the fraternal ties between the Kingdom and Iraq, said SFD CEO Sultan al-Marshad.

Under the agreement, SFD will grant NBI a revolving line of finance worth $10 million to import various commodities and services with a Saudi origin to clients of the bank from importing companies with a finance percentage of 100 percent of their value and with a repayment period of up to 36 months depending on the type of imports and nature of the process.

“This agreement highlights the brotherly ties between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Iraq, and reflects the two countries’ willingness to enhance cooperation in all fields,” Marshad added.

“This deal is part of what the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has allocated to support reconstruction and development projects in Iraq with more than $1.5 billion.”

He also stressed that supporting stability in countries seeking to realize sustainable economic and social development is a top priority for SFD.

"The agreement comes in line with the Kingdom’s efforts to diversify its sources of national revenues and increase the volume of non-oil exports of commodities and services of Saudi origin," Marshad said.

This deal will open new markets for Saudi producers and contribute to stimulating the Iraqi commercial and financial sectors.

Notably, Riyadh and Baghdad had signed five agreements in various fields on the sidelines of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi’s visit to the Saudi Kingdom in April.

These included the establishment of a joint fund, with an estimated capital of $3 billion, as a contribution from the Kingdom to promote investment in Iraq.

Chairman of the board of directors of Capital Bank Group Bassem al-Salem, for his part, said the fund’s role reflects the Kingdom’s historical orientations and its continuous support of joint Arab action and contributes to achieving Arab economic integration.

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Türkiye's Central Bank Raises Inflation Forecasts, Vows Tight Policy

FILED - 24 May 2018, Türkiye, Istanbul: Turkish lira are kept fanned out. Photo: Can Merey/dpa
FILED - 24 May 2018, Türkiye, Istanbul: Turkish lira are kept fanned out. Photo: Can Merey/dpa
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Türkiye's Central Bank Raises Inflation Forecasts, Vows Tight Policy

FILED - 24 May 2018, Türkiye, Istanbul: Turkish lira are kept fanned out. Photo: Can Merey/dpa
FILED - 24 May 2018, Türkiye, Istanbul: Turkish lira are kept fanned out. Photo: Can Merey/dpa

Türkiye's central bank raised its year-end inflation forecasts for this year and next to 44% and 21% respectively on Friday, and Governor Fatih Karahan vowed to keep policy tight to propel the disinflation process and hit targets.

The bank's previous inflation report three months ago forecast year-end inflation of 38% in 2024 and 14% next year, Reuters reported. The revision underlines its tougher-than-expected battle against inflation that began with aggressive rate hikes 18 months ago.
Presenting a quarterly update in Ankara, Karahan cited improvement in core inflation trends even as service-related price readings are proceeding slower than anticipated. But even in that sector, inflation is gradually losing momentum, he said.
"We will decisively maintain our tight monetary policy stance until price stability is achieved," he said. "As the stickiness in services inflation weakens, the underlying trend of inflation will decline further in 2025."
October inflation remained loftier than expected, dipping only to 48.58% annually on the back of tight policy and so-called base effects, down from a peak above 75% in May.
Monthly inflation - a gauge closely monitored by the bank for signs of when to begin rate cuts - rose by 2.88% in the same period on the back of clothing and food prices.
The bank has hiked rates by 4,150 basis points between June 2023 and March 2024, to 50%, as part of an abrupt shift to orthodox policy after years of low rates aimed at stoking growth.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who in past years was viewed as influencing monetary policy, had supported the previous unorthodoxy. It triggered a series of currency crashes and sent inflation soaring.

Erdogan was quoted on Friday as telling reporters that "no one should doubt" the steady decline in inflation and that economic steps would continue with discipline and determination to ease price pressures.

The central bank warned last month that a bump in recent inflation readings increased uncertainty, prompting analysts to delay expectations for the first rate cut to December or January.

Karahan said the new inflation forecasts were based on maintaining tight policy, adding the bank would do "whatever is necessary" to wrestle inflation down, and pointing to what he called a significant fall in the annual rate since May.

He said the slowdown in domestic demand continues at a moderate pace and the output gap has continued to decline in the third quarter.