Saudi FDI Inflows Grow by 10.7% in 3rd Quarter 2022

Riyadh is preparing to launch the second edition of the Financial Sector Conference (FSC 2023). (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh is preparing to launch the second edition of the Financial Sector Conference (FSC 2023). (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi FDI Inflows Grow by 10.7% in 3rd Quarter 2022

Riyadh is preparing to launch the second edition of the Financial Sector Conference (FSC 2023). (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh is preparing to launch the second edition of the Financial Sector Conference (FSC 2023). (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Ministry of Investment said on Tuesday that the foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into Saudi Arabia rose 10.7% in the third quarter of 2022 over the same period a year earlier.

FDI inflows amounted to 7.2 billion riyals ($1.9 billion) in the third quarter of 2022, according to the Investment ministry’s latest monthly bulletin, compared to 6.5 billion riyals in the third quarter of 2021.

This announcement comes as Riyadh is preparing to launch the second edition of the Financial Sector Conference (FSC 2023), which is organized by the Financial Sector Development Program partners (Ministry of Finance, Saudi Central Bank, and Capital Market Authority).

The event, which will be held on March 15-16 at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh, will be attended by decision-makers in the financial sector and senior executives in local, regional, and international financial institutions, as well as investors, entrepreneurs, and prominent academics.

Minister of Finance, Chairman of the Financial Sector Development Program Committee, Mohammad Al-Jadaan, told SPA that the second edition of the FSC comes at an important stage in the world, amid efforts to overcome the challenges in the global economy.

He added that Saudi Arabia sought to speed up the implementation of comprehensive structural reforms, including reforms in the financial sector, through strategies, programs and projects that promote sustainable economic growth and raise the quality of life, in accordance with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

According to a press release, the FSC 2023 agenda includes a discussion of the key topics on the aspirations and concerns of the financial community. Participants will discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the global economy, supply chain constraints, a changing world order, the protracted pandemic, and other factors causing slow growth in many regions worldwide that affect the financial sector and its ecosystem.



China's Industrial Profits Narrow Decline but 2024 Likely Worst Year in Decades

An employee works at a carbon fibre production line inside a factory in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China October 27, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer
An employee works at a carbon fibre production line inside a factory in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China October 27, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer
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China's Industrial Profits Narrow Decline but 2024 Likely Worst Year in Decades

An employee works at a carbon fibre production line inside a factory in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China October 27, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer
An employee works at a carbon fibre production line inside a factory in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China October 27, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer

China's industrial profits fell at a slower clip in November, official data showed on Friday, but the annual decline in earnings this year is expected to be the worst in over two decades due to persistently soft domestic consumption.

The world's second-largest economy has been struggling to mount a strong post-pandemic revival, as business and household appetites for spending and investment remain subdued amid a prolonged housing downturn and fresh trade risks from the incoming US administration of President-elect Donald Trump.

Industrial profits fell 7.3% in November from the same month last year, following a 10% drop in October, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data showed, Reuters reported.

The narrower decline in November pointed to improved profits as recent economic stimulus measures start to have an effect, said Zhou Maohua, a macroeconomic researcher at China Everbright Bank.

The profit numbers were also in line with a slower decline in factory-gate prices in November. The producer price index fell 2.5% year-on-year versus the 2.9% drop in October.

The World Bank on Thursday revised up its 2024 economic growth forecast for China slightly to 4.9% from its June forecast of 4.8%.

Still, in the first 11 months of 2024, industrial profits declined 4.7%, deepening a 4.3% slide in the January-October period, reflecting still tepid private demand in the Chinese economy.

China's full-year industrial profits are set to show their biggest drop in percentage terms since 2011. However, when smaller companies are included under a previous compilation methodology, this year's profit decline is expected to the worst since at least 2000.

A spate of economic indicators released this month pointed to mixed results, with industrial output accelerating in November while new home prices fell at the slowest pace in 17 months.

The industrial sector is undergoing an uneven recovery amid insufficient demand, Zhou said, pointing to difficulties facing real estate and some related industries as evidence of this malaise.

China's leaders vowed in a key policy meeting this month to raise the deficit, issue more debt and loosen monetary policy to maintain a stable economic growth rate. The government also recently pledged to step up direct fiscal support to consumers and boosting social security.

Beijing has agreed to issue a record $411 billion special treasury bonds next year, Reuters reported.

Profits at state-owned firms fell 8.4% in the first 11 months, foreign firms posted a 0.8% decline and private-sector companies recorded a 1% fall, according to a breakdown of the NBS data.

Industrial profit numbers cover firms with annual revenues of at least 20 million yuan ($2.7 million) from their main operations.