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.



US Job Growth Surges in September, Unemployment Rate Falls to 4.1%

A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
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US Job Growth Surges in September, Unemployment Rate Falls to 4.1%

A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo
A woman enters a store next to a sign advertising job openings at Times Square in New York City, New York, US, August 6, 2021. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo

US job growth accelerated in September and the unemployment slipped to 4.1%, further reducing the need for the Federal Reserve to maintain large interest rate cuts at its remaining two meetings this year.
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 254,000 jobs last month after rising by an upwardly revised 159,000 in August, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its closely watched employment report on Friday.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls rising by 140,000 positions after advancing by a previously reported 142,000 in August.
The initial payrolls count for August has typically been revised higher over the past decade. Estimates for September's job gains ranged from 70,000 to 220,000.
The US labor market slowdown is being driven by tepid hiring against the backdrop of increased labor supply stemming mostly from a rise in immigration. Layoffs have remained low, which is underpinning the economy through solid consumer spending.
Average hourly earnings rose 0.4% after gaining 0.5% in August. Wages increased 4% year-on-year after climbing 3.9% in August.
The US unemployment rate dropped from 4.2% in August. It has jumped from 3.4% in April 2023, in part boosted by the 16-24 age cohort and rise in temporary layoffs during the annual automobile plant shutdowns in July.
The US Federal Reserve's policy setting committee kicked off its policy easing cycle with an unusually large half-percentage-point rate cut last month and Fed Chair Jerome Powell emphasized growing concerns over the health of the labor market.
While the labor market has taken a step back, annual benchmark revisions to national accounts data last week showed the economy in a much better shape than previously estimated, with upgrades to growth, income, savings and corporate profits.
This improved economic backdrop was acknowledged by Powell this week when he pushed back against investors' expectations for another half-percentage-point rate cut in November, saying “this is not a committee that feels like it is in a hurry to cut rates quickly.”
The Fed hiked rates by 525 basis points in 2022 and 2023, and delivered its first rate cut since 2020 last month. Its policy rate is currently set in the 4.75%-5.00% band.
Early on Friday, financial markets saw a roughly 71.5% chance of a quarter-point rate reduction in November, CME's FedWatch tool showed. The odds of a 50 basis points cut were around 28.5%.