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Saudi-Omani MoUs Boost Shared Investments

The second meeting of the Saudi-Omani Business Council, which concluded on Monday in Muscat (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The second meeting of the Saudi-Omani Business Council, which concluded on Monday in Muscat (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi-Omani MoUs Boost Shared Investments

The second meeting of the Saudi-Omani Business Council, which concluded on Monday in Muscat (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The second meeting of the Saudi-Omani Business Council, which concluded on Monday in Muscat (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Omani-Saudi Investment Forum and the Joint Saudi-Omani Business Council concluded their meetings and activities on Monday in Muscat, by introducing and promoting investment opportunities in the Kingdom and Sultanate.

In a major boost for Oman’s ambitious shrimp farming industry, Fisheries Development Oman (FDO) – the fisheries sector investment and development arm of the government – has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Aquaculture Group (Naqua) of Saudi Arabia centering on cooperation in the development of the former’s shrimp farming project at Al Jazer on the Sultanate’s Al Wusta coast.

The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Omani-Saudi Investment Forum.

More so, several Saudi businessmen inked agreements and MoUs for services and researching future investment opportunities with a number of Omani companies.

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Investment, Khalid al-Falih, and Oman’s Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, Qais al-Yousef discussed the horizons open for trade and investment cooperation between their two countries.

“On this visit, we anticipated a serious desire to build a growing partnership in the strategic economic sectors of interest to the two countries... We are fully prepared to advance this partnership and achieve integration,” said al-Yousef.

Al-Yousef said that the existing investment structures provide an attractive environment for promising projects. These factors affirm suitable opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors from Saudi Arabia to enter partnerships with their Omani counterparts.

Al-Yousef said that Oman and Saudi Arabia seek to achieve prosperity for their citizens and that this partnership, based on solid grounds of integrated action, constitutes an opportunity for the two countries’ people.

During the meeting, al-Falih and al-Yousef signed an MoU for cooperation on investment promotion.

The meeting also discussed means of promoting trade between the two countries and the formation of joint committees in the targeted sectors.

Al-Falih said that the development and transformational trends in the two countries, namely Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and Oman’s Vision 2040, have provided a large space for joint strategic investment opportunities that benefit both states.

In a speech, al-Falih praised the “historic visit” of Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said to Saudi Arabia and his meeting with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in July, SPA reported.

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Facing Market Pain, UK’s Reeves Says ‘Pragmatic’ China Ties Will Help Growth

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves looks on during the 11th China - UK Economy and Finance Dialogue in Beijing, China, 11 January 2025. (EPA)
British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves looks on during the 11th China - UK Economy and Finance Dialogue in Beijing, China, 11 January 2025. (EPA)
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Facing Market Pain, UK’s Reeves Says ‘Pragmatic’ China Ties Will Help Growth

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves looks on during the 11th China - UK Economy and Finance Dialogue in Beijing, China, 11 January 2025. (EPA)
British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves looks on during the 11th China - UK Economy and Finance Dialogue in Beijing, China, 11 January 2025. (EPA)

British finance minister Rachel Reeves, facing criticism for travelling to China during financial market turmoil at home, said on Saturday that "pragmatic and predictable" relations with Beijing would help boost economic growth and trade.

Under pressure from a sharp rise in British interest rates, Reeves defended her budget at the start of the two-day visit to China, where she is seeking to revive high-level economic and financial talks that have been frozen for nearly six years.

"The fiscal rules that I set out in my budget in October are non-negotiable, and growth is the number one mission of this government to make our country better off," Reeves told reporters at a Brompton bicycle shop in Beijing.

"That's why I'm in China to unlock tangible benefits for British businesses exporting and trading around the world to ensure that we have greater access to the second-largest economy in the world."

The rise in British government borrowing costs, due in part to a global bond selloff, prompted comparisons with the 2022 "mini-budget" crisis that forced then-Prime Minister Liz Truss out of Downing Street.

However, this week's market moves have been less sharp and there has so far been no evidence of the strain on institutional investors that forced the Bank of England into emergency bond purchases in 2022.

On trade, asked whether Britain would follow Washington and Brussels in imposing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, Reeves, who will be in Shanghai on Sunday, said: "We keep issues under review but we make decisions in our national interest."

British car manufacturers, "like Jaguar Land Rover, export substantially to Chinese markets, and we want to help them to grow."

After her bicycle shop visit, Reeves met Vice President Han Zheng, telling him it was "important to have open and frank dialogue in areas where we agree, but also in areas where we have different views."

'COMMON GROUND'

Her delegation, which includes Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, Standard Chartered Chairman Jose Vinals, and HSBC Chairman Mark Tucker, then met Chinese counterparts led by Vice Premier He Lifeng.

He urged British financial firms to expand renminbi services and promote deeper yuan internationalization, while inviting them to participate in green finance and the pension industry in China.

Reeves said she looked forward to China issuing its first overseas sovereign green bond in London this year.

Her visit follows a dialogue opened last year between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and President Xi Jinping, the first between the two countries' leaders since 2018.

Reeves told He that Russia's invasion of Ukraine, rising geopolitical tensions and climate change meant that they faced a much more challenging environment than when their predecessors last met.

"It is important to prevent economic leaps weakening our national security and economic resilience," she said, adding both she and He wanted to "find common ground" in this regard.

He said Beijing will work with London to ensure a fair, non-discriminatory business environment for each country's firms.

The approach adopted by Starmer's Labor government, elected in July, contrasts with that of the previous Conservative administration, which took a robust path to differences with China - particularly over human rights, Hong Kong and allegations of Chinese espionage.

Starmer has long described his desire to build a relationship with China that is "rooted in the UK's national interests" by boosting trade, a task that may become more difficult if US President-elect Donald Trump follows through on his threat to impose tariffs on all imports.

China is Britain's fourth-largest trading partner, accounting for goods and services trade worth almost 113 billion pounds ($138 billion).